124 ROUMANIA - MISCELLANEOUS 



From the above figures we see what an enormous increase there has 

 been in the rents, whether in money or in kind, in Httle more than thirty 

 years. To these eloquent figures, let us add that other causes conspired to 

 render the situation of the Roumanian peasant more burdensome. First 

 of all the very large majority of the Roumanian landlords had no farm equip- 

 ment ; all the work of the farm was carried on with the machinery, imple- 

 ments, material and livestock belonging to the peasants. The large pro- 

 prietors relieved themselves of all expenditure and annoyance, which they 

 transferred to the peasants, even when the latter had not an}'' land at all. 

 The enquiry carried out in 1899 ^Y ^^^ Department of Agriculture showed 

 that 92 % of the livestock of the country belonged to peasants and the 

 rest to the landlords and tenant farmers. Besides this, out of 517,463 

 wagons for transport of every kind, the large landowners only possessed 

 7.4 % : of 589,308 carts, 95.8 % belonged to the peasants. 



To those already given, we must also add two causes contributing 

 further to aggravate the situation for the farmers, namely, the increase 

 in the charges for pasturage and the fall in agricultural wages. 



The lack of communal pastures, while the Hvestock belonged 

 almost entirely to the peasants, had led to such a situation that the 

 peasants were almost absolutely at the mercy of the landloids (or tenant 

 farmers): the result was an enormous rise in the charges for pasturage. As 

 we did in the case of the increase of rents, we shall here again reproduce 

 some figures referring to the charges for pasturage of cattle in 1870 

 and 1906. 



{a) in 1870, in the case of 323 grazing grounds examined, on 



185 or 57.2% less than 5 lei was charged per head of cattle; 

 118 » 36.6% from 5 to 10 lei » 



9 ■> 5-9% f" ^^ " ^^ *' '' 



I "-' 0.3% » 16 » 20 » » 



— » — more than 20 lei » 



{b) in 1906, in the case of the same 323 grazing grotmds, on 



67 or 20.7% less than 5 lei was charged per head jof cattle; 

 75 ■'- 23.3% from 5 to 10 ki t 



127 " 39-3% 10 " 15 » » 



41 » 12.7% )) 15 » 20 )) » 



13 )) 4.0% more than 20 » ' » 



As regards agricultural labour, the conditions at the end of 1906 were 

 certainly no better than those of rents and grazing charges. Labour was 

 paid at different rates according to the province and the kind of work. 

 To give an idea of the fall in wages between 1882-83 and 1906, we reproduce 

 some very characteristic figures on the subject. 



