20 



the comparatively few buyers of fruit represented by men 

 with plenty of capital, insisting on "bearing" the market in 

 every way possible, at times throwing dust in the eyes of ap- 

 ple growers relative to prospects, hoping to get the market 

 down to a dollar basis for fine eastern Baldwins or Greenings 

 at time of harvest. One way in which the individual grower 

 can protect himself is through keeping thoroughly posted re- 

 garding the crop prospects, particularly in midsummer and 

 earlj'- fall. He is then fortified against the wiles of the 

 would-be buyer who talks bumper crop, should the facts as 

 brought out in these crop reports not warrant such 

 assumption. 



The testimony here presented suggests that some such 

 local associations may have their place here in Mas- 

 sachusetts. This takes it for granted that the orchardist 

 packs good fruit, and it is reasonably apparent that good 

 results in making sales in neighborhoods not exactly conven- 

 ient to market might be secured from the formation of local 

 selling associations. Bearing on this subject of selling fruit, 

 though foreign to the co-operative method, James Handly, 

 secretary of the Mississippi Valley Apple Growers' associa- 

 tion says: "Where the apple grower does not care to assume 

 the labor of sorting his fruit, it seems to me better for him 

 to sell his orchard in a lump to the buyer, the latter to do his 

 own sorting. On the other hand, if the grower understands 

 all conditions, and is willing to meet all requirements, the 

 buyer nine times out of ten would be willing to pay the ex- 

 tra price for the fruit if the grower would do the sorting 

 and packing." This suggestion of Mr. Handly of course ap- 

 plies more particularly to sections where there are large 

 commercial orchards. A problem for the Massachusetts ap- 

 ple powers is to shape things, perhaps partly through the 

 good work of local organizations, as to induce buyers to 

 come to them for the fruit as it appears in the orchards. 



The barrel is of course the standard package for ap- 

 ples. I have at one time and another personally visited 

 many wholesale markets in leading cities east and west, and 

 also in London and Liverpool. At home and abroad I have 

 been told that dealers, except in a restricted way, do not 

 want anything but the barrel. I do not need to tell you 

 that all in all a barrel of regulation size is best, the liour 

 barrel or its equivalent. (Diameter of head 17 1-8 inches, 

 length of stave 28 1-2 inches, outside measurement not less 

 than 64 inches circumference.) The secretary of the Inter- 



