acres each. A man owning seventy-five acres of land in Japan is counted among the “great land-holders”. It is never true, however, except in the Hokkaido, which is a new country agriculturally, that such holdings lie in one body.
Statistics published in “Agriculture in Japan”, by the Agricultural Bureau, Department of Agriculture and Commerce, permit the following statements of rent, crop returns, taxes and expenses, to be made. The wealthy land owners who rent their lands receive returns like these:
| For paddy field, per acre. |
For upland field, per acre. | ||
| Rent | $27.98 | $13.53 | |
| Taxes | 7.34 | 1.98 | |
| Expenses | 1.72 | 2.48 | |
| Total expenses | $9.06 | $4.46 | |
| Net profit | 18.92 | 9.07 |
It is stated, in connection with these statistics, that the rate of profit for land capital is 5.6 per cent for the paddy field, and 5.7 per cent for the upland field. This makes the valuation of the land about $338 and $159 per acre, respectively. A land holder who owns and rents ten acres of paddy field and ten acres of upland field would, at these rates, realize a net annual income of $279.90.
Peasant farmers who own and work their lands receive per acre an income as follows:
| For paddy field, per acre. |
For upland field, per acre. | ||
| Crop returns | $55.00 | $30.72 | |
| Taxes | 7.34 | 1.98 | |
| Labor and expenses | 36.20 | 24.00 | |
| Total expense | $43.54 | $25.98 | |
| Net profit | 11.46 | 4.74 |
The peasant farmer who owns and works five acres, 2.5 of paddy and 2.5 of upland field, would realize a total net income of $40.50. This is after deducting the price of his labor. With that included, his income would be something like $91.
