Land Problems and National Welfare 



And allotments must be provided tor the 

 regular rural labourer on which he can work in 

 his spare time, aided by various members of his 

 family. 



Allotments have been available for many 

 years past, but they have been by no means 

 generally successful ; in many cases they have 

 gradually got into the hands of one or two 

 men — usually village tradesmen. I think this 

 want of success is often due to attempting 

 entirely unsuitable croppings. I remember one 

 man who would persist in growing wheat on his 

 one acre, hiring a labourer to do ploughing, 

 harrowing, etc., and naturally at the end of the 

 year he had little profit to show. Undoubtedly 

 it often pays to grow a little barley for the 

 pigs, but I believe most in potatoes and other 

 vegetables, as, even where there is not a good 

 market for them, these supply the family with 

 wholesome food that could easily represent 

 ^8 or £io in value. I believe that the model 

 allotments run by the Oxford County Council 

 are doing much to improve the cropping and 

 treatment of allotments generally in that county. 



A specific capable of general application 

 is undoubtedly that of providing more good 

 cottages with gardens for the married men, and 

 thus reducing the floating rural population ; 

 and though this pre-supposes a landowner with a 

 good deal of capital wherewith to build cottages, 



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