h8255 "'Inilini mail??''"*'"'"*'' committee app 3 1924 013 930 759 Hatt QtaUege of AgtlcuUuw At Q^atnell Intnetattg ffiibtarg COMMITTEE ON SCOTTISH AGRICULTURAL PRICES. REPORT OF THE DEPARTMENTAL COMMITTEE APPOINTED BY THE BOARD OF AGRICULTURE TO ENQUIRE AND REPORT UPON THE EXISTING METHODS OF COLLECTING AND RECORDING THE PRICES. OF AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS IN SCOTLAND, WITH COPY OF THE MINUTE APPOINTING THE COMMITTEE. Prcfi^nkb to both pouses at iariiament bg €ommanb of pis JKajcstp. LONDON: FEINTED FOR HIS MAJESTY'S STATIONERY OFFICE, BY WYMAN AND SONS, LIMITED, FETTER LANE, E.C. And to be purchased, either directly or through any Bookseller, from EYRE AND SPOTTISWOODE, East Harding Street, Fleet Street, EM, ai4 32, Abingdon Sieeet, Westminster, S. W. ; or OLIVER AND BOYD, Edinburgh; or E. PONSONBY, 116, Grafton Street, Dublin. 1901. [Cd. 805. j 'Frke2^d. Cornell University Library The original of this book is in the Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924013930759 SCOTTISH AGRICULTURAL PRICES COMMITTEE. DR E I^ O E T. TO THE PEESIDENT OF THE BOAED OF AGRICULTURE. Sir, 1. By Minute of the Board- of Agriculture, dated 24th March, 1900, this The Eeference. Committee was appointed to inquire into the existing methods by which the prices of agricultural products are collected and recorded in Scotland, and to report as to the measures, if any, which can with advantage be taken for their improvement. 2. The Committee held nineteen sittings. Of the sixteen at which evidence Course of Pro- was taken seven were held in Edinburgh, three in (llasgow, two at cedure. Inverness, one at Aberdeen, • one at Perth, one at Fort William, and one in London. The number of witnesses examined was seventy-five, and in- cluded representatives of the Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland, Scottish Chamber of Agriculture, Incorporated Society of Law Agents, Berwickshire Agricultural Society, Caithness, Agricultural Society, Easter Ross Agricultural Society, Kincardineshire Farmers' Club, Morayshire Farmers' Club, Stewartry Farmers' Club, and the Scottish Provision Trade Association. Twenty four, or nearly one-third of the whole number, were farmers, and in addition nine factors and three proprietors were examined. The Committee also heard four ministers, four sheriffs and sheriflf- substitutes, two sheriff-clerks, eight auctioneers and live stock salesmen, eight tradesmen engaged in the distribution of other agricultural produce, four journalists, and nine officials or representatives of public bodies. 3. The Committee addressed a schedule of questions to the sherifF-clerk of each county in Scotland, asking for information as to the procedure adopted for the striking of Fiars Prices. The replies to these questions are . ,. „ summarised and tabulated in the Appendix. A communication was also ^^^^ '^ addressed to a number of farmers' clubs and local agricultural societies, inviting their assistance in the inquiry, and some of these responded by nominating witnesses or forwarding communications. The Committee also received valuable assistance from Sir Mark J. McTaggart Stewart Bart., M.P., who was good enough to obtain and submit to them the opinions of nineteen of the leading agriculturists of the South West of Scotland. 4. The Committee proceeded in the first instance to ascertain as fully as possible how agricultural prices are now collected, and what are the methods of recording them. Of the four main classes of agricultural products, viz., corn, live stock, dairy produce, and vegetables and fruit, the existing records may be said generally to be as follows : — For corn, the Fiars Prices, the Edinburgh Corn Market returns, newspaper reports ; for Hve stock, the returns under the Markets and Fairs (Weighing of Cattle) Act, 1891, auctioneers' reports, newspaper reports ; for dairy produce, trade lists and circulars, newspaper reports ; for vegetables, &c., trade lists, newspaper reports. ( vi ) Elliot 8. Appendix I. Diversity of Procedure. Sherrlif 165. FiARs Prices. 5. At the outset of their inquiry the Committee found that among existing records of agricultural prices in Scotland a unique position was held by the Fiars Prices. It will be convenient, therefore, in the first place to refer to the evidence relating to that specific subject, before proceeding to allude to the more general questions concerning the price records of agricultural commodities. 6. The term " Fiars," the original significance and precise meaning of which is open to some doubt, was applied as long ago as 1626 to the prices of grain which were fixed by Sheriffs in their capacity as collectors of Crown revenue in their Sheriffdoms, and they are stated by Mr. Nenion Elliot, Clerk of Teinds, to have regulated, when first introduced, only the prices of " grain and victual " in counties or stewartries where com was payable to the Crown. 7. The earlier years of the eighteenth century, however, saw the use of Fiars Prices extended considerably beyond their original purpose, and the Court of Session passed an Act of Sederunt in 1723 for the purpose of regulating the procedure of Sheriffs. A copy of this Act is printed in the Appendix. It sets out, by way of preamble, that " the use of the Sheriffs' Fiars is to liquidate the price of victuals in diverse processes that come before them and the subordinate judicatories, and that there is a general complaint that the said Fiars are struck and given out by the Sheriffs without due care and inquiry into the current and just prices." There seems no reason to doubt, therefore, that at this time the Fiars Prices were intended to be based upon the " current and just prices " of the com- modities to which they applied, although considerable laxity prevailed in the procedure adopted by different Sheriffs, some of whom it was stated " entirely neglect to strike Fiars, which causes great uncertainty and much delay and expense in the administration of justice." 8. With the view of removing these grounds of complaint the Act laid down the following coiu-se of procedure to be adopted by Sheriff's and their deputes : — Therefore the said Lords do hereby appoint and require the Sheriffs of Scotland and their deputes ; yearly, 'betwixt the 4th and 20th of February to summon before them ^ competent dumber of persons living within the sheriffdom who have knowledge and experience of the prices and trade of victual in these bounds, and from thern. to choose fifteen men, whereof not fewer than eight shall be heritors, to pass upon the inquest, and return their verdict on the evidence underwritten, or their own proper knowledge concerning the Fiars for the preceding crop, of every kind of victual of the product of sheriffdom ; and the said Sheriffs and their deputes shall, to the same time and place unto which the jury is called, also summon the properest witnesses, and adduce them, and all other good evidence, before the said jury, concerning the price at which the several sorts of victual have been bought and sold, especially since the 1st of November immediately preceding until that day ; and also concerning all other good grounds and arguments, from which it may rationally be concluded by men of skill and experience what ought to be established as the just Fiar Prices for the said crop ; and any person then present may, in open court, and no otherwise, and observing due order and respect, offer information to the jury concerning the premises, and concerning the evidence adduced, or that might be adduced before them . . . And, tar fcher, in such shires where the use and custom has been, or where it may now be found needful and convenient to strike different Fiars, according to the different qualities of the several sorts of victual, the said use which experience ' has shown to be good and profitable, shall be continued or introduced by the several sheriffs respectively, and the said different Fiars shall be fixed and determined as the other Fiars in manner above appointed. 9. The uniformity of procedure which it was a primary object of the Act of Sederunt to enforce would appear to have been secured only partially, although probably the Act effected a very considerable improvement upon the condition formerly prevalent. But there is scarcely a single point in regard to which some divergence does not exist at the present time. The point upon which the greatest uniformity prevails is,, one which in strict terms the Act of Sederunt does not make obligatory. The words " especially since the 1st of November " appear to be almost universally read as excluding from the computation any purchases or sales of victual made prior to that date. As a rule, the constitution of the jury^ — fifteen men having knowledge and experience of the prices and trade of victual, whereof not fewer than eight shall be heritors — is similar in the various counties, the only exception being in the case of Haddington where no jury is summoned. ( vii ) 10. In other particulars the practice of Fiavs Courts varies considerably. The abstract of the replies to the inquiry addressed by the Committee to Sheriff-Clerks, which appears in the Appendix, shows that the date at which Appendix V. Fiars Courts are held generally falls within the period, allowing for the change from old to new style, laid down in the Act of Sederunt. Omitting ihe county of Orkney and Shetland, where the Fiars are struck in May, the date at which Fiars Courts were held in the year 1900 ranged from February 12 in the case of Clackmannan to March 13 in the case of Ross and Cromarty. The number of witnesses summoned and the principles adopted in their selection are very divergent. A practice has grown up, and is now 'adopted in the large majority of counties, of sending to each witness, with the citation, a schedule on which he is asked to fill up the figures to which he can testify and to bring it with him to the Court. This course is adopted in twenty- eight counties. The number of witnesses to whom schedules were sent in 1900 varied from 197 in Edinburgh and 170 in Renfrew to 8 in Kincardine and 7 in Nairn. In many cases, however, the number of schedules actually taken into account is very much smaller than the number issued, many of the witnesses who received them having probably no evidence to offer. The class of witness varies no less. In some counties, as, for instance, in Ayr, Dumbarton, and Hadding- ton, all the evidence is taken from farmers, while in Perth none but grain merchants are summoned. In the majority of counties, however, a certain number of farmers, grain merchants, millers, brewers, distillers, &c., are called before the Fiars Court. 11. It was suggested to the Committee by several witnesses that the body EvmENCE^ of evidence taken in many of the Fiars Courts is inadequate to provide a reasonable statistical basis for an average price. A table which is given in Appendix \ I. the Appendix shows that there is a certain amount of justification for this criticism. The estimated crop of wheat, barley, and oats respectively in 1899 is there placed side by side with the quantity of each on which the Fiars Prices of that crop were struck in each county. Taking the whole of Scotland, and allowing for the three counties of Ayr, Dumfries, and Rox- burgh where r^o record appears to be kept of the quantities on which Fiars are struck, it appears that about 9 per cent, of the wheat and oats, and about 30 per cent, of the barley estimated as grown were taken into account in striking the fiars. But the proportion differed widely in individual counties. Thus in Forfarshire about one-sixth of the wheat, one-half of the barley, and one-fourth of the oats were accounted for, and in some other counties the quantities were fairly adequate as a representation of the whole crop. On the other Iiand, the table shows several instances in which it cannot be said that the quantities on which the Fiars were struck were sufficient from a statistical point of view as a basis for an average. 12. The limited proportions taken into account result from the small number of witnesses called, and this, again, in some instances, is affected by the question of expense. On that point the County General Assessment (Scotland) Act of 1868 provides for payment of "the expenses connectedwith the holding of the court for striking the fiars prices for such county, in so far as the said expenses have hitherto been defrayed by such county, together with a fee of three guineas to each of such professional accountants, not exceeding two, and a fee of one guinea to each of such other persons, not exceeding six, as shall be summoned by the sheriff as witness of such court as such fees shall be certified under the hand of the sheriff." This provision seems inadequate to secure a proper attendance of witnesses, and, indeed, its existence does not appear to be generally known. One witness who complained of the expense imposed upon him in attending the Fiars piuiaygon Court said he had asked the Sheriff for payment, and was told "there 5834-43. is a fund, but it has never been asked for." This witness appears to be unfortunately situated, as he occupies a farm in two counties, and is summoned to both Fiars Courts, and in each case all he has to say is " No evidence." On the one farm he sells no grain, and on the other he sells only barley, the sales of which have already been returned by the buyer. ( viii ) Hunter 416. Sherriff 165. Powers OF Jury 13. The question whether the jury should, or should not, exorcise a dis- cretionary power in dealing with the evidence laid before them is one on which difference of opinion exists. The Act of Sederunt provides that they are to return a verdict on the evidence or on " their own proper knowledge concerning the Fiars for the preceding crop," which undoubtedly gives them a discretion in the matter. It is objected, however, particularly on behalf of the Ministers, that, inasmuch as the jury necessarily consists — as regards a majority at least — of persons who are interested, it is not seemly, even if it is competent, for them to modify the figures based upon the evidence before them. It would appear, in fact, that the usual practice is to accept the arithmetical result of such evidenoe as is offered, and this is commonly calculated by an accountant, or by an officer of the Court. 14. In the county of Haddington, where a jury is dispensed with altogether, a practice prevails of adding 2^ per cent, to the averages as ascertained from the evidence. The reason for this addition is stated to have been that the bulk of the grain in the county was sold at six months' credit, whereas that taken into account for ascertaining the Fiars was sold for ready money. Commodities for 15- There are wide variations in the precise items of which the Fiars Prices WHICH Fiars are consist. The commodities for which fiars are struck in one or other county Struck. of Scotland are wheat, barley, oats, oatmeal, bere, beans, peas, beans and peas (together), rye, barley straw, bere straw, malt, tares, and potatoes. Of these, oatmeal is universal. Barley and oats are each omitted in one county only (Orkney). Fiars prices were struck in 1900 for wheat in 22 counties, for bere in 8, for beans in 7, for beans and peas jointly in 8, and for rye 'in 5. Two counties (Aberdeen and Kincardine) strike fiars for peas, two (Fife and Orkney) for malt, and one respectively for tares (Ross), potatoes (Wigtown), barley straw and bere straw (Inverness). In many counties averages are arrived at for two, and in one or two cases for three, qualities of grain, and these are again sometimes sub-divided by distinguishing between grain "with fodder" and "without fodder" — Stewart 1994. i.e., with or without the straw. Some objection was raised in the course of evidence to the practice of striking more ' than one fiar in consequence of the confusion which was stated to arise in connection with contracts. There appears nevertheless to be some tendency in the direction of striking second fiars where only one was formerly struck, a change in this respect Appendix IV. having been made during the decade 1885-95 in the counties of Caithness, Aberdeen, and Banff. A similar change was made in Inverness, Kirkcud- bright and Forfar in 1897, but in the last instance the old system of single fiars was reverted to in 1900. The ministers generally contend for the principle of striking more than one fiar of those commodities which affect their stipends, as they claim to have a right to be paid "according to the highest fiars," a phrase which is used in the decree of Court granting an augmentation. They rely also upon" the terms used in the Act of Sederunt as approving, although not exphcitly ordering, different fiars "according to the different quaKties of the several sorts of victual, the said use which experience has shown to be good and profitable," and on Clause 13 of the Teinds Act of 1808, which enacts that " where there shall have been or shall be different rates of annual fiars prices .... the said conversion from money into grain or victual, and from grain or victual into money, shall be made according to the highest annual fiar prices." 16. It has already been pointed out that the system of Fiars Courts had in its inception no special relation to the payment of the Clergy with which it is now so closely associated. Teinds (or Tithes)' as in England were originally paid in kind. During the 18th century the more convenient practice of payment in money began to be substituted, but it was not until the passing of the Teinds Act in 1808 that it became legally obligatory. Clause 11 of that Act declared that ministers should not receive their stipend in kind but " in money according to the fiar prices of the grain into which the stipend shall have been modified." 17. Within twenty-two years after this arrangement the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland found it necessary (in 1830) to appoint a The Eelation of Fiars to Teinds. Appendix IV. Rew 2908-10. .(• ix ) committee to' consider , and enquire into the mode of striking Fiars. The labours of that Committee extended over tliree years and the reports* which they presented contained much information on the subject, including an abstract of-the methods for striking the Fiars pursued in the vaiious counties at that date, and a detailed criticism of them. The conclusion at which the Committee arrived was that, " In the mode of conducting our busmess in the Fiars Court there is anything but uniformity ; that not one of the various modes followed is free from objection ; that all are in a greater or less degree defective," and they urged that legislation was needed to remedy these defects. 18. Sixty years later (in 1894) the General Assembly appointed another Committee to consider all matters connected with the methods of striking the Fiars Prices throughout the country. The Report of this Committee Appendix IV. was laid before the General Assembly in May 1895, and is so valuable that it has been thought desirable to print it in full in the Appendix. It summarises very completely the system as then and now existing, and" concludes by suggesting, first, that, short of legislation, a good deal might be done to improve the methods used in striking the Fiars, and secondly, that further legislation is needed. The need for legislation was mainly based on the ground that the important interests involved were prejudiced by the uncer- tainty of the law, and the cumbrous and varying procedure of the Fiars Courts. The Eeport urged with regard to Teinds, that any legislation should be "in ihe direction of a stated conversion into money," and the Committee referred with approval to the principle of the English system of tithe commutation, although they did not consider that county averages could be fairly abolished. They suggested that a permanent conversion on the basis of the prices of the last twenty-one years would best solve the problem. • 19. In this connection it may be noted that Bills promoted by the Incor- porated Society of Law Agents, and supported by the General Assembly's . ,. ^jy t'ommittee on Fiars Prices, were introduced in the House of Commons in the Sessions of 1898 and 1899 for the purpose of giving effect to the sugges- Stewart 1959 tion just mentioned. They proposed not only the commutation of all Teinds on 2006. the basis of the average of Fiars Prices of the preceding twenty-one years (in the first Bill the term proposed was fourteen years), but also that it should not thereafter be necessary to hold Fiars Courts in any county. To meet the objection that Fiars Prices might be still wanted for other purposes, tlie Bill of 1899 proposed to reserve power to each Sheriff to hold a Fiars Court, at his discretion, if application were made to him by persons interested. 20. The actual legal position of Fiars Prices appears to be somewhat Legal PoKixiiJN anomalous. Their existence is recognised and sanctioned by Statute, as, for of Fiars. example, in the Teinds Act, whereby the payment of ministers' stipends depends upon the due striking of the Fiars by some such system as prevails. As regards their procedure, however, Fiars Courts are regulated by an Act of Sederunt, which, it appears, cannot be, in the last resort, enforced. Attempts have, for instance, been made to enforce the Act of Sederunt in Haddington, but without success, the Courts in this and other cases having generally held that the Sheriff's' authority and discretion in the matter are not subject to appeal. Indeed, in a case which occurred in 1771 the Courts i^^^ox v. Sheiitt of held that the method followed in Haddington was "by much the best Haddington, F.C. pursued in any county." 21. There are still a few survivals of Fiars Prices which are struck for Special Fjakss. special purposes and not by Sheriffs. The Meal Fiars for the Archbishopric and University of Glasgow were mentioned specially by some witnesses. Elliot 24, 70-2, In this case the officer of the Archbishopric and another person call four ^^f®**i^^f.^^^'^' times a year at certain shops in Glasgow, and get information as to prices ''*® of meal. This information is, after due intimation to the heritors, laid before a Court presided over by a Justice of the Peace, and on being sworn * These Eeports are printed in the Appendix to the Eeport of the Select Committee on the Sale of Corn of 1834. (H.C., 517). 5465. b ( X ) Oejections to Present System. Uses of Fiars Corn Eents. Crawford, 98. Sherriff, 210. Leitch, 267. Johnston, 315. Huteheson, 672. Davidson, 938. Prentice, 1103. Elder, 1254. Elliot, J,, 2137. Appendix XVI. to, becomes the basis for fixing the Fiars, which it is stated are usually higher than those fixed by the Fiars Court of Lanarkshire. 22 The sheriffs, sheriff-substitutes, and sheriff-clerks, who appeared before the committee, were each naturally disposed to defend the practice of the Fiars Court with which he was associated, but neither they nor other witnesses claimed that the system of Fiars Prices as a whole was free from objection. The witnesses on behalf of the ministers were unanimous in desiring the dissociation of Fiars Prices from Teinds, by a permanent com- mutation on the lines suggested in the Teinds Bill. The principal objections urged against the present system of Fiars Court may be briefly summarised as follows : — a. That there is a lack of uniformity in the practice adopted in different counties as regards the selection of witnesses and the commodities taken into accoimt. b. That the constitution of the Jury is unsatisfactory. 0. That averages are sometimes struck from insufficient statistical datta. d. That sales for only about one-third of the year are recognised. It was argued that as damaged grain, or grain which will not keep, may come into account, while the best grain may he held over until the Spring, Fiars Prices may thereby be rendered unduly low. It was also urged that seed com, which fetches high prices, is largely sold after the Fiars Courts are held, and so escapes record. On the other hand, it was represented that as grain of inferior quality was to a large extent used upon the farm, the returns applied mainly to grain of high quality, the result being uhduly to inflate the Fiars Prices. e. That in striking the average of prices the quantities which they repre- sent are in some cases not taken into account, so that a sale of 20 quarters of corn may have as great an effect on the Fiars as one of 1,000 quarters. / That the employment of fifteen jurors, together with a number of witnesses and the officers of the Court, to fix the prices for each county is a cumbrous and vexatious form of procedure. ff. That Fiars Prices may represent either the price at the farm, or the price at the market, or a combination, in uncertain proportions, of both. h. That sufficient care is not taken to see that the prices spoken to by the witnesses represent sales at the natural weight of grain. 23. Assuming that Fiars Prices were no longer required for fixing the sti- pends of ministers, it would still remain to be considered how far their continu- ance might be necessary for other purposes. Although undoubtedly the eccle- siastical use of fiars is at the present time far greater than any other, a considerable amount of evidence was laid before the Committee to show that they are also used, in varying degrees in different localities, in con- nection with the payment of grain rents of farms, feu duties, and multures, and also in the settlement of valuations as between landlord and tenant or incoming and outgoing tenants. 24. The practice of fixing the rent of farms so that either the whole or part shall fluctuate according to the price of corn is one which appears to have been more common formerly than at the present time. Some witnesses considered that the practice is gradually dying out, but others expressed the opinion that a tendency to revert to some such arrangement is again discernible in recent years. In any case there is no doubt that leases the terms of which involve a reference to some public record of corn prices, such as the Fiars, still run in many districts. One witness, from Perthshire, mentioned that a single firm of agents have from twelve to twenty rents payable by grain, and other cases were referred to in the same county. The Sheriff of Forfarshire said that in that county there were about eight or ten farms let on such terms. Mr. J, I. Davidson stated that four farms on one estate in Midlothian were rented partly in grain, and he has in recent years renewed the lease of his own farm on this principle. ( xi ) Mr. Elder knew " a dozen or so " of such cases, and stated that within the last two or three years some rents have been converted into grain rents. Other testimony to the same effect might be cited, but it is clear that no proposal to abolish Fiars Prices coul4 be entertained which did not take account of the use still made of them for this important purpose. 25. In connection with the use of Fiars Prices to fix the payment of feu Feu Duties duties— or perpetual ground rents — which are sometimes paid according to grain prices, Mr, Nenion Elliot cited the case of the George Heriot Trust, Elliot, 62-9. in which the grain feu duties amounted to £1,800 and the money duties to Crawford, 102-8. £19,500, but speaking generally it may be said that the Fiars are not much Henderson, 930. used in connection with feu duties. 26. The commutation of the multures of mill-owners is another use to which MuLtuKE.s. Fiars Prices may still be put, but practically the system of multures is ^rew, 1830. obsolete. Sp^ii"' 3293. 27. Probably the most extensive use made of Fiars Prices, outside the pay- Farm Valua- ment of ministers' stipends, is in connection with farm valuations. A large J}!?^^-. number of witnesses gave evidence to this effect. In many leases and agree- chesoT.'^ess; iavid- ments it is expressly stated that certain produce shall on the termination of 1°°'^^^' YgiT'-^^m' the tenancy be paid for by the Fiars Prices, and where valuators are entirely uot, 2074 ; Biggar, unfettered it appears that they not uncommonly appeal to the Fiars Prices as ^^tciJie^ag^g'^'.^Gor- a guide in iixing values. don, 5162. 28. It appears quite evident, therefore, that a public official record of corn Need ofa Public prices, such as the Fiars Prices supply, is requisite for some important pur- Record. poses independently of their use or disuse in connection with ministerial stipends. Whether if so great a change as the dissociation of Fiars Prices from stipends were made, the same method of securing a public record of values shouM necessarily he perpetuated is a question which would no doubt arise and to which reference will be made in a later section of this Report. Other Agricultural Price Records. 29. Whatever may be the admitted imperfections of Fiars Prices, they, at any rate, form a continuous and systematic official chronicle of values superior in many respects to any other series of agricultural prices in Scotland. There are, however, a number of other " existing methods by which the prices of agricultural products are collected and recorded in Scotland " as to which the Committee received a large amount of evidence. It will be con- venient to deal with them under the heads of corn, live stock, meat, dairy produce, wool, vegetables, fruit, hay and straw. 30. In connection with the Edinburgh Corn Market a system of recording Cokn. the quantities and prices sold is carried out under the regulations laid down by the Corporation. This system is stated to have been in operation for a ^°^^^^' '^^^> ^1^- hundred years, but the present rules date from February, 1890. The market ^^^^""ieYg ^' is held every Wednesday from eleven a.m. to three p.m. The portion of the Appendix Xlil. market house set apart for the exhibition of home-grown produce is defined and sales therein are permitted to be made only during the following periods : — Oats, 11 to 11.30 a.m. ; Beans, Peas, and Tares, 11.30 a.m. to 12 noon ; Wheat, 12 noon to 12.30 p.m. ; Barley and Rye, 12.30 to 1 p.m. ; Seed Potatoes, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Every person exposing a sample must, before doing so, report the quantity offered, and in the case of grain the weight per half-quarter, to the market clerk, who duly enters the particulars in the market books and issues a ticket. Before the close of the market hours for the sale of the several kinds of produce these tickets have to be returned to the market clerk and the sales, if any, reported. From the information 30 recorded the clerk of the market makes up a statement showing the quantities offered, the quantities sold, and the prices realised, which is written on a blackboard, and copied by the representatives of the Press. 31. These prices, which form the only authorised information pubUshed weekly of the price of corn in Scotland, are widely quoted, and appear to be regarded as generally trustworthy. It was stated to the Committee, 5465. ^ 2 Dobbie, 803. Appendix XII. Sale of Grain BY Weight Appendix X. Johastoii, 334. Rew, 2906,2977- CoiiN Returns Act. Elliot, 54^5. Hutcheson, 741-3 Prentice, 1125. Stewart, 1390. Dalgety, 14 .7-63. ( Xii ) however, that " a large quantity of grain is sold and not reported as sold," owing to the narrow limitations of the half-hour rule. A seller of wheat, for instance, who does not find a customer between 12 and 12.30 may find one a little later, when his ticket has been returned and his lot reported unsold. It would seem also that this attempted restriction of dealing to a space of half an hour must be inconvenient under inodern conditions, when those engaged in the corn trade have to watch the movements of the world's markets as they do their business. It was also stated by the same witness that the weights returned were frequently incorrect. To quote Mr. Dobbie : " If I take a sample of barley to the market for sale and in order to save the risk of a 40s. fine expose it at its natural weight, say 16 stone per bag of four bushels, I cannot get a customer at that weight and so sell it weighed up to 16 stone 4 lbs. -My ticket of reported sale is returned to the market officer at the original weight marked on it, namely, 16 stone, which is not correct, neither as to weight nor value." 32. A series of tables is printed in the Appendix, compiled by the Clerk of the Market, showing the quantities of wheat, barley, and oats returned as sold at the different weights in the months of October and November of the years 1895 to 1900. 33. The question of the sale of grain by weight was referred to by many witnesses. Frequent allusion was made to what was termed the " standard " weights, which would appear to be the weights which corn dealers generally demand. These are : Wheat, 631b. ; barley, 561b. ; and oats, 421b. per bushel. It is probable that in Scotland, as in England, the " trade weight " is above the average natural weight over a series of years for all districts. Some indication of this is afforded by a petition recently presented to the Sheriff" of Forfarshire, and forwarded by hyn, with his judgment thereon, to the Committee. The petitioners, described as farmers and others, stated that the average natural weight of barley grown last year in their district was about 52 lbs. per bushel, but " the local grain merchants when buying grain almost invariably insist on the barley being weighed up to 56 lbs. per bushel." The petitioners added that the weight per bushel is " entirely under the control of the grain merchants who can vary it from time to time to suit themselves if they so choose." 34. It is evident that there are considerable possibilitiesof error in connec- tion with the Fiars' Prices, unless allowance is made for the difference between natural weight and " standard " weight. In his evidence before this Com- mittee the Sheriff of Forfarshire suggested that the bushel, in the case of sales of barley, should be treated not as a measure of capacity but as a measure of weight, viz., 561bs. In other words, he proposed the compulsory sale of grain by weight, a suggestion which has been frequently made in England and was, in fact, endorsed as long ago as 1796 when a Select Committee appointed to inquire into the high price of corn referred to the complications caused by the adoption of varying measures for the sale of corn, and recommended the general adoption of weight in preference to measure. This was also the conclusion of another Select Committee in 1893, but the practical difficulty of compulsorily altering the trade system of the country is a serious obstacle to any legislation in the matter. It may be observed that any difficulties as regards price averages, arising from divergent weights or measures, are in England minimised . by the fact that there is a common statutory standard laid down in the Corn Returns Act, to which all such transactions are converted before official quotations are published. 35. It was suggested by a number of witnesses, including the representative of the Scottish Chamber of Agriculture — who presented a resolution of that body urging that steps should be taken " with the view of extending the Corn Returns Act to Scotland" — that it would be generally advantageous if Scotland were provided with some system of recording the market prices analogous either to that of the Edinburgh Corn Market, or to that adopted under the Corn Returns Act, 1882, in England. Mr. Nenion Elliot who, as Clerk of the Court of Teinds, has made a special study of the whole ■( xiii ) •question, recorded his opinion that, " As a statement of prices which Drew, 1895-9. Tiave been current during any one year, the Fiars are of no value. Ktewarb, 1963. They are not the prices that have been current, neither are they, taking one ^^^°^> ^^^^g county with another, to be relied on as the proportionate values for each Ma™dm, 5230. county, because each county deals with its Fiars in its own manner." The Mackay, '5,473. .system of Corn Returns was for some thirty years adopted in Scotland as in England, and only fell into desuetude after the year 1805, because by an Act Elliot, 90. ' passed in that year the Scottish returns were no longer used for the ^®^' ^^'^^• purpose of fixing the customs duties on corn. The Corn Returns Act imposes. a ■statutory liability upon the buyers of wheat, barley, and oats, being the produce of the United Kingdom, at certain scheduled markets, to make a return every week of the quantity and price of each of their purchases. These returns are made — under a penalty of 201. for default— to the local inspector in each market (who is the officer of Inland Revenue) who makes up the average for the market and sends the retm-n to the Board of Agri- culture, posting a copy of the return in the market. The returns so received from all the markets are made up by the Board of Agriculture and the weekly average for the whole country is pubUshed in the " London Gazette " every Tuesday, being communicated in advance to the Press. Quarterly and yearly averages are also calculated and published, and under the Tithe Commutation Act, septennial averages are struck for the purpose of arriving •each year at the value of Tithe Rent-change. 36. That a system of weekly returns from all the principal markets would provide a system of corn prices superior in many respects to any now avail- -able in Scotland is evident. To this practically all the witnesses who considered the matter assented, and propositions to this effect have been made on more than one occasion. In particular the Committee would refer to the Memorial submitted to the Government by the Commissioners of Supply AppendixTI.>t III of Midlothian, in 1888, and the Memorandum from Sir Robert Dundas, in 1885, which are printed in the Appendix, urging the right of Scotland to be included in the scope of the Corn Returns Act. A table given in the . ,. y„j Appendix shows the English corn averages, arranged by counties, together ^^^^ ^^ with the Fiars Prices for each county of Scotland.- In both cases there is considerable variety, the peculiarities of the district being duly reflected in the prices, but it is evident that a system which automatically records the changes of the markets week by week throughout the whole year has practical advantages which cannot be obtained under a system which fixes a price once a year and fails to reflect any changes in value which may occur during two-thirds of the period. 37. In the series of prices of live stock collected by the Board of Agriculture Live Sto(!k. under the Markets and Fairs (Weighing of Cattje) Act, 1891, Scotland shares with England an official sy.stem which would appear to be less -generally known and understood by those concerned than is to be desired. That Act places upon market authorities in every place mentioned in the Schedule to the Act* an obligation to send to the Board of Agriculture returns, at such intervals, and in such form and with such particulars as the Board by order prescribe, showing so far as they can ascertain the same, the number of cattle entering and the number and weight of cattle weighed -at every market or fair under their control, and the price of the cattle sold thereat. Every auctioneer in a scheduled place is also required to make similar returns in respect of any mart at which cattle are habitually or periodically sold. For default in making returns, the Act provides penalties of £20 for each offence, and, in the case of a continuing offence, of £10 for every day during which the offence continues, while any person making a false or fraudulent statement in any return under the Act is guilty of a misdemeanour. 38. It appears from a table printed in the Appendix that the number of Appendix XX ii. oattle entering the markets and marts in the 21 scheduled towns in 1900 was * The places at present scheduled are :— In England : Ashford, Birmingham, Bristol ■Carlisle Leicester, Leeds, Lincoln, Liverpool, London, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Norwich, Salford, ■Shrewsbury, Wakeijeld, York. In Scotland : Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh, Falkirk, i&lasgow, Perth. Gillespie, 515-6. Drew, 1846. Biggar, 2221. McJannet, 2734. Speir, 3305 MacNeilage, .3686-92. Johnston, 4085. Hutcheson, 690. Prentice, 1165. Biggar, 2225-44. Eew, 2995. Swan, 7562, 7568. Young, 2551. Biggar 2200. ( xiv ) 1,187,603, of which 919,022 were in England, and 271,681 in Scotland. Of the total number 124,648, or 10-5 per cent., were returned as having been weighed and priced, but the proportion was very much higher in Scotland than in England. In the former country the percentage was 30 "5, and in the latter 4"57. The prices so returned are published each quarter in the " Board of Agriculture Journal," the average being given, as far as the data suffice, for cattle in three grades — ^prime, second' quality, and inferior — at each market. An average figure for prime and second quality cattle is also worked out for each month based on the returns from the thirteen places for which the informa- tion received is most complete. Many witnesses were not previously aware of the existence of these ofiicial prices of live stock, but those to whose notice they were brought considered them to be valuable so far as they go. Some urged that they should be published more promptly, and that steps should be taken to give them greater publicity among those interested. The six places scheduled in Scotland — Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh, Falkirk, Glasgow, and Perth — were generally admitted to be representative markets, but it was suggested by some witnesses that other places might be added to the list with advantage, so as to provide a still wider statistical basis for the price returns. Among the towns which were mentioned by difierent witnesses as being places from which it would be desirable to obtain returns under the Weighing of Cattle Act — beyond those already scheduled — ^^\'ere Ayr, Castle Douglas, Dingwall, Dumfries, Forfar, Invergordon, Inverness, Kilmarnock, Lanark, Paisley, Stirling, Tain, and Thornton. 39. The Committee are impressed by the fact that prices based upon Live Weight quotations furnish a more reliable record of current values of live stock than can be obtained in any other way, and they view with satisfaction the recognition afibrded by the evidence that the system of selling by weight is gradually, if somewhat slowly, developing. It would appear that the quotations already available in this form are, for the most part, confined to fat cattle, but from several quarters the Committee had put before them the advantage to farmers which would be secured by a further extension of the practice of weighing store stock. The use of the weighbridge in the case of sheep and swine is still compai'atively rare. 40. The unofficial information respecting prices of live stock which is avail- able for farmers is mainly of two classes, viz., that supplied to the newspapers direct by auctioneers, and that collected by the representatives of the press in the markets or marts. The reports published by the auctioneers are some- times signed by them, and whether signed or not they accept responsibility for them. It was alleged by every farmer who mentioned the subject that the prices so published were not representative, being selected so as to give a too favourable view of the level of prices. The auctioneers as a rule frankly admitted that this was the case. Thus Mr. James Swan said that after each sale in Edinburgh he generally sent " a list of fifteen, or thereby, highest rates obtained per cwt. to the ' North British Agricultu- rist ' and the ' Scottish Farmer.' " 41. There is no doubt that the remarkable growth during the past twenty or thirty years of the practice of selling stock at auction marts under the hammer, instead of at open markets or trysts by private bargaining, has tended to place the control of price reports almost entirely in the hands of the auctioneers. The competition which, in the natural course of business,, exists among the owners of marts to secure consignments, makes it inevit- able that they should seek to gain a reputation for securing the best prices, for their customers, and that consequently, without deliberately misrepre- senting, they should be anxious that the sales of the highest priced animals should be reported, and less desirous of reporting transactions at lower rates. 42. The Committee had the advantage of hearing the views of the Editors of the two well-known agricultural journals, the " North British Agricul- turist" and the "Scottish Farmer," both of whom recognised the necessity of an impartial and independent record, but found considerable difiiculties in the way of securing it. Thus Mr. David Young of the " North British Agri- culturist " said : " I was veiy desirous of giving my readers the most accurate information I could possibly give, and some time ago I regularly sent a ( XV ) reliable clerk from the office to the audtion marts with instructions to take the weight and prices of a number of animals consecutively and to give these as a fair average record of the current prices. I found myself in a serious difficulty over that with the auctioneers, who came down on me, saying that my man had gone at a time when some inferior lots were in the ring. There is no such thing as pleasing the auctioneers in regard to that, and as they are large advertisers I found that it would not do to fight with them in that respect. As a matter of fact the prices usually given now are really and truly the leading prices at the sale." 43. Mr. MacNeilage informed the Committee that when the "Scottish Mac Neilage, 3612. Farmer " was started eight and a-half years ago, he was told to organise a system of reliable reports, not "a mere statement of interested parties," but the experience gained in the attempt during that period had only tended " to deepen the sense of the need for something more effective and reliable." He organised a system of paying representatives to stand at' some of the principal auction marts during the period of the sale to take down the weights and prices and calculate the prices afterwards per live cwt. " What we wanted," he said, " was not so much a report indicating the highest price, which might be got for a particularly good lot — a gilt-edged lot if you like — but we wanted the price of just the ordinary cattle sold in the sale throughout the whole course of the day. Now, that does not suit the auctioneer's book, as he likes the very top price ; he does not like to have the bottom price reported at all." 44. Mr. Johnston, editor of the " Stirling Journal," who acts as a correspon- Johnston, 3986 dent of the " Scottish Farmer," described to. the Committee the precise method by which he endeavoured to obtain a fair report of the prices made at certain auction marts and the difficalties which he encountered in doing so. 45. It is hardly necessary to add that if the reports furnished by the auc- tioneers themselves and those obtained by specially appointed representatives of agricultural journals cannot be considered to be true' and complete records, the information published in the daily and local newspapers is not likely to be more satisfactory. This appears, as a rule, to be supplied through a newsagency by local reporters. 46. An example of another system of recording live stock prices was brought Weatherhead, under the notice of the Committee by a representative of the Berwickshire 8106. Agricultural Society. That organisation, consisting of between 300 and 400 members, appoints an officer of its own to attend the two local auction marts every week, to make note of the prices of the animals sold, and to make up the average of the sale, which is forwarded to the local newspapers and the "Scotsman." His report "goes along with the auctioneer's report, but it is more reliable. The auctioneer puts in cattle at 43s., while the average may be only 34s." The Society's reporter is not an expert but " merely acts as a clerk" taking down the weights and prices and working out the average. He does not give a range of prices, nor does he attempt to indicate the grades of cattle sold. He is paid £8 per annum. The Society appears to be satisfied with the result of its enterprise, although the witness stated that "a man appointed by the Government would be prefer- able." It would appear that reliance is placed on the fact that constant local supervision is possible, and that those interested personally attend every sale. 47. The existence of a general feeling of dissatisfaction with the present condition of affairs and of a general demand for better and more reliable reports of live stock markets was proved beyond question. They were desired by farmers for their information, and although it was, as a rule, recognised that any official system securing precise accuracy would of necessity lack the promptitude of journalistic reporting, it was urged that the knowledge that authorised and unbiassed reports would in due course appear would serve indirectly as a check upon the statements put forward by interested persons. But apart from any immediate and ephemeral value which careful and independent returns might possess, it is evident that for -certain more permanent purposes of record they would have great value. ( Sheep Stock Valuations. Prentice, 1203. Dunn, 2432. Wyllie, 4177. Carson, 4369. MacDiarmid, 4604. Gran, 4865. Malcolm, 5273. Davidson, 1017. Elliot, 2172. Dunn, 2468. Campbell, 2792. Barron, 5559. Produce Rents. Ritchie, 3818. Appendix XVII. Meat. Nelson, 3734. Gordon, 5110. Maekay, 5465. Finlayson, 5921. Middleton, 6067. Bell, 7261. MacDiarmid, 4727-29. Johnston, 4140. Donald, 5942. Two specific instances may be mentioned, viz., the settlement of the valuations of the sheep stock of hill farms and the adjustment of rents payable by the^ prices of stock. 48. The question of the valuation of sheep stock at changes of the tenancy ot hill farms was brought before the Committee at considerable length by several witnesses. It appears that on the sheep farms of the High- lands it has long been recognised that a flock, when once established, , becomes so well accustomed to its situation — so well " acclimatised," as the phrase goes — that serious loss would accrue if it were removed to another farm. It has therefore become the custom of the country that on a change of tenancy the incoming tenant shall take over the sheep stock at a valuation, and in arriving at the value of the sheep a practice has arisen of adding- to the actual market price a varying and arbitrary amount per head for " acclimatisation." This addition would appear to have first begun to be made in the " sixties " and to have risen with the natural rise in the market value of sheep which took place subsequently. But the artificial character of the present valuations is indicated by the fact that notwithstanding the fall which has since occurred, particularly in the price of wool, the value of the sheep stock has in many cases been maintained without reduction, and even in instances quoted considerably increased. 49. The justice of an addition for acclimatisation and the amount of such aft addition is not a matter within the scope of this Committee. But it is admitted that before any such addition is made the market prices of the day ought to form the basis of the valuation, and it was pressed upon the Committee by some witnesses that if more reliable records of prices than those in the newspapers were available, they would be of considerable utility in this connection. 50. In connection with the Inverness Sheep Fair, which appears to be unique in its arrangements, the stock being sold on character only and not exhibited on the market, a continuous record of prices collected by the " Inverness Courier" since the year 1817 was laid before the Committee. 51. Another point of considerable importance was brought before the Com- mittee. On the Bonskeid and Borenich estates Mr. James Ritchie says that a system prevails of granting 15-year leases at rents which are fixed one- third on the sales of oats and two-thirds on the sales of young stock reared on the farm, a re-adjustment being made every five years. Mr. Ritchie stated that in working this arrangement he found great difficulty in obtaining returns of the market prices of stock. At present he procured them from salesmen, but he urged that some official records would be very desirable in every county and would much facilitate arrangements such as those referred to as well as ordinary valuations of stock as between incoming and outgoing tenants. 52. The connection between the live stock and the dead meat markets is so intimate that it is not easy to dissociate them. This is largely due to the practice which prevails of quoting as the price of beef and mutton, per cwt., per stone, or per lb., what is in reality an estimate of the price which the carcass of the live animal will realise. The actual evidence of records of prices from wholesale dead meat markets was limited, but those witnesses who referred to the subject expressed as a rule dissatisfaction with the infor- mation available. It appears that reports from the London Central Market have considerable influence on the sales of fat stock in Aberdeenshire and the east of Scotland generally, and buyers obtain telegrams regularly. It was suggested by one witness that farmers should be placed on a level with buyers in this respect, by some intervention of Government, which was not very clearly explained. Short however of this, the more feasible suggestion was made that prices should be collected from salesmen and duly collated and published by officers appointed by the Board of Agriculture. There are certain retail prices of meat published in the newspapers, these being collected either by the superintendents of city markets, or by newspaper reporters. In both cases they are obtained by inquiry of the butchers, and it is ad- mitted that they are given in a very perfunctory way, and are, as one witness observed," almost stereotyped." ( xvii ) 53. An interesting example of the use which might be made of reliable records Macdonald, 6458, of dead meat prices was given by Mr. Eanald Macdonald. He quoted a ^^O^-ll. clause from a form of lease which is adopted on Lady Gordon Cathcart's estate, and stated that there are similar leases on other estates in Aberdeenshire. The tenant pays rent consisting of a certain number of quarters of oats and here, the value of which is ascertained by the fiars prices, and a certain numlber of cwts. of ox or heifer beef of first quality according to the average price of such beef in Aberdeen. In the absence of any public or oflficial record of the price of beef, a special arrangement has to be made for obtaining information privately from a, live stock agent in Aberdeen. Mr. Macdonald expressed an opinion in favour of the principle of rents varying with the price of products, and thought that it would extend if there were an official record of prices. 54. So far" as dairy produce is concerned, the most systematic series of re- Dairy Producb. ports which was brought to the notice of the Committee is that issued weekly by the Scottish Provision Trade Association in Glasgow. This is compiled Clement, 3166. by a committee of three members of the Association, who meet to go over the I-ioekhead, 3195, condition of the market every Wednesday and report its tone or tendency accordingly. The President of the Association stated that their object in preparing this report was " the guidance of merchants and farmers." He said, "In the past the only reports were those published in the news papers, reports sent in by private individuals or by the newspapers' owf reporters, and we found these reports were very contradictory, because one firm might report cheese at 60s. to 64s., while another firm reported it at 56s. to 60s. Both these quotations would be correct, inasmuch as they were the figures of the cheese which they handled ; but one firm might make a speciality of fine cheese, and the other firm might seldom or never touch the finest class of cheese." The Association avoid this diffi- culty by refraining from quoting figures at all, as a rule., The Secretary of the Association, however, who also gave evidence, did not appear to think that the quotation of actual prices was specially difficult, and he thought it would enhance the value of the reports. 55. There was distinct evidence of a desire on the part of producers for better Elliot, 2099. and fuller information. Mr. James Biggar, for example, said that there is Biggar, 2266. a demand for the publication of reliable official prices of both cheese and ?*'??f'^ j' q^aq butter, which, he thought, might be obtained by an officer who might attend MacDiarmid the market and get his information from buyers and sellers. Mr. Lockhead, 4677. the secretary of the Provision Trade Association, also favoured the appoint- Walker, 6650. ment of a Government reporter, although he' pointed out some difficulties in . the way, and naturally considered the report issued by his Association to be sufficient. In the south-west of Scotland there appears to be a certain number of farms the rent of which is dependent upon the price of cheese. ^^e>iT, 3294-8. 56. Milk is so largely a matter of private contract that there would be Milk. obviously special difficulties attendant upon the collection of prices ; but it was pointed out to the Committee that the increase in the number of Drew, 1873. creamery companies which publish their prices, and also of distributive Walker, 6604. dairy companies, would greatly facilitate the compilation of a record of prices. 57. On the whole there did not appear to be much complaint as to the infor- Wool. mation available of the price of wool. , The trade circulars issued by brokers crmpbe^ll 3359 are considered to be reliable, and might apparently form useful data for the MacNeilage, compilation of a general report. 3654, 3705.' ^ Barron, 5560. 58. Potatoes form an important branch of agricultural production, and the PoTAxbEs. need for accurate records of their price was referred to by more than one Hiitcheson, 706. witness. Mr. MacNeilage stated that no quotations can be obtained except ^^^^^^^^S^' at haphazard from dealers and farmers. He added : " We pay expert Robertson, 7182. reporters in some cases to do this work for us — that is, we pay men who 7211. have as farmers had practical acquaintance with potatOrgrowing ; but even then we have had trouble as between dealers and farmers. ... The potato market is a market for which we have no right quotations at all." f( xviii ) Vegetables and E'euit. MacNeilage, 3656. Simons, 3927. Hay and Straw. Hutcheson, 765. MacNeilage, 3660. Oran, 4745. Farmers' Club Records. Appendix XX. and XXI. 59. Of vegetables, other than potatoes, and of fruit there appear to be practically no records generally available. Bailie Michael Simons, vi^ho gave the .Committee some interesting information on this subject, observed that certain market reports were obtainable during the season. He saw no advantage in attempting to record the prices of fruit unless it might be for the purposes of valuations. It appears that the cultivation of fruit and vegetables is a growing industry in Scotland. 60. With regard to hay and straw, prices appear to be furnished for the use of the public by some of the leading salesmen. Mr. Cran referred specially to the confusion caused by the use of a diversity of local weights used in the sale of hay and straw. In Caithness and Sutherlandshire he said "the standard is 28 lbs., in Ross-shire 14 lbs., Inverness-shire 23 lbs., Nairn and Morayshire 22 lbs." In all these instances the unit of weight is termed a " stone," and the fact that this use of the word is illegal seems to be no bar to the continuance of the practice. 61. Two interesting returns of prices are printed in the Appendix, being statements prepared by the Teviotdale Farmers' Club and the Stewartry Farmers' Club respectively. The former is specially concerned with stock, but the latter embraces a variety of produce, including beef, mutton, pork, oats, cheese, milk, hay, straw, and wool. A committee of the club is in each case responsible for drawing up the statement, and the plan is one which might well be adopted by other local agricultural organisations. Conclusion. 62. It now only remains to sum up generally the conclusions at which the Committee have arrived after careful consideration of the matters referred to them, and with the aid of the documentary and verbal information laid before them. Gillespie, 456 Hutcheson, 655. Dobbie, 837. Elder, 1280. Elliot, 2102 Biggar, 2214 Stewart, Sir M., 3016. Lockhead, 3209. Campbell, 3381. Gillies, 3426. MacNeilage, 3669. Nelson, 3759. Johnston, 4110 Wyllie, 4151. MacDiarmid, 4530. Cran, 4812. Eeport of the 63. The Committee are impressed by the fact that there is a distinct demand on the part of Scottish agriculturists for better and more accurate informa- tion of the market prices of their produce. There is a widespread feeling of distrust of much of the information now supplied to them, and a desire that it should be furnished by some unbiassed and independent authority. They naturally look to the Government for assistance in this respect, and the Committee are of opinion that this assistance should be given. 64. Just before the Committee commenced their inquiries — on March 7, 1900 — the directors of the Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland unanimously resolved : — "That in view of the unsatisfactory reports of Scottish Agricultural prices published from week to week, the Board of Directors urge the Board of Agriculture to take steps for collecting and publishing official reports of prices at the weekly and other markets, and sales of agricultural stock and produce held in Scotland." 65. It may also be pointed out that the demand for better and more complete official information of the prices of agricultural products, which the Committee found unmistakably to prevail in Scotland, is by no means new. The Royal Commission on Agriculture, in 1"897, after an exhaustive inquiry into the condition of British Agriculture generally, presented a report, in which they stated : — " The absence of satisfactory statistics as to the market prices of agricul- on AericS""'' ^^^^'^ produce, especially of meat, live stock, butter, and cheese, in Great 1897. ' Britain, has also been brought to the knowledge of the Commission. "The evidence submitted by the Board of Agriculture shows that the returns of prices of this class now received by that Department are far from complete or satisfactory, and we agree that better means should be afforded the Board of collecting information as to the current prices of meat, cattle. ( xix ) dairy, and other agricultural produce, by means of correspondents at the more important market centres. It is not anticipated that any very large expenditure would thereby be involved, or that any difficulty would be incurred in giving effect to this proposal." 66. The evidence collected by the Royal Commission on Market Eights Report of Koyal and Tolls, and especially the report made to that Commission on the markets MaX?Eiehte of Paris and Brussels, showed that the importance of official records j^^^ ToUg^ fggi. of agricultural prices is recognised by other Governments, and the Royal Commissioh in their report dated 15th January, 1891, recommended that statistics of the market prices of commodities should be officially collected in this country. 67. It appears from an interesting memorandum furnished to the Com- Appendix XIX. mittee, and printed in the Appendix, that retiirns of the prices of fat and store stock, of wheat, oats, barley, hay, potatoes, butter, pork, wool, and eggs, are now regularly collected and published by the Department of Agriculture and Technical Instruction in Ireland. Certain of these official returns are sent periodically to the editors of newspapers and to others in Scotland, and were mentioned in evidence, those relating to the price of Irish store stock being especially referred to. Comment was made by some witnesses on the apparent anomaly that Ireland should possess a system for which there was no parallel in Scotland. 68. The desirability of a reliable system of official reports of agricultural prices scarcely needs demonstration. To the economist, the statistician, the statesman, and the journalist, a permanent record of the actual prices of commodities is of the highest value in the discussion of matters relating to the interests of producers and consumers, and the progress and welfare of the community at large. But, beyond this consideration, important as it is, there are immediate objects of direct utility to be attained. Nearly Report of Select seventy years ago a Select Committee reported with reference to the official ^°°^°\^**®^ on the prices of corn that " The quotations have been regarded as of importance -^g^i "' merely for statistical or speculative^ purposes, but they are, in fact, of the highest importance in a practical point of view," and this remark is equally applicable to all the various products of modern agriculture. Reference has already been made to the necessity of price records for the arrangement of produce rents, and it may be added that in discussions, as between landlord and tenant, of questions relating to rent generally, it is obviously desirable to have official statistics to appeal to. In connection with valuations of farm stock or of waygoing crops on a change of tenancy the utility of a price record is also incontestable. The periodical publication of official information relating to current values may further be regarded as of especial benefit to the smaller farmers. Many witnesses admitted that the reports of prices now available are of no practical use except to those who had been present at the market or sale which they professed to record, and this fact was urged, with some force, in extenuation of the habit of farmers constantly to attend markets at which they had no particular business to transact. If official prices would in any degree serve to obviate the necessity of the expenditure of time and money in this way they would be amply justified. In any case, such statistics might be expected to place the smaller farmer on more equal terms in the transaction of his business, not only with the buyer of his produce, but also with those farmers whose greater command of capital renders them better able to dispense with such assistance. Above all, an official system would provide an efficient protection against biassed and unre- liable statements, which cannot fail to have a prejudicial effect on producers' interests so long as there are no adequate means of checking their accuracy. The Committee, therefore, have no hesitation in urging the Board of Agriculture— one of whose statutory duties it is "to collect, or aid Board of Agricul in collecting, such information as they may think important for the purpose ture Act, 1889, of promoting agriculture "—to take such steps as may be necessary to carry «• 2. ss. 3. out the Recommendations which they now beg to submit. 5465. ( XX ) RECOMMENDATION I. 69. With the view of securing a satisfactory record of the current values of grain, the Committee recommend that the system of officially obtaining weekly returns from buyers of grain at the principal corn markets in Scotland which formerly prevailed, should be again resorted to, and that these returns should be placed under the control of the Board of Agricul- ture. The evidence they obtained did not indeed suffice to indicate the exact number of the markets which it would be necessary to designate as typical, but they should be chosen so as to represent not only the districts where most grain is grown and sold, but also those where the trade in local grain is naturally limited. They should also be so selected as to enable the local values for particular counties or groups of counties to be calculated. EECOMMENDATION II. 70. The Committee further recommend that the returns of the prices of live stock obtained under the Markets and, Fairs (Weighing of Cattle) Act, 1891, be further developed by the scheduling of a larger number of places in Scotland, by more strictly enforcing upon the market authorities and auctioneers their statutory liability to make returns in the prescribed form, and by a more rapid and extended system of publishing the prices thus obtained. EECOMMENDATION III. 71. They also recommend that market correspondents be appointed, whose duty it should be to attend specified markets, fairs, and sales (including those for live stock, dead meat, dairy produce, potatoes, vegetables, fruit, hay and straw) in an allotted area, sending up to the Board at the close of each market a report of the prices current, based on actual transac- tions, and supplemented by observations as to the tone of the market and the quality and description of the stock or produce sold. These reports should be made in a uniform and prescribed form so as to facilitate ready tabulation. These market correspondents should beunder the immediate super- vision and control of inspecting officers of the Board. A few correspondents with greater technical knowledge and influence might be appointed in respect of considerably larger areas to furnish periodical reports of a more general nature on the course of prices, and to act in an advisory capacity to the Board in any local inquiries arising out of weekly market reports. EECOMMENDATION IV. 72. With regard to Fiars Prices, the question whether ministers' stipends should be permanently fixed according to the average of a certain number of years, as suggested by the General Assembly's Committee in their Eeport of 1895, or whether they should continue to be paid according to an annually struck average of prices, is a question of general policy upon which it would be improper for the Committee to express an opinion, as it does not lie within the scope of the reference to them. They have, however, come to the conclusion that the way in which the Fiars Prices are at present arrived at is eminently unsatisfactory, and that, if Fiars Courts are to be •continued, and stipends are still left to depend upon the prices of each year, it is most desirable that the procedure in the Courts should be made uniform and more simple than it is at present. To attain this object legislation would be necessary, and as to the lines on which such legislation should run the Committee can offer no more definite suggestion than that the Court of Session should be empowered and required, after consulting with the .Sheriffs and the representatives of the different interests affected, to frame ( xxi ) a new Act of Sederunt, laying down rules of procedure to be followed by Sheriffs in striking the Fiars of their respective counties. If, however, the recommendation they have made above, in paragraph 69, for the estab- lishment of an official system of prices, be acted upon, they are of opinion that Fiars Courts may safely be dispensed with, and ought to be abolished. 73. The Committee cannot conclude their Report without expressing their sense of the assistance given them by their Secretary, Mr. R. Henry Rew, whose diligence and ability they gratefully wish to place on record with much appreciation. We have the honour to be. Sir, Your most obedient Servants, MANSFIELD, Chairman. JOHN CHEYNE. A. E. BATEMAN. P. G. CRAIGIE. ALEX. GLENDINNING. R. Henry Rew, Secretary: 30th August 1901.