22 BULLETIN 560, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
RELATION OF TOTAL CROP ACRES PER FARM TO CROP ACRES PER 
HORSE. 
It has been shown that on an average the feed cost and total cost 
per hour of horse labor on the farms studied decreased as the number 
of hours worked per horse increased. The amount of work required 
_per horse depends on the size of the business and the number of horses 
on the farm. On most of the farms included in this study the size of 
the business depended largely.on the number of crop acres in the farm; 
that is, acres under cultivation. It is true that a great deal of horse 
labor other than crop labor was performed on these farms, but it is 
safe to say that in every case the horses required to tend the crops 
during the crop season could easily do all other necessary labor. 
The relation of crop acres per farm to crop acres per horse is shown 
in Table 15, by States. 
TABLE 15.—Relaiion of total crop acres per farm to crop acres per horse, by States (27 
farms, 316 horses). 
Illinois (10 farms— | Ohio (7farms— | New York (10 farms— 
averagesize, 166 acres).. average size, 74acres). | average size, 94 acres). 
Farms. | 
Average | Average | Average | Average | Average | Average 
per farm. | per horse. | per farm. | per horse. | per farm. | per horse. 
| , 
Acres Acres. Acres Acres. Acres. Acres. 
Farms above the average size.....-.. PANY Pps 7. 93.7 17.8 112.74 20 
Farms below the averagesize....... 111.2 16.8 54.7 | 14.6 " 79.07 17 
Differences 8/28 sn.) eels | 119.0 5.4 39.0 | 3.2 | 42. 67 3 
From these figures it appears that the large farms permit of a more 
efficient use of horse labor than do the small farms. On the large 
farms in Illinois there were 22.2 acres in crops per horse, while on 
the small farms there were but 16.8 acres per horse. Similar results 
were found on both the Ohio and the New York farms, though in these 
States the difference between the two groups was not as great as in 
Tilnois. 
