RURAL ECONOMICS. 



595 



Tlie decreased cost of labor per acre on the large farm is attributed to the 

 increased use of farm machinery, the value of which increases rapidly with 

 the size of the farm, it being held that farm machinery on small farms costs 

 nearly twice as much per acre as that on the larger farms that have nearly 

 3 times as much machinery. The most profitable general farms in the county 

 contain from 200 to 300 acres of tillable land. 



The question as to whether a farmer should rent or own land when he has 

 only a limited amount of capital is discussed, and illustrated as follows : 



Relative opportunities for men with small capital as tenants and as owners. 



On a comparison of the 3 forms of tenure, cash rent, share of crops, and 

 share of receipts, the tenant who paid cash rent made an average labor income 

 of $604 and those who gave one-half of the receipts $342. The landlords who 

 rented for cash made 5.2 per cent interest, while those who rented for one-half 

 the receipts made 9 per cent. The farmers who operated their own farms 

 made an average labor income of $423, as compared with $879 for the tenant 

 farmers. 



It is suggested that the 3 most important points for the Improvement of agri- 

 culture in Tompkins County are larger farms, better cows, and a system of 

 farming that combines stock with cash crops. 



Rural economy in the Bombay Deccan, G. F. Keatinge (Agr. Jour. India, 

 5 {1910), yo. .'/, pp. 302-31S; 6 {1911), No. 2, pp. ll.',-123) .—The author dis- 

 cusses and illustrates the several systems of land tenure, the economic advan- 

 tages of small holdings and irrigation wells, the disadvantages of the custom 

 of tenants to live in villages, the serious drawbacks to the efficiency of labor, 

 and the apparent high rate of interest, which ranges from 4 to 24 per cent for 

 loans with land as security, and as much as 100 per cent for loans on personal 

 security, this being attributed to the scarcity of capital, lack of organization, 

 possibility of loss, trouble involved in collecting the interest, and the personal 

 enmity which the village money lender often incurs. 



First prize five-acre farm plan, A. Oppermann {Missouri Bd. Agr. Mo. Bui., 

 8 {1910), No. 10, pp. 5-11, pi. 1). — This bulletin contains the plan for buildings 

 and grounds for the 5-acre farm awarded the first premium in what is known 

 as the 5-acre farm contest conducted by the Missouri State Board of Immi- 

 gration in June, 1910. A discussion shows in a plain and practical way how a 

 man of limited capital may concentrate his energies on a small tract of land 

 and make a reasonable good living for himself and family. 



[Some farm problems], H. Wallace {Ann. Rpt. Nehr. Bd. Agr., 1910, pp. 

 12-'f-139). — In this address before the Nebraska State Board of Agriculture 

 the speaker discusses the following rural problems : Maintenance of soil fertility, 

 farm labor, agricultural education, and a social organization of farm life. 



