The Need for Managers
Only 60,000 farms out of 6,361,000 employed managers and superintendents according to the 1910 census. But it is practically certain that more than one farm in a hundred would have been operated by managers had there been a larger number of effectively trained men available to men owning, or in position to own, farms large enough to justify the employment of a manager. With the number of improved farms increased to probably 7,000,000 by this date, the demand is greater for this class of trained men. The department of Agriculture and the State agricultural colleges report inability to fill numerous calls for farm managers and superintendents, and the advertisements in the agricultural and live-stock papers for them indicate that the demand continues. The small percentage of profits from the inefficient management of idle and incompetent tenants makes tens of thousands of farm owners not living on their places very desirous of securing active farm managers, capable of introducing scientific methods.
We believe, in fact, we know, that there are in the country numerous “old time” farm owners who are barely making a living, while their farms are constantly depreciating in value. Unquestionably such owners would receive better returns by employing farm managers. The combination of a number of farms with co-operative handling, under a competent farm manager, on the community principle, would reduce expenses for machinery, teams, and power, and make possible more economic employment of labor. The existence of such conditions offers an excellent field of activity to the man who is trained well enough to see and to use these opportunities. Knowing the possibilities such a man might be able to so thoroughly convince the owners of a number of inefficiently operated farms of the advantage of having them worked as a unit and thereby get them to adopt his plans. The country is full of landed estates of sufficient area to justify the owners in employing specially trained men. Syndicates and individuals have been for years buying groups of neglected farms and orchards in the southern States. These are almost invariably being handled by scientifically trained farm managers. The properties have improved under modern methods of culture and have in most cases shown profits within two or three years, notwithstanding the necessary outlay to bring the run-down property into productive condition. Similar conditions obtain in New York and other northern and western States.