BRITISH AGRICULTURE

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 50, 23 November 1918, Page 7

BRITISH AGRICULTURE

AFTER-WAR DEVELOPMENT. i The vital necessity of more develop- j nient work in tho field of British ajjricul- ; ture was stressed by Mr, Lloyd, George in : a recent speech in Manchester: , Dealing with after-wnr problems, generally, he . said-.—Take the most important of I national industries, agriculture. Agricul- : ■turo in the past lias been overlooked in . this country. It has been neglected, with ' the result that we have been dependent : veiy largely upon lauds across the seas'l for' our food. Wo have realised during war the perils of this position. Wo have been dependent ou others, not because ! Great Britain cannot produce food, but \ becauso we never realised the importance < of home production. It is. in.the highest i interests of the community that the larict,.' in this country should be cultivated ■ to its fullest capacity. I doubt whether i there is n civilised country in- the j whole world where Agriculture lias re- j ceived less attention at the hands of the j State. There lias been » ?sikl deal of j tnlk of small holdings and allotments. ; and there has been a good deal of rapid ■ scratching'on the surface, often by men I who know very, little' , about it, but. the < Tea! problem of. cultivating land to its ! utmost capacity has never been tackled, j In the future we must see that this ■ matter receive.? the necessary attention , and encouragement. The cultivation of j the land is the basis of national strength' I and prosperity, and the cultivation of ; Ihe land includes the. minerals under the. i land. Here we have made an extrava- j pant and wasteful use of these rich de- ; posits. By a conversion of Hose v(- ] sources to a large extent into electric \ newer we could not merely extend exist- j ing industries but nmv industries could ■ be established under. Vnlthier conditions j all over Ihe land, and there would be a i\ sarinff of tho cost of. production, and in- : cre.nsed wastes could be much better j borne without ii'oreased cost to the con- : sumer or impnirinc our ehances of com- j petingwith neutral markets. :