18 BULLETIN 978, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



The rules of the various exchanges usually provide that weighers 

 at private warehouses may be changed from time to time at the 

 option of the chief weighmaster. If he is an employee of the ware- 

 house owner, he may be dismissed as an official weigher at any time 

 that his services are not satisfactory to the chief inspector or in 

 compliance with the rules and regulations of the weighing depart- 

 ment or the exchange, but no regular system of rotation of weighers 

 at warehouses has been reported at this time. 



OBTAINING THE TOTAL WEIGHTS. 



After all the drafts have been weighed the amounts of the various 

 drafts are totaled. This work is done by one or more of several 

 agencies, which var}' at the different markets. In some instances 

 the weights are totaled by the weigher, in others by the supervisor, or 

 the figures denoting the amount of the various drafts may be sent 

 to the office of the chief weighmaster, where all clerical work will 

 be done. 



At this point, investigations show, most of the systems of official 

 weighing are weak. Complete information necessary for preparing 

 an official weight certificate which would be fair to all parties con- 

 cerned is frequently not furnished to the office of the chief weigh- 

 master. 



NUMBER OF BALES UNLOADED FREQUENTLY NOT GIVEN. 



The item most frequently omitted is that stating the number of 

 whole bales unloaded and the number of bales from which the wire 

 may have been broken, or the amount of loose hay, if any (fig. 8). 



The rules of most markets provide that the weighing charges 

 shall be paid by the shipper, and it would seem therefore that the 

 service was performed for his protection as well as for the protec- 

 tion of the buyer. There are several ways in which losses in weight 

 may accrue between the time the hay is loaded into the car and when 

 it arrives at its destination, but with the exception of shrinkage by 

 loss of moisture or shattering all losses will be indicated by the differ- 

 ence between the number of bales loaded into the car at point of ship- 

 ment and the number received at destination. It has happened that hay 

 has been stolen from cars at point of shipment, en route, or while in the 

 railroad yards at destination. The handling of the cars in switch- 

 ing or shipping has jarred open the doors and allowed some haj^ to 

 fall out before the fact was noted and the door closed. Cars have 

 been switched from unloading yards before all the hay has been 

 taken out. Parts of carloads haA*e been destroyed by fire and dam- 

 aged by water during the process of unloading. The liability for 

 such loss or damage is upon those responsible for it or in whose 



