Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 35, Number 94, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 31 July 1903 — Full of Prosperity Pointers. [ARTICLE]

Full of Prosperity Pointers.

The recently issued report of State Statistician Johnson is fall of prosperity posters. The repoit sets out figures furnished from 1,875 manufacturing establishments The total capital invested in these coucerus was $67,423,589, snd the output in 1901 wf-s $217,293,021. They paid for matarials $124 356436, and in salaries and wages $43, 244,129 to 101,113 employes and 4,580 salaried officers and clerk. The average daily wages for skilled laborers was $2.!27; for unskilled, $1.29: for boys, 68 oents, and for women and girls, 86 oents. Of the factories sending in fignres 767 reported an inorease in business over the preoeding year, averaging 20 49 per cents, while 129 establishments reported decreases averaging 22 33 per cent. Of the 8% reporting this leaves a net inorease of 14.18 per cent. In regard to wages 588 establishments reported advanoes averaging 9.64 per oent. The agrionltural repoit shows that there was a marked inorease in the value of farm lands, farm implements and live 6took. From 1890 until 1900 there was an inorease of from $869,422,787 to $978,616,471, and the value of the farm products in 1899 was $109,690,934 greater than in 1889. The oenns report shows that Indiana had 23,730 more farms in 1900 than in 1890. Nor is this due to the fact that the.farms are smaller, as the average size of farms was only five aores smaller, The report shows that the acreage ■ was 1,257,198 greater in 1900 than Jat the time of the former report. The aoreage of improved farms increased in the same time 1.572,776 aores.

The number of farms operated by owners increased, and the figures show that 99-5 per oent of the farmers are white and only .5 per oapt colored. Thero are now 1,796 farms under three aores and 225 of over 1,000 aores. The grCat number are of less than 100 sores, there being 71,065 farms of between fifty and 100 aores. The

small farms show the the best returns! This is due to the fact that they are used largely as truok gardens, and in several instances for the raiding of flowers. The total value of live stcok on Indiana farms in 1900 was $lO9. 550,761.