78o READINGS IN RURAL ECONOMICS 



invited added interest in the possibility of a further extension of 

 direct shipments. 



The use of direct shipments impHes, however, that the produce 

 in question is graded according to quahty so that it can be desig- 

 nated and bargained for without previous inspection. This means 

 that the functions of sorting and packing as they are performed 

 by jobbers or city merchants must be undertaken and carried out 

 in a satisfactory way by producers or local shippers. 



Direct shipment also implies that information is at hand so 

 that buyers and sellers of a given kind of produce may be able 

 to find each other and agree upon conditions of sale. In order 

 to render information available so as to bring buyers and sellers 

 together, some states such as Kansas and South Carolina have 

 appointed state officials who are expected to act as clearing 

 houses of information for this purpose. Generally, however, the 

 producer or local shipper is left to build up his own direct trade 

 in the cities by furnishing such quality and service as to com- 

 mand a special demand for his produce, or the city retailer must 

 find such local shippers. However, the building up of such 

 trade also implies that the necessary confidence exists between 

 the buyer and seller in matters pertaining to the sale. 



Again, direct shipment implies the availability of suitable and 

 practicable shipping facilities. The present system of differential 

 freight rates giving special rates in carload shipments is finan- 

 cially profitable from the standpoint of railway economy and is 

 favorable to the indirect jobbing method of handling produce. 

 On the other hand, the relatively high level of express charges 

 has not given encouragement to any appreciable amount of direct 

 shipment of produce. The most momentous change recently 

 iu this direction is the extension of the parcels post. Already 

 there has been a rapid increase in the movement of parcels on 

 terms such as to greatly facilitate the direct shipment of produce. 



However, having given all the above-mentioned requirements, 

 direct shipment also implies a willingness on the part of both 

 seller and buyer to give attention to all the necessary details of 

 such a system. This assumes vastly more than the great body 

 of either producers or consumers have shown themselves willing 



