- 9 - 
Ori.'-jr. -i-r i.-l ievo 'i v .i^nt of the prm ie industry 
Some botanists of standing claim that the plum was imown in Europe 
in its wild and uncultivated state as lone as 2,000 years ago. At any 
rate there are records showing that the Blue Plum (Blaue Zwetschge) was 
introduced from ruricestan a boat 1,0C0 years ago. At first these plums 
'.vera grown mostly in the great Hungarian -plain but later found their home 
further south along the Danube and Save rivers in the districts now taiown 
as oeroia and Bosnia. The first evidence of plum culture in the latter 
area is said to date bacK to' the 13th century. 
The plum growing industry in Europe developed rapidly and with the 
domination of Bosnia by Austria-Hungary in 1878 prunes began to be dried 
for export to other European countries. ' 5y 1880 considerable quantities 
of dried prunes //ere shipped to Germany. Budapest early became an impor- 
: prune shipping center. In 1886 a trial shipment of Bosnian prunes 
was made. to the United States 1 through the port of Trieste .vhich soon devel- 
oped into a flourishing export trade. As a rule only the smaller siges 
(".lor -cant lie) -vere shipped to America and these arrived in caslts containing 
500 to 700 lcilos-(l t 100 to 1,540 pounds) and in 100 kilo (220 pounds) bags. 
In 1695 this export trade died down as our home proudction then became 
great enough to meet local needs. 
During the period 1900-1913 the industry broadened its European 
expert outlets. Exports from the United states at that time were still 
relatively small. This period saw the prune industry in what is now 
Yugoslavia at its zenith with an export surplus in 1904 of 118,000 short 
tens. The annual average export for the period 1904-1913 was about 48,500 
short tons. 
Prune industry shows decline 
While post-war exports up to 1927 did not vary materially, except 
in the low crop year 1924, from the pre-war totals, both the trade and 
the government in Yugoslavia state that the dried prune industry is 
definitely on the decline. Since 1927 unfavorable leather conditions 
and scale infestation have greatly reduced the usual export surplus. 
This, with the large export surpluses from the United otates of relatively 
law priced prunes, has forced Yugoslavia oat of many of her former export 
markets. The situation in general is looked 'upon as critical but ways 
i means are now being devised to restore the' industry to its pre-war 
- sperity . ' 
The following table gives the number of trees, the production of 
fresh prunes and exports of dried prunes from 1920 to 1929. while tree 
counts from year to year sho// too much variation tc be entirely reliable 
re is unquestionably a definitely declining number of prune trees. 
is reflected in lowered production although tree losses are not the 
only factor. Unfavorable climatic conditions contributed materially to 
decreased production in 1927, 1926 and 1929. 
