385] PRESENT ORGANIZATION OF BUTTER MARKET jfa 



load lots, a saving in transportation service can be made, and 

 the expenses of selling can be met because of the large 

 quantities distributed. It will be noted that where the 

 method of direct selling is approached there is concentration 

 or combination either in production or in the market. Both 

 the " centralizers " and " chain " stores in many cases have 

 reduced the number of middlemen. 



The essential function of the retailer of butter, who usu- 

 ally sells other produce, is to get customers and retain 

 them. In his store there is considerable manual labor that 

 he must do. The fact that he deals in a variety of produce 

 makes it impossible to become an expert judge of market 

 conditions in all of them. For these reasons the individual 

 retailer can not run after the goods but must rather have 

 them brought to him. In the performance of his duties he 

 becomes the basis to judge demand. He tries to sell all the 

 butter he can, but in so doing he is in competition with 

 other retailers. It becomes necessary therefore to sell at the 

 lowest price possible. Perhaps he must sell below cost ; and 

 if so he will be slow to order more at the same price. This 

 feeling is made known to the jobber. There is therefore a 

 focusing of the conditions of demand in a group of dealers 

 much smaller in number than the retailers. 



The jobber has his own special duty to perform. It is 

 his particular business to induce the retailer to take goods 

 of the quality for which there is an effective demand in the 

 community. The rich classes can pay for the best while the 

 poor people must be contented with the cheaper qualities- 

 He must furnish to the baker packing stock or creamery 

 butter according to his requirements. In connection with 

 this work of distributing butter according to local needs 

 there is considerable labor necessary, both manual and cler- 

 ical. The most important qualification required of this 

 dealer is that of a salesman. He must be able to "get busi- 



