A National Policy. 57 



of other industries, or to retain the best of the workers. 

 They are faced with the practical problem of how to con- 

 tinue to improve the standard within the very definite 

 limits of the economic power of the industry as at present 

 conducted. 



The measures taken to give greater security for the 

 farmers' capital, and for compensation for disturbance, 

 do not go far enough to give confidence to the farmers. 

 Security of tenure is necessary but would lead to a com- 

 plete revolution in our system of land tenure, which would 

 require far-reaching adjustments affecting the whole 

 structure of the industry. Guaranteed prices for cereals, 

 ineffective in themselves, cannot in the nature of things 

 be otherwise than temporary expedients, and are positively 

 harmful. The establishment of small holdings on a large 

 scale is practically impossible and economically wasteful. 

 Occupying ownership is not a practical proposal because 

 the farmers do not want to buy. 



The interest of the community is to get the greatest 

 possible production from the soil with the loAvest com- 

 parative expenditure of human labour. That is not being 

 secured for the reasons outlined above. The national 

 resources are under-developed because the land is under- 

 capitalised and under-farmed. The workers are living in 

 a condition that does not enable them to live as full a life 

 as they ought to enjoy with our present-day scientific 

 resources and economic powers. " The end of life is not 

 the production of more goods ; it is the production of 

 more and better life." 



So far I have been treading familiar ground and I make 

 no claim to any originality of treatment. All I have 



