to a whole country where the character of the land will probably vary greatly, and the circumstances of the people may be even more different, will be readily recognised.

In Baden the poor grains largely predominate, but the condition of the peasant proprietors is not stationary but progressive, and since the revolution of 1848 a great improvement has been effected in the mode of cultivation and in the clothing, feeding, and housing of the cultivators; and the prevalent public opinion is that the system of small freeholds tends to promote the greater economical and moral prosperity of the people, to raise the average standard of education, and to increase the national powers of defence and taxation.'1

In Saxony, again, the agricultural population is probably on the decrease. In 1849 344 per cent. of the whole population were engaged in land and forest culture ; this percentage fell in 1861 to 26 per cent., a rate of decrease higher than that of increase for the whole population. More lately, however, the inhabitants of the rural districts have been increasing, though probably on account of the extension of industrial occupations. In this State nearly one-half of the proprietors of the land hold less than three acres, and of the remainder more than onethird hold properties under ten acres, and 61 per cent. hold properties between ten and a hundred acres. As a rule the owners of the land cultivate their own estates, and the smaller owners work with their own hands, and are also aided by their families. The price of land is high, which may truly be regarded as a sign of increasing wealth among the possessors of it; for unless there is accumulated capital, the passion for land, however strong,

1 Report on the Tenure of Land in the Grand Duchy of Baden, by Mr. Evans P. M. Baillie. Carlsruhe, December 9, 1869.

2 Report on the Tenure of Land in Saxony, by Mr. J. Hume Burnley. Dresden, May 6, 1870.

CH. V. INDUSTRY AND AGRICULTURE IN SAXONY. 157

cannot be gratified. In a certain degree, therefore, the price of land is a measure of the prosperity of its proprietors, and of the State as a whole. But the prosperity of all in Saxony has largely proceeded from the rapid development of industry in that State. Probably no other European State has been more completely revolutionised economically and socially by the introduction of the steam engine; and it would not be too much to say that its agency has broken down the strict system of guilds, enfranchised the labourer, and augmented his resources when no other force could have produced much movement toward such results. The multitude of small masters and independent establishments which characterised the former condition of industry have given way to the factories, where everyone is benefited by the cheap labour of the steam engine.

The industrial advantages which Saxony has reaped during the last thirty years have been great, and these have powerfully affected the position of the peasant proprietors. In this State industry and agriculture proceed on a healthy basis, and their steps of progress are sure and solid. Opposite to the direction as stated in Great Britain, the course of pauperism in Saxony has been diminishing, for between the years 1858 and 1864 the numbers of individuals in the poor-houses fell from one per cent. to two-thirds per cent. nearly. In these States generally the population which overflows in the country finds its way into the towns, and they are therefore able to sustain the native population without, at any rate, any considerable degree of emigration, and what emigration there is appears to be owing in some measure to the severity of the military conscription.

In the other German States for the most part the same thrift and labour, sobriety and satisfactory progress

exist, but it would probably be tedious to the reader to describe in detail facts which are of the same nature in each, and which tend to show that unless in exceptional circumstances, such as when there are no industrial occupations to which any surplus population may resort—a condition that with a United Germany can scarcely be said now to exist-as well as when the cultivator should depend too much on the produce of a fluctuating crop such as the potato or the vine, the progress in comfort and wealth is both real and solid. It may be, however, not altogether useless just to glance at the testimony of the reporters on land tenure in regard to the condition of the peasantry in some of the other smaller States. Thus as to Saxe-Coburg Gotha Mr. Barnard writes in 1869:-'This frugal and economical way of living (of the peasant proprietors) has done much good, and to it must be ascribed the very evident amelioration of the peasantry. Their debts have been reduced, and many have even saved small fortunes.' . . . The small proprietors of the middle class of agriculturalists are greatly respected. A number of substantial landowners cannot fail to be a great advantage to a country where they purchase many articles for their own use and consumption, and thereby further trade and industry. The public revenue is a gainer by them, as the taxes they pay are sure and considerable. They are altogether respectable and very industrious people, and not disposed to take any part in acts of opposition.' Again, as to Sleswig-Holstein, Mr. Ward reports in the same year: There is little or no emigration from the peasants' properties. Their dwellinghouses are mostly on their own lands; they are well fed and clothed, and live on the whole very comfortably.' In the Grand Duchy of Hesse, where two-thirds of the land cultivated is owned by peasants, an able-bodied pauper is probably altogether unknown. The emigration

CH. V.

SWEDEN, ITALY, AND GREECE.

159

which takes place to the United States is relatively not much above one-third that of the United Kingdom, and consists chiefly of peasant proprietors who prefer to transplant themselves to regions where their little capital and their great labour will afford a richer opportunity of progress and prosperity.

The evidence as regards the general character which peasant proprietors possess, and the influence of their presence upon the prosperity of a country, may be, from its importance, adduced still further. Thus, as regards Sweden, Mr. Audley Gostling reports in 1870 :-'As a class they (the peasant proprietors) are decidedly above poverty, and a large proportion are in comfortable circumstances. Some are rich for their station, and possess property to the value of from 1,000l. to 10,000l.' Consul Colnaghi reports on the peasant proprietors of North Italy (Piedmont) in 1870 thus: The condition of the small proprietors may on the whole be considered a happy one, when their properties are not too deeply mortgaged. Moreover, the system is reported to be an excellent barrier against communistic doctrines. The small proprietor feels that he has a stake in the country, and that he may hope to advance in prosperity.' And with reference to the peasant proprietors of Lombardy:From a social point of view, and looking to the wellbeing of the peasant, there is no doubt but that his position is improved whenever he shares in the produce of the soil, and that he is more independent in spirit as a small proprietor unless his freehold be too small to enable him to make a living from the land.' With regard, again, to the same class in Greece, which is one of the most backward of countries, and where agriculture is still carried on in its most primitive style, Mr. Gould reports in 1869: They are both warmly and comfortably clad for

the climate, and generally appear to be in comparatively easy circumstances. Whatever may be the amount of money they possess, it does not in any way cause them to alter their mode of living; they either bury it for the sake of security, or lay it out in the purchase of additional land. Recent instances have occurred of extensive estates having been purchased by the peasants in the adjacent villages without any apparent difficulty on their part in finding the requisite amounts, which have generally been paid off before the stipulated term;' and Consul Ongley also reports similarly as to the financial means of the peasants, their properties being rarely mortgaged, though those owned by persons in the towns are frequently heavily burdened. Now, two-fifths of the labouring community in Greece are peasant proprietors, and such palpable indications of their prosperous condition are not without significance in the future of that country, which has yet so much to learn.

But probably Holland, Belgium, and Switzerland, which are as well known and as interesting to the average Englishman as either of the countries already referred to, are quite as remarkable for the characteristics of thrift, contentment, and gradual improvement in their agricultural populations as any of the others. In Holland the peasantry are reputed for their economical and indefatigably industrious character. Their land, which for the most part is naturally poor, has to a large extent to be maintained against the constantly threatened inroads of the sea. Notwithstanding, however, that they possess a situation so disadvantageous, their lands where cultivated are comparatively productive, and their condition is one of assured prosperity. Indeed the head-dress of the female Dutch peasant is probably more valuable than all the possessions of many of her fellows in England. Comfort