34 



BULLETIN 694, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



available, so that this change may be made without assuming too 

 great a financial obligation. Neglect to do this often results in 

 hardship and sometimes in financial difficulties which are hard to 

 overcome. When to give up renting and become an owner, whether 

 a man with small capital should buy a small farm or rent one of 

 greater acreage until he has accumulated sufficient capital to acquire 

 a farm of siiitabJe size, are often serious questions. The data 

 gathered in this connection in Leinawee County show what is actually 

 taking place in that region. 



Table XVII. — Relation of tenure, with a given amount of capital, to income, Lenavjee 



County, Mich. 



Operator's capital. 



Number of farms. 



Acres of land per 

 farm. 



Average farm in- 

 come. 



Average labor 

 income. 



Working 

 owners. 



Tenants. 



Working 

 owners. 



Tenants. 



Working 

 owners. 



Tenants. 



Working 

 owners. 



Tenants. 



$1,000 or less 





35 





81 

 126 

 182 

 231 

 183 





$413 



622 



971 



1,266 



1,648 





$376 



$1,001 to $2,000 



$2,001 to $3,000 



83,001 to $5,000 



$5,001 to $7,000 



$7,001 to $9,000 



§9,001 to $U, 000 



$11,001 to $14,000 



$14,001 to 817,000 



§17,001 to $25,000 



Over $25,000 



4 



i 



34 



55 



88 



23 



5 



2 



29 

 38 

 42 

 61 



77 

 89 



S296 



375 



392 



655 



689 



989 



1,143 



1,185 



1,670 



3,427 



$210 

 244 

 187 

 351 

 289 



548 



852 



1,094 



1,366 



54 - 







485 





42 

 27 

 42 





104 

 130 

 171 







525 









420 



fifiT 









13 ! 1 282 





1,728 









AH farms 



3,000 ! 153 



104 128 



1,069 661 



481 5:3 



Table XVII shows that of aU the farms surveyed there were no 

 owners operating with $1,000 or less capital. There w^ere 35 operated 

 by tenants each of whom had not more than SI, 000 at his disposal. 

 The average area of the farms operated by these tenants was 81 

 acres, and the farm income averaged $413 per farm. Allowing 5 

 per cent interest on the capital, the average tenant made a labor 

 income of $376. This shows that, in general, it is possible in this 

 section to rent and manage a farm of fairly good acreage when a 

 capital approximating $1,000 has been accumulated, aiid that in 

 addition to making a reasonable rate of interest on this capital it is 

 possible to realize a labor income slightly above the wage of a hired 

 hand, which in this region averages about $360 per year. 



Tliere were only four owner-farms which were operated with 

 capital of from $1,001 to $2,000, whereas there were 88 tenant farms 

 in the same class. It will be noted that there is a material increase 

 in the number of tenants whose capital falls between these limits as 

 compared with those having $1,000 or less. It should be observed 

 also that the average acreage of the owner-farms is very small, only 

 29 acres, while that of the tenant farms is 126 acres. The owners in 

 this class made an average total farm income of $296, while the renter 

 made a farm income of $622. After taking out 5 per cent interest 



