The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1921-05-06

/ prepared by the United States Depart
| ment of Agriculture)
During October and November, 1920,
representatives of the United States
Department of Agriculture visited 2S6
tractor-owners in Ohio, Indiana, and
Illinois. A complete record of all the
work done during the year both with
tractors and horses was obtained from
each farmer. Information from which
the cost of using the tractor and the
cost of maintaining the wOrkstock
could be determined was also obtained.
The investigation was made through
the cooperative efforts of the bureau
of animal industry, office of farm man.
agement and farm economics and the
bureau of public roads, in accordance
with plans outlined at the farm power
conference at Chicago, H., in October,
1919 The object was to obtain infor-
nation, in addition to that already
available in the Department of Agri-
culture, which would aid in determin-
ing advantageous forms of power for
different farms and different condi-
tons.
Farms Above Average in Size.
The average size of the farms Wis
tied was 25S acres. This is consider
ably above the average size of all
farms in these states.
Two-plow tractors were owned on
ia Of the 2S6 farms, three-plow trac-
tors on 104, and four-plow tractors on
six farms. One farmer owned one
pillow machine, and one farmer owned
a five-plow machine. Two-plow ma
chimes were found on IS per cent of
the farms with less than $50 crop
acres, and on 50 per cent of those with
100 or more crop acres.
One hundred and six of the tractors
had been in use one year, 100 had
been in use one and one-half or two
years, 40 had been in use two and one
half or three years, and 81 had been
in use more than three years.
On the average the tractors were
used for 30.S full days during the year
covered by the investigation. Twenty
three and five-tenths days Of this was
drawbar work on the home farm
81 days was belt work, and 40 days
was custom work. Seventy-three OF
the 2S6 tractors did less than 20 days
work during the year and 26 did sc
or more days work.
The number of workStOck still
owned varied from two head on IL OF
the farms to more than 15 on five OF
the large farms. On the average there
were 6S head per farm at the
time of the survey, and their value
was S145 per head. In all there were
1878 head of workstock on the CSC
farms and Ill colts less than one year
of age.
The average number of full days
work per year per horse, for all farms
was 6S.6. On 20 of the farms the
workstock did less than 40 full days
work and on q they did 100 or more
days work per year.
The tractors did S5 per cent of the
blowing on these farms, 73 per cent
of the disking, AZ per cent Of the har
rowing, planting, rolling, and pack
ing, Al per cent of the grain cutting
and about Is per cent of the loading
and hauling of hay.
OF 267 men who did spring blowing
142 did it all with tractors, 121 USED
both tractors and horses, and foul
used horses only.
OF 225 who did fall blowing, 19(
did it all with tractors, q used botf
tractors and horses, and eight used
horses only.
In all, the power for 80 per cent Of
the drawbar work on these farms, as
measured by days Of horse labor re
quired for it, was furnished by trac
tors and the remainder by horses.
The average cost per head of keep
ing workstock on these farms for the
year ending November 1, 1920, was
$3.50, and the average cost. per farm
was $1.76.
Costs IS Cents Daily to Feed Horse
Exclusive of grass and stalk pasture
the average ration per horse consisted
of 1.3 tons Of hay, IL tons of straw
o. acre of slower, 37.8 bushels of corn
and 22.3 bushels Of oats. The tota
cost of feed per head was S134. BASED
on present prices March, 1921, the
cost Of feed per head would be about
$50.
The average cost per day of hors;
labor for the year of the survey wa:
S243. Based on present prices the cos
on these farms would be not far from
$150 per day.
The average first cost of the two
pillow tractors was S972, of the three
pillow tractors $1,354, and of all trac
tors 81, 40. The average amount spen
for equipment, mostly plows and disks
for use with tractors was about $40
The average value of the horse-drawI
implements disposed of after the pur
chase of the tractors was $12.
The average life of these tractors
as estimated by their owners is g.
years. The annual depreciation of the
two-plow tractors amounted to S164
and Of the three-plow SIT. The an
nual cost of repairs, including thu
value of the owners ZINE spent in re
pairing the tractors, was $50 for botf
the two-plow and three-plow sizes.
The fuel consumption per day fol
the two-plow tractors varied from
about Is gallons for fall blowing tt
about IL gallons for drawing the ha!
loader. For the three-plow tractors i
varied from % gallons for blowing t.
10 gallons for drawing the hay loader
The two-plow tractors covered G.