--------+---------------+--------------+-------------+-

----------
| Value of farm |              |             |
|  implements   |   Increase   | Per cent    | Average
Census |      and      |     by       |    of       | value per
year.  |  machinery.   |    decade.   | increase.   | farm.
--------+---------------+--------------+-------------+------

-----
1900    |  $295,910 00  |  $103,000 00 |     53.4    |  $151 90
1890    |   192,910 00  |     9,683 00 |      5.3    |   106 11
1880    |   183,227 00  | [#]23,473 00 |  [#]11.4    |    99 53
1870[##]|   206,700 00  | [#]31,564 00 |  [#]13.2    |   166 96
1860    |   238,264 00  |    42,470 00 |     21.7    |   197 40
1850    |   195,794 00  |              |             |   155 89
--------+---------------+--------------+-------------+------

-----

[##:  Values in gold.]

[#:  Decrease.]

The percentage of increase was least for the decade 1880 to 1890.  After 1870 the farmers did not, until 1900, report as large investments in machinery as they did prior to the war.

Only two other Virginia counties reported higher values of farming implements and machinery in 1900.  They were Augusta, with $439,090, and Rockingham, with $436,340.

LIVE STOCK.

Values.

The total value of the live stock on farms only, June 1, 1900, was $1,621,639, or 14.7 per cent of $11,056,109, the reported value of all farm property.  Of the live stock value, domestic animals, worth $1,556,935, constituted 96 per cent; poultry, worth $58,276, 3.6 per cent; and bees, worth $6,428, .4 per cent.

TABLE I.—­Reported value of live stock on farms with increase and decrease and per cent of increase and decrease, by decades, and average values per farm and acre.

--------+---------------+-------------+-----------+----

-------+----------
Census  |     Value.    | Increase of | Per cent  |  Average  |  Average
year.   |               |   value.    |    of     | value per |   value
|               |             | increase. |   farm.   | per Acre.
--------+---------------+-------------+-----------+---------

--+----------
1900    | $1,621,639 00 | $349,629 00 |     27.5  |  $832 46  |  $5 17
1890    |  1,272,010 00 |  172,110 00 |     15.6  |   699 68  |   4 31
1880    |  1,099,900 00 |[#]68,411 00 |  [#] 5.9  |   597 45  |   3 68
1870[##]|  1,168,311 00 |[#]14,044 00 |  [#] 1.2  |   943 71  |   4 23
1860    |  1,182,355 00 |  244,763 00 |     26.1  |   979 58  |   3 99
1850    |    937,592 00 |     —       |      —    |   746 49  |   3.18
--------+---------------+-------------+-----------+---------

--+----------
[##:  Values in gold.]

[#:  Decrease.]

Animals Sold and Slaughtered.

The census enumerators and special agents secured reports of the amounts received from the sale of live animals in 1899, and of the value of animals slaughtered on farms.  With reference to reports of sales, they were instructed to deduct from the amount received from sales the amount paid for animals purchased.