1910.] Agricultural Labour during February. 1039 



Switzerland. — Wheat was, without doubt, too highly estimated in 

 January. In French Switzerland, especially, considerable damage has 

 been caused by field and other mice. Late sowing has also delayed the 

 development of the crops. Estimates for rye were, in January, too 

 pessimistic ; much more favourable reports have since come from French 

 Switzerland. The area of winter wheat is now estimated at 119,000 

 acres, spelt 58,500 acres, in both cases the same as in 1909. 



Tunis. — Autumn seedings by the natives, which took place in 

 January, were favoured by rains throughout the whole of Tunis. The 

 sowing of autumn crops by Europeans may be regarded as completed 

 with the end of December. The area of winter wheat is 865,000 acres, 

 of winter barley 889,000 acres, and of winter oats 96,000 acres. 



Roumania. — The area of winter barley is 185,500 acres. 



Hop Growing in Bavaria. — The British Vice-Consul at Nuremberg 

 (Mr. S. Ehrenbacher) reports that, owing" to the unsatisfactory con- 

 dition of the hop industry in that country, 1 a meeting was held in 

 February at Nuremberg at which the growing of sugar-beet in the 

 place of hops was advocated. It was agreed that the hop soil is, as 

 a rule, suitable for sugar-beet, and it was decided as a trial to put an 

 extensive area under the crop this year. As soon as the owners of 

 a certain acreage agreed to take up sugar-beet culture, a sugar factory 

 would be started in the district, the necessary capital having already 

 been guaranteed. 



Argentina. — According to the Review of the River Plate for 

 February 4th, the Argentine Department of Agriculture has issued the 

 following revised estimate of the probable results of the present harvest, 

 1909-10: — Wheat, 3,825,000 tons; linseed, 800,500 tons; oats, 591,000 

 tons. These totals are expected to leave a surplus for export in 1910 

 of 2,400,000 tons of wheat and 700,000 tons of linseed. The area sown 

 with maize in 1909-10 is returned as 7,422,000 acres. The British 

 Consul at Buenos Aires, writing on February 2nd, stated that the 

 prospects of the maize harvest were said to be excellent, having been 

 much improved by rains in December and January. 



The Board of Agriculture and Fisheries have been furnished by the 

 Board of Trade with the following report, based on returns from 

 correspondents in various districts, on the de- 

 Agricultliral Labour mand for agricultural labour in February. 



in England Agricultural employment was much affected 



during February. by wet weather in February, work on the land 

 being impracticable in many cases. Threshing, 

 hedging, ditching, manure carting, &c, provided work for' day 

 labourers when the weather permitted, but men of this class lost a 

 good deal of time on account of rain, and the supply was generally 

 somewhat in excess of requirements. 



Northern Counties. — Agricultural employment in Northumberland 

 was somewhat affected by wet and stormy weather, but was fairly 



1 Journal, April, 1909, p. 36, and August, 1909, p. 390. 



