Scientific Agriculture. 



406 



growing countries from which we draw our supplies— Argentina, Australia, India 

 and jRussia— and the United States with 13 bushels are not much better. The 

 yield of the United Kingdom for the five years preceding 1904 was 31 bushels, 

 and this was only surpassed by that of our antipodal colony New Zealand, 32. 



This is largely due to the scientific research in agriculture for which, I think, 

 it may be fairly claimed this country has always been pre-eminent. I by no 

 means think that it is exhausted. 1 remember Sir John Lawes saying to me 

 that, having devoted half a century to the study of the soil actually cultivated, 

 he was still absolutely ignorant as to the subsoil and the part played by it. 

 Our knowledge of the action of manures is mainly empirical, and we have still 

 to learn much of its physiological significance. Without this it cannot be said 

 that we possess a rational theory of manuring. Farmers must have wasted 

 enormous sums in the application of nitrogenous manures until Frankland showed 

 that a considerable proportion passed off unused in the drain-water. 



I must confess that I am not clear that the arable agriculture of the 

 United Kingdom is in a backward condition, that it does not compare favourably 

 with that of other countries, or that it stands in urgent need of Government 

 aid in regard to research. Its theoretical principles can be taught in our universities 

 and schools ; its practice can only be learnt on the farm. While saying this I must 

 also express my conviction that the agricultural wealth of this country might 

 be increased in many w T ays. In my evidence before the recent departmental com- 

 mittee on fruit culture I expressed a strong opinion that the condition of that 

 industry was in no way creditable to us. . . . 



If we turn to India we have to face a difficult problem. The revenue is 

 dependent on the land, and this in turn lias to support a constantly increasing 

 population. It has been supposed that this might be met by the use of British 

 methods. But how ? Sir James Caird, who was sent out to study the problem 

 on the spot, reported that if the produce of the land could be increased by one bushel 

 per acre, all would be well. No doubt ; but how is this intensive cultivation to 

 be accomplished ? Long cultivation has brought the land down to a condition of 

 nitrogen-equilibrium. Dung is used as fuel, and the cultivator is too poor to import 

 artificial manures. 



India has long had experimental farms in plenty. They have not been 

 without their usefulness. But they have lacked permanence and a guiding 

 principle. It now owes in great measure to the munificence of an American 

 gentleman an agricultural research institute at Pusa, It is further, I believe, 

 intended to establish a number of subordinate stations at a cost of 250,000i. If 

 these are to be staffed from home forthwith , the result will be very much what the 

 Transvaal Director of Agriculture points out. The Government of India should 

 at once make up its mind what appointments it proposes ultimately to make, and 

 inform the universities at home five years in advance. Students at the universities 

 cannut be expected to engage in agricultural or allied studies unless they see clearly 

 what is to come of it at the end. 



Let me turn now to the problem presented by the West Indies and other 

 of our tropical possessions. Sir Daniel Morris is quoted as saying in regard to the 

 former :— " Agricultural education is at the root of the successful development 

 of these Colonies." This is perfectly true, only I rather doubt whether the writer 

 of the article quite understood the reason. In temperate countries agriculture 

 is a necessity of existence; in many tropical countries it is not. The wasteful 

 production of a few ground provisions calls for the minimum of effort, and is 

 sufficient to sustain indolence. But with the introduction of orderly government 

 a revenue becomes necessary. Sir Charles Bruce has laid it down that " in the 



