134 



TWENTY-EIGHTH FRUIT-GROWERS' CONVENTION. 



MR. HARTRANFT. It seems a pity to say much more at this late 

 hour, but I look on this evening's programme as one of the important 

 sessions of the Convention. I am surprised at the modesty of our 

 advertising friends to come in here and refer to $100,000 appropriations. 

 Our appropriation for citrus fruit this year was $2,000,000. We kept 

 our prices on Christmas oranges right up to the hilt, along some $2.80 

 to $3.25 a box; and when it passed the Christmas trade, with no method 

 in marketing which tended to bring those prices down, the housewives 

 of the country got the idea into their heads that oranges were pretty 

 high. They stood it for Christmas-time, but they just simply laid 

 them one side after Christmas, and we plunged on into the chasm of 

 high prices and no consumption, or very little consumption, and pretty 

 soon we had about a thousand cars a week rolling, or eight hundred for 

 about eight weeks — we will figure it up roughly two million boxes— and 

 we spent a $2,000,000 appropriation there in a hurry. (Laughter.) 

 Only we didn't give it to the newspapers, and I think the newspapers 

 ought to have had it. That was all wrong. The consumers got it all. 

 As soon as oranges went down to about $2.25 a box, every little old Italian 

 peddler in the country says: "No; I won't buy bananas this week," and 

 up they went through the alleys in every direction spending our appro- 

 priation. And still we haven't got this good will that we would have 

 had through natural advertising. I think that follows out in all lines, 

 and I think we spend our appropriation every year, and I hope we 

 will have enough of these advertising talks every year so we will get 

 this advertising appropriation spent in the right direction finally. 

 (Applause.) 



At this time a recess was taken until Thursday morning at 9:30 

 o'clock. 



