392 



SCIENTIFIC AGRICULTURE 



August, 1922 



tions are much like those in Canada, has 

 given us some illuminating facts which are 

 well worth pondering. In terms of the prices 

 of 1913 (the year before the war-time 

 changes) the average reward per farmer for 

 labor, risk and management was: 



In 1913 $44.4 



In 1914 454- 



In 1915 484 



In 1916 534 



In 1917 705 



In 1918 826 



In 1919 833 



In 1920 219 



In other words, the farmer's return in 

 1920 was less than one-half of that in 1913. 

 The nature of the risk involved in agricul- 

 ture will be apparent by a consideration of 

 the figures for 1919 and 1920; for when it is 

 seen that the farmer's income in the year 

 1920 was but little more than one-fourth of 

 what it was in 1919 we are forced to ack- 

 nowledge the uncertainty attending the ope- 

 ration of the farm. 



A comparison of the labor income of the 

 farmer with that of workers in other lines 

 will also help us to visualize in a general 

 way the significance of some recent changes. 

 Again we take our statistics from the United 

 States conditions: 



1913 1918 



Average wage per farmer 

 (for labor, risk and man- 

 agement) ....... $444 $1,278 



Average wage per mining em- 

 ployee 775 1,280 



Average wage per factory 



employee 705 1,147 



Average wage per railway 



employee .' 782 1,394 



Average wage per banking 



employee 930 1,461 



Average wage per govern- 

 ment employee .... 823 895 



In connection with this table we must note 

 that the figures given are not reduced to a 

 common base, such as were those of the pre- 

 ceding table; they were the figures which 

 were based upon the great enhancement of 

 wages that had taken place during the years 

 of the war. They do not rej)resent in any 

 sense the relative purchasing power of the 

 dollar. It will be noted from the table that 

 the labor income of the farmer in 1918 was 



practically the same as the wages of a min- 

 ing employee, a little more than the wages 

 of a factory hand, somewhat lower than the 

 wages of the railway employee and consid- 

 erably lower than the average wages of a 

 banking employee. Yet we must remember 

 that the ■ mine worker, the factory laborer, 

 the railway employee and the bank clerk 

 assume little, if any, risk and have no obliga- 

 tions concerning the management of the es- 

 tablishment in which they work. When these 

 factors are taken into account it is clear 

 that the farmer's return for all three ser- 

 vices is greatly out of line when compared 

 with the rewards in the transportation and 

 banking business. Considering the farmer's 

 risk, his fixed investment, the dangers to 

 which his crops are subjected, the diseases 

 which prey upon his animals and the un- 

 certainties of his markets, his profits are 

 very low. If he paid his family for their 

 labor, the interest on his capital would fre- 

 quently be nil. 



But the best test of the relative position of 

 the rural and urban industry is the exchange 

 value of their products. How much of the 

 farmer's commodity is necessary to be ex- 

 changed for a given amount of a man- 

 ufactured commodity ? In considering this I 

 shall take typical products in each case. In 

 1913, at a certain point in Manitoba, No. 1 

 Northern wheat was selling at the farm 

 for $1.00 per bushel. At the same time the 

 price of a pair of shoes was $6.00. Therefore 

 it took 6 bushels of wheat to purchase a pair 

 of .shoes. But in 1921, at the same farm, 

 wheat was selling at 88c. to 90c. per bushel 

 and the same grade of shoes cost at least 

 $10.00 a pair; so that in this latter year the 

 farmer had to exchange at least 11% 

 bushels of wheat for the pair of shoes. In 

 other words, the farmer's purcliasing power 

 was only about one-half what it was in 1913. 

 Is any further proof required that there 

 must be an entire readjustment of the re- 

 turns from agriculture, so as to make them 

 more nearly commensurate with those ob- 

 tained in industrial and commercial life.'' 



How is this readjustment to be attained.'' 

 In the period since the war, when deflation 

 of prices was taking j)lace, those prices de- 

 clined least and declined least rapidly which 

 were strengthened, if not controlled, by 

 liighly organized groups of producers. It 

 would seem that this points the way to what 

 we have already mentioned, that is, the need 

 for farmers to become strongly organized in 



