300 HARVESTING AND MARKETING 



firms in the hope of getting high prices for part of the goods each 

 day. The proportion shipped to each man on a given day is 

 usually determined by his latest returns, and the man who secured 

 the best prices one day may secure the lowest three days later, 

 so that on the entire season's business little or nothing is gained by 

 dividing shipments, and often much is lost. The safest plan to 

 follow in shipping to a large city market is for the grower to make 

 arrangements with some trustworthy commission firm to handle 

 his entire product. This should be done before the shipping 

 season begins. If the grower can visit the market and talk per- 



FiG. 181. — Packing shed for cantaloupes at railway siding near 

 Rocky Ford, Colorado. The product of 200 acres was packed under 

 the supervision of one man in this shed. 



sonally with his commission man, much will be gained. There 

 should be a specific understanding between the grower and the 

 commission man regarding the grading and packing of the prod- 

 ucts and the meaning of the different brands to be used on the 

 packages, so that the salesman may know with absolute certainty 

 the exact character of the goods contained in a given package. 

 This will enable him to place the different grades with the different 

 classes of trade, and thus realize for the grower the largest possible 

 proceeds from the entire product. 



