The Goldfield news. [volume] (Goldfield, Nev.) 1904-1911, 1909-12-11
The Land Movement Of Today

- HE old MOTTO that the who holds land twenty years wins, is
in these latter days being revised to read that the man who
! holds land a few months wins. II I'll S apparent to every observer
lof real estate activity that this country is on the way to the nignes'
level of land values ever known in its history. The remarkaDie 40
vance that has taken place in the value OF real estate during nc pas'
eight years shows no signs Of retrogresslon. II ex'enoeu ose
every part Of the country with the possible exception 0 n NE"
England states, and is as marked today rs at any time in its progress
While here and there is a pessimist who believes that the increase
is too great for the actual worth of real estate, there are plenty OIL u
population and to the land hunger that seems to emanate the whole
American people IS evidence of a permanent position.
1t is, however, something more than either of these that has gwen
such an impetus to land values: The cities Of the country are 'ncreas.
ing = more r;p. .asyd than q the agricultural sun.sr w ssis,04 fs.d aad . an the eap pro nungtr
that has come to the farming sections because OF the big crops and
high prices.
People forget, too, that land has done more than gold. Since
Columbus first landed the world supply of gold has been increased
farm values entirely, excluding real estate, have advanced $4,000,
100000: It should also be remembered that this remarkable advance
lin land values has taken place in the face Of apparently illimitable
supplies of surplus property. Whoever desired might have land. That
farms in the country ~nan.vf in 1850, 100000, has jumped to 100000 and
so rapid has been the absorption that the average value OF the farm
an addition of 100000 farms to the country was accompanied, not
by a diminution in value Of the previously existing farms, but BY an an
be noted: at the same time that farms were increasing in number, and
the Ihe;t average ststd farm m. increasing ST. IN value 1n ,s s5e average ths sv es,1e ., s lsr% Of f far n
was 200 acres. 1t had dropped in 1900 to 14S acres.
1t IS a weH-known fact that the men who have bought land and
held it have become wellto-do, and this applies to east as well as
west, and has made the basis of many of the stable fortunes of today
based upon real estate. The real estate mortgage, whether upon a
farm farm or upon urban urban property, has , back Of it not only the s; present
progress means its increasing worth as the years go by. The condi-
ton is one of general advancement rather than local, and the investor
who looks upon the big, broad side of things and considers the various
influences that are certain to operate during the coming year will have
a greater confidence than ever in securities of this kind.
The land problem is by no means settled and there will be doubt
less times when present conditions will be modified, but on the whole,
there is nothing in this world quite 50 stable as real estate. It has
always been SO and it always will be so. In consequence there is no
security quite so substantial as that based upon the soil.
Nevada, perhaps, was the last state to feel the effects of the gen.
eral scramble for land. This states possibilities in land reclamation
and land culture had never been exploited. But the time has come
and the rush is full upon II IS and of all the states in the union it has all
at once been discovered that Nevada has the largest acreage of un-
reclaimed and possible land.