St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1896-01-25

In addition to the 145 cars loaded. on
track there were about fifty cars of
owners wheat loaded through the
warehouses, making the total individ-
ual shipments, at least, 200 car loads.
Had the supply of cars been available
during the first three months of the
season the percentage of direct ship
ments would have been largely in
creased, conservative estimate plac-
ing 1T at go per cent of the total.
The shippers were treated alike and
no complaint of discrimination in the
distribution of cars at this point is
made. All applications, whether from
the farmers or from the elevators, were
entered in book and, as far as pos
slble, the cars were assigned in the
order Of the applications. When a
farmer was entitled to receive a car
1T was held a reasonable time for him
and then given to the next applicant
The first applicant stood at the head
of the list until he could be ready to
ship, when the car arrived. All orders
stood until they were filed, and the
rule, which appeared to be in force at
some other points, of canceling the
orders Of the track shippers on Satur-
day night, never went into effect here.
The station agent, William Bowden.
said he took charge of station at the
commencement Of harvest and was I'M
able to find any order to this effect in
the file of circulars. He had heard
that such rule was in force at other
stations but had never learned where
the order, if one had been issued, came
from.
A. w. Johnson, of Johnson & Olan-
der, merchants, said the farmers who
shipped direct claimed to have saved
an average OF four cents a bushel over
the prices paid at Hallock. Every one
who had shipped direct was so we'll
pleased that he would continue to do
so in the future. Farmers came into
the store every day, and the universal
claim was that they saved money by
shipping and selling their wheat
AT THE TERMINAL MARKETS.
Peter Rood, a farmer living seven
miles southeast of Halloclz, sold part
Of his wheat to the elevators and
shipped one car, saving three cents
bushel thereby. This settled it with
him, for not only did he make an adj
ditional three cents, but his weight
held out better than when he sold in
the local market.
G. F. F'oss had sold his wheat to
William Kelso for the last four years,
and was always well treated by him.
He would not sell to the line COM
panies, but found Mr.. Kelso, who is
an independent buyer, to be thorough
ly honorable In his dealings. He had
heard farmers claim that they had
saved from S25 to $35 a car by ship
ping direct, and knew this to be true
in several instances. He knew that
the line companies squeezed the farm
ers, and believed they made from one
to two grades on the lower grades Of
wheat last fall. If the grain was
smutty they bought it for No or re-
jected, and by running it through the
cleaners raised the grades, making
an additional profit Of from three to
six cents over their handling and other
charges.
Mr.. Johnson, of Westnson & Johnson,
merchants and farmers, said they al
ways shipped their wheat, and last
year saved at least three or four cents
a bushel by doing so. He took little
stock in the weights given by the line
companies, and believed that they
would have lost more than four cents
a bushel If they had sold their wheat
to them. In 'SS and '89 Mr.. Johnson
bought wheat on the track, and paid
two cents above the prices paid by the
line companies. He always made
fair profit on these deals, so the ele-
Vator men must have had a margin
of over three cents. When the crop is
short, Mr.. Johnson said, the competi-
ton cuts down the margin, and the
high grades of Northern grown wheat
bring good prices. 1t is when there
is a heavy crop and the farmers are
compelled to sell to the elevator com
panies that they suffer most.