56 QUESTIONS OF PRINCIPLE 



the capitalist expects to get as an inducement to him to 

 invest money in draining, enclosing, road-making, erection 

 of houses and buildings, and in other works of reclamation 

 and equipment necessary to turn virgin soil into farm lands. 

 It is true that farms created at equal unit cost in the past 

 may let to-day at different unit rentals, but this is not 

 necesssarily to say that those commanding higher annual 

 values include in this value an element of rent as defined 

 by economists ; rather does it mean that those letting 

 at the lower figures are giving to the capitalist a lesser 

 reward for his enterprise. 1 



It follows that rent paid by the farmer, except in particular 

 and relatively unimportant cases, is an element in the cost 

 of production, and must be included in cost determinations. 

 There seems to be no common agreement as to the method 

 of its distribution over the farm, but if it be accepted that 

 rent represents some return on the cost of reclamation and 

 equipment and nothing more, it is obvious that it should 

 be divided over the farm upon an acreage basis. It may be 

 permissible to make deductions from the total rent of items 

 estimated to represent the rent of the farm-house and the 

 rent of the cottages, charging the former to the Establish- 

 ment Account (see p. 53) and the latter to the Labour 

 Account, and then distributing the balance over the land, 

 but the attempts which are sometimes made to divide the 

 rent between buildings and land and then to subdivide 

 these two amounts between particular buildings and 

 particular fields is an impossible task, and moreover it 



1 From an inquiry undertaken by the Land Agents' Society in the year 1909 

 it appeared that about 30 per cent, of the fanners' rent payment had to be 

 expended by the landlord on management and repairs for the maintenance of the 

 rent. This figure was the average of several years, and is made up approximately 

 as follows : 



Repairs 20 per cent. 



New works necessary to maintain rents . .3 

 Management and legal fees . . . 6 



Insurance ....... 1 



30 



See Journal of the Land Agents' Society, vol. viii, p. 214. 



