14 BULLETIN 659, r. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



cover the farm business for the calendar year L914. Two factors 

 affecting results were nol normal, namely, the price received for 

 cotton and the yield of oats. 



To overcome the discrepancy in the price of cotton, the average 

 price received for the 5 years previous to 1914 was obtained from 

 each fanner. The average of these data shows that under normal 

 market conditions the price received was 11.2 cents per pound. 

 Therefore, in all calculations where receipts from cotton are con- 

 sidered, the average 5-year price per pound has been substituted. 

 This price is far below that now prevailing. Present prices are due 

 to a great war, and can hardly be expected to continue when condi- 

 tions have become normal again. 



On account of drought conditions during the early summer of 

 1914, the oats crop was practically a failure. More than two-thirds 

 of the oats planted for grain were cut for hay and very low yields 

 were obtained for this feed. Since it is impracticable to determine 

 increased labor and other costs due to increase in yield as well as 

 increased returns from this enterprise, no definite conclusions are 

 drawn concerning oats. However, since oats occupied only G.9 per 

 cent of the total acreage in crops, it is thought that this discrepancy 

 will not vitiate the general results of the survey. 



Comparison with census data and consistent statements from farm- 

 ers indicate that practically all other important factors of the farm 

 business were normal during the year 1914. 



TENURE. 



The tenure problem is an acute one in Ellis County, as it is in 

 Texas generally. A complete analysis of the problem would require 

 a large amount of information concerning each tenure system. Since 

 records were obtained from only 114 farms, when these are grouped 

 according to tenure there are not enough farms in each system to 

 make fair averages. 



Seven more or less distinct tenure systems 1 Mere encountered in 

 the survey, the number of farms in each group being as follows: 37 

 owner-operators, 11 owners-additional, 16 owners with cropper labor, 

 5 owners-additional with cropper labor, 24 share renters, 18 share- 

 cash renters and 3 independent croppers. These make a total of 

 114 farms on which tenure and cost tabulations were made. The 

 owner-operator farms and the owner-with-eropper-labor farms 

 might each be further subdivided, since operators were found in 

 each of these groups who rented out a part of the land owned. 

 However, in the data here given the latter classification is not con- 



1 For definitions of the tenure systems see p. 2. 



