26

Gain in Net Worth

The settlers had started with an average net worth of $2,312. This value
for the most part represented cash although many had brought in various kinds
of livestock and machinery. On the average they had gained $340 per year.
Those who had started with more than the average had not made greater gains
(Table 16). In each group the gain had been $300 to $400 per farm. Those who
started with larger amounts of capital had merely tended to maintain the added
capital with which they started. The reason probably was that land clearing had
been accomplished for the most part by hand and buildings had been constructed
from logs hewn by the operator. Therefore it was not possible to put much
capital to work. Lately, though, land clearing machinery has been developed
which has many advantages over the hand method. The most important
characteristic of the change is that capital takes the place of labour. The
implication, then, is that access to a larger amount of capital will be an advantage
to future settlers even though it does not appear to have been in the past.

TABLE 16.—CHANGE IN NET WORTH PER FARM ACCORDING TO NET WORTH AT
START, PRINCE GEORGE-SMITHERS AREA, 1943-45 ~

Non on No. of Annual |
Net worth at start ippyarae Years on gainin | Net worth
ap aeh farm net worth |
$ | $ | $
CT eS teen e ons S irr Eaten Bo Hire SM OMe tr DALS ot mare nett try 107 16 311 |} 5, 272
LQOQQ=1999 sire. sata etait a Sete tu vs, Saree Rae rg coe Pena eer 61 13 | 409 | 6, 746
2000-2999....... Se 40 10 | 310 | 7,368
3000 and over.... ss 54 14 | 350 11,523
Nopinformationts ix ccirss ake mallee eee rma aeees 1 x xX x
1 | {

Gain in Net Worth and Type of Farm

A tabulation of the gain in net worth in the year of study indicated that the
part-time farms had advanced more than the commercial types. For they had
gained $571 per farm during the year, as compared with an average gain of $36
on all the commercial farm types (Table 17). Among the commercial farm types
the forage-seed and whole-milk farms had made the greatest gains, averaging $441
and $878 per farm, respectively.

TABLE 17.—CHANGE IN NET WORTH PER FARM BY TYPE OF FARM,

|
Gain in
Number Annual net worth
Farm Type of gainin | during
Farms net worth | the year
of study
$ $
| |
Part Dim catia Ae eee ee aie a Tee eas evden | 48 307 | 571
Subsistence. aysiu sede ete aka Stans ie eae a ee oe ay era 26 | 144 | —43
COP Ra ae eee ee Ue er uatae gh petal rein ah co eaten ME Hen ED RCL PON tel ee | 16 | 257 80
TU VESHOC isc i ahre ca cra ten e vare re syrtst pane meant necodens ene tip (4 326 —64
Mie eee SCs oe teveeen LUM Ri Ceara eee ar a | 65 400 92
Poullbinynnisa vse acictors seit ey a See a Eee 5 15 | 378 | —201
Veretable:secd tii tices. race 5.2 et Money nee ieee ae Mae ES | She | 637 2
POTAGS SES ay eerie ree oe cs | sa etre No ge ge fa ape te asec | 4 1,095 | 441
Whole Milk 8 | 684 878
Off Mtynem nse Dee eR eit Omar rete nam 6 | 517 —282

Over the whole period of occupancy part-time farms had averaged $397
gain in net worth per year; commercial farms had averaged $392. Part-time and
commercial farms therefore seemed to have progressed somewhat similarly.