DEVON, CORNWALL, WORCESTER, KENT 1 7 



Devonshire, whose position was favourable at the time 

 of the Richmond Commission, has not generally sunk 

 beyond the stage of 10 to 20 per cent, remission of rent. 

 " In many cases there has been no reduction of rent at 

 all." The economic loss so far, of the fall of prices, has 

 been left on the shoulders of the tenants. The drought 

 of 1893, coming on top of the bad prices of previous 

 years for stock and everything else, has undoubtedly 

 reduced many farmers to financial straits. Farms are less 

 well kept up, in the opinion of some witnesses, but the 

 management of stock has improved, and the use of 

 manures and feeding stuffs greatly increased. There is 

 also an increase in the number of live stock. 



Cornwall is, on the whole, even better off than Devon- 

 shire. This is partly because so little corn is grown, and 

 stock farming is the main feature, partly because where the 

 farming is arable the rotation has some time ago been 

 lengthened by laying down grasses, and by a full use of 

 labour-saving machinery. 



In Herefordshire and Worcestershire, there is no serious 

 depression more than the economic narrowing of the 

 margin between outgoings and incomings for owner 

 and tenant. Good stock, and fruit growing have lessened 

 the difficulties ot agriculture. Nor does distress appear 

 to be extensive in Shropshire. 



In Kent, part of which has been reported upon by 

 Dr Fream, hops and fruit have tided many men over, 

 and made some prosperous. But where there are no 

 hops or fruit, rents are in some cases down to a nominal 

 figure, and much land has been passing out of cultiva- 

 tion, as in Hampshire and Essex. 



Wales. 



The evidence from Wales shows that, while Wales 

 generally escaped the earlier stages of the depression, in 

 which many parts ofthe arable districtsin England suffered 

 so severely from the effects of bad seasons, the course of 

 events in the later stages has been much the same as in 



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