The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1913-02-19
Advantages of Parcel Post.

Farmers hae been complaining for
| at least quarter of century OF the
wide discrepancy between the prices
they receive and the prices ultimate
consumers pay. They realize that
they are not getting sufficiently
large share of the consumers dollar.
It was on this ground that they so
unanimously demanded the establish
ment of parcels post. Notwithstand-
ing the objections of the country mer-
chants against this parcels post, it
has at last come-at least part way.
Parcels post gives direct route from
the farmer to the consumer.
Farmers are in duty bound now to
make proper use of this parcels post
route. 1t will not be available for
heavy articles, nor is there any neces-
sity that it should be; but for the
smaller products; and it is of the
small share of the price paid by the
consumer for these small products
that the farmers mainly complain.
The farmer can now send direct from
the farm to the consumer eggs, but
ter, poultry, flowers, certain vege-
tables; and if he will furnish absolute
quality in certain definite amounts, he
will not get what the consumer has
been accustomed to pay, but he will
get more than he has been receiving.
This will of necessity lead to some
reforms in farm management. If the
farmer wants to get the top prices for
eggs, he must send fresh eggs. He
must know that they are fresh; and if
he fails in this respect, he will hear
something drop: 1t will no longer be
safe to allow the egg gathering to wait
for two or three days and finally put
in some infertile eggs taken out of the
incubator, nor to put in eggs that are
found where the hen has made her
nest back in the orchard, nor to send
dirty eggs. They must be absolutely
fresh, of standard size, and sent on
the day they are supposed to be sent.
There is no reason why any of our
readers cannot build up quite profit
able trade in this line.
Then, again many townspeople want
a chicken for Sunday dinner. They
don't want it alive They want it
dressed and they want it of definite
size and quality. Now the farmer can
meet this demand, but he must have
the size required and the quality, and
the dressing must be done in thor
oughly up-to-date way. There is a
chance here for the boys.
There is no good reason why par
cells post should not enable farmers to
get a much larger share of the con-
sumer's dollar. The result of this will
be that the consumer is fed more d.
rectly by the farm community around
him, or within fifty miles of him
than ever before There will be
price of fresh eggs and stored eggs.
If our readers are to get the greatest
profit out of this trade, they should
name their farms and brand the eggs
or poultry or whatever else is sent in
with the name of the farm. Then they
should have stationery and it is prob
able that they will have to advertise,
but the advertising as we'll as the
stationery should use the name of the
farm, and this name should be per-
manent. We have no doubt that very
soon now the inventors will be fur
nishing packages in which these farm
products can be safely sent.
1t must be borne in mind that the
amount of the appropriation for par
cells post will depend largely on the
use the farmers make of it. We have
no doubt that before it is in operation
very long there will be some changes
and for the better, in the management
of the country store. For the main
use of the country town is to meet the
requirements of the farming popula-
ton around it, by which it is support
ed. A multitude of stores does not
make town. 1t is the buying and
selling capacity of the farmers around
that makes the ordinary country town.
The object and aim of the country
merchant, therefore, should be to meet
these requirements and to meet them
at the minimum of expense. That
means perhaps larger stores and few
err of them, larger business and small
err profits on each unit Sold No one
can safely prophecy what the result
of this parcels post will be, but we
are satisfied that it will be for the
good of the whole country.
Farmer
The grumbler is never short of d i