426 REPORT OF OFFICE OF EXPERIMENT STATIONS. 



to show how it affects agricultural conditions and benefits agricul- 

 tural people. A translation and an abstract of this report has been 

 made by the assistant farmers' institute specialist of the Office of 

 Experiment Stations, and is herewith presented in the belief that the 

 experiment in Belgium is well worth consideration by all who are 

 interested in the extension movement in the United States. 



The area of Belgium is only 11,373 square miles, about equal to 

 that of the States of Vermont and DelaAvare combined, and with a 

 population in 1900 of 6,693,548, equal to that of the six New- England 

 States of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode 

 Island, and Connecticut. Of the entire area, there was in 1895 

 under cultivation 4,288,349 acres; in woodland, 1,288,092 acres; uncul- 

 tivated, 470,396 acres; the remainder was in cities, roads, marsh 

 land, rivers, etc. 



About one-fifth of the people are engaged in agriculture. Their 

 holdings are mostly small, varying from about 1 acre to 100 and 

 over. In 1895 the number of holdings of less than 2i acres each 

 was 544,041 ; there were 190,833 ranging from 2| to 12 acres ; there 

 were 50,065 from 25 acres to 50 acres; 12,951 holdings from 50 acres 

 to 125 ; and 3,584 holdings of 125 acres and over. The agriculture of 

 the country was in a much-neglected condition prior to 1885, at which 

 time a method of improvement was adopted that has produced remark- 

 able results. Under this system the average for wdieat in Belgium has 

 been raised from 24.54 bushels per acre in 1885 to 38.55 bushels in 

 1910, an increase of 14.01 bushels ; the average for rye was increased 

 from 23.86 bushels in 1885 to 36.69 bushels in 1910, an increase of 

 12.73 bushels per acre; oats from 49.75 to 81.48 bushels, an increase 

 of 31.69 bushels; barley (winter) from 38.25 to 57.57, an increase of 

 19.32 bushels. The number of horned cattle increased from 1,382,815 

 in 1880 to 1,817,687 in 1907; hogs, from 646,375 to 1,379,462. 



The price of farm lands in the same period rose from $105 per 

 acre in the Province of Anvers to $162; in Brabant, from $160 to 

 $225 for sandy land, and for sandy clay from $280 to $340 per acre; 

 in West Flanders the increase was from $243 to $405 ; in East Flan- 

 ders there was a rise of from 40 to 50 per cent ; in Limburg, an in- 

 crease of $120 to $150 per acre ; in Luxemburg, from $120 in 1885 to 

 $162 in 1910 for arable land, and from $189 to $202 for prairie land. 

 In this same period the home surroundings of the farmers were also 

 greatly improved, the quality of the live stock was much bettered, and 

 a great industry has arisen in market-garden products and in flori- 

 culture. A summary showing the degree of progress of each Prov- 

 ince is given in the table appended to this report. 



The remarkable improvement in the agriculture of this country is 

 attributable, as has been intimated, to the measures adopted in 1885, 

 whereby the Office of Extension Supervisors was created by the 



