THE POSSIBILITIES OF AGRICULTURE. 7 1 



born babe a future worker capable of producing much 

 more than his own share of the common stock we 

 greet his appearance. We know that a crowded popula- 

 tion is a necessary condition for permitting man to 

 increase the productive powers of his labour. We know 

 that highly productive labour is impossible so long as 

 men are scattered, few in numbers, over wide territories, 

 and are thus unable to combine together for the higher 

 achievements of civilisation. We know what an amount 

 of labour must be spent to scratch the soil with a primi- 

 tive plough, to spin and weave by hand ; and we know 

 also how much less labour it costs to grow the same 

 amount of food and weave the same cloth with the 

 help of modern machinery. We also see that it is in- 

 finitely easier to grow 200,000 Ib. of food on one acre 

 than to grow them on ten acres. It is all very well 

 to imagine that wheat grows by itself on the Russian 

 steppes; but those who have seen how the peasant 

 toils in the " fertile " black-earth region will have one 

 desire : that the increase of population may permit the 

 use of the steam-digger and gardening culture in the 

 steppes; that it may permit those who are now the 

 beasts of burden of humanity to raise their backs and to 

 become at last men. 



We must, however, recognise that there are a few 

 economists fully aware of the above truths. They 

 gladly admit that Western Europe could grow much 

 more food than it does ; but they see no necessity nor 

 advantage in doing so, as long as there are nations 

 which can supply food in exchange for manufactured 

 goods. Let us then examine how far this view is correct. 



It is obvious that if we are satisfied with merely 

 stating that it is cheaper to bring wheat from Riga than 

 to grow it in Lincolnshire, the whole question is settled 

 in a moment But is it so in reality? Is it really 

 cheaper to have food from abroad? And, supposing it 



