1910.] Railway Transport of Agricultural Produce. 727 



Take another example. The rates for apples and pears 

 between Evesham and London are : — 



Small lots. 10 cwt. lots. i ton lots. 2 ton lots. 3 ton lots. 



per ton. per ton. per ton. per ton. per ton. 



£ s. d. £ s. d. £ s. d. £ s. d. £ s. d. 



132 o 17 6 o 16 8 o 15 10 o 15 5 



The cost of conveyance of a small consignment of 

 apples weighing, say, 2 cwt. (at the "Small's" scale) would 

 be 2S. 4^. ; but if twenty such lots were bulked and sent for- 

 ward as one lot, the carriage would be charged at 15s. iod. 

 per ton; total, 31s. 8d., or is. yd. per 2 -cwt. lot. In other 

 words, there would be a saving of gd. in the carriage of each 

 consignment. 



This method of consigning can be employed with equally 

 beneficial results in any district, and in connection with the 

 carriage of many kinds of agricultural produce and requisites. 

 Thus there are two rates for the conveyance of vegetables from 

 Newport, Salop, to London, namely 26s. nd. for i-ton lots, 

 and 33s. 8d. per ton for smaller quantities. A 2-cwt. consign- 

 ment between these points would therefore cost 3s. 4jd.; but 

 ten such lots lumped together could be sent for 26s. nd., or 

 approximately 2s. 8Jd. apiece; and low rates for large quan- 

 tities by goods train have been adopted for cyder, grain 

 feeding stuffs, and manure. 



The " Bulking " Principle Welcomed by the Railway Com- 

 panies. — The railway companies themselves welcome the adop- 

 tion of this system of marketing by agriculturists. Thus the 

 South Eastern and Chatham Railway Company, in their 

 "Fruit and Vegetable Tariff," give notice to the following 

 effect : — 



" When a sender forwards from the same station or siding to the 

 same salesman or market in London a consignment of fruit or vegetables, 

 or a consignment consisting partly of fruit and partly of vegetables, 

 and elects to lump and tender such consignment at one time, the rate 

 or rates applicable to such consignment will be subject to a reduction 

 of 10 per cent, when the aggregate weight exceeds 2 tons, and to 15 per 

 cent, when the aggregate weight exceeds 4 tons. 



"The same allowances will be made when a consignment of fruit 

 or vegetables, or consisting partly of fruit and partly of vegetables, is 

 the property of two or more senders, but in such cases one of their 

 number is, by arrangement amongst themselves, to be selected as the 

 nominal sender. His name is to appear as such on the consignment 

 handed to the company, and he is to be authorised by his co-senders to 

 receive, on their behalf, the allowances above referred to." 



