292 MINNESOTA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



I want to pack apples when I pack apples, and to pack oats 

 when I pack oats. (Laughter.) I pick my apples from seven 

 o'clock in the morning until six o'clock at night. 



General C. C. Andrews, St. Paul: I read in this morning's 

 Tribune that in the proceedings of this society Mr. R. C. Keel 

 of Rochester stated he had sold $4, 000 worth of Minnesota 

 apples last year. I want to know if that is a fact. 



Mr. Keel: I never reported that I sold $4,000 worth. I sold 

 about 3,500 bushels, and they averaged me about a dollar a 

 bushel. Those are the facts. 



Mr. Harris; Nearly one-half of ^the apples grown are of the 

 Duchess of Oldenburg variety. I estimated in the last "Farm, 

 Stock and Home" 200, OOOj bushels as the crop this year, but I 

 got it below what it was. 



General Andrews: What is the value of the apples grown 

 in the state of Minnesota? 



Mr. Harris: I believe that the value of the crop of apples 

 grown in Minnesota is at least $200,000. This is an off year 

 for fruit over the country, and in many places in Minnesota it 

 is also an off year. 



General Andrews : I hope the reporter will state that, and 

 let it go out to the people. I keep pretty well posted, but I 

 am not as well posted as^I ought to be, and I know the general 

 public is not. I know people talk if they could only raise fruit 

 in Minnesota, if they could only raise apples in Minnesota, 

 what a blessed state it would be. Now, if the society would 

 only let this fact of the value of the apple product of Minnesota 

 be known generally throughout the state and country, it would 

 be of great value indeed. 



Mr. Sampson: I know of two car loads of empty grape 

 baskets, at least, that were shipped to Excelsior to be filled 

 with grapes for the market. General Andrews can form some 

 idea of our fruit crop from that. Raspberry and strawberry 

 boxes were also shipped in proportion. 



Mr. Wedge: It is my impression that Mr. Harris' figures as 

 to the apple crop are altogether too low. 



Mr. Somerville: I am of Mr. Wedge's opinion that Mr. 

 Harris has put the estimate entirely too low, from observations 

 that I have made in the state. 



Mr. Pearce: That is my opinion also. 



Mr. Harris: Well, I wanted to be on the safe side, although 

 I believe, myself, that the value of our apple crop was nearly 

 twice what I have stated. Now, I want to go back and say a 



