The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1880-03-12

United States, and several Assistant
Commissioners are "doing" the Cont
nent. This keeps the farmers and their
friends quiet.
The opposition can not talk Of agricul-
tural questions in connection with the
depressed conditions of farming as long
as the subject is being officially and
ministerially inquired into. Many a
serious matter has been shelved for years
by handing it over to a commission.
There are plenty of practical men who
could guide the Legislature and the land
lord in the matter Of farming and the re-
adjustment of the valuations between
owner and tenant without all this fuss OF
inquiry. For example, Mr.. Daniel Owen,
one of the most-advanced Of the farmers
Lin the fertile wales of Glamorganshire,
tells me he manages to follow the busi-
ness of agriculture in England at a profit,
and his views of rural prospects are Pc
cuharly hopeful. All that is wanted, he
says, is for the landlord to take a proper
interest in agriculture.
He must act like businessman, grant
leases, provide suitable homesteads and
proper outbuildings. Warmth and shell
ter for animals are almost as essential as
food. There are thousands Of farms
upon which the buildings are disgrace
to the landlords and to the country. The
landlord ought to erect proper cottages
for the aborers; he should bind his ten
ant hand foot and as to the disposal of his
produce. On most farms landlords COM
pei the tenants to consume his straw for
manure on the land. Last year straw
was fetching in some districts, for manu-
featuring purposes, as much as $40 ton.
while as manure it would only be worth
So or "a. A tenant should have freel
and longer lease than at present, and
landlords should be careful not to let to
persons who have not sufficient capital.
Mr.. Owen says an English tenant far.
mer, to be successful in competing with
his American rival, should have $75 an
acre capital, not less; and to take ad-
vantage of the markets, to be able to buy
and sell at the most favorable opportu.
nifty, he should have fully 100 capital
for every acre of land. These figures
will startle those Western American far
mers who know nothing of theexpense o1
fortifying land with guano, and whose
experience does not include solid hoane
steads, brick outbuildings, fences, deer
draining and other outlays belonging tt
farming on this side of the Atlantic. Mr.
Owen, In this conversation I had with
him at Cardiff last week, struck, I fancy
the great "hitch" on the agriculture
question of England when he quoted the
| following interesting statistics:
The total superficial area Of land o.
all descriptions and Of water in Great
Britain is 56,S16,353 acres This is out
side of Ireland. There is at present O.
common and waste land in ENGLAND
], ,297,676 acres; in Wales, 82S.972; il
Ireland, 150,466. The number in Scot
land is very great, but in England, Ire
land and Wales there are 1858, ia acre
of land lying dormant, almost unproduc
tive, and nearly all Of which could b
utilized. This is a great national loss
These unemployed acres would give worl
to nearly double the present number o
laborers employed in agriculture"
Here is Gland question" Of the flu
ture, and it will possibly be heard Of be
fore the Agricultural Commission send
in its tardy and costly, had al
most said unnecessary, report.