418 



tion she holds. There can, however, be no doubt that Agriculture 

 heads them all. Out of the land are derived the incomes by which the 

 landlords dispense money amongst all classes. They do so to an 

 extent far away beyond the traders ; while English farmers spent 

 vastly more money, ivhen they had it, than ever did those employed by 

 the whole commercial community put together. Moreover, it is from 

 amoDg the farming class we get our best soldiers and sailors, and there 

 we find the most moral and best conducted men and women in the 

 whole kingdom. 



Without a doubt the backbone of the nation is the yeomanry and 

 the farmers, while they are the very mainspring of sport. Withal, 

 nothing has been done for them beyond reducing in Ireland the rents 

 all round. Elsewhere through the country rentals adjust themselves. 



Too Jong have our agricultural classes been allowed to suffer from 

 unf lir and absolutely bad laws, resulting as it has done in the total ruin 

 of thousands of our farmers and irretrievable loss to every member of 

 the body. If, therefore, legislation does not devise means by which 

 our farmers will be enabled to make more money by their calling 

 than they have done of late years they as a body ivill he ruined. Ruin 

 of the farmers means of course ruin to all landed proprietors, with 

 consequential loss to the whole nationality, more especially the trades- 

 men and shopkeepers. 



To reduce rents is all very well for the tenants, but it is proportionately 

 bad for the landlords, and no one portion of the community should be 

 aggrandised through means of robbing another. Some other plan must 

 be adopted whereby both landlord and tenant will derive mutual advan- 

 tage. Neither ability nor experience warrant me in suggesting what 

 should be done, but assuredly coalition between " parties " in Parliament 

 upon such a patriotic measure should be adopted ; and if they would 

 join together, instead of wrangling, a righteous measure could soon be 

 devised and passed. But as long as each clique will alone look to its 

 own selfish end, and oppose what is for the general good, the passage of 

 great national measures becomes impossible, and they have to be 

 shelved. 



The great Agricultural Question cannot, however, be left on the shelf 

 any longer, and the way to bring about its immediate adjustment is for 

 the constituency of every county in the kingdom, at the next general 

 election, to require from the men they return to Parliament a solemn 

 promise to bring it forward directly the house opens, and not allow 

 it to be dropped until finally settled on a basis mutually beneficial to 

 landlord and tenant— ergo, to the Nation. 



To assist in thus binding our M.P.'s no one should take a more 

 prominent part than sportsmen in general, and foxhunters in particalar. 

 Farmers through all time have assisted sportsmen ; it is now the bounden 

 duty of sportsmen to aid the farmers in their distress. 



Needless to say, if ruin be brought upon our farmers and landed 

 proprietors, down immediately must tumble the leading bracchf s of 

 Sport, which alone cause the expenditure shown in this book, 



