September 1G, 1922 
The RURAL NEW-YORKER 
y all the term at cry I want at .12 
baslcel!" 
HOPE FARM NOTES 
The rush began a I two o’clock in the 
morning, and when the sun began to 
brighten lip the foggy east the battle was 
still on. Slowly the light spread in the 
sky over Paterson. Day came, and with 
it the final rush of the army of buyers. 
At a littlo past six we had nine baskets 
of tomatoes and three bushels of 'Wolf 
Rtver apples left, and there were similar 
lots left before most of the wagons. This 
seemed to be the harvest of the clean-up 
gang. They would come around to these 
small lots and, after considerable study, 
say; 
“I’ll give you so much for the lot. 
Usually when daylight comes farmers 
want to get. home and they will sell out 
the last remnants cheap. Tints some of 
these peddlers get surprising bargains if 
they wait. When our last basket was 
sold there were still piles of produce to be 
disposed of. The most pitiful bargains 
were being made for tomatoes, eggplant 
and peppers. They were worse than given 
away. At a little before seven we piled 
Mor- the empty baskets in our truck and start- 
These od for home. The night’s sales amounted 
to $43.00. On looking up the record of 
tile load we took over on the correspond¬ 
ing date last year 1 found that it sold for 
$103.04. It was just about the same kind 
of produce, except that we bad a little 
sweet corn last year, and this comparison 
is a fair one for all the loads we have 
taken this Summer. With the exception 
of our fertilizer bill, which is a little 
smaller than last year, our expenses are 
as heavy as ever, while, on account of the 
slump in market prices, our produce is 
bringing, on the whole, not 40 per < ent of 
what it brought, last year! 1 could stand 
that with great philosophy if I could feci 
that consumers were getting the benefit of 
such prices. It would he in a way a sort, 
of advertisement for the future if city 
people could now feast on good country 
food, and feel that, they are being well 
treated. As it is. they feel that they are 
being robbed, and that the farmers are 
the robbers. T wish they could pass a 
few nights on such a market ns I have 
described, and realize the tragedy which 
is entering the lives of these men and 
women who are forced to give away the 
products of their toil. 
« * * * * 
The rain had kept off all through the 
night, though at times there had been a 
grumble of thunder or an occasional tlasli 
in the sky. As we sold the last basket 
we felt a few drops, and before we were 
fairly out of Paterson we drove into one 
of those fierce and sudden smashes of 
rain for which Northern New Jersey is 
famous. For it was a smash—a strong 
deluge, as if some mighty tank above us 
had been suddenly tipped over. The truck 
went puffing and snorting through it. We 
were safe and dry under the hood, while 
the canvas cover was spread over our 
empty baskets. It was a wet ending of a 
market adventure in which we had been 
pretty well skinned and dried. 1 some¬ 
times hear dairymen complain of their 
hard life and long hours, but there are 
few of them who put in longer and less 
satisfactory days and nights than our 
fruit men and market gardeners arc 
forced to endure this year. This was the 
third night in succession that Thomas 
had been on the market, lie gets a few 
hours’ sleep during the day. while the 
boys collect a new load. There would be 
some compensating joy in such a business 
if prices were good and one could feel 
that his labor was appreciated, and. after 
all. the form of appreciation that counts 
in this world is cash or its equivalent. 
When day after day you must lake your 
goods into battle, knowing that the buyers 
have every advantage, and that you are 
beaten before you start, the world shows 
very few rosy spots. TJCe becomes a grim 
struggle for existence, and along the line 
ahead stand the hired help, the fertilizer 
and feed men, the Implement dealers and 
the tax collector and, in too many cases, 
the holder of the mortgage. Each one 
holds a piece of paper which may fall 
upon you as heavily as a dub in the 
hands of savages who formerly made 
their captives run the gauntlet. When 
the labor union man gets to a position 
where the price of his labor is’ cut down 
be will strike and attempt to improve 
liis position by holding back what he bits 
to sell. The unorganized farmer cannot 
do that, and it is doubtful if be would if 
be could, since instinct or the habit of 
working drives him on to produce and 
. Part II. 
But Thomas merely shook bis head. It 
was like it game of poker between two 
mental experts. The buyer was a good 
actor, lie gave a good expression of hor¬ 
ror in the way he waved his bauds and 
moved away like a rejected suitor. But 
until he was lost in the crowd this man 
kept turning back to see if Thomas had 
relented. But the Sphinx never bad any¬ 
thing on Thomas in the way be held the 
muscles of bis face and gazed ar. the end 
of his pipe. I thought we bad lost a cus¬ 
tomer. but it seems I was green tit the 
business. Another buyer came along 
and started to make a bargain for the en¬ 
tire lot of McIntosh. Before it was well 
under way our rat-faced friend rushed 
out of the crowd with the actions of one 
who had decided to make some great 
hemic sacrifice. lie was too far gone 
for words, but out of bis pockety he 
pulled a roll of money such as you might 
imagine Mr. Rockefeller or d. I‘. 
gun carrying around with them, 
market men all carry their money in 
much the same way. A great roll of bills 
is folded once the long way and doubled 
over into a convenient “wad” which fits 
well into the side pocket, and is as safe as 
it can be on any part of the person. This 
man, without a word, extracted two onc- 
dollar bills, took bis change, shouldered 
his basket and rushed off with it with the 
expression of a martyr who bad ruined 
himself at our exponsb. But let us not 
worry about him. lie will get at least $4 
for those apples before be is done with 
his trade. 
Nothing except, a cash business will do 
in this marker. That must be sternly de¬ 
manded. He who gives credit at such 
times is never credited with common 
sense. It was not so 30 years ago, A 
farmer tells me how lie once went to 
Paterson with a retail load. A Hebrew 
peddler was selling neckties in the street. 
He came up to this /armor and explained. 
“I want a pound of butter, but ain't 
made no sales yet. (live me the butter 
and I pay when I sell!” 
The farmer had seen him, day after 
day, and gave him the butter. The ped¬ 
dler did not sell a necktie until after¬ 
noon. hut he brought the money and paid 
bis bill. I have been told that this ped¬ 
dler now owns one of the biggest dry 
goods stores in town! 
The Wolf Rivpr apples were slow of 
sale. Those we happened to have on the 
market that night were from the inside 
of the tree, and had not colored as well 
as thev should. Of course, in selling 
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onn be no doubt as to that. It is u bud 
article (o sell when the market is full. 
There were too many Wealthy apples— 
some of them picked green and many of 
them too small to send to market. The 
general use of the auto truck is respon¬ 
sible in part for this mistake, as I shall 
try to explain later. For hours the 
throng of buyers surged past us. Many 
of them seemed to go the rounds, look 
over everything and then come back and 
buy what they called a good bargain. In 
this fierce struggle for advantage a "good- 
natured” man or one with faltering will 
would be out of place, lie would soon bo 
known us an “easy murk.” and it would 
be impossible for him to sell his goods at 
anything iike the regular price—low as 
that is this year. Tile buyers included 
men and women, old and young, large and 
small. There were peddlers, storekeep¬ 
ers. boarding-house and restaurant peo¬ 
ple. and dealers. Some of rhe latter I 
judge would load their wagons on this 
From six to thirty miles an hour 
W HEN going to town That’s why more and 
meant hitching up more folks look for the 
the team and jogging trade mark Westclox on 
along at six miles an hour the face of the timepiece 
or less, time wasn’t so im- they buy. 
portant.Itwasmostlikely There are good clocks 
an all day trip, anyhow. and some that are not so 
But when you can jump good, but folks know 
in the car, step on the Westclox and know they’re 
starter, and whiz out the good, 
gate at twenty to thirty Alarm clocks from $1.50 
an hour, you figure closer to $4.75; watches from 
on the minutes. $1.50 to $2.50. 
I am sorry to give such a dark picture 
of conditions. They may be better else¬ 
where. but what I am writing now is a 
photograph of our situation. It is often 
possible to ."touch up” a photograph so 
as to hide such defects as wrinkles, 
“squint eye” or some offensive expression 
of the face, but 1 feel somewhat like 
Cromwell, who ordered the painter to put 
the wart on his nose into the picture. 
Our conditions are bad. but they are not 
hopeless. 1 fully realize that the pro¬ 
duction of peaches, tomatoes and similar 
“watery" crops is really a form of gam¬ 
ble. We must expect good years and 
poor years. Tin Egyptians bad the whip 
end over the Israelites because during the 
far years Joseph collected a surplus, wbil? 
the other crowd look “no thought for the 
morrow/’ Many farmers have beeu work¬ 
ing on that principle for the past few 
years. When McIntosh apples sold at $9 
a barrel it Uas our privilege and duty to 
save a little of the money to help out 
this season, when the most one can get is 
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