In October, 1888, the following prices were obtained for imported raisins at auction sale in New York: 645 boxes best London Layers, $3.25 to $3.121⁄2; 348 Imperial Cabinets, $3.35 to $3.20; 200 fine Dehesa Bunches, $4.50 to $3.75; 50 Imperial Dehesa Bunches, $5.65; 104 Dehesa Bunches, $4.05 to $4.00; 100 Finest Selected Clusters, $4.45 to $4.40; 50 Finest Royal Clusters, $4.75; 3 Imperial Excelsior Dehesa Loose Muscatels, $5.00; 140 Imperial Loose Muscatels, $3.30 to $2.15; 1 Imperial Excelsior Dehesa Clusters, $5.50; 9 Imperial Dehesa Clusters, $5.121⁄2 to $5.00; 2 Dehesa Dessert Fruit, $4.10; 1,194 Finest Valencia Layers, 81⁄8 to 8 cents; 899 Finest Valencia Raisins, 7 to 63⁄4 cents; 150 half boxes Finest Valencia Layers, 81⁄8 to 8 cents; 246 boxes Finest Sultanas, 81⁄4 to 8 cents.
At the same time California layers were quoted at from $1.80 to $2.25 for medium grades, while for Dehesa and Imperial quarter boxes from eighty cents to one dollar were realized. Raisins in sweatboxes were bought by packers at five cents per pound, prices not rated according to quality.
1889.
—The crop of 1889 was not as large as at first calculated, on account of loss through unusual and heavy rains. It was especially the second crop which suffered. The first crop was good, and brought good prices, average layers bringing from $1.75 to $2.25 per box of twenty pounds. Great improvement is made in packing and labels, and our average raisins are better than the average imported Malagas. Our choicest layers, however, do not yet equal in size, curing and packing the choicest Malagas, and no efforts have been made to compete with them. There are at least four higher grades packed in Malaga which we do not produce here. During last season raisins in sweatboxes have ruled higher than before, and have been bought by packers at from three to seven cents.
1890 (to July).
—The crop promises to be as large as last year. It is greatly in demand, and representatives of Eastern and California dealers have already bought up the most of the coming crop at prices averaging one-half a cent more per pound than last year.
From the above statistics we learn that through the production of raisins in California the price of sun-dried raisins to the consumer on this coast has been lowered from $3.00, $3.75, $4.00 and $4.50 in 1873 to $2.00 and $2.50 in 1890. The importation of Malaga raisins in the United States has greatly diminished, while that of Valencia or “dipped” raisins has increased. In 1873, the United States imported 35,271,312 pounds of raisins, for which it paid $2,292,948, while in 1888 our importation was 40,340,117 pounds, or about five million pounds more, for which we paid $2,098,503, or about $200,000 less.
Exports of Valencia Raisins from 1850 to 1889, according to English estimates:
| Year. | Eng- land. | Ame- rica. | Other Places. | Total Tons. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1850 | 9,423 | 165 | — | 9,588 |
| 1851 | 8,491 | 285 | 787 | 9,563 |
| 1852 | 8,844 | 320 | — | 9,164 |
| 1853 | 7,883 | 99 | 70 | 8,052 |
| 1854 | 7,206 | 296 | 50 | 7,552 |
| 1855 | 7,464 | 736 | 85 | 8,285 |
| 1856 | 8,909 | — | 12 | 8,921 |
| 1857 | 9,485 | — | — | 7,900 |
| 1858 | 13,542 | 654 | 182 | 14,378 |
| 1859 | 9,546 | 163 | 113 | 9,822 |
| 1860 | 7,257 | 2,831 | 454 | 10,542 |
| 1861 | 8,072 | 63 | 143 | 8,278 |
| 1862 | 7,564 | — | 238 | 7,900 |
| 1863 | 12,290 | 125 | 100 | 12,515 |
| 1864 | 8,655 | 38 | 182 | 8,875 |
| 1865 | 9,863 | 362 | 12 | 10,237 |
| 1866 | 12,735 | 403 | 473 | 13,611 |
| 1867 | 12,701 | 668 | 177 | 13,546 |
| 1868 | 14,293 | 3,095 | 794 | 18,182 |
| 1869 | 8,434 | 1,857 | 25 | 10,316 |
| 1870 | 10,060 | 2,210 | 110 | 12,380 |
| 1871 | 12,578 | 5,210 | 625 | 18,413 |
| 1872 | 15,677 | 4,088 | 535 | 20,300 |
| 1873 | 10,796 | 2,960 | 710 | 14,466 |
| 1874 | 13,724 | 5,513 | 439 | 19,676 |
| 1875 | 12,568 | 6,590 | 595 | 19,753 |
| 1876 | 15,272 | 3,816 | 676 | 19,764 |
| 1877 | — | — | — | — |
| 1878 | — | — | — | —15 |
| 1879 | 15,231 | 9,525 | 1,244 | 26,100 |
| 1880 | 13,026 | 8,977 | 892 | 22,895 |
| 1881 | 17,507 | 10,169 | 969 | 28,625 |
| 1882 | 18,121 | 21,593 | 1,732 | 41,346 |
| 1883 | 19,644 | 16,722 | 3,983 | 40,349 |
| 1884 | 10,210 | 9,686 | 4,289 | 24,185 |
| 1885 | 10,250 | 9,397 | 3,596 | 23,243 |
| 1886 | 15,194 | 15,687 | 16,113 | 36,994 |
| 1887 | 16,648 | 18,831 | 3,479 | 38,958 |
| 1888 | 15,524 | 12,245 | 4,655 | 32,424 |
| 1889 | 12,000 | 14,645 | 1,724 | 27,369 |