202 CORN 



At the suggestion of the United States Department of Agriculture 

 "cost of production" for the corn crop may be analj'zed as follows : 



(1) Labor cost. 



(2) Seed. 



(3) Fertilizer. 



(4) Equipment. 



(5) Interest, taxes and upkeep on land. 



(6) Overhead Expenses, etc. 



LABOR COST. One of the main items in producing the corn 

 crop is labor which may be classified as follows : 



(1) Man labor. 



(2) Horse labor. 



(3) Power labor. 



Man Labor. It is customary to get along with as little extra paid 

 help as possible, but all labor spent on a crop should be charged in the 

 cost of production. Usually the prevailing wage rate is used in figur- 

 ing cost of man labor. This varies of course in dififerent localities. 

 By common custom in each community, there is a wage rate with 

 board furnished and another where the laborer boards himself. In a 

 report of the United States Department of Agriculture, March 20, 

 1915, the average wage per month without board, all of the states 

 being included, was $29.88 during the previous year. Individual state 

 averages ranged from $16.50 in South Carolina to $56.00 in Nevada. 



Including board, the wages per month averaged $21.05 for the 

 United States, ranging from $12.00 per month in South Carolina to 

 $39.00 per month in Nevada. 



Day labor other than harvest, without board, averaged $1.45 per 

 day, ranging from $0.82 in South Carolina to $2.54 in Montana. The 

 same with board furnished averaged $1.13, ranging from $0.64 in 

 South Carolina to $1.80 in Montana. 



Day labor at harvest time, without board, averaged $1.91, ranging 

 from $1.06 in Mississippi to $3.25 in North Dakota. With board fur- 

 nished, the average was $1.55, ranging from $0.82 in Mississippi to 

 .$2.68 in North Dakota. While the wage rate fluctuates between dif- 

 ferent years, there has been an increase of approximately 50 per cent 

 in farm wages during the past fifteen years. 



