138 BEGINNER'S BEE BOOK 



many beekeepers take the attitude that it mat- 

 ters very httle, for in case the shipment is 

 damaged in transit the raih^oad company will 

 pay for it anyway. This is a mistaken \dew- 

 point. Claims for damages are a part of the 

 regular expense account of the railroad com- 

 pany and when the damages absorb too large a 

 part of the profits the rate is raised accordingly. 

 It is not only the damage to the honey which 

 results in a loss to the railroad but the damage 

 to other goods which may happen to be in the 

 same car with the broken package. As an ex- 

 ample may be cited a case where a broken pack- 

 age of honey damaged a shipment of silk. The 

 raih'oad had to pay for both the honey and the 

 silk, the latter, of course, worth many times the 

 value of the honey. In many cases the damage 

 from broken packages could be avoided if the 

 producer would use sufficient care in preparing 

 his shipment. It is easy to see that in the end 

 the entire loss must be borne by the honey pro- 



