15 



handle the proper grading and packing of pears and apples 

 where several members furnish small amounts. How do 

 3'ou get the grading uniform? 



MR. CLARKE : Well, as I said, that is our big difficul- 

 ty. For instance, this year our Kieffer pears are very cheap. 

 Now, some of our members use rings, and our manager was 

 enabled to offer for the 214 iweh Kieffer pears, two dollars. 

 They use rings for that size. The manager would go 

 around and stop at a man's packing shed and look at his 

 pears, and in that way he would be informed. And then, 

 you know, buyers are pretty keen on what they buy and they 

 don't let many shy ones get in, after all. Otherwise we have 

 to depend entirely upon the honesty and forethought of the 

 grower, for after all it is to his advantage. We haven 't 

 really any system whereby we can make a grower do that. 



THE PRESIDENT: It seems to me that the fact that 

 they still allow a man to retain his individuality in the Asso- 

 ciation will go far towards answering Mr. Jenk's inquiry. 

 If they all went in with one mark on them, they might 

 sneak them in, but if everybody has to put his name on, and 

 they know it comes from A. R. Jenks or F. C. Sears, that will 

 make a big difference. 



MR. EMERSON : I would like to ask whether the Asso 

 ciation has worked with vegetables or other products than 

 fruit, or have thought of it? 



]\IR. CLARKE: Well, we are in a peculiar locality. 

 That is all we grow. We haven't anything else, unless it bo 

 eggs, to offer for sale. We are not in the vegetable business 

 at all, but I think it could be worked just as well with vege- 

 tables as it could be with fruit. 



THE PRESIDENT: Perhaps we had better close this 

 discussion, unless there is some one who has a question he 

 would like very especially to ask. I certainly feel that we 

 have gotten a lot out of the discussion and that this is some- 

 thing to Avork towards in a good many ways, — some such 

 association as they have there. I think we have some sec- 

 tions in our state where an association of this kind, though 



