Gloucester County Democrat., 1911-11-23

HG6Q not WoFFy The ldTul6T III Uilt
least. He will receive the average
price of the day on which his pota
toes we're loaded, whether the market
goes up or down. All first grade
stock is sold on tracks before leaving
loading point. Average price for the
day is ready to be given out about
four or five D. m. IF the inspector at
your loading station hasn't asked for
it, call up tn main Office yourself and
the information will be cheerfully fur
nished you. Potatoes not properly
sorted scabby or otherwise unsuitable
for prime stock are loaded in un-
graded cars and sold for such, farm
ers receiving actual proceeds, less s
per cent commission.
How can the Exchange handle the
farmers potatoes with less expense
than the Independent shippers? IA
question often asked and very easily
answered. Under one management
with careful, earnest set of inspect
prs working with the farmers, it is
just as easy to sell fifty cars daily as
it is to sell five, or in other words just
as easy to sell the potatoes from
twelve stations as it is from one sta
tion. The telegraphic expense is much
less proportionately on large num-
ber of cars than on few The Ex-
change must keep in constant touch
with all the large markets A small
buyer an'tafford to do this. One of
the most thriving Exchanges in ex-
istence keeps a man continually dur
ing the shipping season in each of the
large cities.
Proper distribution is the one i'm
portant factors which you will admit
the Exchange has the power to con-
troll better than any independent ship
per. With the independent shipper
is always more or less a matter of
conjecture where his competitor is
selling his potatoes. Suppose for ex-
ample Pittsburgh has been taking
them at good prices. But the demand
has eased off and receipts have come
in more plentiful, but still the market
is not badly overstocked and would
soon recover if left alone for a fews
days But dozen independent buy
ers, knowing that Pittsburgh has been
a good market are willing to take a
chance again and each ships three or
competitors which they expect to sell
on arrival. But it is the last straw
that breaks the camel's back, and
when these cars arrive the result is
lower prices, rejected cars and a bad
| " demoralized market. You can read
/ lily see how the Exchange, by control
/ ling a large part of the output is in
a better position to help a market
clean up quickly by knowing Just ex-
actely where forty or fifty cars are
going every day than fifteen or TWEEN
ty independent buyers are.
In travelling through the West last
Summer | could not but note the high
repute in which the Red Star Brand
of the Eastern Shore of Virginia Ex-
change is held by the trade. This
brand always commands ten cents a
barrel or more over ordinary stock.
!; Why? Because the organized farm
ers behind the Red Star Brand have
4 been careful in grading and careful
| in handling, and the trade in Chicago,
4 Indianapolis, Pittsburgh, Cleveland,
Buffalo, Toronto and all the other
markets will tell you that they are
willing to pay a premium on good
stock. They will also tell you that
they prefer to deal with an organiza-
| tion, as their orders will always be
filled promptly, and when properly
managed and upheld by the farmers
themselves the Exchange will furnish
I better graded stock nine times out of
ten than the Independent buyers.
Why does not the Exchange buy the
i potatoes outright as the Independent
buyers do? It would be possible to
do this, but the farmers would be the
! losers in most instances, for the price
paid would have to be based on the
lowest market price in order to pro-
tect the organization from loss. I'm
der the method now in vogue the
/ farmers receive all there is IN it less
! Z 1-2c. to 10c. per barrel commission
according to selling price It is the
object of the organization to work
4 first, last and all the time for the
farmers; to keep the. price up to the
top notch in selling, and to keep the
price Of farmers supplies down to a
reasonable basis.
The writer is not unconscious of the
short-corning of the Exchange, and
realizes that the organized farmers
still have much to learn, and that we
have long way to go before it will
abe possible to place the products Of
/ our farms directly in the consumers
hands, Yet we know that organiza-
tien is step in the right direction.
Three years ago when the articles
of incorporation we're being prepared
Ia certain person made the remark tha.