260 



FARM MANAGEMENT 



TABLE 49. AREA RELATED TO EFFICIENCY IN THE USE OF 

 MACHINERY, UNITED STATES, 1900 l 



1 Twelfth Census, Vol. V, p. 186. 



Cooperative ownership of machinery is often desirable 

 and helps, to some extent, to solve the problem for the 

 small farm, but there is much time lost in taking machines 

 from one farm to another, and it is much more difficult 

 to plan the work so as to have the operations done at the 

 proper time, when more than one farmer is concerned. 



165. Relation of area to efficiency in the use of capi- 

 tal. The small farm has relatively much more of its 

 capital invested in unproductive ways. No matter how 

 small the farm may be, the owner desires a respectable 

 house. Table 50 shows that the smallest farms have 43 

 per cent of their capital in houses ; the largest farms have 

 somewhat better houses, but have only 9 per cent of their 

 capital thus invested. 



The barns on the small farms also take a much larger 

 proportion of the capital. The smallest farms have 19 per 

 cent of their capital thus invested, the largest farms have 

 only 11 per cent thus tied up. An equally good barn for 



