CHAPTER XIV 

 THE SIZE OF FARMS 



THE size of farms is usually measured in terms of area. It is 

 obvious that all land is not equally useful and that some uses 

 of land make very different demands for labor and capital per 

 acre than others. From certain points of view, a 2o-acre 

 fruit and vegetable farm may represent as much business as a 

 thousand-acre wheat farm. There are many measures which 

 might be used. For example, the total investment, the number 

 of laborers, the number of horses used, the number of cows 

 milked, the number of cattle and hogs fattened, or the number 

 of sheep on a sheep ranch, may give a more accurate basis of 

 judging of the importance of a given farm than a bare state- 

 ment of area. Area is, however, common to all farms, and 

 next to the number of persons employed, is perhaps the most 

 satisfactory starting point for the discussion of the size of farms. 



The farms of the United States have been classified for statis- 

 tical purposes into ten size-groups based upon area. The 

 table on the following page shows the number and percentage 

 of the farms found in each size-group in 1910. 



This table shows a wide range in the size of farms in the 

 United States in 1910. A study of the tables in the census 

 volumes shows that this is a condition of long standing. A 

 study of conditions in foreign countries shows the same wide 

 range in the size of farms. It would seem, therefore, that there 

 is no one size of farm which can be generally recommended, 

 but that the proper size for a given farm depends upon many 

 variable conditions. It becomes a matter of importance, 

 therefore, to outline the principles which determine the size 

 of farms, with a view to the proper adjustment of the size in 

 the case of each individual farmer. 



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