VALUE OF FOOD, FUEL, AND USE OF HOUSE. 31 



Kerosene oil is used both for lighting and cooking. Some gasoline 

 was used for cooking but very httle for lighting purposes. Of the 127 

 f amihes visited in New Jersey, 78 used kerosene or gasoline stoves for 

 cooking, 9 used acetylene gas and 4 electricity for lighting. In the 

 Maine area 42 of the 148 families visited used kerosene stoves for 

 cooking and kerosene was used exclusively for hghting. In North 

 Dakota 54 of the 109 families used kerosene or gasoline for cooking, 

 and for Hghting 2 used acetylene and 1 used electricity. In Cali- 

 fornia, of the 84 famihes interviewed, 30 used kerosene or gasohne 

 stoves for cooking, and for lighting 8 used electricity and 2 used 

 acetylene gas. We can thus see that nearly half of these farmers do 

 some cooking with kerosene and gasoline, but that practically aU of 

 them use kerosene lamps for lighting, 



USE OF HOUSE ON THE FARM. 



The business of most farms demands almost constant attention 

 throughout the year and it is therefore to the advantage of the farmer 

 to make his home on the farm. A house is thus a necessary improve- 

 ment on a farm, and is often an important part of its real estate value. 

 Investigations made by the United States Department of Agriculture 

 indicate that in the eastern part of the United States the value of 

 the house is commonly 20 per cent or more of the value of the farm. 

 On the higher-priced corn-belt farms this percentage is more generally 

 from 5 to 10 per cent. Improvements to the house tend to enhance 

 the value of the farm. The interest on the investment in the house 

 and the cost of maintenance of it are paid for by the farm business, 

 and are not personal expenses to the farmer. He may he said to 

 have his house rent furnished free by the farm. 



An attempt is made to arrive at a value of what the use of the house 

 is worth to the farmer. The value of the house seems the only basis 

 upon which the rental value can be determined. 



Table XXIII shows the average value of the farmhouse and its 

 rental value for the sections studied. The present value is the 

 farmer's estimate of what his house is worth to-day. The average 

 value of the farmhouses for the 825 farmers giving estimates was 

 SI, 322. This value, however, varies from $560 in the North Carolina 

 area to $1,880 in the New York area. 



The rental value of the house is taken as 10 per cent of its present 

 value. This is assumed to be a fair charge for interest, depreciation, 

 insurance, repairs, and taxes. Tlie average annual rental value of the 

 houses for these farnxs is thus $132. 



