El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-07-19

homie disadvantages of the Eng
>A lish land system is shown in the
agricultural depression which is impov-
erishing the country. Sixty years ago,
when there was q population of 26.S0O,-
600, the domestic fields furnished
breadstuffs and vegetable food for a..
100000 of the population. Now only
900. 900 of the 100000 Births. people
live upon breadstuffs grown in the king
dom. In the last 25 years more than
1900, 900 acres of productive farm land
has been abandoned TO pasturage or
converted into game preserves.
In 1851, with a population OF $4,000
600, there were more than 1850, 600 farm
workers in England alone; in 1901 there
were only 1900 people working on the
land in England. The census next year
5 certain to show a still further
startling decrease in the number of peO
pie living on the land. Scotland and
Ireland do not SHOW such a rapid de-
crease but IT must ne Remembered that
ireland has lost more than half of its
total population In the past 80 years.
and in Scotland more than 100000 acres
of farming land have been turned into
game preserves in the last TEN years
Cne depression Is not marked in Eng
land, especially in the southern and
eastern portions, which are the citadels
OF the country aristOcTacy.
Land Rents Increased.
While much is made of the conserva-
tism Of the British people. it is not
true that the son of the chimneysweep
always is willing to follow his fathers
footsteps and be nothing but a chin
neysweep. 1t is certain that the sons
of English peasant farmers have not
been willing TO remain on the land
which their fahers rented but which the
landlords refused TO sell upon any con-
dition whatsoever. The cost of living
has increased in England just as 1t has
in other countries and the burden Of
this increase has been felt severely by
the landed gentry.
The result has been that the landlords
have increased rents. while the tenants
have been unable to increase their in
come The utter hopelessness OF the
future for a peasant farmer mas nper-
sted 20 stimulate what seems 10 be
universal movement tovGc1 the cities,
and the sons OF the farmers have e'ni-
grated to the industrial ceptcrs. swell
ing not only the army of factory work
ers but also the vast and ever increas-
ing army Of unemployed
In these days, when back to the
land" Is the slogan OF a crusade being
preached ever in the United States.
where SO per cent Of the population ia
rural, ii is not strange that thinking
Englishmen of all parties are crying
for a cessation of the rural migration
in a country where a per cent of the
population Is already urban.
Poverty Is Great.
That the condition of the English
people in the towns, as we'll as in the
great cities. is pitiable is proved by
the house TO house inquiry made in
York. a town in which abnormal pow
- cd
whole la5oring population OF York. H.,
500 families, II was found that 1880
people were living in state of "pri-
mary poverty" or. in other words, they
failed to obtain sufficient food and 9TH
er necessaries Of life TO maintain their
physical efficiency, and this, too, on
the assumption that every penny earned
was properly spent.
AS a matter of fact much was spent
for drink. OF the remainder, 1907
persons were living in state of sec
ondary poverty" which means that
their earnings would be sufficient to
provide for bare physical sustenance.
If a portion, often a large portion. were
not absorbed in other ways. sometimes
useful, more often wasteful-
Government statistics show that what
applies to York applies to the entire
town population of Great Britain
whole indicating that 80 per cent OF
the people do not earn enough to pro-
vide for their physical support That
these 100000 underfed people are
morally affected by their poverty can
not be doubted, and careful inquiries
have shown that, in the second genera
tdon, the town and city dwellers are
from one to two inches shorter and from
Is TO % pounds lighter than their fell
lows in the rural districts.
Independence in Farm Life.
City life. in other countries well
as in Great Britain, offers allurements
which tempt many people to leave the
farm, where they would be better off,
to go to the city and suffer in pow
erty But IN the United States. in Can
ada, and in many other countries, there
is an independence connected with farm
life which restraints to some extent the
disposition TO migrate to the city In
Great Britain there is no such restrain
ing influence, because the farmer IN
go cases out of 100 does not and can
rot own even an acre of ground. and
he has no independence In fact the
English tenant farmer is far more de-
pendent upon his superiors than Is the
industrial worker of the city, or even