12 



BULLETIN 999, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



much unemployment. After the Civil War wages remained high for 

 a number of years. The prices of animal foods were somewhat above 

 the price level of other farm products for some years and the animals 

 were increased. The prices of animal foods did not drop as rapidly 

 as the prices of crops in 1920. Some recovery in numbers of animals 

 is probable, but the shortage is small compared with the Civil War 

 changes, so that no such decided increase is probable. The long-time 

 tendency is to keep fewer animals per capita as the population be- 

 comes more dense. 



Table VII. — Relation of population to animals. 1 



[Animal units per 100 persons.] 



Country. 



Animal units 

 of cattle, 

 reindeer, 



sheep, goats, 

 hogs. 



Country. 



Animal units 

 of cattle, 

 reindeer, 



sheep, goats, 

 hogs. 





443 



395 



82 



92 

 89 

 67 

 87 

 93 

 73 

 69 

 65 











38 





Netherlands 



37 





Dp.rmmrk 



33 



1850 





33 



I860..... 





31 



1S70. 





29 



1880 





29 



1890 





23 



1900 





2 



1910 





1920 









1 Data for foreign countries are "before the war. 



One head of grown cattle, 2 young cattle, 7 sheep or goats, 14 lambs, 5 hogs, 10 pigs are each called an 

 animal unit. 



These data are necessarily only roughly correct, but they are believed to be sufficiently accurate to indi- 

 cate correct conclusions. 



The effect of wages is not as great as might be inferred from wage 

 rates and wholesale prices. When prices rise rapidly, wages lag 

 behind, but there is full employment, so that the wage earners are 

 not in as serious a condition as the wages indicate. When prices 

 fall rapidly, wages lag behind and remain high, but there is likely to 

 be unemployment, so that the buying power is not as high as the 

 wages suggest. 



WHOLESALE PRICES OF FARM PRODUCTS DURING THE CIVIL WAR 

 AND WORLD WAR PERIODS. 



Farm prices by months are not available for the Civil War period. 

 Wholesale prices in cities are shown in figures 5 to 11, and Tables 

 XII to XVI. Usually the wholesale prices lag behind farm prices, 

 and usually they do not have such extreme fluctuations as do farm 

 prices. 



In all cases the weather has had a very decided influence on grain 

 prices. 



