CH. 11] AGRICULTURAL POLICY 211 



Last, but not least, there remains the Administration, the 

 work of the district officers and similar officials, who control the 

 headmen, and exercise enormous influence among the natives 

 of all races. As has already been pointed out, these officers 

 can do a great deal for or against agricultural progress ; in fact, 

 when one of them is opposed to any scheme, it is practically 

 idle to expect anything to come of it in his district. For this 

 reason, and because these officers being so constantly removed 

 from place to place, continuity of effort is impaired, it is 

 absolutely necessary that the Government have a definite 

 agricultural policy, and see that it is carried out by its 

 subordinates. 



In regard to village and native agriculture generally, the 

 policy should be to lead rather than to drive, though the latter 

 may be employed at times with advantage e.g., in dealing 

 with outbreaks of disease. The villager should be shown where 

 his advantage lies, and encouraged to grow those things that 

 he prefers, that he understands, and for which he has a good 

 market. Special attention should be devoted to the removal 

 of hindrances from his path e.g., in the matter of roads, 

 drainage, finance, markets and education. His standard of 

 living should be raised by intermingling of races and of types 

 of agriculture, and the same process will provide him with 

 example, with object lessons, and with better markets. It is 

 better in general to aim at increasing his efficiency than the 

 amount of work he does. He should be taught that agriculture 

 is honourable as well as profitable. Some system of bestowal of 

 honours or rank upon those who have done much for agriculture 

 might well be adopted, and local shows also should be en- 

 couraged, rather than large public shows, at which most of the 

 rewards are liable to go to others than the real makers or 

 growers of the exhibits. 



It may make matters more clear, if we put the problem in 

 the form of a rough diagram, as is done on the following page. 

 Every tropical country tends to settle down to a certain 

 "agricultural equilibrium," generally very low, and the object 

 must be to raise this. We have indicated this by the use of 

 levels. 



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