14 BULLETIN 977, XJ. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
tion in grade, the question can easily be settled on the spot to the 
satisfaction of both parties to the transaction. In the " Black Belt" 
those who do not sell as , soon as the hay is baled put their hay in 
warehouses, where it will be protected from the weather until it is 
sold. It is easier to judge the general quality of baled hay in a ware- 
house than of loose hay in the barn where only the hay on top can 
be seen. 
TERMS OF SALE BETWEEN PRODUCER AND SHIPPER. 
Terms regarding location. — When a producer offers his hay for 
sale, the first thing the shipper wants to know is where the hay is 
located with reference to the shipping point. Shippers who ship 
from several points are not always able to have a representative 
present when the hay is loaded into the car by the producer. When 
a car is loaded at a distant siding or town, it is rather expensive to 
the shipper to send one of his men to that point at the time the hay 
is to be delivered, because sometimes the man will spend half a day 
only to find that the producer has decided not to bring the hay on 
that day. Then, too, sometimes it comes in so slowly that the whole 
day is spent in loading a 10-ton car. 
The next thing the shipper wants to know is how the hay is stored, 
whether in the barn or stack. Hay often remains unbaled for sev- 
eral months after the sale has been made, and if it is stack hay it 
may deteriorate considerably in a comparatively short time, espe- 
cially if the stack is small or not well built or both. Shippers who 
do not have a hay warehouse at each shipping point must necessarily 
take many chances when buying hay to be delivered direct to the 
car. It also frequently happens that the hay the shipper bought for 
No. 1 will run very uneven in quality, and if he does not have a 
warehouse in which to put the off-grade hay, he is obliged to place 
several grades in a car. If the hay purchased is located so that it 
can be delivered to a shipping-point warehouse, the shipper has a 
chance to keep out the poor hay and load cars as desired. 
Terms regarding quality. — One of the greatest sources of trouble 
and dispute between producer and shipper is for the shipper to take 
the producer's word regarding the quality or grade of hay offered 
for sale. Though it is true that some producers know the grades of 
hay in a general way, it is the opinion among shippers that the 
majority of producers either do not know the market grades of hay 
or they make deliberate misstatements when describing the quality 
of their hay. 
It is equally true that many shippers drive hard bargains when 
they buy hay from the producer. In other words, the producer thinks 
it is to his interest to make it appear that his hay is better than it 
really is, and the shipper thinks that he gains by discrediting the 
