12 



Farm Help and Wages. 

 On the whole, farm help appears to be rather more plentiful 

 than usual, but there is the usual complaint of the difficulty of 

 securing really efficient help. This is an old trouble, and will 

 always remain, both on the farm and elsewhere, for the really 

 efficient soon work out of the class of wage workers. It is 

 more noticeable on the farm than elsewhere because the farmer 

 is brought into closer personal relations with his employees 

 than is the manufacturer or merchant. Wages appear to be 

 still moving upward. Last year we estimated $23 per month, 

 with board, as the average wage paid, while this year $25 

 would seem to be nearer the true average of the wages re- 

 ported. Thirty-five to $40 per month without board, but 

 with tenement, milk and fuel, continues to be the general 

 average of wages paid. One dollar and seventy-five cents per 

 day seems to be the average of the reports of wages paid for 

 day help, — a price too high for profitable employment in 

 most sections. 



ACEEAGE OF FaEM CkOPS. 



There will again be a marked increase in the acreage of 

 corn grown for grain in the State as a whole, and a slight 

 decrease in the acreage of potatoes. The increased attention 

 being paid to corn culture is a hopeful sign in our farming, 

 as it indicates that a large number of our farmers are looking 

 for escape from western grains, with their high prices, and 

 are taking the best way out for ISTew England, in growing 

 more corn. Considerable increase in the interest in fruit 

 growing, especially apple growing, is noted, with a consider- 

 able number of new orchards being set. The acreage devoted 

 to cranberries also shows a continued increase. Several re- 

 ports come in of experiments with alfalfa, which show hopeful 

 results, and we should be glad to hear of any other attempts 

 in this direction, successful or otherwise. 



