The Ruin of the Old Regime 45 



and as a consequence there was a rapid increase in farms 

 of under 500 acres. The number of plantations of 500-1,000 

 acres was about constant. Since 1880 the tracts over 500 

 acres in size have decreased in number. While the 100 to 

 500 acre farms have increased in number, their rate of in- 

 crease has not equalled the rate of increase in the smaller 

 groups. By 1880, 20 to 50 acre tenant farms had become 

 widespread and since that date they have been steadily in- 

 creasing in number and relative importance. This is to such 

 an extent true that in 1910 this type was distinctly predom- 

 inant in the State. There has also been a rapid increase in 

 10 to 20 acre farms. It has truly been a wonderful oppor- 

 tunity for the man who desired to obtain a tenure of land. 

 These figures as to size of farm represent the total oppor- 

 tunity to acquire land both as a tenant and as an owner, due 

 to the disintegration of large operations. The opportunity 

 in each has been ample. The remainder of this chapter 

 is therefore devoted to a separate discussion of opportunities 

 as owners and opportunities as tenants. 



Size of Land Holdings. The bad crop conditions imme- 

 diately after the Civil War, and the difficulty of obtaining 

 credit have been mentioned as having a tremendous effect 

 on the price of land. There were many tracts available for 

 purchasers. Much of this land was already "in farms" 

 according to the use of that term made by the census. Much 

 of it, however, consisted of woodland on the plantations and 

 was useless to owners who could not even get a force of 

 laborers adequate to cultivate their cleared land. Other 

 tracts of this "land in farms" consisted of old fields which 

 had been more or less worn out by the exhaustive cultiva- 

 tion of slave labor. The planters were anxious to dispose 

 of this surplus. In addition, the "wild" lands of the State 

 provided another source of supply. The census of 1860 in- 

 dicates 26,650,000 acres of land in farms, and a total land 

 area of about 37,500,000 acres. The difference of approxi- 



