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296 



THE ILLINOIS FARMER 



Oct. 



Fruit Trade in Oregon. 



In compliance with your request to furnish 

 you with etatiatics of the fruit trade during the 

 earlier years of the business. I regret that we 

 are able only to give a very meager account. — 

 Our cocnection with the business dates back 

 only to 1856, and those who could give only the 

 desiriid information have gone out of the busi- 

 ness and left the city. We kept no record of 

 the trade further than our owh transactions, till 

 1858. 



Th9 first grafted or cultivated fruit was 

 brought to this market from Oregon, by Messrs. 

 Meek & Luelling, in 1853. They brought about 

 four bushels, or about 200 pounds, from the sale 

 of which they realized about $500, In 1854 the 

 same parties brought to this market, as near as 

 we can learn, about 40 bushels which they con- 

 tracted on arrival, to George Hughes, at $1 25 

 per pound ; but on delivering, they were found 

 to be damaged by heat in the steamer, and the 

 sale was settled at 87i cts. per pound, realizing 

 about $2,500 



In 1855, the receipts from Oregon amounted 

 probably to some 1,500 boxes, prices ranging 

 from 50 cents to $1 00 per pound. In 1856 the 

 receipts amounted to soveral thousand boxes, 

 sales ranging from 25 to 75 cents per pound. 



In 1857, the receipts, we should judge, could 

 not be less than 15,000 boxes, sales ranging from 

 15 to 50 cents. 



In 1858, the receipts amounted to 29,190 box- 

 es, sales from 7 to 35 cents. 



In 1859, the receipts amounted to a little over 

 72,000 boxes, the sales ranging from 3 to 5 

 cents. 



In 1860, the receipts amounted to about 

 86,000 boxes, the sales ranging from 3 to 19 

 cents per pound. 



Of the crops of 18G1, the receipts are as fol- 

 lows : 



August, 539 boxes, at an average of 3 cents 

 per pound. 



September, 2,353 boxes, at an average of 3 

 cents per pound. 



October, 3,300 boxes, at an average of 3 J 

 cents per pound. 



November, 14,313 boxes ; sales at 2@7Jc.; av- 

 erage 5o. 



December, 21,681 boxes : sales at 2@6c.; av- 

 erage 4c. 



January, 3,891 boxes, sales at 2@4c.; aver- 

 age 3c. 



February, 15,425 boxes; sales at 2@8c.; av- 

 erace 2Jc. 



March, 9,lSl boxes ; sales at 2@lljc.; aver- 

 age 6c. 



April, 4,447 boxes ; sales at 2@8c.; average 

 5c. 



May, 334 boxes; sales at 4@,10c.; average 8c. 



June, 160 boxes; sales at 6@12c.; average 

 10c. 



Total receipt foot up at 75,394 boxes. 



The above exhibits the amount of Oregon fruit 

 received and sold in this city during the past 

 season, and the range of prices obtained each 

 month. Very little of the early fruit was ship- 

 ped here, the market being so well supplied with 



peaches, grapes, and other varieties, that prices 

 would not warrant the sending of early apples 

 to this market from Oregon. 



Late fall and early winter fruit found ready 

 sale at paying prices, the market being more 

 steady and uniform than any preceding season. 

 During the winter, prices ruled much lower than 

 any former season, although the supply was not 

 near as large as that of the winter of 1860 and 

 1861. 



The rains and floods of this State caused an 

 almost total suspension of business and trade 

 with the interior towns of the State, so that there 

 was very little outlet for fruit beyond what was 

 consumed in the city. Again, much of that re- 

 ceived in January and February was out of sea- 

 son — varieties that should have been in market 

 six or eight weeks earlier, it having been de- 

 tained by floods and the closing of the Columbia 

 river by ice. 



Hence much of it had been frosted, and ar- 

 rived in a damaged and often nearly worthless 

 condition. 



These causes combined have rendered prices 

 less remunerative to dealers and producers than 

 any former year. 



The total receipts from Oregon have been 

 about eleven thousand boxes less than of the 

 crop of 1860, and only three thousand boxes 

 more than 1859, while the range of "prices 

 has very materially diminished each succeeding 

 year. This is explained by the large and annu- 

 ally increasing fruit crop of Califoihia, which 

 will soon be sufi&cient to supply the wants of this 

 market. 



Even the past year, peaches were so abundant 

 as to pay only a small profit to the producer 

 above the expenses of gathering and transporta- 

 tion to market; and large orchards just coming 

 into bearing indicate a plentiful supply ot every 

 variety, in a few years. We have taken much 

 pains to ascertain the amount of California fruit 

 sold in this market, of the crop of 1861, with 

 the following result : 



Apples, 57,735 boxes, at an average of 50 lbs 

 per box. 



Apricots, 2,178 baskets, at an average of 30 

 lbs per basket. 



Cherries, 1,790 boxes, at an average of 20 lbs 

 per box. 



Figs, 438 boxes, at an average of 30 ft) 3 per 



box. 



Grapes, 30,730 boxes, at an average of 60 lbs 



per box. 



Kectarines, 1,255 baskets, at an average of 

 30 lbs per basket. 



Peaches, 130,368 baskets, at an average of 30 



lbs per basket. - -„ ,. 



Pears, 17,890 boxes, at an average of 60 lbs 



box box. 



Plums, 6,784 boxes, at an average of 25 lbs 



per box. 

 Quinces, 250 boxes, at an average of 50 lbs per 



box. 



Besides these, a large amount of strawberries, 

 raspberries, blackbetries, gooseberries, and cur- 

 rants, of which we have made no estimate. 



In compiling the above, we are much indebted 

 to the different Commission Fruit Dealers, most 



