58 



The Condition of the Western Farmer. [336 



XI. ACREAGE HELD BY VARIOUS CLASSES OF PRESENT 



OWNERS. 



Per cent of acres farmed by owner, 53.91 



" u tenant 38.94 



not farmed, 7.15 



Per cent of acres owned by residents of township, . 53.91 



" kt county, . . 26.96 



non-residents of county, 19.13 



B. CONDITION 'OF RESIDENT OWNERS. 



Under this heading will be considered the debt of the 

 residents of the township, whether secured by real estate or 

 chattel mortgage, together with the improvements which 

 are on their lands. The attempt may later be made to see in 

 how far the debt is represented by improvements, and in 

 how far it means that the owners of the encumbered land 

 are losing in wealth. We may assume that, in general and 

 under normal conditions, a moderate debt incurred for the 

 purpose of bringing the farm under better cultivation, and 

 for acquiring machinery and protecting it after it has been 

 acquired, is a sign of progress rather than of deterioration. 

 And we may assume this here even though the facts brought 

 out later in this paper tend to show that, under the special 

 circumstances we have been considering, a debt incurred 

 even for what we may call legitimate purposes has been a 

 hindrance and not a help. 



