

MARKETING HAY AT COUNTRY POINTS. 19 



Real value of a contract. — Notwithstanding' all that has been said 

 against contracts, there is real value in the contract method of 

 marketing. A contract settles definitely the matter of the owner- 

 ship of the hay as long as it is on the producer's premises. There- 

 fore it is a valuable instrument, because it protects the shipper 

 against loss or damage by water or fire until it is actually in his 

 possession, and it actuates the producer to take good care of his 

 crop until it is delivered. 



BUYING AND SELLING HAY BY GRADE ON THE FABM. 



Hay is not generally sold by grade on the farm, and until pro- 

 ducers are educated to see the benefit of this practice it will not 

 come into general use. Real selling of hay by grade on the farm 

 takes place when the shipper makes the producer an offer for each 

 grade that is likely to be found in the stack or barn when the hay is 

 baled. As the hay comes from the press it should be sorted into 

 grades before storing, so that when it is delivered a wagonload will 

 be of one grade only. As each load is delivered a tally is kept of 

 the number and weight of bales of each grade and payment is 

 made accordingly. 



The reasons why this method of marketing is not in more general 

 use to-day are: (1) It is a new method of doing business, and (2) 

 many producers believe that the shipper always wants to get ahead 

 of the producer by grading down the good hay. This theory is in 

 general incorrect, because many shippers wish to make only a fair 

 profit and are very anxious to use this method, as it does away with 

 a great deal of loss caused by the old " guess " or " sight unseen " 

 method. 



Instances have been noted where shippers buy the majority of 

 their hay by grade on a written contract. To sell hay by grade on 

 the farm it is necessary for the producer to have implicit confidence 

 in the honesty of the shipper. It is also necessary that the shipper 

 never abuse this confidence by grading the producer's hay carelessly. 



FACTORS WHICH PBEVENT BUYING AND SELLING BY GRADE ON THE FARM. 



The one great outstanding factor that prevents the general adop- 

 tion of the method of selling hay by grade on the farm is the lack 

 of uniform grades. This lack affects both producer and shipper. 

 The producer has no way at present of learning the true grades of 

 hay. For instance, if a farmer grows timothy containing one-third 

 of fine tame grasses and cuts and cures it properly, it may have a 

 better color than good " standard " timothy, yet it will not bring as 

 good a price as No. 2 timothy with a poorer color. 



The shipper at present grades his hay according to the way his 

 receiver grades hay. That is, to one customer he is obliged to ship 



