COST AND UTILIZATION OF POWER ON FARMS. 39 
On 38 of the farms the workstock were not all used for cultivation, 
but were used for some other one operation. The particular opera- 
tion for which all the horses were used depended on the amount and 
kind of crops raised and the operations for which the tractor was 
used. On some of the farms where only 3 or 4 head were owned 
they were all used for cutting grain. On some few they were all 
used for fitting ground, haying, or husking corn. 
In some seasons hay must be made and grain must be cut before 
corn cultivating is finished. On this account it can not be said that 
all of the men who did not use all of their horses for any one opera- 
tion could have reduced the number kept with safety. Many 
farmers, however, used their tractors for cutting grain and some for 
drawing a wagon and hay loader. Even though an operator may not 
consider it profitable to use his tractor for such work, it might 
be more economical to perform these operations with the tractor than 
to keep extra horses throughout the year. 
Every man who owned 2 or 3 head of workstock used them all for 
some one operation, and every man who owned 4 or 5 head used all 
but one. Sixty-six of the 155 men who owned 6 to 10 head and all 
but one of the 21 who owned more than 10 head had at least 2 more 
horses than were used for any one operation. On 26 of the 286 farms 
there were at least 4 more horses than had been used for any one 
operation during the year. 
The reliability of the tractor was such that on most of the farms 
it was not necessary to keep extra horses for use in case the tractors 
were out of commission when needed (see page 53). On many of 
the farms the acreage had not been increased and the number of 
workstock had not been reduced since the purchase of the tractor 
(see page 56) . In view of these facts it is evident that either more 
work could have been accomplished by more efficient use of the horses 
on hand, or the number of horses kept could have been reduced and 
the cost of the operation of the farm correspondingly decreased. 
COST OF KEEPING WORKSTOCK. 
A record of the amount and value of the feed consumed by the 
workstock during the year ending October 31, 1920, and the value 
of these feeds was obtained from each farmer. The amount of time 
spent in taking care of the horses, the value and depreciation of work 
harness, the change in value of the workstock, the value of colts 
foaled during the year, and the cash outlay for shoeing and veterinary 
services were also obtained. In computing the cost of keeping the 
workstock these items, together with interest at 6 per cent on the 
average value, were included. A manure credit of $15 per head was 
deducted from this total cost to obtain the net cost per farm and per 
head. Table 28 shows the cost per head in the different areas. 
