Norwich bulletin., 1915-06-24
County Improvement League Data
By County Agent F. c. WARNER

an order accompanied by cash, the consumer to bear the expense of trans portatiOn from his local shipping point and, in some cases, from the distrib- utor's shipping point. This is near the
 minimum. On the other hand, and at the opposite extreme, many consider that it includes the carrying in stock of a large supply of goods by the lo- cal stores, so that any consumer may, at any time, be able to have placed before him for selection a number of different kinds of any particular arti- cle which he wishes to purchase, and then have the article chosen delivered to him promptly at his home, subject to final selection there, and to be paid for by him at some future date when 1t may suit his convenience. While city people have come to accept this latter service as a matter of course, indeed to expect it, even though the article purchased consists of a bottle of shoe polish, a quart of berries or a spool of thread, farmers have not come to expect so much, although in most communities they do expect much more than the first named mini mum service. In fact, in some com munides they are coming to expect almost as much as do city people. The economic minimum of service is some where between these two extremes and will vary with the section and local conditions.
 ManifestIy, the cost of these two kinds of service is materially different, and the nearer we are able to keep to the less costly standards, and yet be efficiently served, the more shall we conserve our rural resources. It is to be hoped that farmers in general will not yield to the temptation to accept the unnecessary service which is con- Stantly being urged upon them by com peung tradesmen. It may be offered n <,fo rest assured that in the end they will have it to pay for, and that in many cases, at least, they will have to pay very much higher wages for the time Of the persons who actually render the l service than they themselves are re- ce1V1ng in their own business.
 In communities in which farmers cannot secure from dealers the proper reduction in the cost of supplies, even when they are willing to limit the l service afforded does not rise to the level of the economic minimum, there are number of courses opened to them:
 IA simple plan is for a number of individuals. with a common shipping point, to join in sending an order to some available supply house.
 2-With further experience and in- formation, such a group of farmers
 may usually get a better reduction on carload cash orders of such articles as seed. feed. tW1ne, machinery, fuel, salt, flour, sugar, cement building mate rial, fencing, fertilizer, etc, because of being able to order in many cases di- rectly from the factory or producer, or from a source of supply very close to the producer.
 9-f desired, this agroup eof farmers may make available some building at or near the local shipping point which would serve as a warehouse for stor- ing supplies in case the car arrives when the people are very 4busy, or Sthe roads very bad, or in case part of the carload would notsbe needed until later in the year.
 4-In some cases~where these ware houses have been established 1t has been found necessary to appoint some one to keep them open on stated days, afternoons or evenings of each week or month. Tn a few cases at least, these warehouses have gradually grown into stores which were kept open most or all the days of the week. 5-Still another plan is to establish a farmers mercantile. corporation or 8