Some Present-Da\) Policies. 49 



W. Ashby, who has given more practical and detailed 

 study to this question than anyone else, points out that 

 even allowing only 25 acres to each family, an area which 

 I believe is much too limited in this country, nearly half 

 the area of England and Wales would be required to 

 provide holdings for the 500,000 men over 20 years of age 

 employed in agriculture. " It is, however," he adds, 

 "almost impossible to imagine the establishment of even 

 100,000 holdings, and such a miracle would still leave the 

 rural workers without any solution of their general 

 problems." 



Small holdings are advocated, however, on more general 

 grounds. It is contended that the small holder cultivates 

 the land more intensively than the large farmer, and that, 

 if the nation wants an increased production from the land, 

 it can be secured by increasing the number of small 

 holdings. This is one of the sweeping generalisations 

 often made about agriculture without any data being 

 produced to substantiate it. The best managed small 

 holdings are contrasted with the indifferently cultivated 

 farms, or small holdings in favourable situations near 

 towns are compared with farms in more remote districts. 

 If a comparison is made between small and large holdings 

 producing the same crops, it will be difficult to show that 

 the small holding produces more per acre. Probably the 

 best summing up on small holdings from the productive 

 standpoint is that of Sir A. D. Hall ("Agriculture After 

 the War," pp. 54 and 55). 



" In themselves, small holdings are necessarily un- 

 economical units for dealing with land. Most farming 

 operations become much cheaper when carried out on a 



