6 



Of course, very much will depend upon the wisdom with which 

 expenses are incurred. Without doubt there is in individual cases 

 great opportunity for increasing the labor income by decreasing 

 expenses. What this paragraph suggests is that it is not wise to assume 

 a gross income greater than one-fourth the capital invested and that 

 one must concede that one-half the gross income may be required for 

 running expenses. Unless a man can estimate a satisfactory labor 

 income on this basis, it is prudent to proceed with caution. It is 

 obvious that if a man is satisfied with a labor income of $560 per 

 year an investment of $8000 will suffice. If the farm is paid for he 

 may expect a cash income over expense of $960 per year, since he has 

 a right to expect interest on the investment plus his labor income. 



SIZE OF FARM 



How large must a farm be to furnish a satisfactory living? From 

 what has been said the best practical measure with which to answer 

 this question is the gross income. The area of land necessary to 

 obtain a gross income of $4000 will depend upon the crops raised. 

 Thus, if the land is to be put into barley, from which may be expected 

 40 bushels per acre, worth 60 cents per bushel, or a gross return of 

 $24 per acre, there will be required 167 acres to return a gross income 

 of $4000. If adapted to potatoes, yielding 175 bushels per acre, worth 

 70 cents per bushel, 33 acres would be required. An orange grove, 

 yielding 225 boxes, netting the grower a dollar per box, would require 

 less than 18 acres in trees. As there js more or less waste land in 

 all types of farming, it may be stated, in general terms, that 200 acres 

 of land would be required for barley and 40 acres for potatoes, while 

 20 acres would suffice for oranges. A similar estimate may be made 

 concerning dairying. Estimating a yield of 225 pounds of butter fat 

 per year and that three pounds of butter fat are worth a dollar, the 

 total income for butter fat per year is $75 per cow. Each cow may 

 raise a calf, and some pigs and chickens may be kept. It may be 

 possible, therefore, to secure a gross income from all sources of $100 

 per cow. The amount of land which is required to keep a cow in 

 California varies at least as widely as from one to ten acres where 

 dairying is now actually practiced. Where alfalfa is grown in the 

 open valleys under irrigation, it requires about l 1 /^ to l l / 2 acres to 

 support a cow. Assuming the latter figure, it will require 60 acres 

 to bring a gross income of $4000. It is interesting to observe that"in 

 a certain irrigated region tracts of 20 acres each were sold for dairy 

 purposes. As time has gone on the farmers located upon these tracts 

 have acquired additional lands, so that at present the one-family dairy 



