through. On the night of December 14, 1902, the new 

 Agrarian Tariff was adopted in the Reichstag by a 

 majority of 202 against 100 votes, and came into force in 

 March, 1906. By it the duty on wheat was raised to 

 55 marks per ton, on rye to 50 marks, on oats likewise to 

 50 marks, on malt barley to 40 marks, on fresh meat to 

 270 marks, on boneless fresh meat to 224 marks, on frozen 

 meat to 350 marks, and so forth in a generous manner, 

 excluding from Protection only donkeys, foreign decora- 

 tions, and dead bodies in coffins. 



Undoubtedly the peasants and small farmers formed 

 the main support of the Agrarian agitation. Even at 

 present,* out of 316,000 members of the Union of Farmers, 

 only about 2,000 belong to the class of large proprietors, 

 who, it is true, manage the Union, but represent, never- 

 theless, a small minority. The bulk belongs to the peasant 

 class, which has been gained over by specious arguments 

 concerning high profits, exclusion of imports, extension 

 of farm land, safety of the home market, and all the good 

 things which are usually trotted out on such occasions. 

 Let us, then, consider how these prospects have been 

 realised. 



The most obvious effect of the Agrarian duties has 

 been a rise of prices of agricultural produce. To take 

 but the chief kinds of corn, wheat and rye, we find the 

 following movement of prices (in marks per ton) on the 

 Berlin market :t 



1895 .« 



1900 ... 



1901 ... 



1902 ... 



1903 ... 



1904 ... 



This table exhibits not only a steady increase of prices 



* Wurm, I.e., p. 130. 



t Compiled from the data of Berlin Statistical Bureau by the 

 Vorwarts," No. 123, 1910 (" Wirtschaftlicher Wochenbericht "). 



