STANDARD OF LIVING 9 



the standard of living is rising. This is either because a 

 higher level of prices has permitted the standard of living 

 of cultivators who raise commercial crops to rise, and 

 rents at the same time ; or because the total production of 

 agriculture is increasing owing to the improvement of 

 methods of cultivation. The increased produce becomes 

 divided between the cultivator and the landlord ; but the 

 share which the cultivators retain depends largely upon how 

 far the standard of living of their class rises at the same time. 



There are some important features of the standard of 

 living which require our attention. It appears to be a 

 general economic law that when the standard of living IB 

 low, practically at the subsistence level, it is difficult to 

 raise it, and when it has been raised from this low level 

 it is easily depressed again by adverse economic forces. In. 

 the cotton-growing districts many ot the cultivators did ex- 

 ceedingly well during the last three or four years of the war ; 

 and undoubtedly their standard of living was beginning 

 to rise. It is probable, however, that the present collapse 

 of prices occurring whilst cultivating costs are still high is 

 depressing them again to the old standard of living. As 

 soon as a moderately high standard of living has been 

 attained and become fixed in a certain class they exhibit 

 both a capacity to rise further more easily, and a strong 

 resistance to any depression of the standard of living. 



The standard of living of the great mass of the rural 

 population throughout the larger part of the Ganges Valley, 

 and in fact throughout most of India, is merely at the sub- _ 

 sistence level ; and their earnings must rise and fall in 

 proportion with the cost of living. It has been observed in 

 Europe that the higher the standard of living of any class 

 of tha population the less prolific it becomes. Various causes 

 such as the education of both men and women combine to 

 reduce ihe birth rate in any section in which a higher level / 



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