Decline in farm numbers remains the product of long-run trends and fluctuating economic conditions. Our analysis indicates that the effects of the mid-1980s farm crisis may be felt the most through the decreased entry of young farmers that occurred during the period. It will be interesting to...

An elasticity of retail sales with respect to farm, manufacturing, and transfer income is estimated for three community sizes and seven types of retail businesses. The results indicate the aggregate marginal propensity to consume retail goods locally decreases in the smallest communities and...