Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1920-10-15
FARMERS INCOMES
AVERAGE SMALL
Investigation Shows They Average
Less than $500 Cash a Year
Above Food and Shelter

Washington, Oct r. Figures on
farm profits, covering seven years in
two areas and five years in two areas
and five years in a third, were made
public by the United States depart
ment of agriculture yesterday. These
figures purport to show that compare
lively few of the farmers in the groups
studied have been making large profits
during the recent years of compare
lively high prices; that most of them
are making less than $500 cash per
year over and above the things the
farm furnishes toward the family liv-
ing, which however, constitute very
important factor.
Specialists of the office of farm man
agement and farm economics, who have
conducted these investigations, say
that while the results will not Justify
flat congratulations as to what farm
profits are for the country as a whole
they believe they should have weight
in the consideration of the general
problem, as indicative of the trend of
farm returns in representative farming
sections
4
! are located respectively, in Washing
ton county, Ohio Us farms, hill coun-
try, Z years.; Clinton county, Indi-
ana 400 farms, cornbelt, years. and
Dane county, Wisconsin $50 farms,
dairy region, years Representatives
of the department visited these farms
year after year. taking records cover
ing the farm business under the follow
ing heads
Distribution of farm area
Crop Yields
Amount of work stock and of other
livestock
Amount of labor used.
Amount and distribution of farm
capital
Amount and distribution of receipts
and expenses.
Value of the family living obtained
from the farm.
Amounts of the more important pro-
ducts sold, and prices received.
The average farm income of the 25
farmers visited in Washington county,
o., for the seven years l9l2-lS, was
SOLO; the labor income, $276; the re-
turn on investment, 46 per cent. In
addition to the farm income, the farm
ers had food fuel and house rent, csti-
mated to be worth. on the average,
1869 per year For 1912 the farm in
come of these farms averaged S456, and
for 1918 the average was SIG. These
farms are in a hilly section, where the
soil is not especially fertile.
The 100 farmers in Clinton County,
Ind, being on better land than the
Ohio farmers, made a cOrrespondingly
better showing. Their farm incomes
averaged SlS56 for the seven years,
1910 and lql3-lS, and their labor in
comes sos. Return on capital was 81,
md food, fuel and house rent furnished
by the farm, S425. The average farm
income of these farms increased from
S1,2S2 in 1910 to S2,97S in 1918
The farm income of the 60 Wisconsin
farms averaged Sl,293 for the five
years, l9l3-lS, the labor income St0S
and return from the farm income the
value Of the farmers lGbor-4.7 per
cent The average farm income ranged
from Sl,079 in 1913 to $1,000 in 1918
On most of these farms the principal
source of income is dairying
OF the lSj farmers in the three areas
none made a labor income of $1,000
for every year of the study, but Is in
the Indiana area and seven in the Wis
consin area made labor incomes aver
aging over $1,000 per year for the
> period Four farmers u per cent of
the entire number made over soon
labor income every year Averaging
labor income and loss over the whole
time, 10 per cent of the farmers failed
to make any labor income at all. Ten
per cent failed even to make D pei
cent interest on investment in any
year of the study.
Department specialists point ont
that though farm incomes ir most
cases showed a marked increase during
the wears l9l6-lS, as compared with
incomes for l9l2-l5, these increases are
more apparent than real, in view OF
the decrease in the purchasing power
of the dollar. The turnover for the
recent years was larger than for the
earlier wears, but the returns were rela-
lively little larger. if measured in terms
of the things it would buy rather than
in terms of dollars and cents
CANNING COMPOUNDS