Winter Meeting. 167 



to believe that things are more unfavorable ahead of us than they have 

 been, and what we have to say here applies to die future and not the 

 past. If, with a crop nine million barrels short of last year, the price 

 of barrels advanced from thirty to fifty per cent., what may we expect 

 with a crop of sixty to seventy millions of barrels such as we have had 

 and are liable to have any year ? Is there a scarcity of timber from which 

 cooperage is manufactured that causes the shortage in barrel stock dur- 

 ing the packing season each year? If ,so, v/e may as well turn at once 

 to some other package, making up our minds that our apple crops must 

 be handled in crates, boxes and baskets as the necessity of the case de- 

 mands. We believe that it is going to become necessary to use what 

 may be termed family or retail packages in order to market our large 

 apple crops. Would not consumption be doubled if apples were put up 

 in small packages like other fruits so the consumer could get them in the 

 original package? If the advance in the price of barrels is due, as many 

 think it is, to a pool or trust, ''and I will say there are reasons for this 

 belief," and there is plenty of timber, the remedy lies in the apple-growers 

 of the country through the National Apple Growers' Congress or some 

 organization to put machinery in operation cutting it into cooperage. We 

 are not assuming that there is any trust, but we notice each recurring year 

 that barrels can be had if we pay the advance in price. It is a question, 

 however, if we could secure barrels at 25 cents each again, whether it is 

 the package we should use. We are of the opinion that the extended dis- 

 tribution in a retail way necessary for the consumption of our large apple 

 crops cannot be reached by the use of the barrel. It may be said that for 

 storage and export trade we will have to use barrels. If only barrels are 

 used for this it would relieve the barrel situation that much. Still would 

 not a case holding half a bare] once in use be more satisfactory for storage 

 and export ? 



Mr. Geo. A. Cochrane, of Boston, in some of his writings referred to 

 the use of a case. We think this worthy of consideration and trial. "A 

 case of two compartments that holds exactly one-half barrel of apples. 

 In its finished state it is 28^ inches long, lyyi inches wide and deep (out- 

 side measurements). The two end pieces as well as the middle piece 

 should be of three-quarters of an inch wood, and the sides, bottoms and 

 tops should consist of three pieces of half inch wood. This case is a 

 Uttle too heavy to throw, or to try to walk it on its ends in moving it, 

 consequently it has to be caried or trucked which insures its having more 

 careful handling than the barrel or the smaller case or box. 



The bushel basket, such as used in marketing peaches, were used 

 ■quite extensively this season in Michigan. This basket has a good solid 



