710 ANNUAL REPOKTS OF DEPAliTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



fiijt irregularly and mostly on farms of the leadin<^ class and subse- 

 quently with ineroasin<^ diU'usion and acc-olerated sj^ccd. 



For many years there have been fresh lantls \silh rather higli but 

 stationary j)roduction, older lands with declinin<^ production, old 

 lands beti;iimin^ to impnn'c, and some lands well advanced in improve- 

 ment. As the jn-oportions of these classes of lands have varied in 

 relation to the entire cultivated area of each cro]) the national average 

 production per acre has varied. 



In the meantime the competition of new land consuming some of 

 its capital in the production of crops has retarded, if not prevented, 

 the improvement of old land needing conservation and a gain in 

 fertility. The improvement of the older land is not an academic 

 question of conservation of national resources, Init it is to be worked 

 out in the endeavors of farmers to get a living, and a better one, an 

 end that can not be attained by a sudden creditable ])roduction per 

 acre large enough in the aggregate to be overproduction, wdth unprof- 

 itable if not losing prices for the farmer. 



PRODUCTION PER ACRE FOR MANY YEARS. 



It is w^orth wdiile to ascertain the results of the complex factors 

 that have governed the agricultural production of this country dur- 

 ing the last forty-three years, as the records of this Bureau permit. 

 The answer is to be found in mean i)roduction per acre in successive 

 groups of years. 



From the ten-year period of 186G-1875 to that of 1876-1885 the 

 production of corn per acre in the United States declined 2.3 per cent, 

 and the only States in which there was a gain were Maine, Rliode 

 Island, Delaware, Maryland, Nebraska, and California. From 1876- 

 1885 to 1886-1895 the list of gaining States was increased by Ver- 

 mont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, South Carolina, 

 Georgia, Florida, Illinois, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, New 

 Mexico, and Idaho, while Delaw^are, Maryland, and Nebraska were 

 transferred from a gaining to a losing production. The decline of 

 production per acre for the United States was 8.2 per cent. 



Advancing another decade to 1896-1905, corn ]:)roduction per acre 

 gained in 30 of the 46 States and Territories, and the United States 

 average increased 7.7 per cent, in spite of the disastrous season of 

 1901. 



The mean production per acre during the four years 1906-1909 

 increased 7.1 per cent over the mean of the preceding ten years. 



Wheat has been disposed to increase in production per acre more 

 generally than corn. From 1SG6-1875 to 1876-1885 the mean per 

 acre increased in Maine, New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Mary- 

 land, West Virginia, South Carolina, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Mich- 

 igan, and Kentucky, and the increase for the United States was 3.4 

 per cent. 



From 1876-1885 to 1886-1895 the mean production per acre 

 increased in 24 out of 41 States and Territories; New York, Mich- 

 igan, Nebraska, Kansas, Oregon, and California were not included 

 in the gaining States. The gain for the United States was 3.3 per 

 cent. 



In the next decade, 1896-1905, the mean production of w^heat per 

 acre gained in 35 out of 44 States and Territories, the conspicuous 

 omitted States being Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, 



