TEANSACTIONS OF SECTION F. 757 



Allotments, the number of wliich is little kno^\ai ; 242,342 in the Midland 

 ■counties alone. ' Little takes ' (and nearly three-quarters of the farms in England 

 •are of fifty acres and under) seem preferable to sinking money in ownership of 

 land. Pasture, not arable. Labourer has fared better than owner and farmer in 

 the present agricultural crisis, which we share with the rest of Europe. Wages, 

 standard of living, education and openings to rise increased greatly during the last 

 20 years, while the peasant proprietors abroad have been steadily going down and 

 •clamouring for protection to enable them to live. 



Is it worth while to create such a class in Ireland or England at the present 

 anoment ? 



4. Go-operative Farming. Bij Bolton King, M.A. 



Two forces are bringing the English land question into unusual prominence — 

 •the economic force of foreign competition, and the movement towards a wider 

 diffusion of landed property. The two are to a certain extent antagonistic, and no 

 'Social solution will avail, unless it surmounts the difficidty of farming land at a 

 profit. All evidence goes to show that large farms under skilled management, or 

 with plenty of capital, are the only ones which are likely to pay. Hence we must 

 reconcile the wider diffusion of property in land with the existence of large farms. 

 Peasant proprietorship, therefore, will not solve the problem ; co-operative farming, 

 •on the other hand, possesses the conditions of economic success. It can have all 

 the economic advantages of large capitalist farms, and alone can realise the social 

 ideal given above. But is it feasible ? First, Can a body of agricultural labourers 

 possess sufiicient cohesion ? Such evidence as there is on this head is distinctly 

 favourable. Nor is there likely to be much difficulty in finding the capital. The 

 difficulty lies in the supply of skilled managers. For the present the scarcity of 

 such men will delay the extension of association farms, but as soon as we give 

 due attention to agricultural education a sufficient number will be forthcoming. 



Some suggestions as to the formation of an association farm may be in place. 

 Nothing shoidd be doup till an efficient manager has been found. The land must be 

 in fair order, and therb must be a proper agreement as to compensation. The men 

 should be carefully selected on the advice of those best acquainted with the locality. 

 The constitution of the society must combine popular election with a strong con- 

 centrated management ; the manager must be uncontrolled in the direction of the 

 farming operations, but the body of the associates should decide on all other ques- 

 tions. The association's legal status should be that of a limited liability company ; 

 the capital should be obtained on loan, so that creditors have no control over the 

 internal affairs of the society. In apportioning the profits a large amount — at 

 least 40 per cent. — should go to a reserve fund ; 5 per cent, should be appro- 

 priated to educational purposes ; and of the residue half should be paid down 

 in cash to the association, and half go towards redeeming the loan capital. 

 Should several association farms be started in the same neighbourhood they should 

 federate for common purposes, such as selling their produce direct to the con- 

 sumer. 



The evidence of the association farms in Warwickshire tends to show that 

 with average agricultural labourers the scheme is perfectly feasible. The abnormal 

 •condition of the last two years has made it impossible for them to make a profit, 

 and the system has thus had no fair test on this score. The chief factor in their 

 economic success or failure is the economic value of high farming. As far as its 

 social aspects go, the results have been thoroughly satisfactory. 



5. The Results of an Experiment in Fruit-farming. 

 By the Yen. Archdeacon Lea. 



'The paper was divided into five heads, as follows : — ■ 



((1) The desirableness of increasing the class of small holders of land. 



