lg 2 THE BUTTER INDUSTRY IN UNITED STATES [406 



remembered that the Elgin prices must necessarily be lower 

 than New York prices, because on the Elgin Board the 

 butter is sold f. o. b. shipping point. If the producers of 

 the Elgin District paid the transportation cost the Elgin 

 prices would naturally have to be higher, and in order that 

 the element of transportation may be present in both prices, 

 $0.0065 has been added to the Elgin prices, in the compari- 

 sons that follow. From 1893 to 19 13 the freight rate " on 

 butter, any quantity ", from Chicago to New York over the 

 Pennsylvania railroad " was 65c. per 100 lbs "- 1 Of course 

 not all the Elgin butter comes east. A great deal of it goes 

 south. Much of the New York butter, however, comes from 

 the North Central states, and it is believed that the New 

 York and Elgin prices are placed more nearly on the same 

 level by adding to the Elgin prices the freight rate from 

 Chicago to New York. 



Diagram no. 2 has been constructed to show the influ- 

 ence of the producers' market upon prices. In this diagram 

 the variations of the annual Elgin prices from the annual 

 New York prices are charted from 1890 to 191 3. From 

 1 89 1 to 1895 the Elgin prices were below the New York 

 prices; but from 1896 to 191 1 they were above the New 

 York prices. The last two years they were considerably 

 below the New York prices. The Elgin quotation com- 

 mittee was created in 1896 and quoted prices from this time 

 to 191 1. In 19 1 2 the government suit was instituted and 

 the quoting of prices by a quotation committee was discon- 

 tinued. It is seen that the contention of the officers of the 

 Elgin Board, that producers selling on the basis of Elgin 

 quotations were getting better prices than by selling on the 

 quotations of other markets was not realized from 1891 to 

 1895 nor during the years 1912 and 1913: but that dur- 



1 According to letter from G. H. Cobb, Division Freight Agent, Pa. 

 R. R. Co., N. Y. C, dated May 14, 1015. 



