INTRODUCTION 3 



that, with " the Squire " in Parliament, their political interests 

 were safeguarded, and that all they had to do was to improve 

 their methods of production ; the idea that some machinery 

 was required to spur their Member into doing his duty by 

 them never entered the heads of these worthy farmers ; such 

 a suggestion would have been looked upon as little less than 

 profane. 



It is true that sporadic attempts were made from time to 

 time to combine for political purposes, but these were short- 

 lived only, and were really much more the result of political 

 wire-pulling than of spontaneous agricultural effort. The 

 Agricultural Protection Society, which came into being about 

 1844 for the purpose of organising opposition to the proposal 

 to repeal the Corn Laws, and evaporated into thin air in two 

 or three years, is an instance in point. 



It was not until 1860 that the most far-sighted and most 

 intelligent of the landed classes saw the necessity of the creation 

 of some definite organisation to look after the welfare of 

 agriculture in Parliament, whose business it should be to 

 initiate beneficial legislation and to oppose the unfair attacks 

 which were being directed from various quarters. The general 

 sense of this necessity did not, however, find expression until 

 1865, when Mr. Charles Clay addressed his historic letter to 

 the Press,* proposing the formation of a Farmers' League or 

 Central Chamber of Agriculture, while it was some months 

 later before this proposal germinated into sentient life. Even 

 then the Chambers confined their action to academic debate, 

 and some years more elapsed before they actually took the 

 offensive by raising debates in Parliament. Thus, down to 

 about 1870, while nominally agriculture was well represented 

 in the House, agriculturists outside Parliament were slowly 

 realising the fact that they were in effect not represented at all. 



Scotland was again the pioneer, for the Scottish Chamber 

 of Agriculture was founded one year before the English 

 Chamber, and a history of that body is about to be published. 

 It is not improbable that the successful foundation of the 



* Appendix No. 2. 



B 2 



