TYPES OF FARMING 



83 



The margin of profit on animals is constantly becoming 

 closer, so that better stock and better feeding will con- 

 tinue as serious problems. 



TABLE 16. COMPARATIVE FARM PRICES, SHOWING WHAT A 

 HORSE WOULD BUY AT DIFFERENT PERIODS, FROM TABLES 

 80 AND 81. 



59. Cycles of over- and under-production and ways of 

 foretelling them. Man is so constituted that he is too 

 likely to think that present conditions are to continue. 

 If we have a wet year or two, we think that it will always 

 be wet; if good prices, these are to remain forever. In 

 the case of prices, it is the very feeling of certainty that 

 present conditions are to continue that makes it impos- 

 sible for them to do so. One of the most important gifts 

 for man to cultivate is his ability to forecast the future. 

 This ability is one of the most valuable business assets. 



The usual guide that is followed in determining what 

 crops and animals to produce is the profits of the last 

 year or two, but since prices may be temporarily high or 

 low, longer periods should be considered. Many factors 

 are involved. The yields in the community may be good 

 in a year of poor crops, or the community may have poor 

 crops in a year of general overproduction and low prices. 



