274 LAND REFORM 



The rage for large farms began towards the end of 

 the eighteenth century and continued to about the 

 middle of last century. 



Two or three, often as many as five or six, farms 

 were thrown into one. Extensive buildings were put 

 up for each large holding, and the old homesteads 

 were allowed to fall into decay or were let for other 

 purposes. The smaller farmers were thus driven from 

 their occupations and had to become labourers, bailiffs, 

 to go into towns, or to emigrate. The theory was that 

 on these extensive holdings, high farming could be 

 practised, scientific methods adopted, machinery more 

 largely used, and the labourers to a great extent dis- 

 pensed with. The high prices which ruled induced 

 farmers with capital to pay large competitive rents for 

 these farms. The application of this commercial spirit 

 to agriculture answered the purpose of the landowners, 

 whose rents thereby were enormously increased. 

 Events, however, have shown that the policy, though 

 highly profitable to the landlord for a time, was a 

 mistake in every way. Through the fall in prices in 

 the seventies of the last century and a succession of 

 bad harvests, farmers were ruined and the large farm 

 system collapsed. 



The policy was pursued in spite of abundant warn- 

 ings from men of experience, whose opinions should 

 have had weight, but were of no avail in view of 

 increased rents and high profits. Of the many 

 warnings given at the time the following is an 

 example : — 



**The landed gentlemen, in general, run into the 

 practice of laying out their estates in large farms, 

 which is attended with two consequences equally 

 pernicious to the public, a check to country population 



