Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1904-08-18
Gig FARMS AND LITTLE ONES.

BIG FARMS AND LITTLE ONES.
"will the Iowa farm of the future
be larger or smaller than 1t is today
is a question that has occurred TO many
of ns opinion has always been d.
vided on this subject, some maintain
ing that the large farms must sooner
or later be divided among number
of owners. others that land owners
Will become fewer in number and their
holdings consequently larger with the
lanse of time. With conditions chang
ing rapidly as they are now doing the
time honofed method of judging the fu-
ture by the past lis rather unreliable,
vet we are aided in arriving at some
conclusions by noting what has oc-
Cured in this line in given neighbor-
hood. during.a period Of years.
In nearly every community decade
ago. there were one or more large
farms. the others ranging in size from
forty to 100 acres. In many cases the
large places were owned by men with
families corresponding to the size OF
the farm. Those who held to the small
farm idea asserted that in time 1t would
be divided among these children: they
also argued that as land advanced in
price and population increased, farm
ing methods would necessarily be
changed, making II impossible for one
man TO properly attend to so large
farm.
But in nearly every case those large
farms of wears ago are still In existence.
The old farmers sons didn't all possess
the faculty OF accumulation and one OF
them now owns the farm. Possibly
one or more OF the others invested the
money he was paid for his share OF
the estate elsewhere, and now owns
large farm in some other community.
while others of the family live in town
or on rented places. II this farm was
situated near a thriving town. the re-
suit was perhaps different. The place
may have been divided into small
tracts of five TO forty acres, each OF
which is occupied by resident, but not
by the children OF the original owner.
There is one community in central
Iowa where many changes in land
ownership have occurred during the
last few years. One man who began
with thirty acres now has go. An
other who owned eighty, now owns
100. Still another has five deeds for
the different parts Of his seventy acre
farm, having bought the little homes
OF three OF his neighbors. In only one
case did present resident of this
neighborhood divide his farm and he
regretted the act as soon as he had
signed the deed. This union of farms
is common over the state. The neigh
borhood referred to is not an isolated
case, and may be taken as fairly rep
eesentative of the tendencies of all agri-
cultural communities.
The day has passed when grain
growing and stock raising can be car
ried on profitably on these little places
in Iowa. The man with only one team
and two horse farm implements can not
compete with his neighbor who IS
equipped with modern farming outfit.
He cannot grow livestock In competi-
ton with the man who possesses the
large buildings and other conveniences
which the small land owner cannot
afford, and for which he has no room,
so he does one OF three things-enlarges
his farming operations by buying out
his neighbor gets near a good mar
ket town where he can use his small
outfit TO better advantage. or ADAM
dons agricultural operations entirely.
his little farm In almost every case
being Joined to that of someone else.
The small farm certainly has its
place, so has the large one. Methods
that succeeded on the one fail on the
other, and 1t seems reasonable to be-
lieve that In the future in this part of
the country at least, the number OF
both the larger and the smaller farms
lcHill-.be incyeassd~the latkegsbatQR lQs