Page:American Journal of Sociology Volume 8.djvu/65

 FINANCIAL AND INDUSTRIAL OUTLOOK OF ITALY 53

agricultural technique, the old countries of western Europe cannot compete with the younger countries which are exploiting an almost virgin soil. In Italy, American and Australian com- petition has resulted in diminishing the production of wheat, with the consequence of rendering possible a duty on imported wheat, through which the price of bread has been raised, greatly to the detriment of the consumer in this case the people at large. On the other hand, foreign competition has had the bene- ficial result of stimulating agricultural production in other direc- tions. Thus, if wheat production has decreased, we find a remarkable increase in the exportation of fruits, flowers, vege- tables, wine, and oil. The exportation of citrus fruits grew from 994,918 quintals in 1879 to more than two millions in 1899. During the same period the exportation of butter has increased as I to 3 ; that of cheese has quintupled ; that of poultry and eggs has shown an increase of about 50 per cent. Cattle- raising has also progressed, the exportation of the different varieties, excepting horse, largely exceeding the importation. But, in spite of these rapid strides along the various lines of agricultural production, the net revenue from the cultivation of the soil has remained stationary during the last quarter of a century in Italy as in neighboring agricultural countries. In order not to fall below this average standard of production, Italy has been compelled to abandon obsolete methods and to adopt the processes of modern agricultural technique, to study the wants and needs of foreign markets, to pass, in short, from the stage of agricultural production to that of agricultural indus- try and trade. The success achieved in this direction goes far to prove the falseness of the assumption, already referred to, concerning the incapacity of the Italian nation to become a factor in the industrial movement of our time. But there is more. With a population increasing at a terrific rate, Italy could never have lived on agriculture alone, in spite of the most vig- orous intensification of culture. She was therefore compelled, nolens volens, to transform herself into an industrial power.

How far Italy has progressed in this direction may conclu- sively be shown by one single figure. The coal imported for