330 



THE FARMERS CABINET. 



VOL. I. 



to create. Experience and observation both 

 assure us, that the man who has any means 

 of living beyond what depends on his own 

 exertion, is very apt to acquire contemptuous 

 ideas of economy, and whatever may be his 

 orig-iiial intentions, sooner or later finds him- 

 self trenching first on the interest of his capi- 

 tal, and then on the capital itself. There can 

 be very few instances found in the country, 

 where the sons of rich men have not dimin- 

 ished the inheritance received from their pa- 

 rents, and the examples are still more rare in 

 which the second generation have not suc- 

 ceeded in scattering the descending properly 

 to the winds. A pride, as false as it is inju- 

 rious, makes those who can live upon their 

 money, dislike exertion, until this dislike be- 

 comes a habit, rarely shaken off, even after 

 its effects are staring the individual in the 

 face. 



But the most sufficient reason of all why 

 A. will succeed, while B. will probably fail, 

 is found in the fact, that money invested in 

 farming is far better than money at 7 per 

 cent. This we think will be questioned by 

 few who have been in the habit of observino- 

 what passes around them, or examining the 

 reports made of particular farms which have 

 from time to time appeared in the farming 

 journals of the day. In all such reports it is 

 evident, that after deducting the expense of 

 working, a certain per cent, for the wear and 

 tear, and the necessary repairs, and the inter- 

 est of the capital employed, the remainder 

 will be clear profits. The amount of this pro- 

 fit will depend on circumstances. The ex- 

 pense of working a grain farm will be great- 

 er than on a grazing farm, but the capital em- 

 ployed in stocking is less, and the profits usu- 

 ally much higher; the returns for labor are 

 quicker, and the proceeds accumulate in a 

 corny ound ratio. 



There have been quite a number of farm 

 reports given to the public through the agri- 

 cultural journals, but we do not recollect one 

 in which the expense of working was given 

 with precision. The value of the products 

 of the farm have been stated, and the reader 

 has been left to form his own estimate of the 

 amount to be deducted for the items of ex- 

 pense mentioned above, and in most cases the 

 amount of capital employed has been left to 

 conjecture. How then shall the actual ex- 

 penditure of the farmer be estimated 1 for un- 

 less this can be done with an approximation 

 to accuracy, it is evident the clear profit of a 

 farm can not be known. 



We have been convinced by observation 

 and experience, and by estimates made with 

 as much care as possible, that one-third of the 

 proceeds of a farm will amply suffice to cover 

 all the ordinary expenditures, or in other 

 words will pay for working, keep the farm in 



repair, and replace the interest on the capital. 

 We are sustained in this position by a com- 

 munication from Dr. Beekman,the Secretary 

 of the State Ag. So., addressed to the editor 

 of the Farmer's Register, Richmond, Va. in 

 which he states, that except in extraordinary 

 case, one-third of the products will meet all 

 expenses, leaving two-thirds as profit. 



Mr. S. T. Vary of Kinderhook, made a re- 

 port of his farm for the Cultivator, in which 

 he estimates the proceeds from 145 acres of 

 land at ,f 2,28.3. Deduct one-third of this, 

 and there is left $1,524, which is the inter- 

 est of $21,772; Mr. Vary did not state his 

 capital or the value of his land, but the pro- 

 fits would pay the interest on 145 acres at 

 $ 1.50 an acre — probably more than double its 

 actual price. 



Mr. Carter, of Champion, Jefferson county, 

 has furnished judge Buela farm report, which 

 makes a total of $ 1,639 from 100 acres. — 

 Among the items is one not usually found on 

 farms, viz : mulberry trees, and which to Mr. 

 C. are quite a source of profit. This amount, 

 less one-third as expenses, &c. would leave 

 $ 1,093 as profit, or the interest on a capital 

 of $15,600, which would fix Mr. Carter's 

 100 acres at $ 156 dollars an acre — a price 

 which would make the good farmers of Jef- 

 ferson county open wide their eyes. 



We have been furnished by a friend with 

 two farm reports, which, though more full 

 than the foregoing, as they state the capita) 

 employed, are still deficient in not giving an 

 accurate account of the expenses of cultiva- 

 tion. The first report is from a farm on which 

 86 acres are under cultivation, and the capi- 

 tal, including farm and stock, is estimated at 

 4,500 dollars. The proceeds of this farm are 

 given as follows : 

 Wheat, $ 160 



Barley, 111 



Oats, 350 



Hay, 240 



Peas, 40 



Pork, 150 



Potatoes, 40 



Ruta Baga, 50 



Making a total of $ 1,412, af\er leaving 

 many minor sources of profit out of the ac- 

 count, such as two or three acres of poor corn, 

 and other things of which the actual value 

 was not ascertained. The crop of wheat on 

 this farm was reduced at least two-thirds by 

 the severe winter, yet after deducting one- 

 third of the whole, a profit of $962 is left. 

 This sum would be worth the interest of 

 $ 13,742 ; or in other words, the capital in 

 this case pays an interest of twenty-one per 

 cent. The cultivated land of this farm at 

 legal interest would be worth V^d dollars an 

 acre. 

 The other report is from a small farm, forty 



$ 1,442 



