215 



would not ordinarily have eaten apples on account of their 

 high cost, and we may reasonably hope that a good per cent 

 of these, having now acquired the habit of eating apples, 

 will continue it in future years even though they may have 

 to pay slightly more for them. 



In the second place the same conditions outlined under 

 "one" have aroused us to an interest in some legal regula- 

 tions of the packing and sale of apples. Under normal con- 

 ditions it would have taken years to have brought our 

 growers to the interest in this subject which this single sea- 

 son with its low prices and general "hard sledding" has 

 produced. We hope and expect that the present sessions of 

 our New England legislatures will. see enacted some type of 

 law which will regulate, with some degree of efficiency, the 

 grading, packing and sale of apples. If this is accomplished 

 it will be worth thousands of dollars to our New England 

 orchard men and will far more than offset the financial 

 losses of 1914. 



In the third place I believe that this temporary depres- 

 sion will have a salutary effect by checking the undue in- 

 terest in fruit growing which has shown itself in certain 

 (luarters of late years. Mind I say undue interest ! We are 

 all of us proud of the place which fruit growing has attained 

 in the farming operations of the present day, but the very 

 preeminence of this position has stimulated an undue inter- 

 est in many quarters which interest has been still further 

 aggravated by the many exaggerated accounts which have 

 i'ound their way into print of the profits in orcharding. This 

 has led many men in other walks of life, with no knowledge 

 whatever of the business, to turn towards fruit growing as 

 an easy road to wealth! The past season will do much to 

 correct this false impression. And while we may hope that 

 our real fruit growers will continue with unabated interest 

 in their business, we may also hope to be freed from this 

 other class who could not but fail in the end. 



What now of the year that is ahead of us? In what 

 ways ought we to work in order that this year 1915 in par- 



