361 
STATISTICS  AFFECTING  BRITISH 
AGRICULTURAL  INTERESTS. 
The  tables  printed  on  pp.  366-379  are  compiled  from  the 
official  publications  of  the  Board  of  Agriculture,  including  the 
Agricultural  Returns  for  1903  [Cd.  2131]  ; the  Acreage  and 
Live  Stock  Returns  for  1901,  issued  last  October;  the  prelim- 
inary statements  as  to  produce  of  crops  and  yield  per  acre  for 
1904 ; the  Board  of  Agriculture  Journal ; and  Vol  I.  of  the 
Annual  Statement  of  the  Board  of  Trade.  Where  not  otherwise 
stated,  the  figures  are  taken  from  the  Agricultural  Returns  and 
the  Statements  of  the  Board  of  Agriculture. 
The  Size  op  Agricultural  Holdings. 
In  1895,  the  Board  of  Agriculture  instituted  a special  inquiry 
into  the  size,  distribution,  and  chai’acter  of  the  Agricultural 
Holdings  of  Great  Britain,  and  the  results  were  published  in 
a Parliamentary  paper  of  1896  [C.  8243].  Its  main  features 
were  summarised  in  the  Journal,  Vol.  58,  1897,  pp.  569,  570. 
A similar  inquiry,  but  of  more  limited  scope,  was  made  by 
the  Board  in  1903  ; and  the  tables  relating  to  it  are  given  in 
the  Agricultural  Returns  for  1903,  and  are  the  subject  of 
comment  by  Major  Craigie  in  his  Annual  Report  prefixed 
thereto.  The  results  show  no  very  great  changes  in  the  relative 
size  of  holdings,  but  they  indicate  some  increase  in  the  number 
of  medium-sized  fai-ms  (/.c.,  those  between  50  and  300  acres). 
The  number  of  farms  of  smaller  and  of  larger  size  than  this 
show  some  diminution,  especially  those  of  over  300  acres. 
The  following  Table  gives  the  Classification  of  the  Agricul- 
tural Holdings  of  Gi-eat  Britain,  as  revealed  by  the  Returns 
of  1903,  the  corresponding  figures  for  1885  and  1895  being 
added  for  purposes  of  comparison.  It  will  be  noted  that  for 
the  group  of  “ Above  one  acre  and  not  exceeding  five  acres,”  the 
Classification  of  AgricnUural  Holdings  of  Great  Britain. 
Groups  of  Holdings 
188,5 
1895 
1903 
Increase  + 
or  decrease 
-in  1903,  as- 
compared 
with  1885 
Increase  + 
or  decrease 
-in  1903,  as 
compared 
with  1895 
Above  and  not  exceeding 
acres  acres 
1 .5 
.5  .50 
.50  300 
.300 
1.35,73(5' 
232,955 
144.288 
19,364 
117,968 
2.35,481 
147,870 
18,787 
111,357 
232,892 
1 50,055 
18,081 
-63 
-1-5,767 
-1,283 
-6,611 
—2,589 
+2,185 
-706 
Total. 
532,343 
520,106 
512,385 
-19,958 
-7,721 
1 Including  returns  of  holdings  of  exactly  one  acre. 
