188 MODERN FRUIT MARKETING 



eral manager's office. In the morning the manager will 

 then have all the information from all the larger markets 

 which his agents represent. He would know the general 

 conditions of each market, about what fruit they could 

 handle, what varieties are bringing the highest prices 

 and the general tendency of the market for the next two 

 or three days. He would also have at his finger tips 

 the amount of fruit in the warehouses of the organiza- 

 tion, how much would need to be sold at once, and how 

 much could wait. From this information he draws his 

 conclusions as to what markets are best suited to handle 

 his shipments for the next two or three days. In this 

 way it is almost impossible to force fruit upon an al- 

 ready overcrowded market while another city is decidedly 

 lacking in certain grades and kinds of fruits. 



The information from competing points is not so im- 

 portant as the other but still is highly desirable. A 

 number of the Western exchanges have men in other 

 states who collect information regarding the crop. One 

 California exchange has its agents in Florida watching 

 the conditions of the Florida citrus crop. Also the 

 Florida organizations have their agents in California. 

 In this way the exchange keeps in touch with the busi- 

 ness. One exchange has its agents in Europe, collecting 

 information, and constantly keeps the home office in 

 touch with the fruit situation. This information is col- 

 lected and forwarded by letter usually, or, if considered 

 important, by wire. The agents report the condition of 

 the crop, quantity and the quality of the fruit, daily 

 shipments, where the fruit is sent and the prospects of 

 the market for the shipmenfs of fruit for the next two 

 or three days or a week, 



