GRAIN FARMING IN NORTH DAKOTA. 15 
RISK. 
As previously indicated, production is affected by several condi- 
tions over which the farmer has little or no control. Among these 
are rainfall, frost, hail, and market fluctuations. While failure for 
one year or for two successive years may be offset by high returns in 
seasons following for the farmer who has sufficient capital to carry 
him over the years of failure, many farmers lack sufficient capital or 
credit to carry them over even two years of failure. For some of 
these, one complete failure is equivalent to 100 per cent risk and for 
many more two crop failures mean ruin. 
MAINTENANCE OF WORK STOCK. 
The average cost of maintaining a work animal in North Dakota 
prior to 1916 was $105 per head, and in 1917, $145. 
As stated previously, the average farm having 480 acres in crops 
requires 13 work stock, valued at $155 each. As the number of acres 
in crops decreases from that acreage, the number of necessary work 
stock decreases at the rate of about 1 horse per 38 acres, and as the 
size of the farm increases above 480 acres, the number of work stock 
increases at nearly the same rate. Large farms utilize horse labor 
slightly better than small ones, owing to their slightly better distri- 
bution of work. 
The principal feeds for work horses in North Dakota are oats and 
hay, although corn and barley are occasionally fed. Straw is utilized, 
to a large extent as a maintenance feed during the winter, oat straw 
being considered best. Records were obtained concerning feed for 
462 horses, which show that, on the average, 142 bushels of oats and 3 
tons of hay per year are fed to each horse. The amounts of each feed 
vary considerably, depending somewhat upon the size of the animals, 
but more particularly upon the combination of feed and the amount 
of work done by the animals. 
The horses generally have free access to the straw pile, so that the 
amount of straw consumed can not be determined. However, this 
feed very often entirely replaces hay during the winter. Work stock 
are kept on pasture very little. 
The hay utilized is generally the native prairie grass or slough 
grass, although tame hays are being produced to some extent. Among 
these are timothy, clover, and alfalfa. 
The depreciation of work horses is an item of expense not usually 
considered by the average farmer. The number of years horses are 
useful for farm work varies considerably, depending upon use and 
care. Estimates from 100 farmers in eastern North Dakota relative 
to the number of years work horses are useful vary from 7 to 20 
years, averaging 12 years. The average annual depreciation, there- 
