THE GENERAL SITUATION 2/ 



little, preferring to work away rather than be turned out 

 in their old age. Hard as the farmers work themselves, 

 their wives and families do often more, and in many- 

 cases two of them perform the work of three hired 

 servants for little over half the remuneration. 



From Wigtownshire, out of 457 farms in the Rhins 

 district there have been eighty-three changes, and on 

 twenty-five of these changes of tenancy the farmers who 

 left were bankrupt, or left without means. In the 

 Machars district, out of 607 farms there have been 

 two hundred and forty-five changes, and, from the 

 examination of several parishes, it appears that about 

 every third change means a tenant leaving his farm with- 

 out means. 



In certain districts of Dumfriesshire, of 245 farms, 

 during fifteen years past, 131 farms have changed hands, 

 several of the farms having had two or three tenants 

 successively. " About 3 1 per cent, of the farmers who 

 removed are said to have done so on account of rent, 

 and 26 per cent, of them are said to have been bankrupt 

 when they left." 



Such a record speaks for itself, and is a convincing 

 proof that the havoc worked by the depression among 

 an industrious and specially skilled tenantry, such as is 

 usually found in most districts of Scotland, has neces- 

 sarily been largely due to the faulty system of tenure, 

 and the impracticability of readjusting the item of rent 

 in time to prevent disaster. 



In the immediately succeeding chapter, an attempt 

 is made to draw lessons from evidence laid before the 

 Commission as to the more profitable types of farming, 

 and the success of individual farmers, and thus to bring 

 out more clearly the lines of readjustment. 



But it is impossible to conclude this concise summary 

 of the agricultural situation in various parts of Great 

 Britain, during the period of our inquiry, without indi- 

 cating at once that the situation in many districts is 

 extremely grave, that readjustments are, in general, so 

 slow and inadequate that, whatever may be the ultimate 

 outlook for agriculture, the position of the existing 



