10 BULLETIN 682, TJ. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGEICTJLTTJRE. 



to various classes of trade. It was found impracticable, however, to 

 trace any considerable number of lots from the retailer back to the 

 creamery from which it had been shipped, because the creamery's 

 stencil number usually is scraped off the tubs when they are weighed 

 and inspected by the jSirst-hand market receiver. 



In Chicago, New York, Philadelphia, Minneapolis, and St. Paul 

 an effort was made to check prices actually paid by various represent- 

 ative retailers with the current wholesale quotations for different 

 grades of butter. To make the findings of these quality and price 

 investigations comparable for the different cities, the buying and sell- 

 ing prices of all goods were compared with the New York wholesale 

 quotations for Extras. No allowances were made for differences in 

 freight rates from source of supply to these different cities; hence 

 the average premiums paid in Chicago and the Twin Cities are con- 

 siderably lower than those paid in New York and Philaedlphia. In 

 fact, for oleomargarine, process butter, and the lower grades of 

 creamery butter the prevailing prices were below those of New York 

 Extras. 



A comparison of the prices at which different grades of creamery 

 butter and their substitutes were sold in New York, Philadelphia, 

 Chicago, St. f*aul, and Minneapolis is shown in Table 3, The com- 

 parison is based on the New York quotations for Extras, and the 

 prices are expressed in margin<s of differences between the highest 

 New York quotations and the prices paid by retailers and consumers 

 in the other cities listed. Whenever the price was less than the New 

 York quotation, the difference is expressed as a minus quantity ; that 

 is, the figures show the prevailing discount instead of the premium 

 at which such goods were sold. 



It is noteworthy that jobbing and retailing prices in general vary 

 in accordance with the grade of goods. Table 3 shoM's, however, that 

 the differences in prices of different grades of goods are not the same 

 in all markets. In New York 80 lots of Firsts were bought by re- 

 tailers at prices which on the average were 1.2 cents below those paid 

 for Extras. In Philadelphia and Chicago, however, the differences 

 between average prices for Extras and Firsts were 1.7 cents and 0.8 

 cent, respectively. Specially advertised brands, with established 

 reputations for exceptional quality, were sold at retail at premiums 

 averaging from 9.1 cents in New York to 14.2 cents in Philadelphia. 

 While there was a general tendency in all markets for prices to vary 

 in accordance with the quality of butter sold, there were occasional 

 exceptions, however, especially in the case of buyers who based their 

 judgment of quality mainly upon known stencil numbers or trade- 

 marks. For example, in Chicago the average retail price of 14 lots 

 of Extras was lower than that of 159 lots of Firsts. 



