MARKETING HAY AT COUNTRY POINTS. 13 
The average producer does not know the grades as applied in the 
city markets, and he almost invariably claims to have a much higher 
grade than the hay would grade on the city market. Under such 
circumstances the country shipper, in buying unbaled hay, must 
often set a price low enough to cover inferior hay in the middle 
of the mow or stack. This necessary practice, on the part of the 
shipper, often causes an appreciable loss to the producer whose barn 
or stack of hay runs true to the grade of hay that can be seen when 
the sale is made. On the other hand, the shipper sometimes takes 
the producer's word regarding hay and finds out later, when the hay 
is being delivered, that the quality has been misrepresented, and as 
a result suffers a heavy loss. 
It is the consensus of opinion among country shippers that the 
average hay grower does not know the grades of hay, and also that 
the buying of hay on such producer's word only is a hazardous 
method. 
The shippers themselves are responsible in many instances for the 
lack of knowledge regarding grades 'on the part of the producer. In 
purchasing hay from producers the shipper rarely disputes the 
grower, who says that his hay is " choice " or No. 1, but simply pays 
what the hay seems to be worth. It is often for this reason that 
producers have come to have incorrect ideas as to the grade of their 
hay. 
MARKETING HAY IN THE BALE BY THE PRODUCES. 
The only solution of present difficulties encountered when hay is 
sold in the barn or stack is to sell it after it has been baled. If this 
were done, the shipper would have an opportunity to see just what he 
is buying and could determine the actual amount of the different 
grades present and would be able not only to protect himself, but 
to pay the producer the proper market price for all of the hay offered 
for sale. As it stands to-day, when the shipper loses on a bad lot 
of hay from one producer he is obliged to try to make up the loss 
on the good hay purchased from other producers. In general, ship- 
pers who buy small lots of hay, say from one-half up to 2 or 3 car- 
loads, from a single producer would welcome the idea of buying 
hay by grade from the producer. 
In some sections selling hay in the bale is practiced rather ex- 
tensively. In the "Black Belt" of the South alfalfa and Johnson 
grass hay is baled before it is sold. Considerable prairie hay is 
sold in the same manner. This method of preparation before selling 
was brought about because baling from the windrow or cock requires 
less labor than any other method. 
When hay is hauled to the shipping point as soon as it is baled, 
the shipper can inspect it as it comes in; and if there is any varia- 
