The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1884-05-16
Selling Farm Produce.

Take two packages of almost any
kind of farm produce. of the same kind
and quality. and have one put up and
offered for sale in neat package, done
up in the most presentable condition.
and the other put up without care in
any ill-looking package, and the nice
looking one will sell not only the quick
est, but will bring from ten to twenty
Eve per cent more. 81
/ Every man. whether he be, q city
commission merchant, q country store
keeper, or a farmer, who has tried to
sell farm produce knows this to be the
fact; yet ree-fourths of our farm pro-
duets are sent to market in a very poor
condition to realize good prices. Fruit
men are generally more careful than
any other class, taken as whole, yet
some of them are very careless. 1t is
not putting the bes: on top that makes
an article sell. but a uniform quality all
through a package is what brings the
best prices, provided it is put up neatly,
and is in good condition.
Eggs are more usually sent to the city
in cases. made especially for their use:
but the farmer when he takes the eggs
to town packs them in bran, sawdust or
oats. il they are dirty no effort is made
to clean them off-they are all eggs,
clean or dirty. The majority of far
mers' wives take their butter to market
in large rolls without any particular
fizc or shape. Whatever is made at
one churning is rolled up into one lump.
and the next into another lump
The country merchant dumps all that
comes into the same box and ships 1t to
the city, where it's sold as country
butter, at very low price. When sold
at retail the purchaser looks over the
butter and almost invariably picks out
the neatest-looking rolls. leaving the
balance Many of our house-keepers
grumble because country butter is so
low, when the principal part of the fault
is their own. lake some pains to send
YOUR butter to town in neat, clean
shape. If yoH-h have not got stamp
purchase one. Make it a rule to have
all that you serd look neat and attract
i've. You will soon hear: Mrs. A
makes nice butter; l would rather pay
five cents more pound for her butter
than any one else's because it always
looks SO clean and nice. The merchant
is sure to know this, and will be willing
to pay you accordingly. You may think
this little matter, but it is q fact, as
very little inquiry will convince YOU
Every farmers wife knows that it
often happens that country stores get
more butter than they want, yet if good
butter is put up in the right condition
fbo,- will nrfap n,r,hoca yn,,rc
under other circumstances they would
refuse TO buy at all. Many farmer in
selling potatoes has suffered loss by
mixing large and small all together; he
got a low price by not taking little
care when sorting. These small pota-
toes when sold by measure amount 10
but little, as they only fill up the
spaces between the large ones, and they
can far better be fed 10 stock than be
allowed to damage the whole by being
sold without proper sorting. The same
may be said of the larger proportion
of fruit and vegetables: the small speci-
mems cause the large ones to sell at
low price. ...' 'EN
Give this matter trial; show the one
you are selling to that what you have is
all of the best quality, and is uniform
throughout-whether it be potatoes,
apples, cabbage, or other farm produce.
DOM be foolish enough to Imagine you
can make anything by putting the best
on the top of the barrel. This may do
once, but it is sure to react upon you,
and cause more loss than gain. Take
reasonable pains to have everything
that YOU send to market in the best
condition possible. Whenever you can.
mark your name upon the package, and
you VIII be surprised how quick pur-
chasers will recognize your goods. 1t
will certainly prove profitable if reason
able care is taken.-N. j. Shepherd, in
Prdirie Farmer