San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1923-08-12
FARMERS FIND
MUCH PROFIT
IN RETAILING
Ignore Middleman and
Sell Direct to Con-
sumers.
RUSSIA EXPORTS GRAIN
Effects Of Currency Depre-
citation Are Keenly
Felt.
RUSSIA EXPORTS GRAIN
By j. C. ROYLE.

Copyright by The San Antonio Light.
New York, Aug. 11.-Although
merchants in many parts of the coun-
try are accepting wheat in barter
from farmers. the agriculturists from
the Middle West have begun to steer
away from placing their other farm
products with retailers. With prices
of wheat at point where there is
little or no profit to the grower. own
ers of farms are depending more and
more on their fruit, vegetables, poul-
try and dairy products to bring them
in needed returns. according to agri-
cultural agents. The movement away
from the dealer and toward the ulti-
mate consumer gained its first big
impetus this year when Jason Brown
of Indiana received a credit slip for
$40 in exchange for % pounds of
fresh churned butter from a merchant
of the town nearest his farm. While
he was spending part of the $40
credit. Brown saw the merchant sell
two pounds Of the butter he had just
brought in for 90 cents, or As cents
a pound.
Brown went into the retail bust
ness ON the spot. On his way home
he stopped his truck at twelve resi-
demes and secured ten contracts to
supply the households with farm
product at prices slightly under the
retail quotations.
Plan Spreads Rapidly.
He related his experience at a
township meeting of farmers through
out the county and adoption Of the
plan spread first to adjoining coun-
ties and then into a half dozen of
the nearest states. 1t met enthu-
siastic endorsement from agricultural
agents and as result. many thousand
farmers are making weekly deliveries
direct to consumers using automobile
trucks to transport their products and
getting market quotations by radio
ndstelephone.
Hundreds of chicken farms have
sprung up in Indiana and Illinois
and it is expected that these will be.
increased 800 per cent within a
year.
The barter of wheat in the form
of warehouse receipts to merchants
in exchange for clothing and manu-
featured products has offered some
relief to the grain producers. but in
most cases the amount of wheat
which may be traded in is limited to
100 bushels by each grower.
Russia will send from two to three
million bushels of wheat to European
markets this year and will have it
at its destination before the American
wheat can reach many of the foreign
purchasers. according to agricultural
experts who have just returned from
that country. Much of this grain will
come from the Caspian ports and will
have an advantage of lower cost pro-
duction over the American product.
Effects Of Three Zeros.
The effect of the depreciation of
the currencies of the European ma
tons has been greater than the actual
falling off in purchasing value. ac-
cording TO Doris Il. Fleishman, coun-
sci on industrial relations to many
large American companies. who has
just returned from Austria. In some
sections prices have increased TO
1000 times their former figures and
the string of zeros attached to every
price tag is powerful deterrent
against buying or selling.
at is evident on the face OF it."
she said today, "that these extra
zeros entail large additional bookkeep-
ing expense. In banks the slightest
transactions necessitated complicated
calculations. This, of course. is
especially true when foreign exchange
enters in. 1t takes half hour. for
example, to, exchange n few dollars
into Austrian kronen at the leading
bank in Vienna, the Wiener Bank
Verein.
"All entries are made before the
transaction is complete. 81 that there
may not be staggering accumula-
ton of mechanical figuring after the
customer has received his money"