1920.] Allotments in England and Wales. 



263 



allotment has been his best support in the struggle. While he 

 retains it he has always some alleviation of poverty, and his 

 personal interest in the land can never be so small as it was in 

 the opening years of the 19th century, when the movement may 

 be said to have taken definite shape. 



The history of small allotments is more difficult to trace, but 

 these allotments certainly took their origin in the 19th century, 

 at the time of the development of the industrial system and the 

 growth of towns. Practically all were provided by private 

 enterprise between 1830 and 1840. It was not until 1887 that 

 public authorities obtained powers enabling them to acquire 

 land and let it in allotments. The Small Holdings and Allot- 

 ments Act of 1908 constituted the Board of Agriculture the 

 central authority for all such allotments. The greatest exten- 

 sion came during the War, in 1916, after the threat of scarcity 

 had been fully realised. While it is difficult to estimate exactly 

 the total number of allotments in the country, the estimated 

 figure for 1918 was 1,400,000 allotments in being. The number 

 at present has been put as high as 1,750,000, but official returns, 

 not yet completely tabulated, would indicate a number more 

 closely approaching 1,000,000. The best results are shown by 

 Buchinghamshire, Cambridge, Northampton, Oxford and 

 Leicester, in which counties there is one allotment for every 

 three households in the area. Of the 150,000 acres included in 

 the return, more than 92,000 acres are still provided by 

 private owners, and less than one-half of the land by public 

 authorities. 



Sir Daniel Hall proceeded to consider the typical allotment, 

 that is, one of 10 rods or one-sixteenth of an acre. Such a plot 

 can rarely provide all the potatoes and vegetables required for 

 an ordinary small holder. Assuming that it had to provide 

 for a family of 5 persons and that half of the area was cropped 

 with potatoes, the quantity produced would be barely half-a- 

 pound of potatoes per head per day, and the same amount; 

 or rather more, of vegetables. This is, perhaps, a low estimate. 

 On another standard of comparison it was calculated during the 

 ^^'ar that about 3 acres would provide the necessary potato and 

 vegetable dietary of 100 soldiers per year. Such a dietar^^ 

 required 13 oz. of potatoes and 11 oz. of vegetables per day. 

 On this basis, a lo-rod allotment would provide 2 soldieri 

 with the necessary dietary, or approximately about the re- 

 quirements of 2 adults and 3 children. The general ex- 

 perience, however, seems to show that the produce of a lo-rod 

 allotment requires to be supplemented at various times of the 

 year in order to meet the demands of an average family. 



