27 JULY 1918, Page 2

Lord Lee of Fareham has resigned his position as Director-

General of Food Production owing to the reversal of the Govern- ment's policy of increasing the area of arable land. In the discussion of Lord Lee's resignation there seems• to be a great deal of con- fusion. When the military crisis required a sudden increase of Man- Power, the Government's comb began to work very freely in the rural districts, and farmers have been more short-handed than ever. In these circumstances it was reasonable, as we ourselves have pointed out on previous occasions, not to proceed to plough up more grassland, even though it had been earmarked for the purpose, if there were no prospect of cultivating it properly.