STATEMENT No. XI. 

 STATEMENT SHOWING TOTAL PRODUCTION AND COST PER ACRE FOR 1918. 



U. Evidence-in-chief handed in by Mr. W. D. McNicor,, Farmer, Castleton, North Berwick. 



I am a Tenant Farmer farming in East Lothian and 

 ex-Chairman of Haddingtonshire Branch of National 

 Farmers' Union of Scotland. In tendering evidence for 

 this district to tho Commission there are two considera- 

 tions I should like clearly understood: 



1st. That it has been very hurridedly prepare and 

 owing to tho limited time Available it has not been 

 made so comprehensire or revised as it might 

 have been. 



2nd. That it applies to probably one of the most 

 intensively farming districts in the Country, 

 where the rotation of crops is very close. The 

 bulk of the land being kept constantly under the 

 plough and is n t rested by grazing or bare 

 fallow, hence the provision for working plant, 

 labour and upkeep is very heavy per acre and as 

 very little bneding is carried on the winter 

 feeding stock are bought in, necessitating a large 

 capital outlay for store stock. 



The soil varies from very stiff clay to medium loam, 

 the rainfall is low and the land sometimes ge's very hard 

 and difficult to work. I append costs of production of 

 cereal*, hay, potatoes and turnips which are the average 

 figures prepared by several representat ve farmers of the 

 district for year 11)18. 



I wonld point out that the land was easily prepared 

 that spring owing to late frosts and expense of work- 

 ing low. 



In regard to the turnip crop of 1918 it was in many 

 casts a total failure owing to frost and fly ittacks fol- 

 lowed by drought no return being got at all. In other 

 cases the crop w.as only about half an average (say 12 tons) 

 thus raising the cost of feeding stock during the winter of 

 r.M8-l'. and also the resultant factor that owing to the 

 letter numbers we have not the quantity of farmyard 

 manure available for this and next crop. 



The results of the War are very apparent in that hedges 

 are overgrown, ditches and drains are needing cleaning, 

 hoii'cs and buildings generally are out of repair and the 

 land itself is dirty and out of condit on and will requin; 



20370 



extra labour and expense to put it into proper order 

 again. The results have accumulated through shortage 

 of labour and what could be got was not so efficient. 

 The supply of casual labour for seasonal work is still 

 defijieut. Certain artificial manures, such as potash, were 

 not available and, of course, all were expensive, but were 

 used as largely as possible to make up the shortage of 

 manure. 



Transport by rail was difficult and slow. 



Tractors (Government and privately owned), were used 

 to some extent, but were not an unqualified success and 

 have not displaced horse labour to any great extent and 

 in the opinion of many farmers there is much scope for 

 Motor Road Haulage in Scotland if properly organised 

 (co-operatively or otherwise) as it is largely independent 

 of weather and soil conditions Labour has improved its 

 conditions both in wages and working hours. Generally 

 cash wages for men have risen from about 18s. 6rf. per 

 week in 1913-14 to 42. now and working hours are now 



9 per day with a Saturday half-holiday as compared with 



10 per day and no fixed holidays. Woman labour filled 

 many gaps and I think some endeavour should be made to 

 keep the Organisation known as the Women's Land Army 

 going after 28th November (when, I believe it is to be 

 demobilised) as it has done useful work and I understand 

 that the feeling of many of the women m it is favourable 

 to this. Any further reduction in working hours will, in 

 my opinion, lower production and increase working costs. 



Generally speaking, we wish to be able to pay our 

 workers a wage that will compete with other industries, 

 but it must be remembered that we have a weather risk to 

 contend with and if shorter working hours are made com- 

 pulsory the tendency will be for land to go again out of 

 cultivation. We find overtime work often given grudg- 

 ingly by the workers. 



Rents have not altered except in cases of leases running 

 out and where renewed have mostly been raised. In 

 many cases landlords have been offering their land for 

 sale and many farmers have been forced to buy to retain 

 their holdings, thus reducing available working capital for 

 the conduct of their farming operations. 



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