The coastland times with which is combined the pilot and herald of Belhaven and Swan Quarter. [volume] (Manteo, N.C.) 1959-1973, 1960-01-22
THE REASON THERE
ARE INSPECTORS IN
GRAIN MARKET S
While Not Timely. This Is An En-.
Tightening Article For All
Concerned With Grain

The grain inspector, poor soul,
is the man who, during the grain
harvest season, works in a little
room in grain markets. He han
dies little pots and pans, weighs
grain on several scales, pours it
through funny looking con-
traption which resembles a nu-
clear reactor, dumps it in a sort
of pot, takes its temperature and,
finally runs it into an electric de-
vice causing a pile of noise. When
he haas done with all these OPP
erations he writes. several figures
on a slip of paper and these fig
ures generally indicate one of
two things; either the farmer has
as much grain as the space his
load occupies, or, the poor chap
has less. In case it is the latter,
cursed is the name of the grain
inspector.
Now let's take a look at the
inspector. He has a job. Maybe it
isn't the best kind of job, but it
can be described very simply: he
is man hired by the Federal or
State governments, or privately, to
protect farmers and grain buyers
and to see that grain meets GER
tain specifications. One of these
specifications is that bushel of
soy beans contain a bushel of soy
beans at a specified weight and
condition, instead of IS pounds of
soy beans, 8 pounds Of partridge
peas, one found of morning glo-
ries, " pound of water and Y
pound CT cookie burs. In the event
soy beans in the above condition
get by the first buyer they still
have long way to go and some
one will lose that five pounds of
water and trash before the beans
get to the processing plant. Milk,
flour, and oil are among the items
manufactured from soy beans. No
responsible manufacturer is go
ing to sell soy bean milk when
it is partly morning glory milk,
partridge pea milk, cookie bur
milk, etcetera, without advertising
it as such. And he couldn't very
well sell it if he advertised it as
such. Therefore, when the process
sor receives a load of beans con-
tanning all that sort of foreign
matter, his inspector reports the
condition of the beans to him. He
has two propositions before him.
Clean the beans. If he has to
clean them he will pay reduced
price for them. If he does not
wish to clean them, he will re-
fuse to accept the shipment. The
responsibility for the condition of
the grain rests at the bottom of
the line: the farmer.
Most farmers understand why
the inspector is necessary. They
do not like to lose, but they do
not wish to see anyone else lose
because of them. The average
farmer would not expect to sell
60 pounds of beans today and
have the buyer lose several
pounds ere he moved them. And
the same quantity of beans weigh
ing 60 pounds today may dry out
enough so that they will weigh
only SIS within two or three days.
Beans are not measured by cubic
inches; they are measured by
weight, and while the foreign mat
ter may not weigh so heavily to
the bushel, it's accumulated weight
from all the bushels handled
through a market during one days
time is considerable.
On the other hand the inspector
protects the farmer as well as
the purchaser. When the basic
price for a bushel of beans is 81,
the majority of the farmers re-
ceive that amount, because the
majority of the beans fall below
the percentage of foreign materi-
al allowed. Would it be fair to
nav the man with clean dry grain
the same as the man having wet
trashy beans This is why the in
spector carefully examines sam
pies from every lot of grain de-
iivered at the market. This is not
a local manuever in this vicinity
designed for profit; it has been
a national requirement for some
time, and is also practiced in
Canada, and abroad.