STUDY OP FARMING IN SUMTER COUNTY, GEORGIA. 57 



Table XXVII. — Cost of producing cotton on 160 farms operated by white oumers 



(Sumter County, Ga.). 



Number of acres in cotton I I 301 



Number of pounds of lint cotton produced 4, 014, 500 



Total farm receipts $655, '>-<'> 



Receipts from stile of lint cotton $4!)i;, 950 



Receipts from sale of cotton seed 72. 701 



Receipts from sale of lint cotton and seed 



Per cent lint cotton and seed sales are of total farm receipts. 



569,651 



86.9 



General expenses (labor, feed, seed, fertilizer, insurance, taxes, etc.)_ $408,876 



Value of farmer's own labor 70, 451 



Interest on investment (5 per cent of $2,203,673) 110, 184 



Total operating expense 589, 511 



Amount of operating expense chargeable to cotton (86.9 per cent of 



$589,511) 512,285 



Less receipts from sale of cotton seed 72, 701 



Net cotton expense, or cost of production of lint 439, 584 



Cost per acre of cotton $30. 74 



Cost per pound of lint $0.1095 



From this expense was deducted $72,701, the amount received from 

 the sale of cotton seed, and the remainder equals $439,584, the ex- 

 pense chargeable to the production of lint cotton. This total divided 

 by the number of acres in cotton gives a cost of $30.74 per acre, which 

 divided by the yield per acre in pounds of lint cotton gives 10.95 cents 

 as the cost per pound of lint. 



DISTRIBUTION OF COSTS. 



The items that go to make up the cost of producing cotton have 

 been separated into four groups: Labor, use of land, fertilizer, and 

 miscellaneous. In Table XXVIII is given the distribution of costs 

 on 268 farms operated by white owners. 



Table XXVIII. — Distribution of costs on 268 farms operated by white owners, 

 oicners additional, and owners with part rented out. 



Item of cost. 



Cost per 

 acre. 



Per cent 



of total 



cost. 



Cost per 

 pound 

 of lint 

 (cents). 



Labor 



S14. 58 

 6.52 

 5.36 

 3.63 



48.4 

 21.7 

 17. S 

 12.1 



5.22 



Use of land 



2.34 



Fertilizer 



1.92 



Miscellaneous 



1.30 







Total 



30.09 





10.78 









The value of labor was the largest single cost connected with 

 growing cotton. It included all labor performed on the crop by 



