Thus far property has been treated as invested capital upon which interest must be charged in determining the labor income. Labor, likewise, has been considered principally in its effect upon profits. Society has thrown around the transfer of property and the use of labor certain restraints for the protection of all individuals. Through the ages certain procedures have become fixed by custom. These legal practices are largely the inheritance of old Roman law and are usually known as common law. Various legislative bodies having jurisdiction enact from time to time other laws. This body of enacted law is called statute law and is much more variable than common law. In the briefest possible manner it is the purpose here to state a few of the principles and applications of the law, chiefly the common law, as it affects the farmer in acquiring or disposing of his property and in his dealings with labor. PROPERTY Property may be defined as anything which is a subject of ownership. It possesses the characteristics of being acquired, held, sold, willed or inherited and is of two kinds: (1) Real property, real estate or realty; (2) chattels or personal property. These two kinds of property are subject to quite distinct legal practices. In general, real estate consists of land, things attached to it, such as trees, buildings, fences and certain rights and profits arising out of or annexed to the land. The term land as ordinarily used includes all these things, so that when land is said to be worth so much an acre it includes all fixtures. Ponds and streams are, under this definition, land. The land not only has surface dimensions, but extends upward indefinitely and down to the center of the earth, and hence includes a right to ores, coal, oil, gas or other materials whatsoever. An article may, however, be real property or personal property depending upon circumstances. Thus a tree growing on the land is real property, but when cut into cord wood becomes personal property. New fence posts ready for use are personal property. When set in the ground they become real estate. Just what goes with a farm or what are fixtures is frequently a subject for legal determination. FIXTURES