342 FARM MANAGEMENT 



The pay should vary with the season of the year. If a 

 month hand receives the same pay the year around, the 

 owner will feel that he is getting too much in winter ; and 

 in harvest, when day hands are getting big wages, the 

 month man will feel that he is working for nothing. By 

 varying the pay, the year's total may be the same, but 

 both farmer and laborer will be better satisfied. 



When dealing with Mexicans, negroes, or Indians, the 

 problem is entirely different. All contracts should then 

 be simple. Men must be treated fairly, but with great 

 firmness. 



These men do not often desire to work as regularly as 

 does a man who hopes to own a farm as soon as possible. 

 Usually the negro saves little. A good way to hire such 

 labor is to furnish a house and about an acre of land which 

 the man can work for himself with the agreement that he is 

 to work for the farmer at a certain wage per day whenever 

 he is needed. Instead of providing rainy day work, as is 

 done with men who want to earn money every day, such 

 a man works only on days when he is needed. He takes 

 his much desired vacation on days when there is no work. 

 Usually he will take time off anyway, and he may as well 

 do it when there is no work. 



217. Profit sharing. Schemes for profit sharing have 

 been worked out for some railroads and factories. Farm- 

 ing also has its method of profit sharing. It is by renting 

 farms. Some persons have thought that the farm laborer 

 might share in the profits on a farm, but the first problem 

 is to know what the profits are. It is hard enough to an- 

 swer this question when one is disinterested. It becomes 

 practically impossible when two parties are interested. 

 The writer has known of many attempts to share profits, 

 but has seen very few satisfactory results. A share of 



