Statistics  affecliiKj  British  AyricuJtural  Interests. 
[Continued  from  page  365.] 
Boot  Crops.^  — Turnips  and  swedes  show  a small  increase  (of  803  acres,  or 
O'l  per  cent.)  for  the  first  time  since  1893.  The  change  is,  however,  very 
unevenly  distributed  ; in  England  there  is  a net  increase  of  6,005  acres,  chiefly 
in  Suffolk,  though  many  counties  show  a decline  ; but  in  Scotland  there  is  a 
general  decrease,  amounting  altogether  to  5,203  acres.  Mangels,  on  the  other 
hand,  show  a small  decline  of  2,800,  acres  or  0'7  per  cent.  As  with  turnips, 
the  tendency  has  been  diverse  in  the  different  districts,  the  chief  mangel 
growing  county  (Norfolk)  recording  an  increase  of  1,183  acres,  while  Essex  has 
a decline  of  1,  263  acres,  and  Suffolk  nearly  as  much.  These  changes  in  the  root 
crops  may  probably  be  ascribed  mainly  to  the  character  of  the  weather  during 
the  spring.  Although  cabbage,  kohl-rabi,  and  rape  show  a total  decrease  of 
5,118  acres,  or  2’8  per  cent.,  the  chief  decline  occurs  in  the  relatively  small 
amount  of  kohl-rabi,  the  area  of  which  fell  from  19,297  acres  in  1903  to  15,607 
this  year,  or  by  19'1  per  cent. 
Grass  and  Clover. — A decline  of  136,331  acres,  or  2'8  per  cent.,  appeal's  in 
the  area  returned  as  under  clover  and  rotation  grasses.  The  decrease  is 
greatest  in  England  and  almost  universal  in  Wales,  but  several  Scotch  counties 
show  an  increase,  and  the  net  decrease  north  of  the  Tweed  is  relatively  small. 
The  most  important  reductions  occur  in  Suffolk  and  Lincoln,  each  of  which 
returns  10,000  acres  less  than  in  1903.  Of  the  total  area  about  half  was  mown 
for  hay,  but  there  is  a greater  relative  decrease  in  the  mown  than  in  the  grazed 
area.  Permanent  grass  shows  an  increase  of  163,561  acres,  or  1 per  cent.  ; and 
the  total  for  Great  Britain  now  exceeds  17,000,000  acres.  The  area  mown  for 
hay  amounted  to  rather  more  than  a quarter  of  the  total,  and  showed  a 
relatively  small  increase  of  10,433  acres.  In  England,  there  was  a decrease  of 
6,029  acres  in  the  hay  area,  which  was,  however,  more  than  counterbalanced 
by  a rise  of  15,646  acres  in  Wales,  and  a small  increase  in  Scotland.  The 
whole  area  intended  for  hay,  whether  under  rotation  or  in  permanent  grass, 
amounts  to  7,088,298  acres,  as  compared  with  7,167,415  acres  in  1903,  or  a 
decline  in  the  total  hay  area  of  79,117  acres. 
Numbers  of  Live  Stock  in  Great  Britain  in  1904. 
Horses. — The  total  number  of  horses  included  in  the  Returns — viz.,  horses 
used  for  agricultural  purposes,  mares  kept  for  breeding,  and  unbroken  horses — 
is  the  largest  hitherto  recorded,  surpassing  by  nearly  8,000  the  number  returned 
in  1896.  The  increase,  as  compared  with  1903,  amounts  to  23,082,  or  15  per 
cent.  Practically  all  counties  shared  in  the  increase.  Proportionately,  the 
increase  is  greatest  among  unbroken  horses  under  one  year,  which  may  be 
taken  as  some  indication  of  the  progress  of  breeding.  For  the  whole  country 
the  increase  in  this  class  amounted  to  3'8  per  cent.,  but  it  was  relatively  most 
marked  in  Wales,  where  it  amounted  to  7'4  per  cent.,  as  compared  with  3'1  in 
England  and  2'5  in  Scotland. 
Cattle. — Except  for  the  year  1892,  when  6,944,783  were  returned,  the 
number  of  cattle  in  1904  is  the  highest  total  ever  shown  in  Great  Britain,  the 
increase  over  1903  amounting  to  163,734,  or  2'3  per  cent.  In  England  and 
Wales  there  is  a large  increase,  the  most  substantial  additions  being  noted  in 
Kent,  Devon,  Sussex,  and  Lincoln,  in  the  order  named,  and  the  most  serious 
decline  in  any  one  county  being  a fall  of  10,892  in  Norfolk.  On  the  other 
hand,  only  six  Scotch  counties  show  any  augmentation,  a net  decline  of  34,561 
being  noted  north  of  the  Border.  There  is  a noteworthy  advance  among  the 
cows  and  heifers  in  milk  or  in  calf,  which  now  amount  to  2,678,680,  or  90,472 
more  than  in  1903,  a number  never  previously  equalled.  This  increase  occurred 
mainly  in  England,  the  increase  in  the  dairy  herds  of  Scotland  being  less 
conspicuous.  Cattle  under  one  year,  and  those  under  two  years,  both  show  an 
even  higher  rate  of  increase  than  the  cows.  The  increase  of  the  younger  stock 
is,  however,  confined  to  England  and  Wales,  Scotland  recording  a decline  in 
both  categories.  In  the  older  cattle,  there  is  a general  decrease  of  55,989,  or 
3'9  per  cent.,  of  which  Norfolk  was  accountable  for  no  less  than  13,748. 
