280 
A(jricnlfnrc of DeiunarJt. 
number of loads of hay which could be obtained, or the head of 
cattli^ that could be grazed on a certain area. 
The term " Hartkorn," which originally signified a certain 
quantity of rye or barley, has thus, in the course of time, been 
changed to represent a certain area, together with a certain 
quality of land, and to designate the basis of the land-tax. The 
use of " Hartkorn " as a means of assessment, forms a practical 
medium for ascertaining the quantity and quality of land, and is 
of great service in fixing the value of any particular property ; 
because when its area, its assessment in " Hartkorn," and its 
stock of cattle, &c., are stated, a fair idea of its value is obtained. 
The taxes of late years on a ton of " Hartkorn " may on an 
average be taken, at from 31. 6s. Sd. to 31. lis. Id., and be thus 
subdivided : — Royal and county taxes, 11. Is. ; communal taxes, 
1/. 4s. 9fZ. ; and tithes, 1/. 2s. 6r/. to 11. 7s. This makes an 
average of from 18s. to 1/. per individual on the whole population 
of the kingdom ; but if to this be added the town-rates and the 
indirect taxes, paid both by the town and rural population, 
then the annual taxation of the kingdom may be calculated at 
11. lis. Qd. to 1/. IGs. per head : an assessment which the general 
prosperity of Denmark readily admits of. 
As the " Hartkorn " is a relative expression for the fertility of 
the soil in the kingdom, it is not without interest to state its 
distribution : — 
Acres Tons of 
of Land. }Iartkoni. 
The Island of Sealand .. .. (witli its districts) Las 1,063,027, r,-itli 113,778 
„ Funea .... „ 751,747 „ 56,909 
„ LoUand aud Falster ., 375,577 „ 30,152 
Bornholm .. ,', 132,310 „ 6,048 
The Peninsula of Jutland .. „ 5,619,108 „ 170,973 
In the islands 12^ acres of land, in Jutland 32f, and in the 
whole kingdom 21^, are, on an average, equal to a ton of 
"Hartkorn." 
Some idea of the extraordinary difference in the fertility of soil 
in various districts mav be given by stating that in the north- 
east of Jutland about 138 acres of land are required to make 
1 ton of " Hartkorn," while in the parish of Frederiksborg, 23 
miles from Copenhagen, 8|- acres suffice. The greatest average 
fertility in the kingdom is found on the islands of Laaland and 
Falster. Next come, in the order in which they are named, the 
south of Sealand, Funcn, the north of Soaland, central part of 
the east coast of Jutland, its southern part, its northern part, and 
finally, the west coast and centre of Jutland ; but the latter is so 
sterile that in it large tracts of land lie uncultivated. The pro- 
portion between the cultivated and uncultivated area of land in 
