284* RURAL ECONOMY OF ENGLAND. 



or war ; their part is more humble. Industrious and 

 peaceful hives, they show what unfettered labour at 

 length produces. 



Mr William Thornton, in his Plea for Peasant Pro- 

 prietors, lays great stress, and justly so, upon this agri- 

 cultural and social condition ; and Mr Mill, in his Prin- 

 ciples of Political Economy, agrees with Mr Thornton. 

 A school has lately started up in England as advocates 

 for small property and small farming. I rejoice to see 

 such ideas spreading in the country of Arthur Young. 

 Provided the reaction is not carried too far and for 

 this the English may be trusted it is sure to produce 

 good effects. Even in Jersey, if the agricultural popula- 

 . tion is numerous, the non-agricultural portion is numer- 

 ous also. 



Although the soil of Jersey is- granitic and poor, the 

 aspect of the island is delightful ; it may be called a 

 forest of fruit trees, with meadows and small cultivated 

 fields interspersed, filled with charming habitations, 

 decked with virgin vines, and shady walks winding 

 under the trees. David Low observes that the subdivi- 

 sion of the land, which might seem likely to become infi- 

 nite in the course of a certain number of generations 

 in so small and populous an island, is limited by arrange- 

 ment among the families, so that a stop is put to it when 

 it becomes inconvenient. This example ought to give 

 new confidence to those who are afraid of seeing the soil 

 of France frittered into dust. 



