The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1912-06-23
DEVELOP MENT IN
VIRGINIA FARMS
CONTINUED From First Page.)

Continued From First Page)
Between the States WAS. III round
numbers. s327.oo6,oOo At tho close OF
100000. During the following years
recovery was slow, aud it was not
until 1900 that the valu. of farm land
and equipment again caualed the tiS
urcs for the year 1860. liapid advance
ment was made. however. with the be-
ginning of the present century. The
total value of farm property IN the
State. according to the returns of the
last census was S625.Q00.00o. OF al
most double the corresr onding figures
for 1900. Of this total. 1882 900
represented land and buildings. $751;
! 100000 farm implements and machin-
cry. and the remaining S75.000.O00 in,
vested in live stock.
| Size of virginia Farms.
On 1860 the total number of farms
In Virginia was only $4,000 In round
numbers. as compared with $4,000 in
1910. The breaking down of large
estates and the increase in the number
! CT small farmers began in the decalc
lSTO-lSSO. There are now eighty-n nine
farms in Virginia per 1000 OF popula-
ton. as contrasted with sevcnty-cight
farms in 1850, and lfty-one in 1860.
The total number OF acres IN farm
land however. strange to say, is much
less than 1t was nifty years ago On
the other hand there was 500, 500 more
acres of improved land in Virginia In
1910 than IN 1860. stated In another
form. the average number OF Improved
acres Of land per farm In 1860 was li6,
as contrasted with only nfty-thrcc at
the present time. The average size OF
the Virginia farm now IS only one
third of what it was in 1869, or lo5
acres as against 324 at the opening OF
the War Between the States. The
| greater number Of farms in the State
range from 100 to 500 acres. There are
also. however, $4,000 farms between
| twenty and fifty acres tn size. and
$4,000 between ten and twenty acres in
area In sharp contrast with the in
| creased number OF small farms, the
last census returns show that there
wero only sa2 farms in Virginia that
contained 1000 acres or more. and only
$3.50 which ranged In size between
500 and 1000 acres.
Tenant Farmers
The number OF farm owners in the
State has only increased 3 per cent
during the last thirty years. At the
present time almost three fourths. or
- per cent, of all Virginia farmers
own their farms. There has been
decline of per cent. in tho number
of farms rented for cash in 1919, as
compared with 1881 while the number
of farms occupied by share tenants is
the same now as 1t was thirty years
( ago. AT the present time there are
! $4,000 white farmers IN Virginia. OF
this number. 10000 own the farms
upon which they arr living. while 5000
are cash tenants and $4,000 are share
tenants. There are also 5000 negro
/ farmers In the State Of whom $4,000
own their farms, while 1920 are cash
tenants and 1900 work the farms
upon which they are living upon a
share basis. Considering the indepen-
dent farmers of tho State. as n whole,
| 50 per cent. are white and 10 per cent.
/ are eolored.
Labor Cost TO Virginia Farmers
| The labor cost OF farm help in Vir-
| gin!a during the census year reached
| the enormous total of s13,00o,00o. OF
this amount, slo,30o.o00 was eXpend ed
| In cash and s2,2o0.0Oo represented an
outlay fer rent and board Of farm
laiborers. White, farmers In the State
paid out over 10000. 900 cash and
! $1,000. 300 for rent and board OF farm
! help. The negro farmers on the other
hand, spent only 5000. 1000 in cash for
farm labor, and sl65.o01 for rent and
board
General Tendencies.
/ The Increase IN the agricultural re-
sources of the State. as we'll as the
tendencies which have been at work.
may be clearly grasped by a compari
! son OF the census returns showing the
average value OF all farm property in
Virginia in 1850 and 1910. The aver
;, age value OF all farm property per
farm in 1860 was 1925. E, as agai ms I
i only s3,391 In lnl0. but the average
value per acre was s32.06. as contrasted
with only si6.iS fifty years ago. This
Clearly shows that the value of farm,
property in the state has doubled rur-
Il Ding this period wh!le tho avera &c
Valie per farm has greatly decreased.
\ In the Same way K Is shown that the
value of land and buildings per farm
Is only about onc-half of what 1t was
In 1860. but the average value on an
\ acre basis is about twice as great now
rs 1T was before the war. The wide
| spread and increasing use Of agricul-
tural machinery IS shown by the fact
that the average value of agricultural
implements and machinery was only
81 cents per acre IN 1860. as compared
with % cents 9er acre at the present
time. The growth in the value of
live stock is also pointed out by an
average value Of s3.3+ per acre In
1910. as against sl.75 in 1860. In gem
! eral 1t may DE said that the avera &c
size Of farms has greatly decreased
but at the same time Land and build
inss have steadily advanced In value:
farms have been better stocked and
more efficiently equipped with nipple
mants and machinery Tho develop
ments of tn past ten years indicate
that the next decade will see an ex-
traordtnarv growth in farm values
and farm products in Virginia