AGRICULTURE AT HOME.

Colonist, Volume LV, Issue 13739, 3 June 1913, Page 8

AGRICULTURE AT HOME.

So much is written about the decadence of British agriculture that. many ooloniais believe farming in the Old Country to be a very poor eort of affair, Tho London correspondent of the Sydney "Daily Telegraph, thinks it will come as a shock to-most people to learn that the United Kingdom contains 2,100,000 horses, 11,800,000 cattle and 3-1,000,000 shcop, and that the annual value of agricultural production ia about £150,000,000. By way of comparison, Australia's enormously greater area contains 2,170,000 liorsos, 11,800,000 cattle, 93,000,000 sheep, and the annual product of agriculture is about £52,000,000, while the pastoral industry yields about the same sum. Onel reason why so many people are misled as to the importance of BriCish agriculture, is, .he says, that a great part of the islands present a neglected appearance. "If all the counties adopted the farming practices by which a few of thorn are distinguished the output would bo relatively prodigious. ■Seeing so much waste, one is easily led to the false conclusion that rural industry is decadent throughout. The gen oral mistake is that most observers overlook.the amazing fertility of those areas which--are', properly treated. If the people ever do adopt the proposals of the land reformers, and place agriculture soriously beforo the love of the picturesque and the sporting instincts of the wealthy classes, the output of the old soils of.Britain will astonish the world." The correspondent notices a •distinct revival in agriculture at Homo. People are realising that an unbusinesslike land system, and, broadly speaking, indifferent systems of farming, are largely responsible for the shortcomings of agriculture, and steps are being taken to remedy those. But the revival is mainly confined to the activities of the large landowner and the wealthier farmer. Large areas of grazing land are returning to tho cultivation of wheat. Blenheim Park, tho seat of the Duke of Alarlborough, is to go back to agrieif.turo, and many other land-holders, who for a long time have been content to use their great estates for grazing and sport, .are adopting a similar course. But the greatest of all rural problems, the resuscitation of tho peasantry, remains unsolved. The English rustic is not impressive in his native place, and some observers despair of him. But tho fact that lie does well overseas leads tho correspondent to conclude that if he were paid a larger wage, this might bo the beginning of such an improvement in his lot that ho would in timo rival the successful small holder of the Continent.