. ON TE PCORN LAWS 253

Horfes kept at préfent for pleafute= 264,000

For the carriage of goods,&c.- 250,000

For pofting, and for mail and hackney coaches 86,000

600,000

Deduét one-third in the former period- 200,000 ê

Increafed number of horfes highly fed- 400,000

Allowing three acres of fertile land for the maintenance of eack-

horfe, this addition to the number of horfes will withdraw 1,200,000 acres of fertile land, from affording fuftenance to the inhabitants of Great Britain. Here alfo is fuficient caufe for

a great deficiency in the produétion of corn; and when we al.

{0 take into the account the amazing effet of an increafe in the confumption of animal food, we need'not be furprifed at the prefent fcarcity of bread.corn,. nor at the annual deficiency of one milhon of quarters of grain, when comparing the quantity now brought into the kingdom, with. the quantity formerly

exported, even although the population of the country had con-.

üinued the fame, or had even declined; notwithftanding the.

induftry and the capital of the cultivators of the{oil have been: greatly increafed fince the period when the large furplus quan

tuity of corn was annually exported.

The great increafe of grafs land rapidly extending over the kingdom is obferved by many of the agricultural reporters. T fhall, however, confine myfelf to one fentence, taken from the improved report of.the agriculture of the county of Lancafhire “at this period(1705)#be diminution of arable land is dikely to

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