ONION SUPPLY AND DISTRIBUTION. 97 



While the quantity so held varies with the season it is usually large in 

 November and December, especially during years when the supply in the 

 valley is large and the market rules firm. The charge per month for 

 ordinary common storage is about 6 cents per bag. 



2. Cold Storage. — The principal cold storage for Connecticut Valley 

 onions is the Quincy Cold Storage and Warehouse Company in Boston. 

 It is located on the Union Freight Railway, connecting with all railroads 

 entering Boston. It has a capacity sufficiently large to take care of any 

 quantity which dealers may send. Very few onions are put into this stor- 

 age before March. In 1915 the quantity by months held by this storage 

 was as follows : — 



Bags. 



March 27,744 



April 4,005 



May 3,000 



The charge for terminal cold storage in less than carload lots is 15 cents 

 per bag the first month and 12.5 cents per month thereafter; in carload 

 lots 12 cents per bag per month; if stored in barrels the charge is 20 cents 

 per barrel for the first month, 15 cents for the second, 10 cents for the 

 third and 5 cents for the fourth, making a total of 50 cents per barrel for 

 the maximum period stored. 



Terminal storage is of great importance in onion distribution. Ship- 

 ments cannot always be properly gauged as to time and quantity. By 

 holding excessive shipments in terminal storages and releasing them 

 when shipments do not meet the demands of the trade the market may 

 be steadied to a considerable degree. 



Transportation of Onions. 

 Local Transportation. 



Onions sold for immediate shipment are bagged in the field and hauled 

 to the local shipping point on an ordinary farm wagon with a low bed. 

 While the length of wagon haul varies, the average, as previously stated, 

 does not exceed 2^ miles. The main roads in the district are excellent, 

 especially those leading from Sunderland to South Deerfield and from 

 North Amherst to Amherst over which thousands of bushels are moved. 

 These roads have only a few steep grades, and two horses can easily haul 

 a load of 60 to 65 bags. 



The branch roads are generallj^ sandy and unimproved, which makes 

 hauling difficult and increases the cost accordingly. The average cost of 

 local transportation from field to local storage or shipping point is approxi- 

 mately 1 cent per bushel. Storage warehouses are either on the railroad 

 or within an average distance of 2| miles. If on the railroad, the onions 

 are put into cars directly from the warehouse. Those at some distance 

 are sufficiently near to enable a team to make at least four trips a day. 

 The cost of such transportation is discussed under "Storage" (page 95). 



