Rensselaer Union, Volume 6, Number 38, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 11 June 1874 — Marketing Eggs. [ARTICLE]

Marketing Eggs.

~ There is a good lesson in the following story told by a correspondent of the American Farm, Journal , of the manner in which he made a market for his eggs: My old hens laid plentifully during July and August, and, though the price was not large, there was a good market for all the eggs I could spare. I did not care to hawk around anything I had for sale, and I sought a dealer‘ who had a good trade, and proposed to him that he should take all the eggs I would have. “ At what price do you propose to sell?” he asked. “ At the market price,” I answered, “ Who’s going tcMfecide?” “ Ws'\\ both decide. I will have a pass-book and enter in it the number of dozen I send you. When you, have counted them you can add' the price on the book, and in that way there can be no mistakes or misunderstanding.” “ All right,” said he, “ I’ll do it.” “ I would like to have you bear one thing in mind,” I added, “Jand that is, that I guarantee you shall never find a bad egg among those I send you." If you will keep them separate, and ever find me wrong in this, I will give two eggs for every bad one you find in my baskets.” “Do you mean all that ? ” he asked, somewhat doubtingly. “ Every word of it,” I answered. “ All right; see that you do it, for I shall warrant every egg." The merchant must have told of our bargain, for the next time I met our neighbor he reined up his horses as if he had something important to communicate. “ Say, Tim,” he began, “ gone into the egg business on a big scale, ain’t you ? ” “ Why, no; not on any larger scale than a good many others.” “But you warrant your eggs, don’t you!” *' I saw the twinkle in his eye, but I was not going to hack down. “Yes,” I answered; “I don’t intend to carry any bi)t good eggs to the market.” • v

“ Jos’ sol 8o I heerd. Tears to me you must have s mighty sight of confidence in your hens.” “ Not so much confidence in my hens as in my care of the eggs.” “ Jes’ so! It’s as good as thread; warranted 200 yards! Why don’t you put your name on each egg, Tim! " “ I may, by-and-by.” “ Jes’ so I I don’t see why you shouldnt.” And he drove on. But after all 1 had not done so foolish a thing as you may think. My twenty hens averaged fifteen eggs a day, and I made it a rule to Bend the eggs to market every third morning. I used China nest eggs, so there was no possibility of any egg being over three days old. It was not long before the merchant began to appreciate the fact that here was a constant supply of eggs that he might depend upon as being all right. I carried a basket of eggs to him one morning, and, after he had taken them, he said: “ Tim, supposing I should agree to give you one cent a dozen more than the market price, what effect would it have on you!” ’ “’The best effect in the world,” I answered. “ Well, it is just like this: when you told me to warrant your eggs all sound I thought you was a confounded fool. But I warranted the eggs and found they were always good. Now I have a class of trade that would willingly pay more for eggs if they could be sure they were good, and I propose to ask two cents a dozen more for the eggs you bring me, and this I will divide with youv” This was certainly encouraging, and our arrangement holds to this day. I habitually receive one cent a dozen for my eggs more than my neighbors do. It is an insignificant sum, but it counts up at the end of a year.