508 CALIFORNIA FRUIT SOCIETIES. 



the business more men of business aptitude and experience 

 than were engaged in any other brancli of the fruit in- 

 dustry, so that the problem was not only more simple than 

 that of the north, but the people were better qualified to deal 

 with it ; or at least it can be said that from an early date the 

 cooperative movement in southern California commanded the 

 adhesion and energy of many of the large and wealthy 

 orchardists, which the northern movement seldom did. The 

 result was that when the problem was attacked the movement 

 had greater force, stronger support, and. better direction than 

 was for a long time attained by the northern movements. 



At an early date there were cooperators in the orange 

 business. In 1888 or 1889 there was formed the Pachappa 

 Fruit Association, in a district about two miles from Riverside, 

 which attempted, in a very crude way, to accomplish about 

 the objects of the northern fresh fruit shipping associations 

 already described. As one of the original founders lately 

 expressed himself to me, they knew very little of the orange 

 marketing business, and groped about rather blindly and with- 

 out much effect. Their original idea seems to have been a 

 simple neighborhood agreement to hold their fruit for the 

 highest price obtainable from the local buyers, and to sell 

 all together. Afterwards they undertook their own shipping, 

 with no flattering results. They were not incorporated, and 

 of course did not hold together very well, but the persistence 

 of some led to a continued study of the subject, and prepared 

 the way and made possible the better achievements of a later 

 (hiy. In 1892 the Riverside Fruit Exchange was organized, 

 under the auspices of some of the solid men of Riverside, and 

 continued in operation during the year. With the details of 

 this enterprise I am not familiar; it was intended as an 

 organization to market the fruit of its members, but it never 

 had any such general adherence of growers as to render it 

 master of the situation, and the manager, who was an 

 experienced and able man, seems to have been allowed what 

 he could make it ]n\y him by commissions. It did a good 

 business, in a maiuur presumably satisfactory to those who 

 sold through it, and was a step along the path it was desired 

 to follow. 



