WINTER MEETING. 295 



Yes, the year 1895 had a very large apple crop, but it came — it 

 was here — and it went, and thousands of bushels went to waste for 

 want of proper care and attention, while thousands of families had to 

 do without apples. 



When the National Apple Shippers' Association met in convention 

 last August in the city of Chicago, it was not a question with them 

 "Will there be a demand for apples?" but the main question, "How 

 best and in what way this, then unusually large, apple crop could be 

 economically and properly distributed and sold." And this, in my 

 opinion, will be the great question we will have to settle in the fnlure. 



That the demand has increased mach faster than the natural in- 

 crease of population, is also a fact that all who have handled fruit 

 largely agree upon. When I commenced shipping apples, twenty-six 

 years ago, in July, 1869, a car-load of apples to any town west of the 

 Mississippi, (excepting a few large cities) was equal to glutting the 

 market; today there is room for car-loads even in small towns. I re- 

 member in the early part of the seventies, the greater portion of Texas 

 was supplied by apples brought in wagons from Arkansas, and a few 

 wagon loads would supply and often overstock towns, which now re- 

 ceive so many car-loads. It is true the population has increased since, 

 but not in the proportion to the present demand for apples, and in my 

 opinion this demand will grow at a greater ratio in the next twenty 

 years. It is largely a matter of education, and so long as civilization 

 and education progress, we may look for an increased demand for 

 fruit. But the chief question confronting us now, and which under 

 existing conditions may not be easy to solve, is "how, when, and by 

 what method will we reach and supply the entire year this ever exist- 

 ing and growing demand." From my twenty-five years' active expe- 

 rience in packing and shipping apples, I would recommend: 



1. Education. 



2. Distribution. 



3. Specialties of occupation. 



By education, I mean that the fruit-grower should know what 

 varieties to plant, how to plant, cultivate and gather at the right time, 

 and in the best possible manner. The dealer must be well informed 

 in his business so he may properly pack and distribute. There is so 

 much to say and advice in detail, in this connection, that space and 

 time will not permit. 



The main idea, however, that I wish to convey to both the grower 

 and the dealer is "honest and fair dealing." Deception practiced by 

 either the dealer or the farmer, has in the past worked great injury 



