The Calumet news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 1907-1938, 1912-10-21
MORTGAGES AND
PR0SPE RITY
Farmers More Prosperous Than
In Past Two Decades

Washington, ID. g., oct. 21.-Statis-
ties with reference TO mortgage in
,lebtedness of tho farms of the United
States are given in a report soon To he
issued by Director Durapd of the Bu-
reau of the Census. Department OF
Commerce and Labor. The report was
1 John Lee Coulter, Expert Special
Agent for Agriculture.
The total number of farms in the
United States operated by their own
ers. which We're mortgaged In 1910
is 1897 4S9; while 2621.2s3 Were re-
ported as free fran mcrtGage These
figures show an increase since 1900 of
I7.7 per cent in the number of farms
mortga Ged; and Of "A per cent i'm the
number cf farms free from mortgage.
The report will show that SS,104 farms
were operated by managers de-
crease of IL per cent since 1900, and
2.St5.e76 farms were operated by ten
ants. an increase Of 1868 per cent since
1909. No statistics pertaining to mort
gage Indebtedness were secured for
farms operated by tenants or hired
managers. II would be practically :m-
possible in many cases TO reach the
owners of such farms Ia ascertain the
facts.
Land Values increased.
The total value of the land and
buildings Of the 1,O06.5l1 farms for
which both the fact of mortgage in
debtedness and its amounts were re-
ported was 100000, and the
amount of debt was slice 100000 or
27.3 per cent of the value. The corre
spending proportion in 1890 as shown
in the reports vas 35.5 per cent. There
was thus. during the twenty years a
marked diminution in the relative i'm
portance Of mortgage debt on the
farms mcrteaged due primarily to the
very rapid increase in the value of the
land in farms. The average amount of
mortgage Indebtedness per farm in
creased from s1,224 in 1890 to $1,715 in
1919 but the average value per farm
increased from sS,444 to sG,2s9 and
therefore the owners equity per farm
increased from S2220 to $4,574 or more
thar DOUBLE
The statistics with reference to the
number of farms mortgaged for the
past three censuses are not precisely
comparable although nearly so. At
the census of 1910 questions as to
mortgage debt applied to all farms OPP
Grated by owners. while at the two
preceding censuses they applied only |
those farms occupied by their
owners as homes
Mortgages and Prosperity.
In making comparisons between |
geographic divisions ard between CEN
suses it should be borne in mind that |
the fact of mortgage Indebtedness is |
not necessarily an indication of lack |
of prosperity. There can lie no ques
ton but that American farmers gen
orally were more prosperous in 1a10
than at the two previous censuses and |
yet in that year a larger proportion of
the farms were mnrtgaged The pro- |
portion OF mortgaeed Indebtedness is
WI her III io"' an" NiS'ol'Sih 'i'"' III
any of the other states and yet these |
states are among the mostSprospcrous
IN agriculture. Although In some cases |
are placed on farms be-
cause Of poor crops or Other misfor- |
tunes or because Of mismanalgemcnt, |
they often represent an unpaid por-
ton of the cost of the farm itself, or |
money expended for additional land, |
or for building and implements and |
and live stock.