Introduction 



has many votaries, while there are not lacking 

 ^,'ood judges who disbelieve impartially in both. 

 And it is not only over the main lines of policy 

 that controversy rages, but over the many sub- 

 sidiary developments, some of which are cer- 

 tainly necessary to make any policy a success — 

 Co-operation, Credit Banks, the cheapening of 

 Transport, the elimination of the middle-man, 

 a better system of rural Education. All these, 

 not to mention the burning question of Free 

 Imports, are subjects of incessant debate. Yet 

 the combatants have at least this in common, 

 and it is no small matter, that they realize the 

 need of turning the soil of the country to better 

 account and of increasing the number of people 

 engaged in its cultivation. That the land of 

 these islands is under-cultivated, and that one of 

 the chief causes of its being under-cultivated is 

 that it is under-peopled — these two propositions 

 at least are common to agricultural reformers 

 of every school. The recognition of these two 

 facts and the conviction of their immense im- 

 portance have been slow in permeating a nation 

 so preponderantly absorbed in urban pursuits 

 and interests. But they are gaining ground 

 now every day, and bid fair to shatter the self- 

 complacency, with which we have been in the 

 habit of regarding our lop-sided economic 

 development. 



viii 



