42 THE LAND AND ITS PROBLEMS 



until 1540, but the value of the land gradually rose to 

 20 years' purchase. 



During the succeeding 160 years, rent rose by degrees 

 to 5/- per acre for arable land and 8/- for grass land. 



By 1 770 the average rental of a mixed farm (grass and 

 arable) was 10/- per acre, with 30 years' purchase as its 

 selling value. 



Taking the rental of a specific estate of 20,000 acres 

 at four different dates, we find : 



In 1799 .... 19/- per acre 



„ 1812 .... 25/8 „ „ 



„ 1830 .... 25/1 „ „ 



„ 1850 . . . . 36/8 „ „ 



If it be granted that the moderate increase of 6/8 

 per acre between 1799 and 1812 was due to the land- 

 owner's desire to reap some benefit (and why should he 

 not ?) from the high prices of produce then prevailing, 

 the increase of 1 1 /7 as between 1830 and 1850 was clearly 

 not due to this reason, but simply to the fact that owners 

 were spending vast amounts of capital in developing 

 their farms. In the case of Coke of Norfolk, when he 

 succeeded to his property the rent roll was ,(^2,000 a 

 year. He spent 3^500,000 in making his property pro- 

 ductive, in turning semi- waste land into fertile land 

 producing food for the nation. And the result — a gross 

 rental of ,{^20,000 a year — could not be regarded as 

 extortionate. And financially he was one of the most 

 successful of owners. 



In the second place, coming to recent times, the owner 

 does not draw large revenues from the ownership of 

 land — in 19 14 the total income received in the form of 

 rental by all persons owning land and houses in the 

 United Kingdom was about ^(^285,000,000 ; but mark — 



