VALUATION OF LAND 29 



2. Adopt a rate which the business can not make, which tends 

 to abandonment of land and great loss, which even under good con- 

 ditions discourages all improvements and all better but more ex- 

 pensive methods. 



Germany, Switzerland and Denmark have, unconsciously chosen 

 the first, France and England the second, England has no forests, 

 France little and m.ostly poor forests. See also Professor Kirkland's 

 article on the influence of the interest rate on timber production. 

 Washington University Forestry Club Annual, 1915. 



D. VALUATION OF LAND OR SOIL. 



Generally, land is valuable in proportion as it produces rent. 

 A city lot is valuable owing to its location, a field or forest land is 

 valuable owing to the crop it can produce. The value of the crop is 

 the measure of the value of the land. But even in the simplest case 

 the matter is more or less complicated. The value of the crop does 

 not depend only on the kind and amount of the crop, but also on the 

 market and transportation and so on the location of field or forest. 



Again the same field may be used to raise wheat, corn, hay or 

 timber and for each crop the same field may have a ver^' different 

 value. In farming, nature demands a change of crop and it is im- 

 possible or at least unprofitable to raise wheat on the same area 

 continuously. Generally the crop making the largest income is most 

 trying to the land and succeeds only on good land and at reasonable 

 intervals. Some crops, like tobacco, are very exhausting, while oth- 

 ers like clover and timber tend to improve the land. 



a. Cost value, sale — ^and income— or expectation — value. 



1. If a man bought a tract of land ten years ago for five thou- 

 sand dollars and if the income from this land has paid expenses and 

 interest it is evident that this tract today costs him the original five 

 thousand. Generally however, the case is complicated, the income 

 has been irregular, greater or less than expenses and interest, and 

 so the cost value of a piece of land is not as clear or easily com- 

 puted as it would seem. 



2. The sale or market value of land seems to require no ex- 

 planation. It is determined by sales actually made in the district, 

 by supply and demand. It is interesting to see what conditions are 

 most important in determining this sale value. The conditions may 

 be divided as follows : 



