THE POSSIBILITIES OF AGRICULTURE. 59 



which exports home-made goods to the value of 9 per 

 head of population (56,000,000, on the average, in 

 1886-92), while the total exports from the United King- 

 dom attain only 6 /s. per inhabitant As to separate 

 parts of the Belgian territory, the small and naturally 

 unfertile province of West Flanders not only grows 

 the food of its 580 inhabitants on the square mile, but 

 exports agricultural produce to the value of 253. per 

 head of its population. And yet no one can read Lave- 

 leye's masterly work without coming to the conclusion 

 that Flemish agriculture would have realised still better 

 results were it not hampered in its growth by the steady 

 and heavy increase of rent In the face of the rent 

 being increased each nine years, many farmers have 

 lately abstained from further improvements. 



Without going as far as China, I might quote similar 

 examples from elsewhere, especially from Lombardy. 

 But the above will be enough to caution the reader 

 against hasty conclusions as to the impossibility of feed- 

 ing 39,000,000 people from 78,000,000 acres. They 

 also will enable me to draw the following conclusions : 

 (i) If the soil of the United Kingdom were cultivated 

 only as it was thirty-five years ago, 24,000,000 people, 

 instead of 1 7,000,000, could live on home-grown food ; 

 and that culture, while giving occupation to an additional 

 750,000 men, would give nearly 3,000,000 wealthy home 

 customers to the British manufactures. (2) If the cul- 

 tivable area of the United Kingdom were cultivated as 

 the soil is cultivated on the average in Belgium, the 

 United Kingdom would have food for at least 37,000,000 

 inhabitants ; and it might export agricultural produce 

 without ceasing to manufacture so as freely to supply 

 all the needs of a wealthy population. And finally (3), 

 if the population of this country came % to be doubled, 

 all that would be required for producing the food for 

 80,000,000 inhabitants would be to cultivate the soil 

 as it is cultivated in the best farms of this country, 



