IMPORTANCE OF SMALL HOLDINGS 107 



holdings under the Act, and may pay half of any losses that 

 may be incurred (para. 110). 



" (e) That certain other amendments should be made in 

 the Act (para. 114)." 



40. The reason why in this part of our Report, 

 where we are dealing not with Settlement, but with 

 Employment, we thus emphasise questions of settle- 

 ment is that for our purposes we consider the two 

 inseparable. It is probably true that if the good wages, 

 good houses, and village amenities which we advocate 

 are provided, many ex-Service men will be quite con- 

 tent with Employment on the land. But to many we 

 think Employment in agriculture will be unattractive 

 unless they see a chance of ultimately becoming small 

 holders. Such men will emigrate to the Dominions, 

 where they are certain to get holdings of their own, 

 rather than undertake a career in which they must 

 always remain labourers at a wage. We are, therefore, 

 convinced that if the United Kingdom is to compete 

 successfully with the Dominions it is important that 

 there should be a well-developed system of small 

 holdings in our agricultural economy. 



41. It would be outside our inquiry to discuss agri- 

 cultural education in detail. But it is, of course, 

 vital to any great agricultural development. If, 

 as we think ought to be the case, the agricultural 

 labourer is to be afforded facilities for mounting 

 the ladder, he must be educated for his career. 

 Country children must always be within reach of a 

 good school where, in addition to receiving instructions 

 in the ordinary school subjects, they will be taught the 

 use of their hands and eyes, and trained to take an 



