No. 4.] U. 8. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 191 



compiles his own estimates. This information, however, is 

 supplemented by the reports of special field agents, who 

 traverse the producing portions of the country, procuring 

 all possible data and carefully analyzing the same. 



Information with regard to final yield per acre is further 

 obtained from reports received from a ver}^ large corps of 

 farmers, each reporting for his own farm. 



With regard to cotton, supplemental information is fur- 

 nished on special schedules b}^ a corps of special cotton 

 correspondents, embracing a complete corps of cotton gin- 

 ners and a further corps of cotton planters, each reporting 

 for his own plantation. This method is, however, emplojed 

 only for the purpose of making a preliminary statement, the 

 final figures being derived from statistics of movement and 

 consumption obtained from transportation companies, port 

 ofBcers and mills. 



In all tabulations careful attention is paid to the weight of 

 the figures submitted, so that each county and each State 

 may have its correct and proper influence in the determina- 

 tion of the total for the State or for the United States. The 

 statistics are compiled with the latest census figures as a basis, 

 the acreage and production being carried on from year to 

 year by the percentage method, 100 representing the under- 

 stood area of production of the preceding year. 



The reports on condition of crops in their growing and 

 maturing period, also, are based on the percentage sj'stem, 

 100 re})resenting "a condition of perfect healthfuluess, un- 

 impaired by drought, hail, insects or other injurious agency, 

 and with such growth and development as may reasonably 

 be looked for under these favorable conditions." Reports of 

 yield per acre and price per unit of quantity are of course 

 reported quantitativel3\ 



The total number of all classes of correspondents in the 

 crop-reporting service aggregates nearly 250,000. 



Reports regarding farm animals are made several times 

 during the year, mostly concerning the number and value of 

 the principal classes of these animals, but partly to ascertain 

 their condition of healthfulness after passing through the 

 winter. 



