Page:Statesman's Year-Book 1899 American Edition.djvu/950

 594 GERMAN EMPIRE

Production and Industry. I. Agriculture.

In Prussia, by a series of ordinances from 1807 to 1850, complete free trade in land has been established, and all personal and material burdens removed that would stand in the way of this. With the exception of the Mecklenburgs, similar legisla- tion has been applied to the land in other parts of Germany. Generally speaking, small estates and peasant proprietorship pre- vail in the West German States, while large estates prevail in the north-east. In Prussia, large estates, with an area of 250 acres and more, prevail in Pomerania, Posen, East and West Prussia ; while the districts of Koblenz, Wiesbaden, Treves, Baden, and Wiirttemburg are parcelled out into small estates.

Of the whole area of Germany, in 1883, 92 per cent, was classed as productive, and only 8 per cent, as unproductive. Ac- cording to the latest returns (1893), 91 per cent, is productive and 9 per cent, unproductive. The extension of the unproductive area is, however, only apparent, the waste lands in one portion now classed as such having formerly been included with the permanent pasture. The subdivision of the soil, according to the latest official returns (1893), was as follows (in hectares; 1 hectare = 2 '47 acres) : — Arable land, vineyards, and other culti- vated lands, 26,375,791; grass, meadows, permanent pasture,. 8,788,806 ; woods and forests, 13,956,827 ; all other, 4,927,201.

On June 14, 1895, the total number of agricultural enclosures (including arable land, meadows, cultivated pastures, orchards, and vineyards) each cultivated by one household, was as follows : —

Under 1 Hectare

Between 1 and 10 Hectares

Between 10 and 100 Hectares

Above 100 Hectares

Total

2,529,132

2,329,367

674,757

25,061

5,558,317 1

Their total area was 43,284,742 hectares.

These farms supported 18,068,663 persons, of whom 8,156,045 were actually working upon them.

The areas under the principal crops, in hectares, were as follows : —