72 THE LAND AND ITS PROBLEMS 



practically the same as it was in 1814, and much less 

 than it was in 1840. The low prices and consequent 

 agricultural depression of the eighties and nineties caused 

 this faUing off in production ; but although from the 

 year 1904 to 1914 prices were improving, production 

 was stationary — or if anything tending downwards. 

 Nationally, nothing could be more serious. We will deal 

 later with the causes which brought about this state of 

 afl'airs. 



Turning to the number of men employed upon the 

 land, a serious decrease is found to have taken place during 

 the last sixty years. In fact, it is only in the LTnited 

 Kingdom that the dechne in the agricultural population 

 has been absolute and not relative. In all other countries, 

 although the proportion of town dwellers has increased 

 more rapidly than the agricultural population, never- 

 theless the agricultural population has increased as well. 

 So that the land of the United Kingdom is not to-day 

 producing as much as it should, nor is it employing 

 its full quota of labour. 



It has just been pointed out that between the years 

 1904 and 19 14, although the prices of agricultural 

 produce were rising, there was little corresponding 

 increase in production but rather the reverse. From 

 the purely economic point of view this may seem hard 

 to explain ; for if the demand, as indicated by the 

 enhanced prices, increases, so ought the supply, and it 

 does so in most industries. But in the case of the farmer 

 other factors come into play. The urban producer can 

 switch from one class of production on to another, to meet 

 the varying demand, much more rapidly than can the 

 farmer. 



The farmer has to think in rotations, i.e. in periods 

 of three or four years. The prices may be good this 



