BUREAU OF MARKETS. 565 



Up to June 30, 1920, more than. 4,500 complete reports of 1918 wool 

 transactions had been received from country dealers. In addition, 

 detailed reports were finally secured from 178 distributin<j::-center 

 dealers who operated in the year 1918. In only 76 reports from cen- 

 tral dealers were found evidences of excess profits, and the audit of 

 the reports from country dealers has disclosed only about 1,000 cases 

 of excess profits — slifrhtly over 20 per cent. A total of $33G,235 has 

 been collected on account of excess profits — $181,743 from the central 

 dealers and $154,492 from country dealers. Refunds to wool growers 

 to June 30, 1920, have amounted to $3,908. The balance of the 

 money which lias been collected, as well as that which remains to be 

 collected as a result of future audits, will be held in the Treasury 

 and distributed to those growers to whom refunds are due at some 

 date in the near future. 



Various difficulties have attended the prosecution of this work. 

 The question of liability of dealers to the payment of income taxes 

 has been the subject of considerable correspondence and niunerous 

 conferences, and it is not yet fully settled in all of its details. The 

 destruction of records by fire and flood has delayed or abridged many 

 reports and has made it impossible to obtain others. The dissolution 

 of corporations and firms that operated in 1918 and the death of 

 individuals who operated as country dealers without keeping a com- 

 plete set of books presented difficult situations, and in more recent 

 jnonths it has been necessary to make extensive audits of accounts in 

 the field. Although these difficulties have been encountered, it has 

 not thus far been necessary to file suits, and it is hoped that the 

 work of the domestic wool section may be entirely completed without 

 appealing to the courts. 



DIRECT MARKETING. 



The general purpose of this w^ork, which was supervised by Mr. 

 L. B. Flohr, was to ascertain, analyze, and classifj'^ the factors bearing 

 on the success of marketing farm products from producer to con- 

 -sumer direct by parcel post or express ; also to determine the limita- 

 tions of direct marketing, both from physical and economic stand- 

 points. On account of the general reduction in funds it was neces- 

 sary to discontinue this project on June 30, 1920. 



During the year covered by this report, 568 experimental ship- 

 ments of 16 different commodities were made by parcel post and 

 express. The aggregate weight of these shipments was 13,268| 

 pounds and the mileage they covered was 77,755. During the year 

 field studies were made in western Xew York with Rochester as the 

 principal center and in Detroit, Lansing, Flint, Pontiac, Grand 

 Kapids, Saginaw, and Port Huron and surrounding countrj'. The 

 results of experiments have shown that, in the great majority of 

 cases, the success of a shipment, so far as satisfactory delivery is 

 concerned, depends on properly grading and standardizing the 

 product shipped, on using an appropriate type of container, and 

 necessary care in packing and transportation and, finally, on the 

 length of time the shipment is in transit. The value of a commodity 

 in proportion to its weight and the price which can be obtained for 

 it in comparison with prices obtainable otherwise are factors to be 

 •considered in determining the desirability of direct marketing. 



