The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1876-03-28 00:00:00

THE AGRICULTURAL RETURNS.

The Agricultural Returns for 11475 have been issued
recently with the usual interesting summary by Mr. Veiny
prefixed. They give, like their predecessors, much valu-
able information as to the state of the country in what is
still its most important industry, and would be yet wore
valuable than they uswere cultivators of land conscientious
sending their returns. Considerable improvement has
been effected in recent years in that respect, but much is
still wanted to lmake the information perfectly complete
and trustworthy. No doubt as farmers become more alive
to their duty in this respect this ground of complainte
against them will be removed. Were it not, however,
borne in mind in dealing with these returns, we should he
misled at the outset, for we find that the total acerage re-
turned for the United Kingdom as under cultivation
showed an increase in 1875 over 1874 of 171,000, acres, and
the increase against 1808 was no lees than 1,159,000 acres.
Were that all due to rechunations of waste lands,
enclosure of commons, and such like it would he a most
remarkable fact in more ways than one. But It not due
to any such activity, at least not anything like wholly due
to it. Probably the Urger part of this seeming increase is
*wily to more thoroughness on the part of cultivators in
sending in their returns. At the same tune the reclam-
ation of waste lands has no doubt proceeded at a rapid
pace. The total quantity of land returned as under crops
or in have fallow and under grass in 1875 was 31,416000
acres for Great Britian, and 15775000 for Ireland. Of the
total for Great Britian alone 18.104.030 acres were arable
land, which was about the same as for 1874. Of the
11,3521.000 acres returned asunder crops in the United
Kinidorn, 1514,000 were appropriated to wheat and
4,17 WO to oats; barley, beans, and peas taking up the
rest n unequal proportions. The total stock of horses in
the United Kingdom La computed at 5794,000, including
horses subject to license duty, and of that number
500,000 are placed to the credit of Ireland. Oonsiderine
the enormous quantity of butchere.mest which is now con-
sumed weekly in the coiustry, it is almost eruprising that
the total stock of cattle of all ages in the kingdom is but
14,165728, of which 4311.090 is in Ireland. There, are,
however, 33,481.948 sheep and lambs. and 146367 pip
exclusive of those kept in towns and by cottager*, so that
the number of live animals of all the kinds used for food
is nearly double the number of the population of all ages.
The stocks of meat chew last year in amend instances
some reduction in quantity over those Wt. The number
of cows and 'soden in milk or in calf was lass by 10.000
and the young stock of animals under two years of age
had fallen off by 105000, but there was an increase of
76,000 in the chief beef producing class of stock. Taking
the years 1874-5 together, and comparing them with
180940 there is, however, a general increase, varying
from &per cent, in the case of cows and heifers to 22 per
cent, In the case of young stock. The reduction in this
latter class in 1875 is attributed to the severe winter of
1874 and the consequent scarcity of fodder. This seareity
has also had a most marked newt in diminishing the stock
of sheep and lambs, which was lees by 1,145,000 last year
than in 1874. The lambing lesson, too, was said to have
bus unfavourable. Particularly in the hilly districts.