STATE POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 12S 



to make it a success. It cannot be done unless we take hold of it 

 heart and hand. Our people are so well satisfied that the}- cannot 

 look ahead. Our reputation now is below that of New York and 

 Canada and yet we can raise as good fruit as they. Our buyers 

 have been buying the whole crop, putting the poor apples in the 

 middle of the barrel and the good ones at the top and bottom, and 

 we are the ones to suffer in the long run. We have great difficulties 

 to meet in organizing an association. How is it going to be possi- 

 ble to prevent a man from putting in bad apples and marking it with 

 the brand of the association ? If we could raise capital enough to 

 provide for bringing the apples all together to one point and having 

 them assorted or inspected it might do, but that would be very- 

 expensive. Not a quarter part of the growers of apples know how 

 to pack. Some pack too loosely and some too closely. 



Mr. Knowlton. I do not rise to discuss this matter now, but to 

 impress upon you and those present the importance of the subject. 

 I think our president has touched the ke3'-note exactly, in combining 

 his remarks with those of Mr. True concerning the satisfaction of 

 farmers with the prices they are receiving this year. The question 

 is not about this year, but looking forward into the future what is 

 it that is going to sell Maine apples in competition with those of 

 other places? If I were a large grower of apples I would not risk 

 ray reputation in the hands of men who go through the State and 

 buy apples for speculation. The only safety in past years for large 

 growers, has been to pack the apples themselves and place them 

 where they could get good prices. I will refer you to the case of 

 our president here in illustration of the point. His apples have sold 

 from one dollar to three dollars a barrel in excess of the general 

 market price because of the reputation he has won. I will call upon 

 my friend, Mr. Whittier, to give us his experience. 



Mr. Whittier. I would say that the best way that I can do is 

 only to market my best apples in a green state and evaporate the 

 inferior ones. I take the same pains with the evaporated apples as 

 with the green apples so as to establish a reputation for them. B}^ 

 keeping the inferior apples for evaporating I get as much for the 

 choice apples as I could for all together as they are usually handled. 

 It has previously cost me about two and a half cents a pound for the 

 labor in evaporating. This year I have obtained a better evaporator 

 and it has only cost me about two cents. This year I got a little 

 over seven pounds to the bushel of apples. The whole cost amounts 



