The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1921-02-17
OREGON FARM CENSUS
VERY FLATTERING

That the generally believed report
of the great exodus from the farms t,
the city population is not true in al
sections of the country is proven by al
announcement just given out by th'
department of agriculture. According
to the recent census. Oregon possesses
so. 206 farms, containing a total o.
l3. SAP, ,3l8 acres, of which nearly one
third are improved. The increase since
the last census was taken is 1913 pei
cent in the number of farms, 1879 pei
cent in the total acreage and l4.9 pei
cent in the improved acreage. Of the
/ total land area in the entire state %.
per cent comprises the farms and 36.5
per cent of this farm land is improved.
! The report delves into an interesting
statistical survey of the personnel now
operating the farms. Of total num-
ber of 40, 635 white farmers, 40, 484 are
native and 9l49 are foreign born.
Thirty-one thousand five hundred and
sixty-nine of the native white farmers
are owners, 802 are managers and 8ll3
are tenants.
The percentage of foreign-born own
ers is a very close second, compare
lively, to the native born. there being
1886 owners, LOG managers and ll07
tenants out of a possible 9l49. Of the
573 colored farmers, which include Is
negroes, 300 Indians, 224 japanese and
"a Chinese, 1853 are owners, 8 managers
and 207 are tenants. Not to be outdone
by her sisters in other walks of life,
the women farmers have now attained
total of 1919, of which 1913 are own
ers, II managers and ll9 tenants.
In keeping with the increase in num-
ber of farms and the improved acre
age. so has the wealth correspondingly
kept pace. Since the last census in
1910, the wealth of the farm property
has increased $500, 3l5, 969 or 55 per
cent. Land and buildings are valued
at $675, 2l3, ,284. implements and ma
chinery SAL, ,567, 125 and livestock
SOL, 779, 342.
In terms of percentage comparing
with the 1910 report, the valuation of
land and buildings has increased 1872
per cent, implements and machinery
l4.8 per cent and livestock 7l.2 per
cent. Going still further, the report
reveals the fact that the average value
of land and buildings per farm is now
$13. 449, as compared to $l0,0l2 in 1910,
and that the value of land alone per
acre is $43.29. while in 1910 it was
$35.23.
OF the IA. 1855 farms for which mort
gage reports were obtained, the value
is placed at $l66, 663, 433, comparing a
mortgage debt of $5l. .999, 178. or 81. 2
per cent of the total value. The rate
of interest the farmers are required to
pay does not seem extremely high
when compared to other sections of the
country. the average rate be ng 6.5 per
cent. In 1910 1877 per cent of all
farms operated by their owners were
mortgaged, while now the figure has
gone to 49.7 per cent.
The report as a whole is very salts
fying to those who have wondered
waat the destiny of the country would
be, due to the fact that the constant
trend of the boys on the farm to the
industrial centers seemed to be in
creasing rather than diminishing. 1t
is another aftermath of the great war,
and in time the farmer boys who were
lured away to the bright lights of the
city, due to their going away to the
camps, will return to the soil and take
the places they occupied before the
call Ito arms" flashed across the
country.