THE RURAL PROBLEM 03 



If this be so, and if, as is admitted, the small holder will 

 Heed to be equipped, financed, and organised by the State, 

 why bother about him at all ? Why should not the State- 

 spend its money and organisation on large-scale farming 

 straight away, employing more and more agricultural labour 

 under better conditions and at higher pay ? The success of 

 the small holder in Denmark is attributed by this school 

 entirely to the fact that they were first in the field and have 

 the enormous British market close at hand. 



After all, there exist in Germany a million holdings 

 averaging 25 acres each and over a million averaging 1\ 

 acres each. The small holder can give personal care, which 

 is especially important in the case of live stock ; his wife and 

 children help ; there is a saving of waste, a saving of wages, 

 a saving of management expenses. As against this the cost 

 of equipment is bound to make the rent of a small holding 

 proportionately higher ; the small holder cannot regulate the 

 labour of his horses and his men as the large farmer can do ; 

 much of his own time is wasted in jobs which could be done 

 equally well by an unskilled labourer. The truth is that 

 small holdings have a distinct economic advantage in some 

 districts and under favourable conditions. 



It is therefore necessary for the success of a small holder — 



(i) That he should be the right man, a man of experience 

 and method, with a knowledge of the district. 



(ii) That the soil of his holding should be favourable. 

 Heayy land, or land where pasture is of low food value, is 

 bound to lead to failure. 



(iii) That he should choose the kind of farming which 

 needs close personal attention. Poultry, milk, and small fruit 

 have been found the most successful ; large fruit and butter 

 should be avoided ; market gardening should not be at- 

 tempted at all unless close to a market ; and corn growing 

 can only be carried on successfully on a large farm. 



(iv) That the holding should not be isolated, but in a 

 colony where the full benefits of co-operation can be obtained. 

 An area of at least 2,000 acres is necessary for this. 



Emphasis has been laid on these points to counteract, if 

 possible, the danger of the widespread belief that almost any 



