CHAPTER XXIII. 



Management and Equipment. 



It is undoubtedly true as stated in the government reports 

 that the majority of farmers have no approximate idea of the 

 amount of money that they have invested in the major and minor 

 items of farm equipment. 



It has been determined in a survey by the government that 

 the annual rate of depreciation in the value of the major items 

 of the farm's equipment amounts to 7.3 per cent per year, and 

 the depreciation in the value of minor items is much greater, ow- 

 ing to carelessness and negligence. 



One of the ways by which this tremendous waste may be 

 arrested to a great degree is by making inventories, at a time 

 when farmers have time to collect and replace all missing items 

 in their proper places. This will save time in the busy season. 



It is to be hoped that in the teaching of agriculture in the 

 schools one of the things that will be taught is the importance 

 of an annual inventory of the articles of minor equipment, as well 

 as major equipment. 



An investigation and inventory of the minor items of farm 

 equipment found on 33 average farms of 160 acres each well 

 distributed throughout a Middle-Western State, showed that 

 from 3 to 95% of these farms reported some of the following 

 lists of articles : 



General Purpose 10 Try square, 20 Hatchet, 



1 Auger, 11 Wood chisel, 21 Screw driver, 



2 Awl, 12 Compass, 22 Log chain, 



3 Axe and handle, 13 Level, 23 Wooden mallet, 



4 Pinch bar, 14 Drawing knife, 24 Mattock, 



5 Bench screw, 15 Scratch guage, 25 Compass saw, 



6 Auger bit, 16 Gimlet bits, 26 Hand saw, 



7 Bit brace, 17 Grub hoe, 27 Crosscut saw 



8 Steel square, 18 Claw hammer, (large), 



9 Bevel square, 19 Hand axe, 28 Plane, 



(397) 



