Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1906-09-05
The Weigh STATION
Is Being Built at a Large tx.
pense for the Convenience
Of Beet Growers.
FIRST WEIGH STATION IN State
The Beet Raisers will Now be Sure of
Right Weights and Tare-The Scale
u. S. Standard Test.

sugar beet grower will commence to
harvest and deliver his beets, it
might be well to call his attention to
the weigh station and ask that he
consider what it is for, and why it
is being built at a large expense by
the Sugar Company.
When the sugar beet business was
first being introduced in the State,
and for three or four years afterward,
the farmer living at any distance from
the factory was obliged when he
wanted TO ship his beets, order car,
and after time, and too many times
it was a long time, he would get one
Then, no matter how bad the roads
were, he had to fill that car within
two days or pay demurrage. He
would have to hustle around and get
many of his neighbors to help him
draw his beets, some hauling good
big loads and some only very small
jags, not even the bottom Dor full,
but the loads were counted and the
car was loaded, or if only twothirds
loaded, it was called a carload, billed
and shipped together with chunks of
dirt, sod and stone, and when the
farmer got his returns, he would near
ly go up into the air and declare that
the company had beat him out of
that fine carload of beets, and he
would be darned if he would ever
raise another one of those pesky
things for that or any other COM
pany. Some farmers were a little
more painstaking, and would be care
full about dirt and stones and would
weigh a load, which always would be
a large load then count all of the
other loads, and no matter now large
or small, they were multiplied by the
figures of the load weighed, and when
the returns came back, which was
from two to six weeks afterwards,
they were too often disappointed, not
only in the weight but also in the
tare.
Now, Mr.. Farmer, we believe you
were honest in your sentiments and
that you had a right Chose of you
who could not draw to the factory
to wish for some better way where
by you could see your own beets
weighed and the tare taken and it was
to further your interests and abate
your fears that Mr.. Allen was lead
to and succeeded in securing for the
contractors of the Alma Sugar Com
pany the first weigh station for beets
in Michigan, and it is now up to you,
Mr. Farmer, to know whether you
are getting honest weights and tare
or not and whether you are being
treated in fair, legitimate manner
If you will investigate, you will know
that there are large windows by the
scale bars so you can see each and
every load weighed Then to, if you
will notice, you will see that the
company use only the very best
scales to be procured, and in every
one of their weigh stations, they have
only registeringbeam scales, so that
there can be no mistake, if the scales
weigh correctly. The weight you get
is the right weight and you are
handed the ticket that the scales regis
tered the weight upon so that you
may see just what the scales gave
you. The scale is tested every day
with the u. s. Standard test, and,
therefore, must be kept accurate.
The Tare Scale gives the tare on
the beam of the scale so there cannot
be any guess work about that either,
and we wish to say right here that it
was one of the Alma sugar men that
invented this tare scale and the COM
pany are paying three prices for them
simply that you may get an honest
tare.
Again, i'll building those weigh sta
tons, it is supposed that you will go
inside and see your beets weighed
and tared, that is your privilege and
that is your duty before you enter a
kick. 1t costs the company much
money to build their stations and
furnish them, not for their benefit,
but that you may see and know for
yourself, so please take the pains to
go inside and familiarize yourself
with the method of doing the work
Don't stop here. but go and drive
your loads on some other fellows
scales unbeknown to the weigh mas
ter and see low the two weight: