Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1921-07-07


rheuf OF Agriculture.)
bring October and November, 1920.
REPRESENTATIVES Of the United States
F1fs4menf OF Agriculture visited 2S6
tract eNners In Ohio, Indiana, and
J Ilinqb. =. omptete recorsiof all the
u..ork Hs1pg the year both with
horses was obtained from
Information from which
using the tractor and the
Iintaining the workstock
could be rmined was also obtained.
The inv cation was made through
the co-ope i've efforts OF the bureau
OF animal ustry, office of farm man.
agement farm economics and the
bureau Of blic roads, In accordance
with plans ptlined at the farm power
conferelee Chicago. H.. In October.
H13. Eae OBJECT was to obtain infOr-
mationt In addition to that already
availaik In the Department of Agri-
cultures which would aid In determin-
Ing advantageous forms of power for
difereF farms and different condi-
Fns Above Average In Sire.
III average size Of the farms Wis
ite( 25S acres. This Is consider
alb bove the average size Of all
ia In these states.
plow tractors were owned on
n the 2S6 farms. three-plOw trac-
tors 1O4, and fOur-plow tractors on
six p. One farmer owned a one
pig ebine. and one farmer owned
p6w machine. Two-plow ma
chimes were found on 70 per cent Of
the farms with less than 100 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, 20 had been In use two and one
half or three years, and 81 had been
iR-rsvN more than three years.
On the average the tractors were
used for 30.s full days during the year
Covered BIZ the investigation. Twenty
three and fiye-tenths days OF this was
drarbar work on the home farm,
,. lays was belt work. and 4.6 days
vSS custom work. Seventy-three of
lie 2S6 tractors did less than 20 days
work during the year and 26 did 50
or more days work.
The number OF wOrkstock still
owned farled from two head on IL of
The fssfls ia more than Is on five Of
- large farms. On Due average there
lme OF the survey. and value
J. as ~ ped kand; In 90 3efe were
q a. r. ! :: 'Ns" one year
The ay kaee number of full days
work plSr year per horse. for all farms
was esq On 20 OF the farms the
workstodE did less than 40 full days
work and on q they did 100 or more
days work per year.
The tractSrs did IS per cent Of the
blowing on these farms, 70 per cent
of the diSking, 43 per cent Of the har.
rowing, p anting. rolling. and pack
ing, IL pdr cent of the grain cutting
and about Is per cent of the loading
and hauk3g Of hay.
OF 267sk pen who did spring blowing
142 did all with tractors. 121 used
both tradlors and horses. and four
used hor IS only.
OF 225E who did fall blowing, 100
did II ALL with tractors, % used bott
tractors Ind horses, and eight used
horses ~.
In allSec power for 30 per cent oi
the draw lar work on these farms, a'
measureMby days Of horse labor re
auired q II, was furnished by trac
tors and lhe remainder by horses.
The ar{rage cost per head of keep
ing worxdtock on these farms for thu
year en1tng November l, 1920. Wa
$3.50, anil the average cost per farm
was 81. O.
Costs 41 Gents Daily TO Feed Horse
Exclusi Of grass and stalk pasture
the avernEe ration per horse consisted
of ID To IS Of hay, IL tons Of straw
% acre stover, 37.S bushels Of corn
and % bushels Of oats. The tota
cost of led per head was sl34. Base
on present prices March. 1920, tn,
cost of iced per head would be abou
$50.
The Average cost per day Of hors
labor fortthe year of the survey wa
Sab. Ba4ed on present prices the cos
on these rms would be not far iron
$50 per day. !
The avkKage first cost of the two
plow tracnfs was 1912. of the three
n:ow Trains s1.354. and Of all traC
sars s1.14 The average amount spen
or couipsE ent. mostly plows and disks
sor-rze g. tractors was about 1910
The aver.kze value Of the hOrse-drawI
r1plemen disposed Of after the pun
l,nsa of De tractors was $l2.
| The ayltragP life of these tractor