xii LAND REFORM 



imposed on any raw material used in their own indus- 

 tries ; and thus, on the principle that " if you tax the 

 machine you tax the product," the farming interest 

 remains unduly handicapped to this day. 



These classes have still the same short-sighted indif- 

 ference to the condition of agriculture, on which their 

 own prosperity so largely depends. They show this 

 indifference generally, and especially by their attitude 

 towards such measures as the Cattle Diseases Act 

 and the Butter Bill, by their determined opposition 

 to the shilling duty placed on imports of foreign corn, 

 and to the small scrap of just relief given to the farmer 

 by the Agricultural Ratings Act. 



On the other hand, the tendency to throw the bur- 

 dens of the commercial classes on to the shoulders of 

 the general community is increasing. This tendency 

 is shown by such measures as the Rating of Ma- 

 chinery Bill, and by a Bill promoted by the powerful 

 shipping interest, which proposes that the whole cost 

 of lighting our coasts should be paid out of the taxes 

 of the country. At the same time the farming inter- 

 est has to pay, through the general taxes and local 

 rates, the cost of rural education, almost the sole out- 

 come of which is a supply of workers for the towns, 

 for railways, and non-rural industries generally. 



All these considerations point to the urgent necessity 

 of increasing the power of the agricultural interest in 

 the House of Commons. But this cannot be done 

 under our present system. It can only be brought 

 about by a large increase in the number of those who 

 have a direct and personal interest in the soil. 



During the past four or five decades of years the 

 rural population has been steadily getting fewer, until, 



