Pagina 442 de 2651

Should this root ever become in any part of Europe, like rice in

some rice countries, the common and favourite vegetable food of

the people, so as to occupy the same proportion of the lands in

tillage, which wheat and other sorts of grain for human food do

at present, the same quantity of cultivated land would maintain a

much greater number of people; and the labourers being generally

fed with potatoes, a greater surplus would remain after replacing

all the stock, and maintaining all the labour employed in

cultivation. A greater share of this surplus, too, would belong

to the landlord. Population would increase, and rents would rise

much beyond what they are at present.

The land which is fit for potatoes, is fit for almost every other

useful vegetable. If they occupied the same proportion of

cultivated land which corn does at present, they would regulate,

in the same manner, the rent of the greater part of other

cultivated land.