172 AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS 



wages, only because he does a lot of work, but being denied 

 the high position his other qualities would have justified, 

 because of this lack of self-control and kindly attitude toward 

 other people. On the other hand, a young man who at first was 

 so ignorant of farming that he walked through the hay up to a 

 mowing machine in motion and into the cutter-bar, to his 

 sorrow, and who was continually making mistakes which cost 

 the farmer money, held a position, drew the going wage, and 

 in a few years worked his way to a head position on a good 

 farm which he filled admirably. This was made possible be- 

 cause of the fine spirit he always showed. He was a master 

 at being kind, he was industrious, and he took great interest 

 in the work of the farm. These qualities win the farmer and 

 he will pay full wages and be patient if he likes the man and feels 

 that he is improving in his work. 



The number of wage workers on farms in the United States 

 increased from 3,004,061 in 1890, to 4,410,877 in 1900, to 

 5,975,057 in 1910. The number of farms increased also but at 

 a less rapid rate. In 1890 there were, in addition to the farmers 

 themselves, 66 workers or farm laborers for every hundred 

 farms. In 1900 there were 77, and in 1910 there were 94. 



While this was a period of increase in the labor supply per 

 farm, it was also a period when new types of labor-saving ma- 

 chinery were coming into use. The gang plow was much more 

 widely used at the end than at the beginning of this period. 

 The two-row corn cultivator also tended to reduce the demand 

 for laborers, and a wider harrow was drawn by the multiple 

 teams used on the gang plow. 



Yet in spite of this increase in the supply of labor and the use 

 of labor-saving machinery, there was apparently a relative 

 shortage of labor as manifested by the talk about the scarcity 

 of labor and the actual rise in wages. Either the farmers them- 

 selves worked less (which might be their desire as good prices 

 made them prosperous) or there was more work per farm. 

 This might arise from an increase in the size of farms or from a 

 more intensive use of the land. The fact is, the average size 

 of farms in the United States fell from 146.2 acres in 1900 to 



