654 TRANSACflONS Of SECTtON P. 



2. Effect of feai' of unemployment in stimulating wage-earuers, 



y. Invention of improved processes and substitution of capital for labour. 



Examination of doctrine of * parasitic trades.' 

 Effect of a legal minimum wage upon international trade. 

 Inquiry how far above theoretical reasoning supported by experience of 

 Australia and New Zealand. 



2. Labourers and the Land : Yorkshire. By Robert E. Tuknbull. 



The population of Yorkshire in 1901 was found to be 3,590,750 : of these 

 3,025,000, or 84i% per cent., resided in urban districts and 565,000, or \5^^ per 

 cent., in rural districts. 



In urban districts men and boys of all ages formed only 48'42 per cent, of the 

 urban population. 



In rural districts the proportion was 50'58 per cent. 



In urban districts the number of women and girls of all ages exceeded the 

 number of men and boys by about 95"500 = 6j per cent. 



In rural distri<;ts men and boys of all ages exceeded the number of women 

 and girls by over 6-500, or by 2^ per cent. 



The area of Yorkshire is 3,887,700 acres ; in 1901 the total area under crops 

 and grass, exclusive of mountain and heath land, was 2,735,100 acres, or over 

 70 per cent, of the area of the county. 



Every year Yorkshire is becoming less rural and more urban in character. It 

 may be well to note some of the principal changes revealed by the census and 

 agricultural returns for 1901. There was an increase m 1901 as compared with 

 1891 of nearly 377,000 in the population, or ll^^ per cent. In urban districts the 

 increase was over 340,000, or 121 per cent. 



In rural districts the increase was under 36,500, or 6^% per cent. 



In 1891 the urban districts occupied about 571,400 acres; in 1901 about 

 006,600 acres, an increase of 35,200 acres, or Q^ per cent. Rural districts de- 

 creased in area by nearly \^ per cent. 



In 1891 the area of land in the urban districts equalled 1^ acre per family of 

 five persons ; in 1901 almost exactly one acre. In the rural districts in 1901 the 

 area equalled 29 acres per family of five persons, or 2J acres less per family 

 than in 1891. 



In 1901 the total area of arable land and permanent pastures and meadows was 

 4 per cent, more than in 1871, In grasslands the increase was 27^ per cent., but- 

 in arable land there was a decrease of 16g per cent., or 230,800 acres. This 

 great decrease in tbe area of arable land, which necessarily requires far more 

 labour per acre than grassland, took place chiefly between 1881 and 1891. But 

 while the area under tlie plough decreased, the quantity of livestock increased 

 considerably. Estimating the average live weight of horses of all ages (included in 

 the agricultural returns) at 8 cwt., cattle of all ages at 6 cwt., sheep and lambs 

 at 3 cwt., and pigs at 1 cwt., the weight of all stock was as follows : — ■ 



per acre. 

 In 1871 » . . , 5,093,500 cwt. = 1-94 cwt. 

 In 1901 .... 6,008,500 cwt. = 2-19 cwt. 



Increase in total weight in 1901, 915,000 cwt., or nearly 18 per cent. 



In 1901 as compared with 1871 the number of horses was larger by 24 per 

 cent. ; cattle 24j% per cent. ; sheep and lambs by 4^ per cent. ; in the case of pigs 

 there was a decrease of Q^^ per cent. 



Calculating the value of manual labour applied to arable land at 3o«. per acre, 

 and in connection with gi-assland at 10*. per acre, it will be seen that the outlay on 

 arable land on manual labour was nearly 404,000?.. or 16| per cent., less in 1901 

 than in 1871. 



On the other hand, the outlay on grassland was more by about 169,000/., or by 

 over 27i per cent. 



