532 



Miscellaneous Notes. 



[OCT., 



reported to be somewhat affected by the wet weather, and in certain districts the 

 supply of this class of labour was in excess of requirements. The corn harvest, hoeing, 

 and potato raising generally provided full and regular employment in Hertfordshire. 

 There was but little time lost through rain in Bedfordshire ; day labourers, however, 

 were somewhat in excess of the demand in certain districts. 



Eastern Counties. — In Huntingdonshire and Cambridgeshire wet weather some- 

 what interrupted employment and caused harvest work to be delayed. In some cases, 

 however, autumn work was proceeded with in the meantime, and the supply of and 

 demand for extra labour were on the whole about equal. Similar reports come from 

 Lincohishire. In Norfolk, Suffolk, and Essex the corn harvest, threshing, ploughing, 

 manure carting, hedge trimming, potato raising, and hoeing offered fairly regular 

 employment, but in many districts the supply of extra labour tended to be in excess of 

 the demand. 



Southern and South-Western Counties. — In Kent hop-picking provided work for a 

 number of day labourers, while threshing, hoeing, and other work also caused a fair 

 demand for such labour ; the supply, however, was generally more than sufficient. 

 Finishing the corn harvest, hoeing, manure carting, potato lifting, and hedge trimming, 

 caused a good and fairly regular demand for labour in Surrey and Sussex, but there 

 was a full supply, and in several districts a surplus was reported. Similar reports 

 came from Hampshire and Berkshire. Wet weather interrupted the employment of 

 day labourers lin Wiltshire, and the supply of this class of labour was generally in 

 excess of the demand. Threshing and hoeing caused a fairly good demand for labour 

 in Dorset, but work on the land was hindered by rain. Employment was fairly 

 regular in Somerset, and the supply of day labourers about equal 'to the demand. 

 There was generally a good demand for extra labour in Herefordshire, but the supply 

 was sufficient. A scarcity of carters and stockmen was reported from the Ledbury 

 Union. Some irregularity of employment is reported from Gloucestershire on account 

 of wet weather. Men for permanent situations were said to be somewhat scarce. 

 Harvest work, lifting potatoes, and trimming hedges caused a fairly good and constant 

 demand for extra labour in Devonshire and Cornwall, but the supply was ample. 



Agricultural Prospects in Egypt. — A report on the Agricultural prospects in 

 Egypt, prepared by Mr. 'W. H, Cadman, B.Sc, F.C.S., of the Khedivial College at. 



Cairo, has been forwarded by the Acting British Vice- 



Miscellaneous 9°°?* ? A \ e T^ T ' ° ", A " ^Tr and « P " b ' ished 



in the Board of Ti ade Journal, 23rd July, 1908. 

 Notes. Belgian Ministry of Agriculture. — The Belgian 



Government has recently established a Bureau of 

 the Ministry of Agriculture, for the purpose of studying questions of a legal,, 

 economic or technical character relating to agriculture and of furnishing infor- 

 mation on these subjects to the public. This bureau {P office rural) is to be divided 

 into three section, as follows : — (1) Legal and economic; (2) Agriculture and live 

 stock ; and (3) Horticultural. The first section includes the study of legal and 

 economic questions, such as laws, commercial treaties, taxation, population, the 

 condition of the rural population and industries connected with agriculture. The 

 second section will undertake technical matters relating to agriculture, horticulture 

 and live stock, and the third section will deal with horticultural education, and will 

 supply information relating to the trade in horticultural produce. {Bull, de 

 P Administration de P Agriculture, 1908, Vol. 1, No. 5. ) 



New Zealand Flax {Phormium tenax). — With reference to the note on this plant, 

 which appeared in this Journal, June, 1907 (p. 166), it is stated that this natural 

 product of New Zealand is proving of great value in that country. It is amenable to- 

 cultivation and considerable areas are being planted for the production of fibre. The 

 New Zealand Department of Agriculture has formed experimental plantations with . 

 the view of ascertaining the best varieties to grow, and there is every prospect that 



