THE HOME MARKET 299 



would materially lessen the cost of the operation to 

 the general public. And, above all, there would be a 

 vast reduction in the cost of pauperism and of the un- 

 employed, all of which, in some form or another, now 

 falls on the community. If all these savings could be 

 estimated and placed on the credit side of the sug- 

 gested account, it would undoubtedly be found that 

 even from an economic point of view the transaction 

 referred to would be a paying one for the nation. 

 From a social and political point of view the advan- 

 tages could not be estimated, they are incalculable. 



Unfortunately, poverty and distress have become 

 so permanent in our midst that charitable agencies for 

 the relief of them are now a profession, paid and un- 

 paid. They form a prominent part of our social life, 

 and often a fashionable pastime. If a foreigner were 

 to visit the home of some public or wealthy man in 

 England, and could see the great number of appeals 

 for help which are received, coming in . by almost 

 every post, he might fairly conclude that we were a 

 nation of paupers. 



There are large numbers of the philanthropic public 

 who give willingly of their time and money in charit- 

 able directions, and by so doing are gratified with the 

 feeling that they are doing something, and sacrificing 

 something, for their fellow-creatures. They experience 

 the " luxury of doing good." But it is questionable if 

 they would take the same personal interest in legisla- 

 tive action, the course of which is impersonal and void 

 of sensation, but the certain effect of which would be 

 to replace charity, with its demoralization, by self-help 

 and independence. 



In the calculations made, 30 bushels of wheat per 

 acre are taken as the average yield. But on farms 



