94 



Bad Times and Recovery 



fixed was 251. a week. It went up by instalments till it reached 

 461. 6d. in September 1919. 



Landlords generally shared last in the prosperity. In most 

 cases rents did not rise early enough. To get round this diffi- 

 culty a great many estates were sold. When they were sold 

 privately to tenants,, the prices were reasonable, but when they 

 were sold by auction, competition forced the prices to an unduly 

 high leve 1 . If the prices of farm produce were to remain high 

 for ten years, these new owner-farmers might be in a sound 



A Survival. Ploughing with Oxen on the Cotswolds. 



position, but already prices have fallen, and the value of land has 

 also gone down. 



The lingering desire of many people to protect or support 

 agriculture by State assistance gathered new strength in the war. 

 This gave us the First Part of the Agriculture Act of 1920. 

 Under the First Part of this Act farmers were guaranteed a 

 definite price for the wheat and oats which they grew. The 

 price was to be fixed from year to year with reference to the cost 

 of production, and the Government were to pay the difference 

 between the prices actually received by the farmers and this 

 fixed price. This part of the Act also provided for the con- 

 tinuance of the Wages Board, the fixed prices and the fixed wages 



