THE MONTHLY BULLETIN. ,. 449 



a profit. We are talking about the developing of the resources of 

 California. Dr. Hunt has spoken of people coming to California and 

 investing money and exploiting California. You Avill find the solution of 

 that question answered in this report. In order to obviate the unneces- 

 sary taking of your time, I have in condensed, minute form, which 

 I will present to you, a report of j'-our Committee on Transportation. I 

 invite criticism, not only of the fruit growers, but also of the railroad 

 officials with whom I am dealing. This question of rates that we are 

 dealing with now will come up before the Railroad Commission on the 

 twenty-third of this month, when I will come in contact with the ablest 

 minds in this country and I am not afraid to meet them, because I know 

 that we are in the right. My voice is not pleasant, and inasmuch as I 

 will want about two minutes after this address is read, I would like to 

 call upon some person, Mr. Isaac, for instance, to read my address, and 

 then I will request your attention, take about two minutes, after he is 

 through. Mr. Isaac, will you be so obliging as to read this address that 

 I am to give at this meeting of the committee 1 



ADDRESS OF R. D. STEPHENS 

 Chairman of the Fruit Growers' Transportation Committee. 



It is my duty as your chairman of the Committee on Transportation, 

 to report what we have done, and what we have tried to do in your 

 behalf, and the way in which we proceeded in our work. To perform 

 this duty is not new to me, for I have been doing it for so long that it has 

 become more of a habit than otherwise. Your Committee on Transpor- 

 tation first fought for the elimination of the private refrigerator car 

 lines then used in the service of carrying our fruit to eastern markets. 

 When we began the fight, the charges for refrigeration to New York 

 were $150 per car, and $155 to Boston, and now the charge is $85 to 

 New York and common points and $75 to Chicago and common points. 



The contest was long, and sometimes became very interesting. Suffice 

 it to say that ultimately we Avon a victory which gave to the deciduous 

 fruit industry of the State an impetus resulting in increasing the volume 

 of its products several hundred per cent. The increase in table grape 

 shipments alone is about 600 per cent. 



A New Committee 



A new freight rate committee was appointed at the convention held 

 at Sacramento in 1907, for the purpose of securing the same freight 

 rates for deciduous shipments as were being given to the citrus growers 

 and shippers. 



The accomplishment of the purpose for which this committee was 

 appointed was more of a task than it was at first thought it would be. 

 However, it was not so difficult nor did it take so long— only three 

 years — as did the elimination of the private car lines, and everybody 

 would have been happy and comparatively satisfied had not the rail- 

 roads arbitrarily increased the minimum for a carload from 24,000 to 

 26,000 pounds, and subsequently increased the weight from 26 to 28 



7 HB 



