The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1913-10-03
Concluded from yesterday
ENGLISH Conditions.

English and the Scottish laws are tht
81 me, with the laws for each countr!
separate, the application or, rather, the
actual administration of these law.
differs, the difference growing out o
the difference between the two coun
tries themselves.
1t might be said for general infor
nation that the two countries of Eng
land and Scotland, or South Britain
AMI North Britain, embrace about As,
100000 acres of land, or about on
and half times the area of the state
of Iowa. According to the census OF
production, there were In the two
countries in 1908, 10S,o94 farms be
tween one and five acres In extent
157, 600 between five and fifty acres,
while 17,714 were over 800 acres. Scot.
land has over 100000 acres of what
is known as rough grazing land. chief
~ mountain and heath; and England
and Wales together less than 10000
acres. The total amount of arabic
land, that is, land actually In oultiva-
ton in grains or rotation grasses, is
around 100000 acres; while the per
manent grass, that is, land used per
manently for grazing or meadow, anu
not plowed up or titled, reaches over
1900, 600 acres. OF this, 100000
acres are in England and Wales Eng
land is therefore a grazing, stock
growing and dairy country. BY far
the larger number of these farms are
found in England 1t has a great
variety OF products; and many sec
tons are especially valuable for veg
etable gardening and fruit growing.
Again, in defining the rights and
duties of landlord and tenant under
the law, and particularly in defining
the term, good husbandry," the Gus
tom Of the neighborhood or county
from time immortal has great deal
to do with it in both England and
Scotland, and more in England than
in Scotland. Good husbandry in the hop
field, the alfalfa field and vegetable
gardens, differs widely from good hus-
bandry in dairying and feeding cattle.
All this mobiles the administration
of the law.
This, however, Is common to both
countries; that the farming, taking it
all together, is much superior to that
OF the United States. The farmers
in the United States. speaking gener-
ally, are turning into cash the stored
fertility OF past ages. The British
farmer having long since wasted this
fertility, is now farming instead of
mining.
The leases are long, because It is
to the interest OF both landlord and
tenant to make them so, and indispen-
sable If the land is to continue pro-
ductive. The income from rent Is ap-
parently about the same as in Scot,
land-from l to 4 per cent. probably
not averaging four per cent. OF this,
a considerable amount must be spent
on the land in the making Of perma-
ment Improvements. The owners OF
great estates are willing, for the sake
of social and political influence, to
accept this low rate of income and
retain their lands, rather than sacri
fee their social and political standing
and secure greater income. There
is more apparent land hunger in Eng
land than in Scotland, but even there
it is an open question whether it is bet
ter to own land or to rent it.
An English gentleman. who has
made this subject matter of study
for years, gives us his conclusions on
this point in the following:
"As a matter of fact, thousands of
farmers are very reluctant TO buy
their farms, and only do so when the
land owner is selling and there is
chance that some of his tenants may
be dispossessed by the new owner
when the lease expires. Except for
this reason of sale by the land own
er, an English farmer who farms
skillfully and conscientiously is prac-
tically sure OF retaining the farm he
works all his life; and the same may
be said as to his sons and grandsons.
If they are equally eficient There
are plenty OF tenant farmers in Eng
land whose families have farmed the
same land for generations"
This explains in part at least why
the fertility of English lands Is re-
tanned Another explanation is the
fact that so large a proportion Of the
land is in permanent pasture. as dis.
tinguished from rotation grasses or
grasses for moving; and the further
fact that graziers or cattle feeders
purchase large amounts Of feeds and
fertilizers from foreign countries. THIS
under British laws, they can safeg do.
because assured OF compensation for
unexhausted manures.
Lands of equal fertility ana i'm
provements, speaking generally, are
no higher in ENGLAND than In me
United States. We heard of MN.
Der of farms in che Of the BEST conn
ties in England, that rented tor &
per acre, and were sold on -