SERVICES IN COTTON MARKETING 37 
equipped with the best price quotation service; (2) put salesmen in 
all the big markets of the world; (3) borrow a large amount of 
money on bills of lading and warehouse receipts and advance it to 
growers; (4) obtain the freight refunds incident to concentration 
privileges for compressing; (5) prevent country damage and other 
loss by warehousing the cotton; (6) obtain cheap warehouse and 
insurance services due to large volume of business; (7) obtain valu- 
able statistical information too expensive for individuals and local 
associations to procure; (8) advise growers regarding the types of 
cotton most likely to be in demand, and in some instances take an 
active interest in inducing their members to grow better cotton; 
(9) through their publications, field-work service, classing schools, 
and other contacts, do some valuable work; (10) in some instances 
take an active interest in improving general marketing facilities, 
such as the elimination of gin damage and a more equitable adjust- 
ment of freight rates. They may eventually stabilize the price of 
cotton through the proper merchandising of a large volume of 
cotton. 
SUMMARY 
Marketing, from the standpoint of the owner, may be considered 
as the means of converting a physical commodity into purchasing 
power or value. The efficient conversion of raw cotton into purchas- 
ing power — the delivery from the farm to the mill — necessitates the 
performance of several services: (1) Preparation, (2) standardiza- 
tion, (3) classing, (4) assembling and distributing, (5) warehousing, 
(6) inspection and regulatory work, (7) financing, and (8) furnish- 
ing information. An efficient marketing system requires in payment 
for its services only a small proportion of the value represented by 
the crop. This constitutes the " spread " between what the farmer 
receives and what the spinner pays for cotton. 
The product grown by the farmer, known as seed cotton, may be 
said not to be complete as a single commodity until it has passed 
through the processes of preparation, ginning, baling and wrap- 
ping, and assumes the form of a bale. The excellence of the product 
making up the bale depends upon the quality and condition of the 
cotton when delivered to the gin, the type and condition of the gin 
machinery used, and the care exercised by the ginner. Bales may 
be compressed before shipment or storage to reduce size, which 
usually results in a reduction of freight and other charges. 
Standardization of a commodity is the setting up of authoritative 
measures of its qualities that are of economic significance. Efforts 
covering the last 100 years have brought cotton standardization to 
its present status, but the process will not be complete until the 
scheme of standardization embraces (1) grade, (2) color, (3) staple 
length, (4) character of the lint, and (5) weight, size, shape, and 
covering of the package or bale. Statistics of the industry will fall 
short of their maximum usefulness until commercial practices and 
trade terms are also better standardized. Standardization stimulates 
the improvement of the product, facilitates financing, and saves ex- 
pense of inspection by making possible sales on description. 
The purpose of cotton classing is to enable the farmer to sell his 
cotton on its merits, and the spinner to buy exactly what he requires 
