The Abbeville banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1847-1869, 1856-04-24
q GR I 81 L z WEH "a u o
GOOD LAND-AND ITS VALUE.


show their discernment more than in prop
crly estimating the value of land. We
will here call attention to few general
principle which may he useful in coming
to correct conclusions OH this subject.
We will take it for granted that land
which produces only enough to pay the
cost of cultivation is worth no.hing-lncre-
ly worth having and nothing morc-like a
laborer that is hired for his board and cloth
ing. Land then has money value when
it will, under proper care, produce a crop
worth more than the cost Of cultivation.
Thus, for example, if it cost as much rs the
price of eight bushels of wheat to grow {.
crop OF wheat Oh one acre, then land which
will yield only eight bushels to the acre has
no value. But if land which yields eight
bushels to the acre is just worth cultvating,
and no more. how much is land worth that
yield nine bushels to the acre? Perhaps
some ono may answer that it is worth as
much rs u bushcl of wheat, and that when
wheat sells for one dollar a bushcl, an acre
which will produce one bushcl Of wheat
more than the cost of cultivation, is worth
one dollar. A little reflection will, however,
show that such valuation woull be cn-
tirelv wrong. The money paid for land
like any other investment, should be re
qurcl only to return a fair interest Oh its
cost. Therefore if one bushcl Of wheat
worth one dollar is the return made by al
acre of land for one year, the value of this
acre is the sum which would draw one dol
lar of interest. Supposing that ten per
cent. is considered to be IN adequate return
for landed property, then an acre which
yields one dollars worth Of produce above
Tie cost of t!!agc is worth ten dollars. ]!
six per cent. is considered to bc Il fair re-
sixty'six cents. At first sight il may ap-
pear reasonable to maintain that land
CAPE of producing eight bushels to the
acre is worth nothing, whilst that whicl.
will produce nine may Le worth from ten
TO sixteen dollars per acre. But every pru-
dent man knows that it is the same thing
as giving money away to pay for that
Which will bring nothing in return. If lie
pays out money lie will expect to re-
ceivc something for interest on the amount
expended.
Rcasoni"g in tho s;siuc manner as ;,llo1e,
it will Lc easily seen that land which will
produce eight or ten bushels to the acre
above the cost of cultivation will be worth
from one hundred to one hundred and fifty
dollars per acre. OF course, great deal
will depend upon the rate Of interest, and
therefore upon the abundance or scarcity OF
capital.
We have used the expression "cost Of
cultivation" and we mean thereby the
whole cost of growing crop, which beside
the cost of labor and seed includes the ex-
pense Of keeping up fences and taxes, and
also another item which is frequently omit,
ted, namely, the wear of the land, or rather
the amount which, spent in manuring,
will make the land as good as it was before
the crop was grown. For it is to Lc taken
for granted that no wise farmer will let lis
land become poorer from cultvation.-
And therefore larger price should be paid
for land that will "wcar WELL" than for that
which requires great deal Of manurng to
keep it up.
The principle which we have endeavored
10 explain is perfectly accurate, and still
there is danger of its being misunderstood
in practice. We will therefore state it again
in somewhat different manner. To find
the value of land we must know the worth
of the crop which it is capable of produc-
ing one year with another; and we must
know also the cost Of producing a crop.
If tho cost Of production is less than the
value of the crop, then the land is worth a
price. 1t is worth the same which, invested
at interest, would bring as large a net in.
come as that yielded Ivy the land, after pay
ing all expenses.
From what we have stated above it will
he seen that there may he difference of
only few bushels in the yield of two pie
ces Of land, and yet the one may be not
worth having, whilst the other is worth
twenty, fifty, or even n hundred dollars per
acre. And since it does not cost much
more to cultivate the Same piece of land
whether it be rich or poor, it follows that
wherever manure can he had for reasona-
ble price, it will prove the cheaper plan for
the farmer to make his land rich. For the
same reason it will generally be found to 3e
more profitable investment for him who
has spare capital to spend in improving the
land lie has, rather than buy more. But
still there is land which it would be unwise
to spend anything upon, in the way Of i'm
provement, unless manure were cheaper