Miscellaneous. 



344 



[October, 1911. 



value of a small holding at once, was 

 allowed to occupy the Hnd on his 

 agreeing to pay the amount in four 

 successive annual instalments, the first 

 to be paid before the expiration of one 

 year after the date of the permit to 

 occupy the lot, and the balance of the 

 value in the manner described above. 

 The conditions of tenure stipulated that 

 each small holder should reside on his 

 holding, or on a house spot in one or other 

 of the townships which were formed 

 unless he had been granted permission 

 by the Governor-in-Council to reside 

 elsewhere. There were other conditions, 

 but the one of chief interest from an 

 agricultural point of view read as 

 follows : — 



Every purchaser shall carry out such 

 instructions as to the area of cultivation, 

 the nature of products to be planted in a 

 particular spot, the manner in which the 

 land is to be cultivated and the products 

 ca^ed for, and the handling of the pro- 

 ducts for market as may from time to 

 time be given to him by the Officers of 

 the Imperial Department of Agriculture 

 for the West Indies. 



The introduction of the new scheme 

 was not received with favour by some 

 estate owners, for they anticipated that 

 there would be a serious shortage of 

 labour by settling such a large number 

 of people on the acquired lands, and 

 they were also of opinion that the 

 peasants would become so independent 

 of ordinary estate work that it would 

 not be possible for them (the estate 

 owners) to carry on their cultivations in 

 a profitable manner. On the other 

 hand there was a good deal of dissatis- 

 faction aud suspicion among the pea- 

 sants themselves, and at first the action 

 of the Local Government was much 

 criticised. Some of the peasants 

 thought, in view of the fact that the 

 Imperial Government had made a grant 

 for the purchase of lands, that they 

 should not be called upon to pay for the 

 holdings ; others thought that the 

 Government would retake the lands 

 after they had put them into cultiv- 

 ation. Some would not accept free 

 supplies of useful plants for the same 

 reason. The eruptions of the Soufriere 

 in 1902 also had a demoralizing effect, 

 and it was difficult to get some of the 

 small holders to pay their instalments. 

 There were other difficulties which had 

 to be met at the outset, but happily 

 most of them have long since been sur- 

 mounted. 



The administrative and financial sides 

 of the scheme have been controlled by 

 the Land Commissioner. Financially it 

 has proved a success, for the Land Com- 



missioner was able to report on March 

 31, 1910, that there was £7,964 to the 

 credit of it, notwithstanding that no 

 less than £6,572 had been spent on roads 

 and by-ways, wages, resthouses for 

 officers, wind-breaks, awards and prizes 

 to small holders, etc., in addition to the 

 cost of acquiring the estates. The 

 amount expended on roads and by-ways 

 alone totalled £3,781. Quite recently 

 the operations of the scheme have been 

 extended by the purchase of Union 

 Island, containing 2,600 acres of land 

 for £5,000, and at the present time the 

 Government is in treaty for 400 acres of 

 Fair Hall estate near Calliaqua. As soon 

 as the surveys are completed, the pea- 

 santry will be allowed to purchase lands 

 for small holdings at those places, on 

 somewhat similar terms to those laid 

 down in the original regulations. 



On March 31, 1910, it was further 

 reported that there were fifty lots with 

 a total area of 272 acres on hand. These 

 lots are for the most part in places where 

 it is difficult to get access to them ; be- 

 sides, a number have land too poor and 

 steep for profitable cultivation. For 

 lots that are favourably situated in 

 regard to roads, and where the land is 

 not too difficult to work, there is keen 

 competition at the present time. 



The foregoing is a brief outline of the 

 scheme and its present position. 



The efforts of the Agricultural Depart- 

 ment have been chiefly directed to the 

 instruction of the small holders in the 

 best manner of cultivating their lands 

 and crops and preparing their produce 

 for market; besides, the Department 

 has annually raised and distributed 

 many thousands of useful plants and 

 seeds to them, free of cost. 



In order that the Department might 

 keep iu close touch with each small 

 holder and see that the instructions 

 given are carried out, an Agiicul- 

 tural Instructor was appointed, whose 

 duties are chiefly concerned with the 

 Land Settlement estates. He is re- 

 quired to submit a monthly report to 

 the Agricultural Superintendent for 

 transmission to the Administrator and 

 Imperial Commissioner of Agriculture. 

 This report gives an account of the 

 estates visited ; the condition of crops ; 

 instructions given to small holders ; the 

 number of economic plants distributed ; 

 the progress made with the making and 

 ultilization of manure and compost ; and 

 any other information likely to be of 

 interest, His work is supervised by 

 the Agricultural Superintendent, who 

 pays periodical visits of general inspec- 

 tion. A small holder who refuses to 



