MARKETING HAY THROUGH TERMINAL MARKETS. 43 
cipal cause of a great many of these misunderstandings. The char- 
acter of the grades, as has already been mentioned, is also a con- 
tributing factor. 
In the first place, official grade certificates for outbound ship- 
ments are seldom furnished, by shippers from terminal markets. A 
number of reasons have been advanced for this practice. It is 
claimed to be impracticable to issue certificates for cars that have 
been only "plug "or car-door inspected. However, such certificates 
are issued and used in settlements for hay in inbound shipments. 
Grade certificates for hay loaded out of warehouses at terminal 
markets are issued in only a few instances; in some markets, it is 
stated, $1 or $2 per ton more is charged for hay with which a grade 
certificate is furnished. It appears, therefore, that the grade stated 
by shippers in their quotations and terms of sale are personal grades 
and not official market grades. Many shippers claim that the grades 
given the hay are those desired by the buyer, but since the buyer 
would hardly reject hay which conformed to his own ideas as to 
grade it is doubted whether this is the reason for the use of such 
grade terms by shippers. 
It has been noted also that more No. 1 hay is shipped out of the 
various terminal markets than the official records show has been 
shipped into them during a stated period, or, in other words, the 
grades seem to have been raised on outshipments. This practice is 
never satisfactory to the buyers and they usually show their dis- 
approval Avhenever they have an opportunity to do so. 
One of the remedies for the difficulties now experienced in con- 
nection with grades in the terms of sale is to state definitely what 
grades are to be used, i. e., whether they are individual or personal 
grades, market grades, or association grades. Another remedy is 
to leave the interpretation and application of the grades to a compe- 
tent and disinterested party whenever possible. 
OTHER MARKET PRACTICES. 
In an apparent effort to overcome some of the difficulties expe- 
rienced in shipping hay from terminal markets under present con- 
ditions, dealers in some of the western distributing markets have 
engaged in a marketing practice which is a combination of the activi- 
ties of both a commission merchant and a shipper. Such dealers 
solicit orders from buyers in the same manner as shippers do and 
also solicit consignments from country shippers. When orders are 
received they are filled from the consignments which have "been made 
by country shippers to these dealers. The advantage claimed is 
that the shipper consigning the hay receives more than if it were 
sold on the market because he obtains the whole amount paid by the 
