The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1875-09-09
Cost of Fencing.

| w
eped nineteenth century, with my politi-
cal economy study cap on, and see the stu
pendous follics of people, for want OF
what they always claim to have in high
degree, little common sense, and the
want of sensible concurrent action to
achieve important results, I have no hope
of a millennium in agriculture or any.
thing else, and believe "dies irr' will
come and find the fool-killer's work not
half accomplished.
In this day of degenerate politicians,
however, who never attempted to enlight-
en- the people, but follow in the wake of
crude public opinion, as sharks in the
wake Of vessel, who listen for the "uor
popuW with ears as erect as wild In
dian who catches the sound of his game
upon the passing breeze, who are all for
personal success, and nothing for princi-
pie or the common weal-there is no
hope for US but to await change in the
tide, and hope almost against hope, that
better day will dawn. Some year or so
ago there appeared in an agricultural pa
per the broad assertion that the cost of
fencing in the State of Pennsylvania was
equal to the whole value of the live
stock in the State. This was so remarka-
BILE statement as at once to attract our
attention.
To make some approximate estimate OF
the cost of fencing to the people of Vir-
ginia is the object of the present article,
and whilst the data are insufficient or not
sufficiently accurate, perhaps, to arrive
at a high degree of approximation, low
estimates have been advisedly taken,
that the actual cost shall rather exceed
han fall short of the results obtained.
From the statistics of Agriculture in
1770, we find that in the State of Vir-
ginia as at present organized, there were
1888 farms of all sizes, and that of I'M
proved lands exclusive of wood lands.
and other unimproved lands there were
S.l65, ,O4O acres. This gives 41O acres as
the average size of the farm of improved
lands necessitating q fence. If we add
ten acres additional to cover the wood
and other lands under fence, we may
safely assume, we think, that the average
farm in our State requiring to be enclos-
ed is about 120 acres, or 1900 square
four-pole chains. five suppose this farm
to be in the form of q square, which OF
quadrilaterals gives the minimum fen
cling for the area enclosed, the side of the
SQUARE would be 1854 chains, or as a
very close approximation 1852 yards. II
divided into six rectangular fields the
amount of fencing required would be
seven times as much, or 1894 yards.
Allowing forty rails for every hundred
Yards OF an ordinary good fence, we
have to enclose properly the average
farm, 81 1886 rails. The rails are worth
per hundred in both the timber and
hauling about S1.l0 say, upon an aver
are through the State, though as we have
no means of verifying this hypothesis, ii
may not be very near approximation,
yett true value would probably exceed
the amount assumed as our basis, rs loo
good rails would make cord or more Of
wood, and the cost of mauling is from 81
to 7l cents per hundred in different Sec
tions.
This gives say 235 dollars as the cost Of
the rails necessary to enclose the aver
age square farm. But this bcing' the
most economical form of enclosure for
four-sidcd areas, and not adhered to in
practice, we may safely assume in consid-
Grafton of the crooked fences aud irregu-
lar forms of our field 250 dollars as a
still closer approximation. Now comes
in the additional expenses of hauling and
fencing. We suppose at the average dis
tancc for hauling rails at different seasons
of the wear, nine loads per day with Il
two-horse team, and % rails at load
would be sufficiently high estimate. This
would make 800 rails per day. live as
sumo the cost of hauling and the addi-
tional expenses Of fencing the 100 rails
to be two dollars, low estimate, the cost
of fencing the 81 1895 rails would be IA:
dollars, and allowing the small amount
of eight dollars for the irregularity OF
fields above 150 dollars.
Thus we have 400 dollars as an approx
innate result for the outlay necessary to
fence in 120 acres of land with a good
new enclosure into six fields.
1t would therefore require an outlay to
enclose the 73,849 farms in the manner
and upon the basis adopted, S29, $4,000,
or twenty-nine and half millions OF
dollars. The value of all the live stock
in the State by the same census was S2S,-
| 1877, $3.50, over twcnty-cight millions.
Even if four-field enclosure be adop-
ted, the expense would be six-sevenths
as much, or it would do away with only
one division line, and the cost would be
over twenty-five millions. We may safe
ly assume, then, that the cost of good new
enclosures for all the farms of the State
equals the value of their live stock.
Granting that these enclosures require to
be replaced every twelve years, we have
here a little item of nearly two and half
millions of annual expenditures sunk in
fences to keep out stock, two millions OF
which could be saved by requiring all
farm stock to be fenced in, in standing
pastures, or by movable fences that
could be durably constructed.
1t should be observed also that the
smaller the farm the greater the relative
expense, as it requires just half as many
rails to enclose 25 acres as prescribed, as
it does to enclose 100 acres. The poor
man and small farmer is thus much more
interested in this matter than he has
ever been taught to consider, but as we
said before, our public men and law
makers never attempt to teach the people
up to economic laws, but rather mount
the rostrum to teach them how to vote.
We omit here the losses incident to
our agriculture from successive droughts,
which by some are supposed to be due in
part to the destruction OF our forests.
This is, however, controverted. Though