No. 7. DEPARTMEiNT OF AGRICULTURE. 343 



THE POMOLOGIST'S REPORT. 



By Dr. J. H. FCJNK, Boyertown. 



It is with diffidence that I stand before this honorable body of 

 Grod's Husbandry to-day as a representative of a suppressed, op- 

 pressed and bug-ridden sister industry, which was brought about 

 by woman's indiscretion and man's wealiness. Prior to the fall of 

 the sovereignty of Adam., Horticulture occupied the position of honor 

 as the highest and most honorable calling of man. But since that 

 epoch, when beautiful Eve did, with her sweet smiles and seductive 

 manners, beguile poor Adam, and he was driven from his primitive 

 home to dig and grub for sordid wealth, and the necessaries for his 

 existence, it has become a nip-and-tuck existence. Agriculture re- 

 quires so much grubbing, that horticultural products were classed 

 among the luxuries; and even to the present time, some people 

 look upon fruit as an article that can be dispensed with. But in 

 most of the large cities and towns, as well as country districts, fruit 

 has become as staple as wheat or any other products from the farm. 

 And when choice fruit is placed upon the market, even in years of 

 plenty, as has been the past one, the demand is good and remunera- 

 tive and prices are well maintained. The crop of apples the past 

 season was estimated at 36.120,000 barrels, or 12,625,000 barrels more 

 than the crop of 1905. This means one-third more apples, or, in 

 other words, just one bushel of apples for every man, woman and 

 child in the United States — perhaps one-half the population are non- 

 consumers. But that would again be off-set by the great waste 

 throughout the producing districts, from neglect of gathering and 

 handling at the proper time. From this source alone it is esti- 

 mated there is one-fourth of the crop lost. Another source of great 

 loss is poor car service and means of transportation, as well as scar- 

 city and high price of barrels and other packages. The past season 

 there were hundreds of carloads of apples shipped in bulk. These 

 arriving at destination in poor condition, brought proportionately 

 low prices, but choice fruit, put up :n new, clean, packages, brought 

 and are bringing prices but little lower than in other years when fruit 

 was scarce. 



There seems to be a certain equilibrium in nature — ithe more 

 plentiful the fruit, the lower the juice; the lower the price, the 

 greater the consumption; the greater the consumption, the greater 

 the demand; the greater the demand, the higher the price. When 

 the maximum is reached, except in years of great scarcity, supply 

 and demand bring about that happy medium that satisfies both pro- 

 ducer and consumer. 



A glut is brought about by large quantities of inferior goods being 

 dumped upon the market. Choice or fancy goods always command 

 the choice or fancy prices. Cream rises to the surface; skim-milk 

 is sold as a cheap by-product. Therefore raise cream, and leuTt 



