Agricultural Organisation 



By far the most important of these new 

 societies is the Farmers' Union, founded in 

 1904 as the Lincolnshire Farmers' Union ; but 

 so rapid has been its growth, so marked the way 

 in which the movement was taken up in other 

 counties, that only four years after its founda- 

 tion it was found desirable to form the National 

 Farmers' Union, with offices in London and a 

 membership of over 15,000. 



I have been closely connected with this Union 

 from its start ; in fact, I believe I am the only 

 landowner member (I am a member in my 

 capacity of farmer of my land in hand). I 

 have always been greatly interested in the work 

 it is doing, and I can assure any landowner who 

 looks with disfavour on an agricultural body 

 which does not permit landowner members, that 

 I have seen no sign of incipient hostility or of 

 any feeling other than goodwill and the wish 

 to co-operate in the general movement to benefit 

 agriculture. 



Seeing that the attempt to combine land- 

 owners and farmers into an effective powerful 

 society has so far proved unsuccessful, it seems 

 to me only natural that there should be a strong 

 demand for a farmers' association, one holding 

 meetings composed entirely of practical men 

 who make their whole living out of the soil — 

 meetings at which there should be complete 

 freedom, a thing not always possible when 



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