INTRODUCTION xiii 



by the last census, we find that only about 23 per cent 

 of the people of England and Wales are found in the 

 country districts. Of this remnant, which includes 

 those who live in the country for pleasure or retire- 

 ment, only a small minority has any direct cause to 

 concern itself with the interests of agriculture. During 

 the same period the number of agricultural labourers 

 has lessened by one-half, while the general population 

 has enormously increased. 



Farmers have been steadily on the downward path. 

 Large numbers of them, by emigration and other out- 

 lets, have left their occupations altogether. Many, no 

 doubt, have been, with difficulty, holding their own ; 

 but taken as a class they have been steadily losing 

 their capital, and of late years have been figuring in 

 a very prominent place in the annual list of bank- 

 ruptcies. 



In the meantime the land has been steadily going 

 out of cultivation and lessenino- in value. In the 

 returns for last year (1904) we find that out of a total 

 of 32,317,610 acres under grass or crops of some kind 

 in Great Britain, only 1,375,284 acres were cultivated 

 with wheat. This is less than the previous year by 

 206,303 acres. The great extent of this falling off 

 can be realized by bearing in mind that the area of 

 the county of Surrey under crops and grass is only 

 268,451 acres, and that of many other of our counties 

 much less. It is evident therefore that if the present 

 state of things continues, the time is not far distant 

 when a field of corn will be a rare sight in our 

 country. 



We are every year becoming more dependent for 

 our daily bread on foreign imports, the stoppage of 



