The increase in the value of farms, of farm implements, and of farm products, (including farm crops, products of live stock, and market garden, apiarian and horticultural products,) is shown in the following table. It will be seen that these values have generally doubled every five years:
| Year. | Value of farms. | Value of farm implements. | Value of farm products. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1860 | $12,258,239 | $727,694 | $4,878,350 |
| 1865 | 24,796,535 | 1,200,720 | 10,653,235 |
| 1870 | 90,327,040 | 4,053,312 | 27,630,651 |
| 1875 | 123,852,466 | 7,935,645 | 43,970,414 |
| 1880 | 235,178,936 | 15,652,848 | 84,521,486 |
| 1885 | 408,073,454 | 9,604,117 | 143,577,018 |
The value of the farm products of Kansas, from 1876 to 1880, inclusive, aggregated $356,557,802, while their value from 1881 to 1885, inclusive, aggregated the enormous sum of $738,676,912.
TAXABLE ACRES.
The steady development of the State is further illustrated by the figures showing the increase of taxable acres. In 1860 only 1,778,400 acres were subject to taxation; in 1865 this area had been enlarged to 3,500,000 acres; in 1870 to 8,480,839 acres; in 1875 to 17,672,187 acres; in 1880 to 22,386,435 acres; and in 1885 to 27,710,981 acres.
LIVE STOCK.
In the number and value of its live stock, Kansas ranked, in 1880, as the eighth State of the Union. In 1860 the live stock of Kansas aggregated in value only a little over three million dollars; in 1865 it aggregated over seven millions; in 1870, over twenty-three millions; in 1875, nearly twenty-nine millions; in 1880, over sixty-one millions; and in 1885, nearly one hundred and eighteen million dollars. The following table gives the number of horses, mules, cows, cattle, sheep, and swine, and their aggregate value, for the years 1861 and 1865, and every year thereafter to and including 1885:
| Year. | Horses. | Mules. | Cows. | Cattle. | Sheep. | Swine. | Value of live stock. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1861 | 20,344 | 1,496 | 28,550 | 74,905 | 17,569 | 138,224 | $3,332,450 |
| 1865 | 32,469 | 2,490 | 71,996 | 130,307 | 82,662 | 95,429 | 7,324,659 |
| 1866 | 38,968 | 2,863 | 82,075 | 139,428 | 108,287 | 127,875 | 9,127,306 |
| 1867 | 39,968 | 2,936 | 85,120 | 140,560 | 106,287 | 132,750 | 10,081,590 |
| 1868 | 42,859 | 2,405 | 89,461 | 146,399 | 101,789 | 149,662 | 9,962,311 |
| 1869 | 50,573 | 2,597 | 109,142 | 165,430 | 107,896 | 137,848 | 12,902,830 |
| 1870 | 117,786 | 11,786 | 123,440 | 250,527 | 109,088 | 206,587 | 23,173,185 |
| 1871 | 156,000 | 14,900 | 162,000 | 345,000 | 115,000 | 304,800 | 31,823,484 |
| 1872 | 180,900 | 16,300 | 191,100 | 397,400 | 116,100 | 381,000 | 28,488,704 |
| 1873 | 198,900 | 17,400 | 214,000 | 457,000 | 123,000 | 457,200 | 30,013,898 |
| 1874 | 220,700 | 19,100 | 231,000 | 507,200 | 141,000 | 484,600 | 31,163,058 |
| 1875 | 207,376 | 24,964 | 225,028 | 478,295 | 106,224 | 292,658 | 28,610,257 |
| 1876 | 214,811 | 26,421 | 227,274 | 473,350 | 143,962 | 330,355 | 32,489,293 |
| 1877 | 241,208 | 32,628 | 261,642 | 519,346 | 205,770 | 704,862 | 33,015,647 |
| 1878 | 274,450 | 40,564 | 286,241 | 586,002 | 243,760 | 1,195,044 | 36,913,534 |
| 1879 | 324,766 | 51,981 | 322,020 | 654,443 | 311,862 | 1,264,494 | 54,775,497 |
| 1880 | 367,589 | 58,303 | 366,640 | 748,672 | 426,492 | 1,281,630 | 61,563,956 |
| 1881 | 383,805 | 58,780 | 406,706 | 839,751 | 806,323 | 1,173,199 | 69,814,340 |
| 1882 | 398,678 | 56,654 | 433,381 | 971,116 | 978,077 | 1,228,683 | 83,869,199 |
| 1883 | 423,426 | 59,262 | 471,548 | 1,133,154 | 1,154,196 | 1,393,968 | 104,539,888 |
| 1884 | 461,136 | 64,889 | 530,904 | 1,328,021 | 1,206,297 | 1,953,144 | 115,645,050 |
| 1885 | 513,507 | 75,165 | 575,887 | 1,397,131 | 875,193 | 2,461,520 | 117,881,699 |
THE WEALTH OF AN AGRICULTURAL STATE.
Kansas is an agricultural State. It has no gold or silver, no iron, and just coal enough to furnish fuel. It is the farmers’ and stockmen’s State. Its development simply shows what good old Mother Earth, when in her happiest vein, can do. “Agriculture,” says Colton, “is the most certain source of strength, wealth, and independence; commerce, in all emergencies, looks to agriculture both for defense and for supply.” The growth and prosperity of Kansas afford a striking illustration of what intelligent farmers, with a productive soil and a genial climate for their workshop, can accomplish—what wealth they can create, what enterprise they can stimulate.