394 EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. 



Therefore progress will he Mctt'leratiMl l»y tlu' live prohlcnis of to-day which 

 acting as a matter of necessity will iirf:e mankind forward to tind ways of in- 

 creasing the means of subsistence. While the so-called law of diniinisliing 

 returns possesses no actual value it still has a potential value in tl)at if popu- 

 lation should increase too rapidly the relative productivity of land must neces- 

 sarily decrease, and to this extent the Malthusian theory is correct. 



What is true of agriculture is likewise true in general in the industries for 

 they in the last analysis are dependent upon land productivity for their supplies 

 of raw materials. This serves as a check upon the productivity of capital and 

 labor in modern industry, but the checks in agriculture are stronger, more 

 direct, and more embracing, for the reason that the extension of cultivation 

 and improvement in methods can be exercised in individual cases only within 

 relatively narrow limits. " The difference between agriculture and industry 

 is not to be understood as indicating that in the former man works with rela- 

 tively decreasing returns and in the latter with relatively increasing returns. 

 For in agriculture the rewards of labor can be increased, but in general not so 

 rapidly as in the Industries." 



The authoi-, in critically examining the views of various economists, presents 

 an extensive bibliograitliy on the law of diminishing returns in agriculture. 



The economic returns for 21 years from a peasant farm in Kurhessen. 

 H. L. RroLOFF {Fiililin(j:s Laudu: Zt(j., o.S (1909), No. 21, pp. 78i-7S6).— This 

 farm was about 77 acres in size and situated on the hill lands of the province 

 of Hesse. The soil was stony and not very fertile, the climate severe, and the 

 market conditions unfavorable. It is characteristic of most of the middle and 

 large-size farms in the district, both as regards physical conditions and profit- 

 ableness. 



The farm is operated by the owner, his wife, one son, and two daughters, and 

 five additional children are supported out of the income from the farm. The 

 standard of living of the family is described and compares favorably with any 

 working-class family. 



Under these conditions the returns show a net income over all expenses of 

 operating the farm and maintaining and educating the family for the 21 years 

 of 5,481 marks (about $1,300), or an average yearly surplus income of 261 

 marks. Four of the years show a deficit ranging from 10 to 486 marks. The 

 largest source of income, 54.50 per cent, was from the sale of live stock and 

 their products. The author believes that the economic welfare of farmers in 

 this district lies in the raising of live stock rather than in the production of 

 cereals or other cultivated products, and in owning rather than in renting 

 farms. 



Some considerations concerning' the significance of erecting small dwell- 

 ings on farms, L. Xoack iLandw. Jahrl)., 38 {1909), Ergdnznngsh. 5. pp. 217- 

 228, figs. 2). — This article discusses the need of erecting better dwellings on 

 farms for the accommcKlation of farm laboi-ers. A model of a house to accommo- 

 date two farm laborers' families is described and illustrated, including data on 

 the cost of construction. The erection of sanitary and commodious dwelling 

 houses for farm help is advocated on the ground of making the laborers more 

 contented. This would tend to retain them on the land and incidentally be in- 

 strumental in helping to solve the agricultural labor problem. 



Small holders: What they must do to succeed, E. A. Pratt {London, 1908, 

 pp. VII+2Ji7). — This book discusses the economic disadvantages under which 

 small holders labor in England and the different lines of the agricultural indus- 

 try for which these holdings are adapted, and emphasizes the importance of 

 cooperation among small holders in the purchasing of their supplies, the 

 marketing of their products, the insurance of their stock and premises, and the 



