56 
FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
States, not excepting the Standard Oil 
Company or the United States Steel 
Company; and, more, it is one without 
graft or fraud, and to which I can see 
no probability of fraud creeping in. 
The California Fruit Exchange has 
only about or less than $20,000; If I 
remember correctly, it is $15,000 capi¬ 
tal, upon which it never pays a divi¬ 
dend. I will try to tell you something 
of the Fruit Exchange. This organ¬ 
ization consists of numerous packing 
houses, or associations. These asso¬ 
ciations are usually made up of neigh¬ 
bors, for whom it is convenient to do 
their packing at one packing house, 
and of these associations there are a 
great many, and each one of these as¬ 
sociations is entitled to one share of 
stock (no more) in the Fruit Ex¬ 
change. This share of stock entitles 
the association to one representative 
to or in the Fruit Exchange. The 
Exchange is made up and controlled 
entirely by these representatives from 
associations (who do not draw pay). 
These representatives elect the board 
of directors; the board of directors 
elect the officers, and the officers elect 
the President and employ the execu¬ 
tive force. The Fruit Exchange is al¬ 
most a complete duplicate of our Fed¬ 
eral Government. 
All business is transacted at head¬ 
quarters at Los Angeles, and it is sur¬ 
prising how much can be done by a 
few men when well systematized. For 
instance, and to illustrate some of their 
methods and their success, only five 
years ago the Fruit Exchange was or¬ 
ganized, with only a few associations. 
It then only controlled a small per¬ 
centage of the fruit. But, by thorough 
business methods and advantages 
which co-operation afforded. It has 
grown very rapidly, until this season 
The Exchange will handle fully sev¬ 
enty-five per cent, of all the citrus fruit 
grown in California, amounting to 
over thirty thousand (30,000) car¬ 
loads. And all of the sales are man¬ 
aged by two head salesmen, with only 
six traveling salesmen to help them. 
How does this compare with our force 
employed for the selling of our small 
crop? It is not five per cent, of our 
expense. I11 fact, the whole expense 
of managing associations, Fruit Ex¬ 
change, collections, buying and all, 
does not amount to five per cent. 
Losses, defalcations and non-payment 
of accounts, as shown by the books 
of the Exchange, which are open to 
all, amount to less than three hundred 
($300) dollars, and this, too, upon 
sales amounting to over thirty millions 
of dollars ($30,000,000.00). Payments 
for fruit to the growers are made in 
cash every thirty days, no losses, no 
zt'orries. You might inquire if there 
are any other benefits or advantages 
to be derived from such an organiza¬ 
tion as the California Fruit Exchange. 
Yes, very many. For instance, before 
this organization was effected, the 
growers were paying nineteen (19) 
cents each for orange boxes. Today 
they cost them 12 to 12^2 cents. 
Paper, machinery, the price of help, 
and the supply are managed by the 
Exchange. Freight rates are all man¬ 
aged by the offices of the Exchange, 
and the rates which they pay on fruit, 
considering the broad distribution 
which they enjoy, is very much less 
than we pay from Florida, notwith¬ 
standing that we are two thousand 
miles nearer to the markets. 
