The World’s Production and Consumption of Food. 137 
In order to keep the scope of the subject well within reasonable 
limits, and to deal as little as may be with what is speculative, Mr. 
Davis does not extend the retrospect beyond 1870, or the prospect 
beyond 1910 — that is, about a score of years on either side of the 
present time. Statistics, indeed, bearing on agriculture are not 
available or reliable earlier than 1870, and he wisely concludes that 
1910 is as far ahead as we can safely venture to look. In reference 
to the first part of his thesis, the increase of population in those 
parts of the earth to which his argument refers, he proceeds to say — 
“ Under the designations of ‘ bread-eating pcpulations ’ and 
‘ bread-eaters ’ are included only the peoples of Europe, the U nited 
States, British America, the Cape regions of South Africa, Austral- 
asia, South America south of the tropics, and the colonial European 
populations of the islands and tropical regions, the geographical 
distribution having been as follows at the close of the last three 
decades ” — 
and gives three columns of statistics showing that population in 
these portions of the earth increased from 359,000,000 in 1870 to 
400,000,000 in 1880, and again to 456,000,000 in 1890 — being an 
aggregate increase of 27 per cent, in twenty years, and amounting 
to about treble the number of people there are in Great Britain. 
During the same period of twenty years the net increase of area 
from which vegetable food is obtained is seen in the following 
table, quoted from Mr. Davis’s pamphlet. It will be noticed that 
under ‘‘ food staples ” he enumerates the two great bread-yielding 
cereals — wheat and rye — also barley, oats, maize, &c., and potatoes. 
Animal food is not included, for vegetable food is chief and constant, 
and will remain so ; the supply of it in the world will be relative 
to the supply of bread, and it is consumed in addition to bread. 
Should it become necessary to go on increasing the area of land 
devoted to grain-raising — increasing it constantly and rapidly, as 
now — stock-raising must diminish in course of time, and other 
countries, besides Japan, where animal food and even dairy pro- 
ducts are not eaten, will learn the art of successful agriculture with- 
out cattle, sheep, and pigs : — 
The World’s Area in Food Staples. 
Products 
1870 
1880 
1890 
20 years* increase 
and decrease 
in acres 
20 years’ 
increase 
and de- 
crease 
per cent. 
Acres 
Acres 
Acres 
Wheat . . 
163,362,000 
177,310,000 
181,474,000 
28,112,000* 
11 - 8 * 
Eye . . . 
109,076,000 
108,345,000 
108,364,000 
712,000 2 
.72 
Barley . . 
45,386,000 
43,480,000 
44,660,000 
736,000 » 
1 - 0 " 
Oats . . 
78,700,000 
90,903,000 
104,888,000 
26,188,000 ' 
33'3 ' 
Maize, etc. 
84,178,000 
110,377,000 
127,832,000 
43,664,000 * 
520* 
Potatoes . 
21,766,000 
23,616,000 
26,839,000 
4,074,000 * 
18-7 * 
Total . . 
492,467,000 
664,031,000 
593,047,000 
100,580,000" 
20-4" 
' Indicates increase and ’ decrease. * Net increase. 
