114 MASS. EXPERIMENT STATION BULLETIN 235 



The rent paid for the use of a farm is a good measure of income, but there 

 is very little tenancy in Massachusetts and no data are available on the rela- 

 tion of rents to taxes. Tenancy as it is found in the West and South is prac- 

 tically unknown, but there is some cash renting of tobacco land in the Con- 

 necticut Valley. This land varies in sale value from $150 to $600 per acre. 

 A conservative average value for the section is $300 per acre at the present 

 time. For tax purposes this land is assessed at about $150 per acre. Land 

 of unusual fertility or site value is assessed iiigher. The cash rental of to- 

 bacco land varies with the season and the value of the land, but a rental of 

 $.50 per acre has been asked for average land with tobacco siieds, until tlie 

 1926 season. The average assessed value of land and sheds is not more than 

 $300 per acre, which gives a tax of $9.00 per acre with a tax rate of .$30.00 

 per thousand. Taxes therefore take 18 per cent of the rental under these 

 circumstances. With the low rates prevailing in 1926, taxes of course take 

 a larger percentage. 



No other type of land is rented to any extent. Onion land is rented on 

 shares, but income from this crop fluctuates so much from season to season 

 that it is difficult to draw conclusions. The tax per acre on onion land is 

 about the same as on tobacco land. The rent per acre normally averages 

 higher on a share basis so that taxes should take a lower percentage of in- 

 come, but poor returns during the past few years have probably reversed the 

 situation. 



It is a common practice to rent pasture but tliere is no common standard 

 of value. Pasture land rents anywliere from 25 cents to more than ^.'.00 por 

 acre. In the central and western parts of the state pasture land is assessed at 

 from $15 to ,$20 per acre. Taking the iiigher value at a rate of $28.-53, the 

 average 1925 tax rate for the state, the tax per year on such land was 57 

 cents per acre. It seems probable that a great deal of rented pasture does 

 not pay the taxes. 



The tax per acre is not a good measure of farm taxes in tliis state, due to 

 the small number of acres of productive land per farm. In comparing taxes 

 with farm income, it should be remembered that a considerable portion of the 

 farm tax is paid on unproductive scrub, brush, mountain or other waste land. 

 The following table shows the variation in taxes per acre of crop land and 

 all land in farms, by towns, the assumption in the first case being that the 

 entire farm tax is borne by the productive land. The averages for crop land 

 are based on land in crops and hay land but do not include pasture. The 

 tax figures includes all taxes paid for the farm. 



Table 16. — Taxes per Total Acres in Farms and per Crop Acre, 1922 



