ORGANIZATION OF THE FARM 



returns per succeeding unit operates during the 

 application of a few units, after the final point of 

 increasing return has been reached and before the 

 starting point of diminishing returns per succeed- 

 ing unit has been reached. It may be true also, 

 that the line A I' in Fig. i, should rise rapidly 

 with the application of one particular unit, say 

 the fourth, and then remain stationary or even 

 fall with the application of the fifth, and then rise 

 very rapidly again with the application of the 

 sixth. The introduction of drainage or the use 

 of commercial fertilizers might bring such a 

 result. There are at present no data from which 

 to calculate the exact curve which the returns per 

 succeeding unit will follow, but the general rise 

 followed by a general fall is a matter of common 

 observation. 



With this illustration (Fig. i) before us, sup- 

 pose the farmer has one thousand of these com- 

 posite units, made up of laborers and capital- 

 goods, to expend in agricultural production. In 

 other words, suppose that this farmer has found 

 that he can secure the largest net profit when he 

 operates just one thousand of these units of labor 

 and capital-goods. With free land at his dis- 

 posal, how many acres will he use and how many 

 units will he employ upon each acre? Will he 

 apply five units per acre and use two hundred 

 acres of land? No, his expenditures will pro- 

 duce a greater total product when he employs six 



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