88 PROBLEMS OF VILLAGE LIFE 



inarticulate ; and the habits engendered by 

 the feudal system are more deeply ingrained 

 in his mind. He plods slowly on in the 

 ways which his forefathers have trodden for 

 uncounted generations. In some localities 

 the position of the agricultural labourer is 

 improved through his proximity to well-paid 

 work in neighbouring mines, docks, factories, 

 etc. 



But, however districts may vary, a single 

 type of society prevails in all of them. There 

 are, of course, dangers in that sharp definition 

 of classes which writers on social subjects are 

 tempted to adopt for the sake of simplicity 

 and emphasis. But those who will contrast 

 rural England with rural Italy, Germany, or 

 France, or who will consider the infinite and 

 bewildering gradations of our urban society, 

 will not quarrel with the customary division 

 of the country population into landowner, 

 tenant-farmer, and labourer. The three 

 classes overlap but slightly, and they form the 

 fundamental elements of the social structure. 

 The land agent, the minister of religion, the 

 country solicitor and doctor, the dealer in 

 farming requisites of one kind or another, the 

 publican, the carpenter or blacksmith, the 

 miller and the village shopkeeper these only 

 exist to serve the needs of the three main 



