650 TWENTY-THIRD ANNUAL YEAR BOOK— PART IX 



flow along the large boundary rivers. In seasons with no overflow this 

 land is reported in crops or pasture. 



Hog production has greatly increased. The hog population July 1, 1922, 

 11,766,526, is the greatest of record and 22 per cent more than the preced- 

 ing year. The number January 1, 1923, was 9,461,637, which is 35 per cent 

 more than on January 1, 1922. Sows bred for spring pigs, 1923, num- 

 bered 2,534,640, which is 11.4 per cent more than in 1922. 



Cows and heifers kept for milk numbered 1,176,913, which is an increase 

 of 4.8 per cent over last year. Other cattle amounted to 3,117,171, an 

 increase of 8.6 per cent. 



Increases are shown in poultry, eggs, and sheep shipped in for feeding. 

 Marion county stands out conspicuously as a sheep-feeding county. 



Horses continued to decrease at about the same rate as in the last five 

 years, while mules show a decided slacking up in the rapid increases of 

 recent years. A slight increase in tractors, trucks, and automobiles is 

 shown; also modern homes. Silos and silage show decreases, though 

 these might be expected to increase with the cows kept for milk. 



Apples harvested amounted to 2,126,671 bushels, which is the largest 

 crop since 1915; and there was a net increase of 9,629 acres in orchards, 

 which probably marks the beginning of a reaction from the steady decline 

 in orchards during the last 10 years. 



