THE COTTAGE. 135 



referred the question to their Cottages Committee, and no 

 decision having been arrived at, he came in January, 1920, 

 to the Club as he expressed it to put the difficult points. 

 In doing so he gave some very interesting information not 

 only as regards the proposals of the Ministry, but also as 

 regards rural housing generally, much of which was embodied 

 in notes circulated at the meeting. 

 Lord Astor said : 



In the first place, I think it necessary to have a few funda- 

 mental figures before us. The Ministry of Health's estimate 

 of rural requirements was 100,000 houses at once. The total 

 for the country was estimated at half a million. More recent 

 returns show that 500,000 is an under-estimate, so that we may 

 take it that 100,000 is the minimum rural requirement. There 

 are also large numbers of inadequate houses and old cottages 

 which must be replaced. 



There is a real and urgent need for new houses. We want to 

 get away from overcrowding, not only in the towns but also in 

 the country. In the near future we must provide reasonable 

 accommodation for all our people. We must also bear in mind 

 the fact that just as we desire to raise the standard of housing 

 in the towns, so it is desirable to raise the standard in the country 

 also. The families of agricultural labourers are on the average 

 16 per cent, larger than the families of the rest of the population, 

 therefore the bedroom accommodation in rural areas should at 

 least be as good as in the towns and cities. I emphasise this 

 point because it has been said that the standard of housing 

 laid down by the Ministry of Health is too high for the country ; 

 but if we are going in for better housing then there is every 

 reason why the higher standard should be applied in the country 

 as well as in the town. 



Now these 100,000 are not to be tied cottages, nor are they 

 to be for the use of agricultural labourers only. In our opinion 

 the bulk of these new houses will be in villages and hamlets. 

 That will be a great advantage. It will facilitate the educa- 

 tion of the children ; it will minister to the gregarious instincts 

 of man ; it will permit of the provision of a better water supply 

 and drainage. Moreover, the advent of the bicycle has made 

 it possible for the agricultural labourer to live at some little 

 distance from his work, which may be the case if the houses 

 are built in the manner suggested. 



The great difficulty with which we are faced at the outset 

 is the cost of building. Cottages which might cost 350 before 

 the war would now cost at least 700. We are so impressed 



