Farm Mortgages

The count of the farm and horne ranscripts made in accordance with he mortgage collection clause i)f the census act has been completed by the census office. The figures ure tubject to slight modifications. Tliere were returned by the enumerators -2,491,930 'arms and homes, occupied by owners, which are incumbered by mortgages. Chis number iutludes some farms and ïomes about which the enumerators made no report, and which belong artly to the ilas of hired and partly ,o the class cf owned l'ree, as well as jartly to the ciass of owned and inumbered. Unlil this unknown quan;ity, due to the failure of the enumeraors, is eliminated, it may be regarded as approximately true that 2,250,000 families of the 12,500,000 families of the United States occupy and own incumbered farms and homes, and that .0,250,000 families occupy farms and ïomes that are either hired or owned free. Tbe results indícate nat the average debt for a farm in Iowa is $1,283, home $719 ; average for farm and home, $1,140. If these averages hold good for the union, the ncumbrance on the farms and homes of theTJnited States occupied by owners is about $2,565,000,000. The success of thisinvestigation.SuperintendentPorter says, has been far beyond the anticipa;ions of the most experienced statisticians, and the resultwill be of immense interest and value to the nation.