212 AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS 



The fear that the price of land has been rising too rapidly 

 and that present prices are highly speculative is rapidly gaining 

 in its hold upon the minds of farmers. It can be shown that a 

 rise in the price of land has been warranted, but the present 

 situation deserves careful consideration and conservative 

 action. The young farmer had better continue as a tenant a 

 while longer unless he has at least half the purchase price in 

 addition to funds enough to equip and operate the farm. 



The price per acre of farm land in the United States doubled 

 during the decade from 1900 to 1910. There is no record of 

 an equally great rise in the price of farm land in any other period 

 in the history of our country. From 1850 to i860, after the 

 mid-century gold discoveries, the price per acre of all farms 

 increased 46.5 per cent; from i860 to 1870, 11. 8 per cent; 

 1870 to 1880, 4.2 per cent; 1880 to 1890, 12 per cent; whereas 

 the average price of farm! land in the United States fell 7.1 

 per cent during the decade from 1890 to 1900, owing largely to 

 the depression in the West. The unparalleled rise in the prices 

 of farm lands in recent years calls for some explanation. Where 

 the increase in the price of land is due to a rise in the returns 

 from investments in land, this increase is normal and to be 

 expected. On the other hand, to the extent that the price of 

 land rises without a corresponding rise in the income from land 

 or a general fall in interest rates, the farmer and the nation have 

 something to fear. 



As farm land values should depend upon rents, so farm rents 

 are dependent upon the prices of farm products. The value 

 per acre of farm products increased 66.8 per cent during the 

 same period that the price of land doubled. If rents increased 

 in proportion to the prices of products, this would yet leave a 

 third of the increase in the price to be explained in terms of 

 other forces. 



An increase in the share of the proceeds of the farm secured 

 by the landlord would normally result in a more rapid rise in the 

 price of land than in the price of crops. There has been a rise 

 in share rents in parts of the north central states. Some land 

 which rented for a third came to rent for two-fifths. Some land 



