PRAIRIE FARMER'S POULTRY BOOK 



From what has been said jt will be noted that the sale of 

 poultry, is not usually a producer-to-consumer transaction. 

 The huckster, the local dealer, the public carrier, the city com- 

 mission merchant, the inspector, the conditioner, the jobber 

 and the retailer may all have a hand in bringing the finished 

 carcass to the table of the consumer, and each is entitled to 

 pay for his services. The consumer pays and the producer 

 loses. If the farmer properly conditions his fowls and sells 

 to the consumer, either direct or through his commission firm, 

 it would mean larger profit for him and a reduced price to the 

 consumer. 



What About the Commission Merchant? 



Undoubtedly he performs a valuable service for the pro- 

 ducer. If found to be honest, competent and prompt in service 

 he should be cherished as a friend. The dishonest dealer — ^for- 

 tunately there are few of this class — should be forsaken as soon 

 as discovered. Write Prairie Farmer's Protective Union, Chi- 

 cago, 111., for names of reliable commissionmen. 



Story of a Farmer 



An Illinois farmer shipped a coop of choice spring chickens 

 to a commission firm in Chicago. The gross weight at the 

 farm was 194 pounds, the coop weighed 54 pounds, making a 

 net weight for the fowls of 140 pounds. After considerable 

 delay he received returns for 117 pounds at 19 cents per pound, 

 which was the minimum price on the market for that day. The 

 shrinkage in this case was 23 pounds, which, valued at the sell- 

 ing price, meant a loss of $4.37. Under average conditions 

 the shrinkage should have been not more than 10 pounds. 



What Happened? 



Several things could have happened with this shipment to 

 cause such a loss, viz., failure to water and feed the fowls be- 

 fore cooping; faulty condition of the coop, allowing the escape 

 of one or more fowls ; overcrowding, which may have caused 

 the suffocation of one or more ; work of "light fingers" among 

 employes of the express company or the commission firm ; dis- 

 honest weights at the receiving end ; slow action on the part 

 of the carrying agent. 



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