Land Troblcnis and National Welfare 



Retour a la Terre " that I must refer the reader 

 to it. I will, however, quote an interesting com- 

 ment he makes on Mr. Chamberlain and his 

 policy. I wonder if the Right Hon. gentleman 

 has read it ? 



" The call of the land resounds from one end 

 of the earth to the other. . . This universal 

 agricultural movement is not to be explained 

 by purely economic reasons — by the need of 

 opening new fields of work to the labouring 

 populations. It is due to a much deeper cause 

 — to the instinct of self preservation which 

 moves nations as it moves individuals, which 

 arouses in them a presentiment of certain danger. 



" Can there be a greater danger for a nation 

 than to be entirely dependent on foreigners for 

 its food supply ? yet this is the unenviable 

 situation of England to-day. Though a great 

 and powerful country it must be a source of 

 deep and real anxiety. If she were ever en- 

 gaged in a great war the slightest naval reverse 

 would be sufficient to interrupt the food supply 

 and bring starvation to her crowded population. 

 Even without going as far as that, a declaration 

 of war would suffice so to raise the price of food 

 that the Government would find itself with an 

 almost insurmountable internal embarrassment. 



" This great danger to England has proved a 

 valuable object lesson to other European govern- 

 ments who have determined in consequence 



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