The commonwealth. (Scotland Neck, N.C.) 1896-1929, 1901-01-10
ABOUT THE FARM.
An Important Question.
IS IT BEST 10 RENT OR 10 BUY A
FARM?

FARM!
Mrs FELTON, in Atlanta Journal.
If you haye no money and no stock,
of course you will have to rent land on
shares-givlng the landlord half that
is made. Such is the general custom
of the country.
If you have your own stock you
can rent for the third-that is,
paying out one-thlrd for the use the
land. Some give the third of the grain
and the fourth of cotton as rental
when stock is owned by the renter.
But where an industrious man can
buy land at reasonable prices and stock
the same way, it pays we'll to buy on a
credit and pay tho interest until a
start is made.
Let nee illustrate
A cropper that I am acquainted
with rented 30 acres of land the pres
ent year.
| He sub-rented from another renter
who furnished mule, its feed, and
the implements to this cropper.
The agreement was to pay the land
lord ne-fonrth of the cotton and one
third of the corn-and the renter
would get to his share one-fourth OF
| 10 oo+%o,, fo. v,ou1o hira ofo On TINT
the cropper could get half OF the
cotton to his share and half of the
corn also.
The crop made IL good bales Of cot
ton averaging nearly 10 cents pound
$3.50. the cropper paid for guano,
bagging and ties and weighing before
the divide, leaving about $500 to be
proportioned to the three parties. The
cropper received $3.50, out OF which
his family had to be supported. The
renter, who furnished the mule receiv-
ed $125 to his share for about four
months use of the mule and the iced
lit consumed, and few pillow points.
The landlord furnished house rent,
fuel, potato patch and garden free OF
rent, paid all the taxes and kept up
the repairs for another $125-for these
privileges can be counted at their
money value.
The man with the mule made
lenough money to buy another mule
and still had the use of the first one
lelght months in the year and might own
two mules as the clear profit of that
crop which cost him only few pillow
points and horse feed for few months.
If that cropper had bought that
mule at 1925, for il was worth no more,
be could haye easily paid the interest
| on that amount out of his part and al
so paid for the mule, and owned it in
fee simple. If the landlord had tur-
nished the mule and its feed he would
have had that amount of money to be
added to his part, for the use OF the
mule and its feed.
| Where land and mules can be
bought at reasonable prices any ener-
getlc farmer can safely 60 In debt for
both, when cotton brings fair price
at selling time.
This practical illustration fell under
my own eyes. It proved the value OF
industrious energy and what land could
do, for the owner and all concerned,
with proper cultivation.
There is more in the man than the
land.
Another crop nearly with the same
opportunity made next to nothing.
The renter agreed to cultivate 20 acres,
in good time and order, and pay the
landlord the fourth of the cotton. Up
to date one bale has been solo, of which
the landlord received $40 or $11, and
the rest is in the seed-what is not rot
ting in the patch maybe will not
materialize for 500, yet to be divided
because OF gross neglect.
Yet it was the same land, lying side
by side; the same chance, the same
seasons and the same seed. One made
a splendid crop and the other made
next to nothing because the work and
ensrgy were wanting.
TRIAL TREATMENT B. B. B FREE.