MINERAL Br.sot uccs. The coal•fields of In diana cover an area of 0500 square miles in the western and southwestern counties. They are of Carboniferous age and yield bituminous coal suitable for heating. The chief producing coun ties are Clay and Vigo. each with an annual out put of more than 1,001000 tons. and Sullivan, Vermilion, Greene. anal Parke counties. The total output in 1901 was 6.918.225 short tons. valued at $7.017.1-13. Petroleum, one of the most aluable products of the State, is found in the Lima district of Adams, Wells. .lay. Blackford, and Grant counties. From ISA!) to 1901 in. elusive. the output. was 3S.355.000 barrel,: in the last year it amounted to 5,757,0S'0 barrels, valued at $4.s•226. Natural gas is obtained in many of the ventral comities. including Ilan cock. Henry, 'Hamilton. Tipton, Madison. Grant. and Delaware, the area of the field Iwing about :,000 square roils. In 11411 there were -WOO iu operation. and the output was valued at $W 951.560. A large quantity of gas is trans. ported to Chicago. Indiana has a valuable quar ry industry. producing sandstones and lime stones suited for building and ornamental pur poses. The ordit ie which comes from southern Indiana, is one of the best known intibling-stones in the country. Brick clays are widely distributed, and marls adapted to the manufacture I if hydraulic eement are found along the I ecnrd ir:r to the census of 1900. 94.1 per cent. of the land area of the State was ineholed in farm-. The farm area inereased in every decade but one-18s0 to 1890—of the last half of the nineteenth century, making a total gain in the half•century of 011 per eent. In the same period the improved land inereased more than twofold. amounting. in 1900, to 77.2 per cent. of the total farm area. The most extensive non :cable lands are in the hilly region of the south-•entral section, and in the swamp lands of the northern part. Formerly the land that was too wet f, r cultivation constituted in the a very considerable portion of the total area. but by an extensive sys• tern of drainage the greater part of it has been reclaimed. and now constitutes the most produc tive land in the State. The average size of farms had decreased from 130.3 acres iu 1850 to 97.-1 acres in 19110, every decade of that period hating witnessed a decrease_ The rented farms amount la 2s.0 per cent. of the total number, over four littlis of which are rented according to the share system.
Agriculture has the advantage of a very 511 perior system of railroad and numelons city markets within the State. lle• sides. proximity to soul] groat centres in adjoin ing States as Chicago. Cincinnati. and Louis ville opens up a wider field. Indiana is not divided into crop belts, taw do•., one have it monopoly. The three-crop rotation sys• tem is commonly in vogue, and for :I long time the :state was inc I if the !callers in the produc tion of corn, wheat, and hay (timothy and (lover). ltecently, With the great development of some of the Western States, that place has been lost, theme]) a high rank is still held. The census for 1900 showed a larger acreage for corn, wheat, and hay than was reported at any pre vious census. Potatoes alit oats are griovn everywhere, hut III somewhat larger quantities in the northern part of the State. Barley, buck vlicat, and rye are raised, hut not in large All kinds of fruits and vegetables common to the temperate zone are raised. Miteli attention is being given to the production of tomatoes fur canning, and no other State west of the Allegliany llountaim: equals Indiana in this respect. of the total ... tither I if orchard trees, apple.true. constitute 61.1 per cent. Large quint of peaches are grown in SO/IIe of the southeastern eounties. The number of peaell, pear, and plum trees eaeli more than trebled during the decade ending with 1900.
STocK-R.sisi N G. Stoek•raising is important. attention behm evenly divided between hor•es. cattle, and swine. Every decade since 1870 has witnessed an increase in the number of all va iieties of farm animals except sheep, which suf fered a corresponding decrease. (The decrease shown in the table in the number of dairy cows is due to a change in the method of enumeration, and is, only apparent.) Sheep-raising is largely confined to the iThrtheastern part of the In ::S.027.370 was realized from the sale of dairy products, about half of •hiell was from .-ale• of butter and the remainder principally from .ales of milk. The reeeipts front poultry products are also very large. The following tables. taken from the census returns of 1S90 and 19110. show the relative importance of the different crop, and varieties of farm ani mals and the clang' s which have oceurr•d dur ing the decade: