a bushel. On the other hand, two cents a pound may
easily be paid for shipping butter which is worth 25 cents a pound.
The transportation of $2,000 worth of maize to a railway station ten
miles distant is a laborious and expensive operation, but when this
same maize is turned into beef or pork, it will transport itself to
the station with comparatively little trouble. Notwithstanding the
excellent transportation facilities which the farmers of the United
States enjoy, 80% of the maize is consumed in the county in which it
is raised. Cereal production demands better transportation facilities
than cotton farming, tobacco growing or the rearing of domestic
animals.
(5) Capital must lie idle much of the time. The self-binding harvester
or the hay rake is only used a few weeks, or perhaps more often only a
few days, each year. A cream separator or a churn may be used every
day in the year. In the first instance, there is not only interest on
unemployed capital, but the capital is actually deteriorating through
nonuse.
(6) The production of hay and grain does not give continuous
employment. The slightest consideration of the following table must
show that unless live stock is kept, there are considerable periods of
the year in which very little labor is required, while at other times
considerable work is necessary to prevent loss.
TABLE SHOWING THE AVERAGE ACREAGE PER
FARM OF PRINCIPAL CROPS.
New York Ohio Wisconsin Virginia
Maize 3 13 9 11
Wheat 2 12 3 6
Oats 5 4 14 1
Barley, rye or buckwheat 2 -- 5 0
Hay and forage 23 11 14 4
Potatoes, beans or other
vegetables 3 1 2 1
Fruits 2 2 0 1
Miscellaneous crops 2 1 0 2
Pasture, wood or unimproved
land 58 45 70 93
--- -- --- ---
Total size of farm 100 89 117 119
(7) Much depends upon natural forces. While there is opportunity for
the use of knowledge and judgment in the production of high-grade
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