FARMING IN THE BLUEGRASS REGION. 15 
on investment. If all the farmers were found to be making more 
than the current rate of interest on their valuation of the land the 
tendency would naturally be toward an increase in land values and a 
rise in rents. The farmers in this section have evidently valued their 
land approximately on the basis of its real earning capacity. 
The fact that the average farmer in the group studied had left, 
after counting out all operating expenses, just about enough to pay 
interest on his land investment does not indicate that the farmer 1s 
not making money. On the other hand, it may indicate quite the 
opposite. In arriving at the remainder left for interest the average 
farmer is allowed fair wages for his services as manager and his 
family is allowed common wages for the work they do. In addition, 
the family have a home and a large percentage of their food free of 
money cost and a fair rate of interest on the working capital in- 
vested. In the case of a large number of farmers in the region equal 
comfort in the home and its surroundings and equal opportunity for 
outdoor recreation could not-be afforded in the city except by the 
more wealthy. These advantages have a real value, but they evi- 
dently have not been capitalized by the farmers who gave the records. 
A few farmers during the year made comparatively large profits, 
while a few suffered large losses, the main reasons for which will be 
pointed out in the following pages. The large majority, however, 
could live in comfort and lay aside something in the bank. 
It will be noticed that cash tenants pay less rent than do those who 
rent on shares. There would naturally be a certain difference in 
favor of the cash tenant, since usually the landlord would rather rent 
at a lower rate for cash than for a share of the crop; but the large 
difference shown in the table is due principally, no doubt, to the faet 
that most of the share-rented land is in relatively small areas and 
much of it is devoted to tobacco, one-half of which is turned over to 
the owner. On the other hand, cash-rented land is in large areas 
and devoted more largely to pasture. 
IMPORTANCE OF SIZE OF FARM. 
The farms vary greatly in size. The smallest farm had 35 acres, 
the largest 5,000. This factor more than any other seems to deter- 
mine their organization, as the following analysis will show: 
RELATION OF SIZE OF FARM TO DISTRIBUTION OF RECEIPTS. 
In Table VI it will be seen that the small-sized farms get most of 
their receipts from crops, while the large farms get most of their 
income from live stock. Small farms have the largest percentage of 
receipts from tobacco. This crop decreases in relative importance as 
the farms increase in size. 
