July, 1911.] 



55 Agricultural Finance & Co-operation. 



recommended. It appears; however, 

 that this can only be done continuously, 

 with impunity, where there is irrigation 

 and the plentiful supply of artificial 

 manures, as in Hawaii ; and it remains 

 to be seen, even there what will be 

 the ultimate effects of the procedure. 



Other matters that remain for short 

 consideration in the present relation are 

 those dealing with what is called 

 ' soluble humus,' and the connection be- 

 tween carbohydrates in the soil and the 

 increase of efficiency of the nitrogen- 

 fixing organisms. Soluble humus, it may 

 be explained, is the product obtained by 

 theaction of alkalis snch as ammonia and 

 soda on the humic acids ; there is a large 

 amount of this matter dissolved in the 

 dark liquid that drains away from 

 manure heaps, because of the alkalinity 

 of the contents of such heaps through 

 the production of ammonia. Much re- 

 mains to be discovered concerning solu- 



ble humus, and it is not yet known with 

 certainty if similar bodies are of direct 

 use to green plants. 



The effect of the presence of carbo- 

 hydrates in the soil, in increasing the 

 power of the nitrogen-fixing bacteria to 

 do the work that is required of them, is 

 probably due to the greater provision 

 of food, whereby there is an augment- 

 ation of the number of bacteria present 

 above that which is normal, with a 

 consequent enlargement of the amount 

 of nitrogen fixed. Information concern- 

 ing the question has been given already ; 

 it is receiving seme attention in a 

 practical way, more paiticularly in 

 Antigua and Mauritius where experi- 

 ments on a field scale are being under- 

 taken. Little consideration will show 

 that work of this and a similar nature 

 should throw much further light on 

 the matter of the value and importance 

 of humus to the agriculturist. 



AGRICULTURAL FINANCE AND GO-OPERATION. 



LAND IMPROVEMENT CREDIT IN 

 GREAT BRITAIN PROM 1846 TO 1910. 



State credit on behalf of agriculture is 

 provided for in England by numerous 

 laws, amongst which we may mention 

 those of 1846, 1849, 1884 and 1899. The 

 administration of these laws (the most 

 important of which are the Public 

 Money Drainage Acts, 1846 to 1856, the 

 Private Money Drainage Act, 1849, and 

 the Improvement of Land Acts, 1864 and 

 1899) has been entrusted to the Board of 

 Agriculture, who periodically render an 

 account of their working. 



Prom a recent publication of the 

 Board, the Bulletin of Economic and 

 Social Intelligence of May 31st, 1911, 

 published by the International Institute 

 of Agriculture, takes some data of 

 which, from their interest, we think 

 well to give a summry :— 



It appears that in the period of 63 

 years from 1847 to 1910 more than 18 

 millions sterling was advanced for land 

 improvement in Great Britain. Only 

 part of this sum (about £4,000,000) was 

 advanced out of public money ; the re- 

 mainder was private money, advanced 

 to landowners under the provisions of 

 special laws. 



The greater part of the money ad- 

 vanced — about nine millions, out of a 

 total of 18 millions — was devoted to 

 drainage. The amount advanced for the 

 erection of farm buildings was also con- 

 siderable, viz., about % millions in 63 



years. Then follow the advances for 

 the building of labourers' cottages 

 (nearly 1^ millions) ; for the erection of 

 mansion houses (nearly one million) ; for 

 fencing and embanking (close upon half 

 a million), and for roads (nearly a 

 quarter of a million). Other smaller 

 sums were advanced for minor improve- 

 ments. 



This not inconsiderable sum has 

 been advanced in different propor- 

 tions in the various years ; more largely 

 at the beginning and to a less extent 

 later. It appears, in tact, that while 

 the average amount advanced per 

 annum between 1846 and 1882 was 

 £387,000, it was only £158,000 per annum 

 between 1883 and 1910. 



This diminution was due, not only to 

 the fact that the most important im- 

 provements necessary were soon made, 

 but to the crisis which occurred in 

 English agriculture in the last decades 

 of the 19th century, and made the land- 

 owners chary of placing burdens upon 

 the land, the return from which, it 

 seemed, must continue to diminish. 



In regard to the procedure which a 

 landowner must follow in order to ob- 

 tain an advance, full information is 

 given in the article quoted, and we refer 

 the reader who is desirous of further 

 prrticulars to the Bulletin itself. 



(Summarised from the Bulletin of the 

 Bureau of Economic and Social Intelli- 

 gence of the International Institute of 

 Agriculture, 2nd Year, No. 4, May 31st, 

 1911), 



