Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1841-1853, 1847-04-01

LANDED PRoPERTY-Fraace and E1gianI.-France
contains l2O,OOO,OOO Of acres capable Of cultivation
and in 1885, had about 33, 600 OC0 of people, OF
this population, 27,0OO.0O0 belonged to $500, COO
families each possessing landed property This state
ment gives 23 acres TO each human being. about az
acres TO each human being among the land owners
and II gil acres nearly % acres, to each family
possessing landed property We suppose that these
5,5OO,OOU families not exclusively agricultural
portion Of item being the inhabitants of cities and
towns, not engaged in agriculture but owning houses
shops, and other enemens. But the statement shows
how greatly the landed property is subdyided among
the French population. This Is the most important
result Of the revolution of 1889. Before that time
nearly all the land in the kingdom owned by the
nobility and the Church, and cultivated BY tenant
.pcasantry. poor, but not degraded. polished and
chiyarous nobility, totally different from the Irish
absentee landlords, lived on their estates and main
tanned at least the character of their enantry and
Church having no rival Church TO contend with and
Tay, in Ireland. and filed with a well educated
clergy, aided the nobility in maintaining the morals
AID manners Of the tenan,ry, though dividing, with
the government the fruits of their labor
Thus the old system, fraught with enormous evils,
had one or two redeeming features. But tie revulu-
ton swept away all these relations and by confis-
eating the property Of the nobility ind Church, to
defray the expenses of the waged against France
by the European Princes, and nstigated by the emil
grant Jliiy and clergy, converted the French from
a nation Ut tenants TO nation of yeomanry. With
this con6scatlOn, the revolution abolished all the feu-
dal ImpedInents to alienation of land. designed to
perpetuate a lan1ed arlstOcracy; and under the
present French laws. the landed property of deceas
ed owner Is equally divided among his Children or
other heirs. Hence France contains fewer large eS-
tates and less land appropriated parks ornamental
gardens, aud other pleasure grounds and more
under useful cultivation, in proportion to the whole
quantity OF land, than any other European nation.
And the French less dependent foreign sources
for bread, and generally better fed than any other
European people SO extensively engaged in manufac-
turing and maintaing such large military forces on
land and water.
How does France contrast with England and Ire
land. We have at hand no British statistics on this
subject but feel authorized say tina, no European
country where serfstip is abolished contains so few
land owners in proportion population, much land
devoted to luxury IN proportion to the whole quantity
and exhibits so much cultivation by tenantry,
and so much restitution among the cultivators, as
England and Ireland, especially the latter and that
40 coantry where agriculture has been stimulated by
protection, is frequently and extensively dependent
on foreign sources for bread.
English writer's, interested in supporting their own
landed arstocracy say that the excessive subdivision
OF land IN France Is injurious to agriculture, by leav-
ing the owners without capital to improve their
tates. We admit that capital has done its utmost for
English agriculture, but by enriching a few land
owners and impoverishing multitude of cultivators.
We would also refer Rhode Island, the best culti-
waited State in the Union, with the greatest subdiv-
sion of land These facts offer a lesson to us /;
lesson against creating landed arstocracies. Let
this lesson be applied TO the public lands-Phladel-
Phia Ledger.