The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1919-06-04

| svsssss"
| FOR WORK on LAND
Return Of Soldiers to Civic Life Rend-
| ers Acute Need Of Land Settle
ment AMI Provision of Small
/ Holdings
| London. May 20,.-The war ana
! the return of soldiers and sailors 10
! civil life have brought the great ques-
ton of land settlement and smalI
holdings into the immediate range Oh
public opinion. says the CHRISTIAN
Scienc Monitor. So far. the small
| holding question has never received
! proper recognition. and 1t is indis-
puthaIe the. the necessity for home
grown food. arising out of the block
ade, together with the immense inter-
est taken Ia allotments during four
years of war. has given great impetus
to land settlement in all its far-reach-
| ing aspects
1t Is anticipated that early efforts
of the government will be directed
toward simplifying the purchase Of
land for various public purposes. and
notably for the provision of small
holdings. Such powers are certainly
a preliminary necessity to any serious
land settlen. ent. for while on the one
hand the possible presence on the
statute hool, OF such a. measure will
bring the e. conservative landlords
left into the arena. 1t may also have
the effect Of summoning the bench
men of the opposite camp, all those,
that Is, who stand for complete ma
tionalization Of the land. and who can
find no sympathy for any less drastic
measure. Happily. the vast majority.
interested in small holdings and small
farmers. are prepared TO take the
current when il serves" and 1t is one
Of the greatest proofs of the impor-
lance of the 2 agricultural question that
men of such varying degrees of opin-
ion are ready tc stand by the govern
ment when it puts forward fresh pro-
posals for the increase of the small
holdings OF The country.
The courtv councils. which were
I given powers under the small hold
ines act Of 1908. have been the recp-
tents of much adverse criticism AS to
the management of their holdings. bfs
it is only air 10 say that their effort
has varied greatly. in some parts
meeting with great success. while in
| others tit~-t-ni'iea.ior has been poor
and unsatisfactory The real blame is
to be found in tho lack of interest
| taken in small holdings by the public
generally. with the result that the
efforts under the act were often tenta-
| tive and timid. whereas a big under
taking, serious and comprehensive,
! would have insured success at the
| outset.
The proposed amendments of the
| principal act brought forward last
! year will no doubt he embodied In the
! contempla- IA acts This session. and the
main difficultv Of the county councils
WIFI he stfSefi' T. the tnarciaf fest IS
no longer sppljed. What happened
under the Old regime was that the
board of agriculture acted as final
judge Of any contemplated holding
schemes. and the county councils
could not proceed with any project
likely TO prove loss to the rate
payers. Such condition turned the
whole subject into an impossible sit
uation. Small holdings constituted a
vast question which should have been
thrashed out upon a far wider basis
than that OF the narrow limits OF a
rateable locality Rather should II
have been regarded as national
question.
If the county councils are to provide
| the land. the buildings and houses in
! the settlement OF former ,eX-service
men. the powers OF the board of agri-
| culture must be those of controlling
| authority in order that the holdings
| shah he conducted upon the best agri-
| cultural lines. During a period of
seven years it e proposed that every
| twelve months the board OF agricul-
! ture shall mako good any difference
n N tho hntdfpr- The~n ,z
| to suppose that the loss need be sub
stantial. but IL Is evident that no small
| holder could possibly make good now
adays II he were asked 10 pay rent
| based upon the capital outlay under
! present financial conditions The rent
| OF returned soldier. for example,
must be upon such a scale as is com
mensurate with what he can produce
upon his holding. or his efforts can
! only result in disappointment to him
self and a corresponding loss to the
| community
1t is typical Of English public
| efforts thar state action and private
| enterprise develop side by side Dur
| ing the last few weeks n large estate
| in Sussex has been given over to the
| British County Homesteads associa-
| ton for a training home for soldiers
DESTROYS of learning farming intensive
culture, STOCK keeping, etc. Ine ap-
| peal for funds has met with a gener-
Gus response, and 100 men will gain
! a good agricultural education which
will equip them for taking over small
| holdings of their own.
| In Cheshire the county council is
| particularly active as regards small
| holding, and has acquired several very
| large estates. both for training and for
| cutting up into holdings for former
] service men. but perhaps the most
| hopeful sign III all is the proposed
thirty weeks campaign of the Agricul-
tural Organization society to promote
the cause OF cooperative farming gen
orally. 1t is a common remark that