REDUCTION OF WASTE IN MARKETING 



1333 



In a similar way other large sliippers 

 keep in close touch witli the progress of 

 a car on its way to market, at the same 

 time keeping informed as to the prices 

 and relative supplies in different cities 

 and towns. 



For produce moving from the South 

 northward many of the principal points 

 of diversion are along the Ohio and Po- 

 tomac rivers, but the route of a car may 

 be changed at any one of a large number 

 of railroad junction points. Cairo, Louis- 

 ville, Cincinnati, and Potomac Yard (near 

 Washington) are important points from 

 which these shipments are distributed 

 among various destinations. 



Between Eastern markets and producing 

 regions in the far West and Southwest 

 the chief points of diversion include Min- 

 nesota Transfer (between St. Paul and 

 Minneapolis), Council Bluffs, Chicago, 

 and St. Louis. Over one route from Cen- 

 tral California to the East the principal 

 points from which one leading shippers* 

 association receives "passing'* reports are 

 Roseville and Truckee in California, Og- 

 den. Council Blufes and Chicago. A Cin- 

 cinnati firm may receive notice of a Flor- 

 ida shipment when the car passes Jack- 

 sonville, Atlanta, and Chattanooga, and 

 another notice jnst before the arrival at 

 Cincinnati. On peaches shipped by this 

 fast-freight service to Northeastern mar- 

 kets from Tampa, a car's progress over 

 a certain route is reported from Jackson- 

 ville, Fla.; Savannah, Ga.; Columbia, S. 

 C; Hamlet and Raleigh, N. C; Rich- 

 mond and Potomac Yard, Va. 



The service of diversion includes not 

 only changing the destination of a car 

 in transit, but forwarding it to a destin- 

 ation beyond the one originally named. 

 For instance, a car shipped to Cincin- 

 nati may be forwarded under certain con- 

 ditions to Indianapolis for unloading; or, 

 it is reported, a car consigned to a given 

 town may be partly unloaded there and 

 the remainder of the consignment sent 

 on to another town. This, however, costs 

 more in freight than would a direct ship- 

 ment of a full carload to one market. 



How a Car Is Diverted 



Conditions on one route will illustrate 

 how the system of reporting car move- 

 ments may be used by a patron of the rail- 

 road. Suppose a dealer in Chicago, on a 

 Thursday morning, wishes to know the 

 location of a carload of tomatoes which 

 were shipped to him the morning before 

 from Crystal Springs, Miss. He makes 

 the request of the railroad company's 

 agent in Chicago, giving the initial and 

 number of the car and the date and place 

 of shipment. On consulting the "pass- 

 ing" reports it is found that this car, 

 known in transit by the symbol "CS-4," 

 passed Fulton, Ky., at 6 a. m. that day 

 (Thursday) and would be due at Cairo, 

 111., at 8:30 a. m., or, let it be assumed, 

 about an hour after the time the dealer 

 made inquiry. It would be due in Chica- 

 go Friday at 4:50 a. m. With this infor- 

 mation the dealer knows that, if he de- 

 sires to divert the car, he may select one 

 of a number of markets located north of 

 the Ohio river. He knows that there is 

 a large movement of tomatoes toward 

 Chicago and believes that the prices on 

 Friday will be better in some other places 

 than in Chicago on the day his produce 

 is dufe on the market. He has already 

 received news from some points. An as- 

 sociate in St. Louis may have telegraphed 

 the evening before that the supply al- 

 ready in that market, together with what 

 was due to arrive on Thursday, would 

 be about as much as could be sold at 

 fair prices; that, if more was received, 

 prices would probably be low. On the 

 other hand, a report from Indianapolis 

 may indicate good prices for Friday 

 morning, better ones than are promised 

 in Chicago for that day; so the Chicago 

 dealer orders the car to be diverted to 

 Indianapolis. He may wait until 3 p. m. 

 Thursday before reaching this decision, 

 so that he may hear from other markets. 

 Meanwhile the car has been moving north- 

 ward. The order for diversion is sent by 

 the superintendent of transportation to 

 the proper official at Effingham, 111., 

 where the car is due to arrive about 5-45 

 p. m., and where transfers are regularly 



