8 



INTRODUCTION 



condition, but no one appears anxious to build 

 new ones. A slight recovery has recently 

 taken place, but few would care to prophesy 

 that the improvement is likely to be lasting, 

 or that it is not more than a temporary 

 optimism before a relapse takes place, which 

 plunges the whole industry into a condition of 

 apparent helplessness. Before attempting a 

 diagnosis, attention must be drawn to the 

 outstanding features of this decline. Many 

 serious problems have resulted, but our main 

 object is to arrive at the root trouble, and to 

 present a solution, if a solution can be found. 



The area of land under arable cultivation 

 has been steadily declining for the last thirty 

 years, as the following table will show : 



Land under Arable Cultivation in England and 



Wales (1872-1912).* 



* Agricultural Statistics, 1912. Cd. 6597. 



