27 DECEMBER 1913, Page 3

On Monday night Mr. Lloyd George spoke to his con-

stituents at Pwllheli on the Government's land policy. The life-blood of the rural districts was being poured into the veins of new lands across the seas. While labourers diminished gamekeepers had trebled. Most Tories seemed to regard this state of things as a huge joke. There was no more urgent problem than to make it worth while for those who were still on the land to remain, and to induce some of those who had migrated to the towns to return. The greed, selfishness, and stupidity of our land system had driven them away. The land monopoly was like a poison, and the last thing a poisoner wanted was the attendance of an impartial doctor. The Government had decided to establish a living minimum wage. "For every 20s. paid by the farmer in wages, he pays over 25s. as rent, and every fair-minded man will agree that the first charge on the produce of the soil ought to be a fair wage for the man whose toil helps to create that produce." He was for fair play for the landlord, the parson, the farmer, and the labourer.