Large and Small Farms in Prussia. 



49 



results of a comparison of the profits obtained on good and on 

 poor land. In the case of both large and smaller farms, good 

 land gives a much greater interest on capital than does poor. 

 Thus, to take the large farms as an example, nine holdings of 

 poor land gave on the average only 1*83 per cent, interest on the 

 capital invested on them, whereas the average interest obtained 

 on four very highly-farmed holdings of rich land was 4/37 per 

 cent, one of these, mentioned above, returning 6*5 per cent, 

 interest. 



A comparison of the number of hands (men, women, and 

 children) employed on large and small farms, and of the financial 

 results accruing from their labours, brings to light some very 

 interesting facts. Selecting the first two large and two small 

 farms described for the Province of Saxony (the case is the same 

 for the other farms), the following table supplies the data 

 necessary for our comparison : — 





Number of 

 hands em- 

 ployed. 



Area in 

 acres. 



Total capital 

 invested in 

 farms. 



Total profit 

 obtained. 



Average of 2 large farms. 

 Ditto 2 small ditto. 



4i 



1,385 

 20 



£ s! d, 

 31,831 16 0 

 613 II 0 



£ s. d. 

 866 11 0 

 17 9 0 



Taking approximate figures, one hand is employed on every 

 22 acres on the large farms and one to every 4 \ acres on the 

 small farms. On the large farms each hand produced a profit 

 of £13 19s.; on the small farms, however, a profit of only 

 £4 2s. Each hand has thus produced nearly 3^ times as 

 much profit on the large farms ; but for each hand employed 

 there is rather more than 3 J times as much capital invested 

 in the large farms. Small holdings would thus appear to 

 afford an excellent means of finding occupation for the in- 

 habitants of a country ; the return per man, however — which 

 fairly represents the value of a man to his country — is very 

 insignificant compared with that produced on large farms. On 

 the very small farms there appears to be an absolute waste 

 of energy. 



