8 FARMER'S BULLETIN 809. 



made proportionate and all receive the benefit of competitive bids. 

 The results are seen principally in the better prices obtained. It is 

 stated freely that the club members receive from $1 to $2 a hundred- 

 weight more for lambs of the same grade and 2 cents per pound 

 more for wool than farmers in the community who have not the 

 benefit of cooperative selling. The members are encouraged to fol- 

 low uniform methods in breeding and handling their flocks, with 

 the result that the clubs have an established reputation in many of 

 the large markets for the uniformity and high quality of their lambs 

 and wool. 



A MISSISSIPPI COMMERCIAL CLUB'S MARKETING PLAN. 



A " farmers' stockyards company " was organized at a city in Missis- 

 sippi in 1912 by a committee of the board of trade. The company is 

 capitalized at $10,000, with $2,500 paid in, this amount having been 

 found sufficient to transact the business of the company. The com- 

 pany was organized primarily to provide the farmers of the sur- 

 rounding country with a good local market for their live stock 

 throughout the year, with the hope of increasing the production of 

 live stock. The stockholders, who are local business men, receive no 

 dividends, and it is their aim, while maintaining the capital stock 

 unimpaired, to conduct the business so that the farmer will receive 

 the maximum returns for his live stock. The operating expenses of 

 the company therefore are reduced to a minimum. The manager 

 receives $15 for every carload of stock shipped by the company, and 

 the secretary-treasurer a salary of $150 per annum. The rental of 

 the stockyards (an abandoned cotton-compress lot) is secured by 

 charging 5 cents per head for all live stock taken into the yards. 

 Other expenses are the wages of a caretaker and the city water 

 charges. 



The company buys live stock in any sized lots on two days of each 

 week throughout the year, paying cash. The prices paid the farmer 

 are those prevailing at the large centralized markets, such as East 

 St. Louis and Fort Worth, minus a small margin to cover the usual 

 marketing expenses. The latter include the operating expenses of 

 the company; the cost of feed, at shipping points and en route; 

 freight ; shrinkage ; and the charges at the market, namely, insurance, 

 yardage, feed, commission, and dockages. 



An immediate result as reported by the secretary of the organiza- 

 tion has been shown in the higher prices paid by local butchers 

 for all live stock offered and in their readiness to pay cash for pur- 

 chases, whereas previously it was not uncommon to demand credit 

 extensions from the farmers. On the other hand, since the work of 

 the company has demonstrated the fact that live stock can be bought 

 and shipped to centralized northern and southern markets, local 



