68 



K.'YAI. COMMISM-IN n.N AGB1CULTUKK. 



j*ti, 1919.] 



'I HK H"N - til 





. ;h. y themselves make the rate of 

 fay a utiiftirni um> by refusing to increase the wages in 

 .i case*:'- \C.N. but tin- S\ ages Board have, thciu- 

 M<lvi tuadc in uniform. We thought th> y .-! going 

 to impose a uiiiuiiiuiii wage only, ami mil , 

 standard wage upon us. 



158- ! .mi rerj interested to hear 



that yu, one of our greatest authorities, seen, t.. 

 famur tin' principle of the Corn Production A 

 a guarantee of the prices of coi 

 feature. I suppose, in the agricultural jiolicy <if this 

 count linly, uivtil we get settled down. 1 



do not say it is to be permanent. I think eight \.-.u.- 

 should he the minimum period. Perhaps after thai 

 time it will not be necessary, but for eight years I 

 think it would be wise to fix a minimum guaranteed 

 price. 



1583. In the fourth sentence of your second para- 

 graph you say: "There is no doubt a wide-spread 

 fear amongst farmers that herein lies their salva- 

 tion, and they are justified in this by the high 

 price which gross hind fetch, s I:: tin- u.a.JM t compared 

 with_ arable, unless the latter is of very first-rate) 

 quality." We would like to know what exactly you 

 mean there: It y<m li:. farm, particularly 

 of the poorer description of land, you can sell it at a 

 much higher price if it is grass than if it '.s arable. 



1584. Is that true of the whole country or only of 

 Essex? It is very true of the heavy land of Essex. 

 It makes all the difference in the world in the case 

 of the heavy land of Essex, and I think you will find 

 it is true generally, except as regards the very best 

 arable land, which i.s making a very high price". 



1585. As 4o this system of guarantee, we have a 

 double one at the present time. We have the guaran- 

 teed prices in the Corn Production Act and we have 

 a eet of guarantees for this year only? 



1586. That is a new principle. I should like your 

 view as to whether you think these guarantees have 

 had any effect on the capital value of land? Xot in 

 thr Irnst, I think. 



in view of tho fact that there is such a ten- 

 dency amongst tho farmers to put down land to grass 

 and so forth, and that the whole nation and the 

 Government seom to be in difficulty as to the future 

 agricultural policy, how do you account for the high 

 prices of land which you "refer to hero!- When I 

 said " not in the least " I meant it docs not affect it 

 at all; the landowners have had no advantages from 

 the guarantee at all. 



1588. Yes, but a new principle is coming in. You 

 say yourself that this principle of guarantee is D 

 Yes, of course, up to a point I think arable land 

 will go down to grass. If it goes down to grass it 

 will be profitable as grass land, whereas it is not 

 profitable as arable at present. That is the difficulty. 

 you see. 



1 "-!>. In the third sentence of paragraph 6 of your 

 precis you say: "The cost of every item of ex- 

 penditure has gone up, some very largely and 

 others only to a small extent. Tho first item is 

 interest on buildings, tithe and land tax. In 

 the Knstern counties, where the tithe is high, it 

 will be increased by 2s. per acre since the war. 

 The cost of landowners' repair* is at lea^t doubled. 

 and in fact at the moment is more than this, 

 " tll:i ' ''""Id be added. So as to put tile 



landowner in the same |>osition as in a pr.--war i 

 on a rent of 1 an acre, 20 per cent, should be added 

 to it. and ao on. This Commission is to deal with 

 hole country? Yea. 



1.59<l. I pi-c-uni;. you are well aware of the l.-r t 

 that thousand- and ihi.usands of acres of la?i,i 

 in the market, and have been in the market, and 

 that the large proportion of this land has been pur- 

 chased by the farmer occupiers?- Yen, that 



tthat elf, ct do you think the tremendous in- 

 crease in tho shape of rent, haying regard to the 

 ntereat on the purchase-money, will have on prices in 

 the future?- I cannot nay <that thev are true in buving 

 Jnd iit the high values of to-day. 



!">. I want your opinion, as one 

 Of the grcatit authoritiw, IIH to the clfc, t ..t n,.,- 



on tho futuro development of tho industry h I think 

 have a sort of feeling that il the worst comes 

 to the worst 'th.y >-..n put the land .i-.wn to grass. 

 I h.-y have, also a feeling that the I'rimo Minister 

 has undertaken to see that agri' ulture will not go 

 down. He made that statement in the House of 

 i ..Minions in February, 1917, that he would see that 

 agriculture would not go down. 

 sort of focliug that he will see that it does not. 



l.'i'M. And. then-fore. they are prepared to pay 



the high pi i . th . they are doing at the present 

 time for their farms? A great many of them do 

 not, want to lose their farms; they want to 

 where they are. and therefore they have to pay the 

 prices iii order to secure them. 



'I. Would you be surprised if I gave you a 

 concrete case of a farmer farming 80 acres and paying 

 a rent of 90. This farm has been bought by the 

 farmer for between 5,000 and 6,000, which means, 

 taking the interest on the purchase-money, a rent of 

 something like 250 instead of a rent of !! 

 great many rente were very low before. i;.-n;~ were 

 reduced very much .')0 years ago, and a great many 

 landlords let them remain at the same rent. Many 

 I a rins were let at much below an economic rent before 

 the war. I think that would account for part of it. 



1595. You, a supporter of the guarantee of prices 

 for the farmer, are also aware, 1 presume, that our 

 land system is one which is not in vogue in any other 

 country that is. the yearly tenancy. All farmers in 

 this country, or a very large proportion of them, at 

 any rate, are yearly tenants? That is because they 

 wish to be. 



1596. Yes, but that does not ni; all. 1 am 

 looking at it from the point of view of tho industry as 

 an industry? Yes. 



1597. Is there not a danger that this guaraii;. 

 view of the fact that the farmer is so insecure, will 

 have practically no elfcct whatever upon the develop 

 incut of the agriculture of the country :- I do not 

 think that the tanner thought himself insecure, or he 

 would not have insisted upon the yearly tenaiu \ ; it 

 is the farmer himself who wished the yearly tenancy. 



1598. We are looking at it from the national point 

 of view. \\Y know that the land of this country in 

 past years has only produced about 11 an acre. That 

 w a* tho standard value in pre-war times. In vi. 



the fact that we have a land svstem which is not in 

 vogue in any other part of the world. I want to know 

 whether, in your opinion, the guarantee of prices will 

 have a different effect, upon the development ot ;lie in- 

 dustry as compared with countries where all or most 

 of the farmers are themselves the owners of the. land - 

 I should not have thought so myself. 1 should like 

 to see the farmers own their land in this country. 



1599. At present prices? Whatever is the fair price, 

 I should like to see them owners of their land very 

 much. 



1600. You speak here of the prospects of a reasonable 

 return on their capital and for the time and energy 

 they are putting into their business. 1 presume you 

 are aware that the position of the farmer at tho pre- 

 sent moment, on account of the sales of land that are 

 taking place, has been very insecure- Yes. I c|uito 

 admit it has been very unpleasant for some farmers, 

 but that is the unfortunate position in which wo are. 



1601. I want to know your opinion as an authority: 

 Do you think that will have any effect upon the future 

 development of tho agricultural industr\ in keeping 

 the land in cultivation, for install. 



where a farmer is going to have his land sold over his 

 head next year ii would pre\ent him developing his 

 farm to the same extent as he would otherw ise do. 



1602. Mr. Crrm: With regard to your wheat crop 

 of 1918, you told the Commission that you got five 

 quarters an acre from it? Yes. 



1603. 1 suppose that was sold at 75s. a quarter? 

 or that sort of thing. 



1 That would leave you on the grain alone a 

 of four guineas an acre: It, would on these 

 figures, but I have put the threshings and so on, as I 

 have already said, a little too low. 



