TRANSACTIONS OF SECTION F. 651 
168,000 agricultural holdings of more than 40 hectares which produce wheat 
(these proprietors own 10,149,000 hectares of arable land and 4,033,000 hectares 
of pasture) ; to the profit also, although in a lesser degree, of the proprietors of 
the 771,000 agricultural holdings of from 10 to 40 hectares (these own 8,363,000 
hectares of arable land and 2,388,000 of pasture). As for the 4,852,000 pro- 
prietors of land of less than 10 hectares, they have but 3,339,000 hectares of arable 
land and 1,929,000 of grass land to divide among them. 
II. 
Who, then, has an interest in Protection in France? According to the ‘Re- 
censement des Professions,’ established in 1896 by the Minister of Commerce and 
Industry, the agricultural industry, which in 1866, with a duty of 0°60 centime, 
represented 52 per cent. of the active population, does not now represent more than 
47 per cent. in spite of the duty of 7 francs; indeed, the great majority of the 
farmers is not interested in Protection. Agricultural establishments which 
number only from one to four wage-earners represent 92 per cent. of the whole. 
They have but a slight interest in the duty of 7 francs. There remain, then, 8 per 
cent. of the agricultural class, many of whom do not grow corn, or, at any rate, 
very little. 
Industry represents 35 per cent. of the active population, but the little in- 
dustries which work up secondary material have no interest in Protection; and 
the number of establishments employing no more than cne to four wage-earners 
count to 85 per cent. 
Commerce accounts for 5 per cent.; and large as well as small commerce is 
interested in freedom of exchange, as are also the banks. The same may be said of 
the liberal professions, which count for 7 per cent. 
Who, then, are interested in Protection? At most 8 per cent. of the agri- 
cultural class—z.e., about 3 per cent. of the whole active population. 
With the exception of the small group of cotton and linen spinners—-so poorly 
paid that they almost believe their fate depends on Protection—the interest of all 
the rest lies in Free Trade, which would liberate the industries that are likely to 
live from the tyranny of the industries which only exist by favour of Protection. 
What do the workers in cotton-spinning factories number? About 40,000. 
Add if you will the weavers, many of whom, however, would be interested in 
procuring their yarns free, and we haye 160,000. If we include the 50,000 
metal-workers (though a certain number of the factories which employ them would 
be interested in procuring pig-iron, iron, and steel at the lowest prices) and the 
20,000 tanners (whose industry also has more to gain by Free Trade than by Pro- 
tection), even then, out of an industrial population of 6,374,000 persons, these 
200,000 do not represent more than 3 per cent. 
But men of independent means, retired men, members of the liberal profes- 
sions, and officers are interested in living cheaply. The soldiers, too, are concerned 
in the cheapness of their daily ration. Not 5 per cent.—not one person in twenty 
—can be found who is interested in Protection. 
Such is the state of affairs in France, It is sufficient to study them closely to 
see the errors of Protection—the heavy burden which it imposes on the majority, 
one part of which can only escape its weight by that involuntary asceticism called 
misery. There are leagues in France against tuberculosis which make noise 
enough, but the hygiene of the beef-steak is forgotten, and it is that of which the 
working man is mostly in need, especially the working man in France. 
2. The Effect of Protection on some German Industries. | 
By Professor W. Lotz. 
The programme of fiscal reform which from 1&79 until now has ruled German 
politics is: 
(a) Protective duties upon the importation of food ; 
' Published in the Heonumic Journal, December 1904. 
