DISCARDED OPPORTUNITIES 343 



The same allowances will be made when a consignment 

 of fruit or vegetables, or consisting partly of fruit and 

 partly of vegetables, is the property of two or more 

 senders, but in such cases, one of their number is, by 

 arrangement amongst themselves, to be selected as the 

 nominal sender. His name is to appear as such on the 

 consignment note handed to the Company, and he is to 

 be authorized by his co-senders to receive, on their behalf, 

 the allowances above referred to. 



Here was an excellent opportunity given to 

 the senders to obtain reduced railway rates by 

 grouping their consignments, and the offer has 

 since been renewed from time to time ; but so 

 far as the officials of the railway can recall, no 

 senders on the company's system have yet taken 

 advantage of it. 



On the London and South Western Railway 

 a practical effort was made several years ago to 

 effect some sort of combination among the 

 farmers in one of the important agricultural 

 districts served by that line, with the view of 

 getting them to combine their consignments, so 

 that they could gain the advantage of lower 

 transit rates. The unsatisfactory results sug- 

 gested that the time was not then ripe for such 

 arrangements ; but in January. 1904, the com- 

 pany gave fresh evidence of their desire to do 

 what was possible in the way of promoting the 

 interests of agriculture. They issued a well- 



