30 



X. II. Aci!. EXPERIMEXT StATIOX 



[Bulletin 260 



Table 23— Average raluc and costs of uittomohiles, trucks <ind tractors far the 



year on /fl'i farms. 



Automobiles. 



Trucks. 



Tractors. 



Number of farms reporting... 288 172 59 



Averag-e value per farm $429 $370 $318 



Average miles per farm 4087 4703 



Total number of machines 298 184 61 



Average value ]-er macliine. . . « $415 $346 §307 

 Average m'.les per machine... 3950 4397 



Per Per Per 



Amount. cent. Amount. cent. Amount. cent. 

 Costs per machine : 



Interest at 5% $20.76 8.9 $17.34 7.0 $15.30 11.0 



Licen.se and insurance 26.63 11.3 30.27 12.2 0.23 0.2 



Jlepairs, including tires.. 19.92 8.5 30.90 12.1 13.19 11.2 



Depreciation 105.37 44.9 •G2.91 37.4 38.11 27.4 



Gasoline at 22 cents 53.98 23.0 66.50 26.8 60.05* 43.2 



Oil at $1.00 7.94 3.4 10.08 4.1 9.69 7.0 



Total co.sts $234.60 100.0 $248.00 100.0 $138.97 100.0 



Cost per mile 5.94c 5.64c 



* A small proportion kerosene. 



NOTE : The amount of hard grease used and the value of farm labor spent in 

 repairing cars or replacing parts were not obtained. Tlie cost of gasoline and 

 oil was charged at a flat rate of 22 cents and $1.00 a gallon, respectively, for 

 al] cars. From a few estimates and general prices in the community, these 

 were assumed to be the usual prices paid. 



tractor equipment on 42 dairy farms.^' The New Hampshire farms had 

 little special equipment, and the detail of tractor equii)ment was not 

 enumerated. Gilbert also found that the average cost of tractor opera- 

 tion for 181 tractors on 175 New York farms in 1926 was $269 with 

 tractors averagin": 313 hours of work ])or year. The average value of 

 these tractors was $432. The cost per hour without a driver was 86 

 cents. 



The number of hours used was not enumerated with sufficient accu- 

 racy on enough farms to give a usable average for the New Hampshire 

 tractors. On the basis of fuel consumption, they were used only about 

 half as many hours as the New York machines. Assuming that the 61 

 tractors on these farms worked 156 hours on the average, the cost per 

 hour would be 89 cents. 



Table 24 — Distribution of costs of gasoline motor rchiclcs and poircr 



to selected uses. 



Kind. 



Automobiles 



Trucks 



Tractors 



Distribution of use and cost. 



