payment for either labour or manure. If I am right, the labourer makes from his garden ground a profit equivalent to the rent of his cottage.
Thus it will be seen that that from his house and garden the agricultural labourer gains advantages equal to at least 4s. per week, which, if added to his money returns, will raise his wages from 15s. or 16s. to 19s. or 20s.[1] a week, independent of what his wife and children may make, and this frequently adds 25 per cent to his income.[2] I have said nothing about the gains of gleaning, which have been estimated at 1l. 1s. 10d. to 40s.; about the difference in the cost of bread, meat, milk, &c., which is favour of the country compared with towns; nor of the benefit an agricultural labourer is said to derive from the keeping of a pig, as I am doubtful myself whether anything is fairly gained by it; neither have I estimated the great advantage of pure
- ↑ If apportioned to the districts into which I have already divided the country, these figures will stand as follows:
North-Eastern district 22 North-Western district 22 Mid-Eastern district 20 Mid-Western district 18 Midland district 19 South-Eastern district 21 Mid-Southern district and South-Western district 16 - ↑ Mr. Purdy, in his valuable paper in the Journal of Statistical Society of London, on the rate of agricultural wages, illustrates the assistance a labourer derives from the work of his wife and children by adopting Dr Kay's figures, given in the same journal, which show the income gained by upwards of 500 families of different sizes in Norfolk and Suffolk to be as follows:
Families Condition Average No of
children.Average
annual income.36 Single men … £25·0 64 No children at home … 30·6 166 All children under 10 3 32·6 120 One child above 10 4 35·6 92 Two children above 10 5 40·5 44 Three children above 10 6 45·6 15 Four children above 10 7 50·9
