Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1871-05-16
The Expense of Fencing Farms.

Few people who have not taken
the trouble to estimate the probable
cost of fencing, have any idea how
heavy q tax it is on the farmers to
enclose and keep enclosed every acre
of tillable land.
According to the late census re-
turns there are 1852, 24O farms in the
United States, classified as follows /:
5,34S of 1000 acres and upwards !;
20, 249 Of between 500 and / 900 acres;
486, 24S of between 100 and 400 acres ;
COG, 688 of between 50and 100 acres;
612, 245 of between 20 and so acres !;
157 $40 Of between 10 and 20 acres /;
52,642 of between and 10 acres.
Now, it is probably quite safe to say
that the quantity of ground occupied
by fences, and consequently rendered
almost if not entirely useless, on all
these will closely approximate one
twenty-ffth OF the whole area. OF
course it is impossible to arrive at
any definite conclusion in this mat
ter, because we do not know the
number of division fences on each
farm, or the kind of fence used in
every particular case but it is csti-
mated that for every one hundred
acres enclosed by worm fence, five
are occupied by the fence and as
most farms have division fences for
the sake of convenience, it may be
safely conjectured that four per cent.
of all enclosed farms is virtually lost
TO the county and the owner, to say
nothing Of the taxes that they are re-
CURED to pay on the same and the
still greater expense of building and
repairing the fences.
1t is claimed that in Ohio there
are Is, 1000, 900 acres of land, enclosed
by 40, 900 miles of fence, the first cost
of which was SIG, 900, and the
additional expense of keeping in re-
pair amounts to $1,000, 900 annually.
In New York the expense of fencing
farms is still creator than that of
Ohio, approximating 5O,OOO, 900, TO
say nothing of any additional outlay
for repairs. The Pennsylvania fence
tax is estimated at S10,000,000 per
annum.
From al that can be gathered up
on this subject it is quite evident that
the prime cost of fencing real estate
in the country amounts to more than
a thousand million dollars. What an
enormous sum Of money to expend
for such purpose Is there no way
of saving at least a considerable por-
ton of this immense waste of land
and wealth ? Is it not great deal
cheaper and better every way, to
fence stock in than out? Is it not
much easier to fence forty acres for
pasture purposes, than to enclose one
hundred and sixty acres of pillow land
and meadow with the forty acres OF
pasture beside? Why should one
man who invests FIVE hundred dol
lars in land be obliged to expend five
hundred more in order TO secure his
crops from the hungry mouths of hi:
neighbours cattle, while another mar
may invest a similar sum in stock
and make handsome profit withou
a single dollars additional outlay fol
necessary enclosure
Traditional usage has so effectual
ly enthralled public sentiment in th'
matter of fencing that it is Difficult
to produce a reformation in thi
branch Of agricultural industry bu
tine will work a revolution by-and
by, and ultimately farm fences will
be as seldom seen as walls protect
ing towns and cities; in fact, they
are twin sisters, born in q barbarouI
age. To many European countries
farmers hold their lands in common
with only road between them, anC
I sometimes only foot-psth. Horace
Greeley regards fences IS "a shelte
: for weeds as well as q vast and use
less expense"