The Farmville herald. [volume] (Farmville, Va.) 1890-1934, 1907-12-13

was itself the most destructive agency
possible TO competition, since only the
very largest dealers can possibly make
such enormous trades. And now We
see two cases Of the perfect fruiting OF
this tree. aud i'm at least one Of these
we find the tobacco actually going into
the hands Of the very enemy" against
whom every lance has been leveled'
accepting at last its terms, and thus
giving the seal Of cooperative recogni-
ton and approval to the merits Of a
zone price system" heretofore so I'M
sparingly denounced.
IL can not be pretended that the
"a Of loose tobacco is responsible for
this outcome Clearly it was prizing
which led to it, and "pooling' which
fixed the results. Leaders were COM
PEELED to furnish relief, not money
merely, but the certain assurance of
some sort Of a sale. Had their priced
tobacco been salable, certainly they
would have chosen that.
No more can loose selling be held
responsible for the low priced period
preceding this agitation. Priyete
selling at the barn was the seller
contribution to this cause, for, what
ever the commodity considered, when
unposted sellers undertake to buck up
against well-trained buyers they have
no right to expect to hold prices up to
their natural level. 1t was on this
basis that William Penn, with a string
or so Of beads and such knick-knacks,
bought the entire State Of Pennsyl-
wanna, and the same use Of trinkets 10
made today, oaly in varying degree,
all over the world, wherever men can
be found who are ready to sell without
knowing values.
40 BENEFIT By PRIZlNG.
II, as is now plainly evident, there
is both necessity and desire for loose
sales, why not avoid both the barn
and the pool and do it righG Why
prize at all? All these associations
refer to prizing only in general way
as means to an end. No specific
point is made to show how or why il
helps the farmer. And on wholesale
plant it can't.
For instance, no square answer can
be made to the following: All any
association claims to want is fair
price for Tobacco. Graders determine
the quality Of each sample, and a COM
mittee fixes schedule of prices for
the Tobacco priced. In theory the
salesman finds there the proper price
and ailixes it TO the sample. Those
who are competent to fix this schedule
of prices are, or surely ought to be, as
competent to name the corresponding
value loose For il is exactly the
same less the cost Of prizing and car
rying. II. then, the loose value can
be secured, isn't it all they wan2 1t
is equal to the priced value. Then
why prize unless buyers refuse TO pay
equsl value loose? And why refuse
to sell to buyer who will pay full
value loose, to prize aud hold indeii-
nitely for another who may or may
not pay equal value priced? II he
pays only equal value there is no gain.
If he pays less there is loss. Is it
fair to the farmer to throw on him
unnecessary costs, risks and delays
through prizing, if otherwise he can
get equal returns and thus equally
,erye the cause involved? such sales
would reduce the quantity to be later
offered priced. Would not the evident
effect Of this be to strengthen the
value of the priced, or reduce the risk
of loss there? And would not such
strengthened priced sales in turn help
the loose sales? The ordinary priced
sales do this now. This is the very
first thing association tobacco made
clear. And association committees
are right now watching loose sales TO
determine, not what the prices Of
priced tobacco are 10 be, but what
their schedule ought TO be.
DUTY or ASSOCIATIONS.
If these associations can do more for
the individual than he can do for him
self in any other way, then they ought
to stay. Beyond this plain statement,
am not discussing this question. But
STAYING. it becomes their plain duty to
give him every benefit and impose on
him the very smallest burdens posi-
BILE. And in this connection | see no
flaw in the following suggestion. If
any of these associations viii adopt
loose sales as a feature Of their sales,
under hard and fast rule that such
tobacco will be offered thus but once,
and if not sold will be Immediately
prized. il will find both relief and
benefit as it goes along, AMI will bring
out the only real selling power the
prized hogshead has been shown to
possess-that Of boosting loose prices.
For such a rule would i'm effect and IN
fact be a standing notice to buyers
all buyers, that they would have but
the one chance to buy il loose, and
also deprive every buyer Of the right
TO complain that he was being antag
onized and forced out. Would they
buy it? They would lick the plate
! and ask for more.
in competition there is always room
for one more. 10, as alleged, the LACK
, OF competition has been our weakness
, then surely we have none 70 destroy
On open sales Of loose tobacco every
buyer, big and little, Tom, Dick anC
2 Harry can buy. There is nOthinl