c , - Z . A v ' f à ?\

LEAGUE OF N A T I O N S

E U R O P E A N C O N F E R E N C E

O N R U R A L LIFE

B E L G I U M

Official N o. : C. 2. M. 2. 1939.Conf. E. V . R. 3.

Geneva, J a n u a ry 23rd, 1939.

LEAGUE OF NATIONS

EUROPEAN CONFERENCE

O N RURAL LIFE 1939

National Monographs

drawn up by Governments

BELGIUM

S er ie s o f L e a g u e o f N a t i o n s Publ i ca t ions

EUROPEAN CONFERENCE nO N RURAL LIFE Z

(Photo Sergysels-OBL UT.)

An old farm in Cam pine.

[The illustration on the cover is from a photo by OBLUT.']

C O N T E N T S

Page

In t r o d u c t i o n ......................................................................................... 7

I

A. Influence of the Demographic S i tu a t io n ...................... 14

B. Density of the Agricultural P o p u la t io n ...................... 14

C. State of H e a l t h ................................................................. 18

II

A. Land Tenure, Home Land Settlement, Agrarian Reforms 21

B. Improvement of Systems of C u l t i v a t i o n .................. 23

C. Land Reclamation and I m p r o v e m e n t ...................... 24

D. Improvement of Vegetable and Animal Production . . . 25

E. E q u ip m e n t .......................................................................... 25

F. Rural Industries ........................................................................ 26

G. Reduction of Costs of Production : Organisation of Sales 27and M a r k e t s .............................................................................

H. S tandard isa tion .................................................................. 28

I I I .—A g r ic u l t u r a l Co- o per atio n

A. Associations of an Exclusively Official C h a ra c te r ..... 29

B. Associations of a Semi-official C h a r a c t e r .................. 29

C. Autonomous Associations .................................................. 30

D. Associations with LTnrestricted O b jec ts ...................... 33

E. Associations with Restricted O b jec ts .......................... 33

IV.—A g r ic u l t u r a l Cr e d i t

A. The Importance of Agricultural Credit as a Means of raisingthe Standard of Rural L i f e ........................................ 35

B. Agricultural Credit in B e l g i u m ................................... 37

3959 — S.d.N. 2.100 (F .). 1.440 (A.) 4/39. Imp. Réunies, Chambéry.

4 BELGIUM

V.—E ducation page

A. General, Domestic, Technical and Adult Education :

Part I .—General Survey :

1 . The Elementary School and the Part played by theT e a c h e r ................................................................... 39

2. The Development and Principles of Agriculturaland Domestic E d u c a t i o n ................................. 40

Part I I .—Agricultural Educational Establishments :

1. Education of Boys and Youths :

(a) Higher Education :

Higher Agricultural I n s t i t u t e s .................... 41Agricultural S t a t i o n s ..................................... 42Schools of Veterinary Medicine.................... 42

(b) Middle-grade Agricultural Education . . . . 43S c h o o l s ............................................................... 43S ec tio n s ............................................................... 43

(c) Post-school Agricultural E d u ca t io n ............ 43Post-school S e c t i o n s ..................................... 43Regional Agricultural S c h o o l s .................... 44Courses and L e c tu re s ..................................... 44School of Farriery and Agricultural Mechanics 45

2. Education of Girls :

(a) Higher E d u c a t i o n ......................................... 45

(b) Middle-grade Education :S c h o o l s .............................................................. 46Sections ................................................................ 46

(c) Elementary E d u c a t i o n ................................ 47Post-school Agricultural Domestic Sections . 47Travelling Agricultural Schools of Domestic

E c o n o m y ...................................................... 47Shortened Courses : L e c t u r e s .................... 48

3. Horticultural T r a in in g .............................................. 49

4. Service of Agricultural Information Propaganda :(a) State Agricultural E x p e r t s ........................ 49(b) Horticultural A d v i s e r s ................................ 5°(c) Agricultural Domestic Economy Advisers . . 5°(d) Zootechnical Advisers ....................................... 5°(e) Publication of L i t e r a t u r e ............................ 5°

BELGIUM 5

Page

g P easant Art, Peasant Culture, Folklore ............................. 52

C, Organisation of Leisure in the C o u n t ry ............................. 52

VI.—Me d i c o -so cial P o l i c y ..................... 54

V II.—N u t r i t i o n .................................. 56

V II I .—R u r a l P l a n n i n g

A. Regional :

1. T r a n s p o r t .............................................................................. 572. Communications...................................................................... 573. Water-supply : Sewage Disposal ..................................... 574. Electrification.......................................................................... 59

B. State Action in Support of Public Libraries and CentralOrganisations :

1. Public L ib ra r ie s ...................................................................... 602. Inducements to Private O r g a n i s a t io n s ............................ 61

C. Rural Dwellings and O utbu ild ings.......................................... 62

Co n c l u s i o n 65

MONOGRAPH OF BELGIUM

IN T R O D U C T IO N

Before the read e r is b ro u g h t to th e clearly defined sub jec ts which are t r e a te d in d iv id u a lly in th e e ight ch ap te rs of the present m onograph , he shou ld first be g iven a general outline of the cha rac te r is t ic fe a tu res of B elgian ru ra l life as a whole.

In accordance w ith th e var ious p o in ts of view, th is su rvey will include a brief desc rip tion of th e ag r icu ltu ra l aspec t of the country, its ag r icu ltu re in the p as t , a n d ru ra l life in th e p ro p e r sense of the te rm .

T h e A g r i c u l t u r a l A s p e c t o f t h e C o u n t r y

Passing from w est to east, th e re is first, a t the foo t of| the dunes, a low coas ta l p la in from five to seven miles in w id th . This consists of th e polders, the h a rd -w o n prize of our an ces to rs ’ victory over th e w a te rs of the N o r th Sea. T hey are p ro tec ted by dykes from the danger of flooding a t h igh tide.

Sand-dunes at Coxvde. (Photo o b l u t . )

The soil, com posed of c lay ey a lluv ium , is in m a n y places too heavy to be ti lled ; a n d hence i t h as been co n v e r ted in to rich pastures, w hich follow th e course of the Yser as fa r as

8 BELGIUM

Dixm ude. The m o n o to n y of the plain is b roken here a n d there b y so li ta ry fa rm steads , l inked to g e th er b y roads, bordered w ith w ind -ben t trees.

Bearing aw ay tow ards Bruges, the t rave lle r comes to the san d y p a r t of the co u n try , w hich s tre tches from N o r th Flanders an d bey o n d the Scheldt to the Province of A ntw erp , and also includes a large p a r t of Lim burg. In these las t-n am ed provinces, it takes on a peculiar aspect fam iliar to poets a n d a r t is ts ; this p a r t of the c o u n try is know n as the Campine.

Steeping flax at Courtrai. (Photo o b l u t . I

The developm ent of these areas, w hich originally consisted en tire ly of h ea th a n d u n cu lt iv a ted land, is likewise a triumph for our agriculture. T hanks to th e dogged persistence of the F lem ish pea san t a n d to age-long p rac tica l experience acquired, p a r ts of th is region even becam e highly p roduc tive , like the Waas d istric t, where, for centuries pas t , the soil has been cultivated so carefu lly as to become know n as th e “ g ard en of Europe

To p rev en t the loss of the w ate r needed to keep the land fertile, every field is su rrounded b y a p la n ta t io n of trees, provid­ing a screen from th e drying ac tion of the w ind an d giving this san d y d is tr ic t i ts charac teris t ic wooded aspect.

The p ic tu resque cob-walled, th a tch - ro o fed fa rm s are now being replaced b y m odern build ings m ade of more durable m ateria ls .

BELGIUM 9

If, in s tead of tak in g th is rou te , th e trave lle r m akes for Cour- trai, he will find himself, on leav ing the polders, in th e p la in of F la n d ers , a dense ly p o p u la ted a rea where m ethods of in tensive cultivation are em ployed. The arab le land, w hich is div ided an d subdiv ided in to a m u lt i tu d e of fields, is cu l t iv a ted w ith jealous care to th e v ery las t inch. I t looks like an im m ense chequer-board on w hich pale blue flax a l te rn a tes w ith grey- green rye, an d d a rk green ch icory w ith pu rp le clover. H ere and there are in terspersed m eadow s su rro u n d ed b y pollard willows.

A street in Damme, Flanders. (P ho to S e r g y s r f s - O B L U T J

The farms, w i th the ir red -ti led roofs a n d brick walls, which are often rough-cas t an d lime-washed, have a n e a t an d cheerful aspect. Only a few da iry ca t t le are to be seen in th e pastures , as they are foddered in th e sheds even in sum m er.

Between th e F lem ish a n d th e Cam pine plains on the one side and the highly cu l t iv a ted W alloon area on the o ther, there is a rich in te rm ed ia te region, p ic tu resque an d hilly an d essentially agricultural. This region has p ro b a b ly been cu l t iv a ted for a longer tim e th a n an y o th e r in Belgium. I t ex ten d s from the Tournai d is tr ic t to S o u th L im burg , covering Sou th F landers and the ru ra l a rea of Brussels.

The l igh t an d deep alluvial soil lends itself to a g rea t v a r ie ty of crops ; vegetab les a n d f ru it are grow n on a large scale side by side w ith in d u s tr ia l crops such as hops, tobacco an d medicinal

p l a n t s . The fa rm s are almost h id d en by the s u r r o u n d i n g orchards, which, in L im burg , are som etim es very extensive . I t is on th e excellent a r t i f i c i a l p a s ­t u r e s of t hi s region th a t the h ea v y Belgian d ra u g h t horse, th e pride of our s tock-raising in­

d u s try , has been reared , an d also the fam ous g rey cattle of Middle Belgium.

T hen comes th e u n d u la t in g alluvial p lain of Hesbaye, s tre tch in g as fa r as the eye can see. H ere are im m ense fields covered w ith w h e a t an d oats, or w ith th e lush vege ta tion of sugar-bee t. There are few trees, few houses, an d only one or tw o m ain roads. H ere and th ere a ch urch -tow er emerges from th e v a s t p la in ; a round i t are g rouped the few large farms w hich w ork the land. This is the cen tre of W alloon agriculture. T h e solidly bu il t fa rm s w ith th e ir lim e-w ashed rough-cast walls, are b o th im posing an d cheerful-looking, a n d have a well-to-do appearance . The good p as tu re s p roduce fine animals. B elgian horse-breeding is cen tra lised in th is region, w here strong b eas ts are needed to w ork the heavy , fertile soil a n d to draw ca rts over th e u n d u la t in g ground.

A fte r crossing the Meuse an d the Sam bre , th e traveller reaches U p p e r Belgium. T he n a tu re of the soil h a s changed, a n d a broad , cha lky s trip runs th ro u g h th e c o u n try from south to north . I n the sou th i t form s th e Condroz d is tr ic t , which is ex tensive ly cu lt iva ted , an d in w hich ca t t le are raised. The farm s, slate-roofed, severe an d s trong ly -bu ilt of local stone, look like m anor-houses. To the n o r th lies th e H e rv e district, a v e rd a n t an d p ic tu resque p la teau , very u n d u la t in g , w ith clay soil a n d chalky subsoil. This d is tr ic t is g iven up entirely to p as tu re s an d the da iry in d u s try .

H igher up, th e trave lle r comes to less fertile parts-—first of all, a t an a l t i tu d e of 200 to 300 m etres , to th e F am en n e , and then , a t an a l t i tu d e of 400 to 600 m etres, to th e Ardennes. The h igh p la tea u of th e A rdennes, fr inged w ith v a s t forests, h as th e coldest a n d w e tte s t c lim ate of Belgium. Most of the fa rm s are small, a n d are w orked b y th e fa rm er an d his family. U n til th e end of th e n in e teen th cen tu ry , ag r icu ltu re w as primitive

Modernised farm in Flander (Photo O B L U T .)

BELGIUM I I

and poor. N evertheless , excellent horses were bred, sm all in size b u t h a r d y a n d sp ir i ted ; these were form erly m u ch in d e m a n d for m ili ta ry purposes, a n d rendered g rea t service to N a p o le o n during his R uss ian cam paign . I t is in the A rdennes th a t agricu ltu ra l p rogress has been m ost m ark ed during recent decades.

Lastly, th e trave lle r , leav ing Belgium by way of Arlon, passes th ro u g h one m ore ag r icu ltu ra l d istric t, which is more fertile th a n th e A rdennes, th a n k s to its Jurassic soil a n d m ilder climate— nam ely , B elg ian L orraine.

B e l g i a n A g r i c u l t u r e i n t h e P a s t

A strik ing fea tu re of ag r icu ltu re in th e n o r th e rn p a r t of Belgium is th e w ay in w hich th e a rab le lan d is cu t up in to small parcels. E v e n th e large fa rm s— and, in th is p a r t of the coun try , a farm of 50 hec ta re s is considered large— rare ly have all the ir land in a single piece. I n th is region, the la n d has alw ays been divided up.

As a resu lt, th e F lem ish a n d B rab a n t in e peasan ts have always cherished th e hope of one day becom ing landow ners, and "this powerful m o tiv e m akes th em sober, th r i f ty an d h a rd ­working. These are, in fact, th e th ree ca rd ina l v ir tues of the Belgian peasan t.

Whereas, on the la rge W alloon esta tes , the sam e system s of extensive cu lt iv a t io n were em ployed as in th e neighbouring French provinces— w ith th e unchang ing three-course ro ta t io n followed b y fallow— F lem ish fa rm ers cu lt iv a ted the la n d in ten ­sively, a n d w ere the first in E u ro p e to do aw ay w ith th e fallow period by ad o p tin g a m ore elastic an d varied system of ro ta tion , many different in d u s tr ia l a n d fo d d e r crops being grown. T hey revolutionised ag r ic u l tu ra l econom y b y in troducing an d p ro p a ­gating th e cu l t iv a t io n of clover ; a t a tim e when chemical fertilisers w ereunknown, th e y Group of small-holdings in Evere (Brussels neighbourhood),encouraged th e i n t e n s i v e p r o ­duction of m a ­nure by grow ing fo ra g e p l a n t s and feeding th e ir animals in th e sheds; they even s u c c e e d e d in producing two crops a y ea r b y growing tu rn ip s as a catch-crop.It was the first

12 BELGIUM

t im e t h a t th is h a d been done in E u ro p e , a n d the feat was perfo rm ed in the W aas d is tr ic t , in sp ite of its sandy soil, which is by n a tu re n o t very fertile. I t is n o t w ith o u t pride, therefore , t h a t th e in h a b i ta n ts of W a as b ea r on th e ir blazon a tu rn ip p roper on an azure field.

The old em pirical system of agr icu ltu re reached its peak in B ra b a n t an d F lan d ers in th e e igh teen th cen tu ry . Belgian

Landscape in Flanders. (Photo Sergysek-OBLUT.)

agricu lture served as a m odel for t h a t of neighbouring countries, on w hich it h a d a profound influence.

G e n e r a l A s p e c t o f R u r a l L i f e

In Belgium, which is densely po p u la ted , w here industrial a n d ag r icu ltu ra l centres overlap , an d w here th ere are numerous easy m eans of com m unica tion be tw een tow n a n d country, the v is i to r will seek in v a in for n a t io n a l costum es, national dances or an y o th e r p ic tu resque an d colourful manifestations of n a tiona l folklore such as are still to be found in some more iso la ted places which are less influenced b y th e m odern world.

T he only occasions when vestiges of the o ld-tim e arts and custom s of the people are likely to be encoun tered are trad it ional processions or festivals. T hen p ea san t w om en of t h e Campine

BELGIUM 13

may be seen w earing th e i r stiff head-dresses t r im m ed w ith dark - brown ribbon , an d th e ir g ra n d m o th e rs ’ big shawls, or girls from the Liège d is tr ic t w ith large conical ha ts , o r B ra b a n t in e peasants in sh iny blue sm ocks w ith ta ll b lack silk caps.

Yet F lem ish w om en still w ear large red w h ite -sp o tted kerchiefs on th e ir heads w hen th ey are w orking in th e fields, thus adding to th e landscape a gay p o p p y -red p a tc h of colour.

Landscape in the Ardennes. (Photo c. E . b . o b l u t . )

H BELGIUM

I

A. I N F L U E N C E O F T H E D E M O G R A P H IC S IT U A T IO N

B. D E N S I T Y O F T H E A G R IC U L T U R A L P O P U L A T I O N

C. S T A T E O F H E A L T H

A. I n f l u e n c e o f t h e D e m o g r a p h i c S i t u a t i o n

A t the end of D ecem ber 1930, there were in Belgium 2,671 com m unes, of w hich 2,357 h a d less th a n 5,000 inhabitants each a n d an aggregate popu la t ion of 3,198,321— th a t is to say, 39.52 % of th e to ta l popu la t ion of the coun try .

314 com m unes w ith more th a n 5,000 in h ab i tan ts each had a n aggregate popu la tion of 4,893,683 in h ab i tan ts , or 60.48% of th e to ta l popu la t ion of the coun try .

According to the census of 1930, th e n u m b er of persons engaged in agricu ltu ra l w ork w ould seem to be 635,032 out of a to ta l of 3,750,285 w orking persons— th a t is to say, 16.9 %. Persons tem pora ri ly em ployed in agriculture shou ld also be counted . Thus, th e num ber of persons engaged in agriculture w ould be ab o u t 800,000— th a t is to say, 20.5 % of th e working popula tion of the country .

B. D e n s i t y o f t h e A g r i c u l t u r a l P o p u l a t i o n

The tab le which follows shows, b y can tons an d provinces, the n u m b er of persons em ployed in ag r icu ltu ra l work per h u n d re d hectares of area cu lt iva ted . These d a ta are obtained b y calculations based on the s ta tis tic s of th e agricu ltu ra l census of 1929.

BELGIUM 15

A g r i c u l t u r a l C e n s u s o f 1 9 2 9

Table showing, b y jurisd ict ional areas of cantons, th e relative in ten s ity

of th e areas c u lt iv a ted .

SerialNo.

Name of canton Report

A n t w e r p

I A ntwerp............................... 43-5

2 A r e n d o n c k ......................... 3° . °B e r c h e m .............................. 71.9

4 B o o m ................................... 61.4

5 B o r g e r h o u t .................... 83.36 Brecht .............................. 32.6

7 C o n t i c h .............................. 58.38 D u f f e l .................................. 94.2

q Eeckeren.............................. 28.9

10 H e r e n th a ls ......................... 39-311 Heyst op den Berg . . 7 4-9

12 Hoogstraeten . . . . 3 i -5

13 Lierre .................................. 6 0 .6

14 M a l i n e s .............................. 79 -4

15 M o l l .................................. 33-116 P u e r s ................................... 7 0 .8

17 Santhoven ......................... 36.718 Turnhout ......................... 39-419 W e s t e r l o o ......................... 46.8

The P rov inc e . . . .

B r a b a n t

45-2

20 A e r s c h o t ......................... 55-521 A n d er le ch t ......................... 93-822 A s s c h e .............................. 6 9 .0

23 B r u s s e l s .............................. 2 0 9 . 7

24 D i e s t ................................... 4 4 - 725 Genappe .............................. 2 0 .126 Glabe ek-Surbem pde . . 51-927 H a e c h t .............................. 6 4 .828 H a l ....................................... 37-429 Ixelles .............................. 78.530 J o d o i g n e ......................... 4 ° . 9

31 Lennick-St-Quentin . . 55-7

SerialNo. Name of canton Report

32 L o u v a i n .............................. 54-533 N i v e l l e s .............................. 24.9

34 P e r w e z ............................. 31-935 S a in t -G il le s ......................... 17.236 St-J o sse -ten -N ood e . . 72.0

37 S c h a e r b e e k .................... 115.8

38 M olenbeak-St-J ean . . 115.0

39 T i r l e m o n t ........................ 48.940 U c c l e .................................. 43-34 1 V i l v o r d e .............................. 71.4

42 W avre .............................. 27.6

43 W o l v e r t h e m .................... 61.0

44 L é a u ................................... 36.9

The Province . . . .

W e s t e r n F la n d e r s

47.6

45 A rdoye .............................. 57-446 A v e l g h e m ......................... 47-347 Bruges .............................. 37-848 D ix m u d e .............................. 38.949 G h i s t e l l e s ......................... 37-550 H a r l e b e k e ......................... 5 I-I5 i H o o g l e d e ........................ 55-152 Y p r e s .................................. 35-153 I s e g h e m .............................. 40.1

54 C o u r t r a i .............................. 4*- 00

55 M e n i n ................................... 36.1

56 M e s s in e s .............................. 36.557 M e u l e b e k e ........................ 45-358 M o o r s e e l e ......................... 39-359 M o u s c r o n ......................... 40.660 N ieuport ......................... 29.661 O s t e n d e .............................. 33-662 Oostroosebeke . . . . 46.6

63 P asschen d aele . . . . 43-464 P operinghe .................... 43'565 R ousbrugge-H aringhe . 34 -1

i 6 BELGIUM

Serial Name of canton Report

6 6 R o u l e r s .............................. 49-46 7 R uysse lede .................... 46 -56 8 T h i e l t .................................. 39-96 9 T hourout ......................... 5 2 . 8

7 0 F u r n e s .................................. 2 5 . 2

7 i W ervicq ......................... 4 0 . 6

The P rov ince . . . ■

E a s t e r n F la n d e r s

4 0 . 2

72 A l o s t .................................. 6 4 . 0

73 A s s e n e d e ........................ 6 5 . 7

74 A udenarde ........................ 43-6

75 B e v e r e n ............................. 32-57 6 Caprycke ........................ 37-8

77 C r u v s h a u te m .................... 55-6

78 T e r m o n d e ......................... 6 8 . 4

79 D e y n z e ............................. 47-58 0 E ec loo ............................. 5° . 8

81 E verg em ......................... 8 0 . 1

8 2 G r a m m o n t ........................ 4 6 . 3

8 3 G hent .................................. 4 6 . 2

8 4 H a m m e ............................. 6 1 . 9

8 5 H e r z e l e ............................. 5 6 . 2

8 6 L e d e b e r g ............................. 51-8

87 L o k e r e n ............................. 7 6 . 3

8 8 L oochristy .................... 6 1 . 0

8 9 N a z a r e th ............................. 54-89 0 N e d e r b r a k e l .................... 53-8

9 1 N e v e l e ............................. 4 5 - °9 2 N in o v e ............................. 53-6

93 Oosterzeele .................... 5 8 . 6

94 R e n a i x ............................. 35-795 Hoorebeeke-Ste-M arie . 53-59 6 S a in t - N i c o la s .................... 6 1 . 2

97 S t-G il les-W aes . . . . 49-79 8 S o m e r g e m ........................ 4 8 . 2

99 T a m i s e ............................. 4 8 . 9

1 0 0 S o t t e g e m ......................... 5 0 . 5

1 0 1 W a e r s c h o o t .................... 57-91 0 2 W e t t e r e ....................... 6 8 . 7

1 0 3 Z e l e ....................................... 7 0 . 0

The Province . . . . 53-8

SerialNo.

Name of canton Report

H a in a u t

I O 4 A n t o i n g ........................ 36 .9

105 A t h .................................. 38 .0I 0 6 B e a u m o n t ................... 16.0

I 0 7 B in ch e ............................. 3 3 .31 0 8 B o u s s u ........................ 53-4I O 9 C e l l e s ............................. 32 .6I I O Charleroi ................... 81.3

I I I C h â t e l e t ........................ 30.4

I 1 2 C h i è v r e ........................ 38 .6

113 Chi m a y ........................ 13.6

I I 4 D o u r ............................. 31.6

115 E n g h i e n ........................ 3 i . i

I l 6 F l o b e c q ........................ 38.3

1 1 7 F ontaine-1’E vêq u e 37.8I l 8 Frasnes-lez-Buissenal 38.3

1 1 9 Gosselies ................... 29.3

1 2 0 j u m et ........................ 40.6

1 2 1 La L ouvière . . . . 49.0

1 2 2 L e n s ............................. 30.3

1 2 3 L e s s i n e s ........................ 42.2

I 2 4 Leuze ............................. 38.2

I 2 5 M archienne-au-Pont 33-3

1 2 6 M erbes-le-Château . . 22.3

1 2 7 M o n s ............................. 4151 2 8 P â t u r a g e s .................... 26.1

1 2 9 P e r u w e l z .................... 3641 3 0 O uevaucam ps . . . 3 7 2

131 R o e u l x ........................ 30.0

1 3 2 S e n e f f e ........................ 27-3

133 S o i g n i e s ........................ 1 22.9

134 T e m p l e u v e ................... 3 3 4

135 T h u i n .............................. 27.7

1 3 6 T o u r n a i ........................ 42.3

The P ro v in c e . . .

L iè g e

j 30-9

I 37 A u b e l ............................. 3 4 '°

138 D a l h e m ........................ 38.9

139 D i s o n ............................. 50.6

140 E u p en ........................ 17.1

BELGIUM 17

SerialNo.

Name of canton Report Serial Name of canton Report

141 Ferrières ......................... 17.4 L u x e m b u r g

142 F e x h e - S l i n s .................... 31.8 178 A r l o n .................................. 22.4

143 Fléron ............................. 40.7 179 B astogn e ........................ 21.0

144 G r i v e g n é e ......................... 48. i 180 B o u i l l o n ............................. I 1.1

145 Hannut .............................

00O

181 D u r b u y ............................. 18.3146 H é r o n .................................. 28.1 182 E rezé ; ............................. 16.2

147 H e r s t a l .............................. 61.6 183 E t a l l e .................................. 13.5I48 H e r v e ................................... 45-2 184 F a u v i l l e r s ......................... 17.0149 Hollogne-aux-Pierres 33-2 185 F l o r e n v i l l e ........................ 14.6ISO H u y ................................... 24.6 186 H o u f f a l i z e ........................ 19.21.51 Jehay-Bodegnée . . . 31.0 187 La R oche-en-A rdenne . 15-4152 L a n d e m .............................. 47.2 188 M a r c h e ............................. 14.7153 L i è g e .................................. 169.0 189 M e s s a n c y ........................ 28.8154 L i m b o u r g ......................... ig .o 190 N a s s o g n e ......................... 13.0J55 L o u v e i g n é ......................... 24.4 191 N e u f c h â t e a u .................... 19.3156 M alm édy.............................. 20.5 192 P a l i s e u l ............................. 14-5157 N a n d r i n .............................. 17.2

193 S a in t - H u b e r t ................... 13.0158 S a in t -N ic o la s .................... 130.7 194 Sibret .................................. 19.6159 S a i n t - V i t h ......................... 20.8

195 V i e l s a l m ............................. 19.6160 S e r a i n g .............................. 23-7 196 Virton ............................. 16.4161 Spa.......................................... 22.2 197 W ellin ............................. 12.0162 S t a v e l o t .................................. 17.7

The P ro v in c e . . . . 16.6163 \ e r v i e r s .............................. 48.6164 W a r e m m e ......................... 3 2-1 N a m u r

The Province. . . . 26.6198 A ndenne ............................ 20.8

L im b o u r g 199 B e a u r a i n g ........................ 10.6200 C i n e y ....................................... 14.9

165 B e e r i n g e n ............................ 34 -S 201 C o u v i n ............................. 10.3166 B i l s e n ........................................ 33-9 202 D i n a n t .............................. 13-3167 L o o z ................................... 39-2 203 E g h e z é e ............................. 26.9168 B r é e .................................. 3 i -4 204 F l o r e n n e s ......................... 13-5169 H a s s e l t ............................. 46.7 205 F o s s e .................................. 21.8170 Herck-la-Ville . . . . 42.1 206 G e d i n n e ............................. 14-5171 M a e s e y c k ......................... 32.5 207 G e m b l o u x ......................... 27.1172 M echelen .............................. 32.1 208 N a m u r ............................. 22.3!73 N e e r p e l t .............................. 31.8 209 P hillippe v i l l e .................... 13.0174 P e e r ................................... 3°-7 210 R o c h e f o r t ......................... 13.2r75 Sichen-Sussem-Bobré . 38.9 211 W a l c o u r t ........................ 18.2176 S a i n t - T r o n d .................... 3 5 Ô The P ro v in c e . . . . 16.8*77 î o n g r e s .................................. 34-8

The P rovince . . . . 35 '4 T h e K i n g d o m . . . . 32.7

18 BELGIUM

C. S t a t e o f H e a l t h

In a general way, the s ta te of h ea l th of the ru ra l population is less good th a n th a t of the urban .

The d ea th ra tes do n o t v a ry m u ch as be tw een tow n and coun try , b u t th e b i r th ra te in the c o u n try is m u ch larger, a n d hence the ru ra l popu lation is younger th a n the population of the towns.

According to s ta tis tic s com piled in 1935, small or medium- sized places— th a t is to say, those w ith a popu la tion varying from 2,000 to 5,000 and 5,000 to 25,000 respectively—show lower figures— 12.08 and 12.39 d ea ths per th o u san d inhabitants — w hereas sm all villages an d large tow ns seem to be in a less favourab le position, w ith figures of i3 .3 5 % o a n d 13.52.

In fan tile m o r ta l i ty is m uch higher in the c o u n try than in towns. In the larger localities, th o u g h the b i r th ra te is lower, d ea ths are fewer am ong infants.

This is an exam ple of the results t h a t m a y be obta ined from general m easures for im provem en t of h ea l th conditions, better living conditions a n d more active h ea lth services. N ot only can th e u n fo r tu n a te influence of tow n conditions be overcome, but also the m o r ta l i ty am ong small children can be reduced far below the level it has reached in co u n try distric ts .

On th e o ther hand , the g rea ter in fan ti le m o r ta l i ty in country d is tr ic ts as co m p ared w ith tow ns is due in p a r t to the fact that th e families are larger, an d th a t the fa rm e r ’s wife has her time tak e n up b y m uch agricu ltura l w ork (tending cattle , etc.) w hich takes her aw ay from home, so t h a t she is o ften unable to give proper care to her young children.

Death Rate -per Thousand L ive B irths : IÇ34I35.1

Population of communes

1-2 m o n t h s ....................2-3 m o n t h s ....................3-6 m o n t h s ....................

(m onth ly average)6-12 m onths

(m onth ly average) 1-12 m onths

Less than 2,000- 5,000- More than2,000 5,000 25,000 25,000

8.0 9-5 9-3 7-48.7 9-7 9-2 7-45-7 5-8 5-7 5-5

3-0 3-2 2.8 2.7

52.2 55-7 52 .7 47.6

The s itua tion is re la tive ly b e t te r in the very small communes, an d the excess of th e ru ra l d ea th ra te is more pronounced during the th ird m onth.

1 According to the comparative tables of the Official Register (Central Statistical Office).

(These tables have been copied from “ I.a Mortalité en Belgique ”, by Willy S e l l e s l a g s , which appeared i n the review Archives de Médecine S o c ia le e td’Hy gisne 1938, Place Royale, 2, Brussels.)

BELGIUM *9

For exam ple, th e infantile m o rta l i ty ra te of the prov ince of Antwerp is 7 .660/Oo, b u t only 5 .o6°/00 for the city of Antwerp. In the sam e province, fifty-six villages have a d ea th r a te of more th a n io ° /00, a n d four of m ore th a n 2o°/O0.

The m ain cause of in fan ti le m o rta l i ty is ignorance am ong mothers as to the care of children.

Nevertheless, th e s t i l l -b ir th ra te is lower in the co u n try than in the towns. This m ay be expla ined b y th e d irect re la tion ­ship betw een the s t i l l -b ir th r a te a n d the n u m b er of illegitim ate children, which is v e ry m uch g rea te r in towns.

Still b irth rateCategory of commune per 1,000 total births

(1 9 3 4/3 5)

Less th an 2,000 in h a b itan ts ................................ 28.72.000-5,000 in h a b ita n ts .......................................... 29.35.000-25,000 i n h a b i t a n t s .......................................... 32.7More th a n 25,000 inh a b ita n ts ................................ 37.1The w hole K i n g d o m .................................................... 32.2

There are no s ta tis tic s ava ilable which would enable a comparison to be m ade of the dam age done b y th e various diseases in tow n an d in country .

Nevertheless, i t m a y be said t h a t p u lm o n ary tuberculosis, which till recently appeared to be a specifically u rb an disease, cannot now, it seems, be regarded as such, the tuberculosis death ra te in large tow ns hav in g diminished proportionate ly more th an in co u n try districts.

In recen t years, i t seems th a t the former rule is being reversed, an d the sm aller the locality, the g rea ter the tuberculosis death rate .

Pulm onary Tuberculosis in B elg ium : Death Rate by Categories of Communes.

1 9 0 3 - 1 9 0 5 1 9 2 3 - 1 9 2 5 1 9 3 3 - 1 9 3 5

(Rate per 100,000 inhabitants)

Less th an 5,000 i n h a b i t a n t s ............. 99 53 505.000-25,000 in h a b ita n ts ...................... 95 66 5325.000-100,000 i n h a b i t a n t s ............. 120 104 79More than 100,000 in h a b ita n ts . . . . 163 105 68

(Indices showing decline in rate)

Less th a n 5,000 in h a b i t a n t s ............. 100 54 515.000-25,000 in h a b ita n ts ...................... 100 69 5625.000-100,000 i n h a b i t a n t s ............. 100 87 66More th an 100,000 in h a b ita n ts . . . . 100 64 42

There has, in recen t tim es, been a general increase in cancer. There w ould also a p p e a r to be an epidemic of influenza

in every village every year.

2 0 BELGIUM

One of the specific diseases of ru ra l areas is melitococcia, which is also called M alta fever, M editerranean fever, or u n d u la n t fever. This disease, which appeared in the Mediter­ranean region a t th e beginning of this cen tu ry , is now spreading generally. I ts definite existence was re p o r ted from sixty-four F rench d ep a rtm en ts during the year 1936; fourteen ce r ta in cases were diagnosed a t the Provincial Bacteriological In s t i tu te in the province of N a m u r alone ; b u t there m ust be m a n y more cases, for this is a pro teiform disease which can only be diagnosed by m eans of a b lood test.

This disease, w hich in itself is no t specially serious, may involve com plications in the nerves an d lungs. I t is transm itted to m an b y dom estic animals, p a r ticu la r ly ca ttle , th ro u g h direct co n ta c t or th ro u g h the digestive trac t .

In conclusion, the general s ta te of h ea l th am ong rural populations m ay be said to be satisfactory . N a tu ra lly , consider­able im provem en ts m ay a n d ought to be m ade in th e future. Such im provem ents will be effected th rough the jo in t activities of the public au thorities a n d of private persons in th ree fields : education, b y the sp read of the principles of h ea l th an d child care ; ru ra l im provem ents , m ain ly b y th e ex tension of the drinking-w ater supp ly ; and, lastly, in th e economic sphere, by the im provem en t of the conditions of life am ong th e rural population.

BELGIUM 21

I I

A. L A N D T E N U R E , H O M E L A N D S E T T L E M E N T , A G R A R I A NR E F O R M S

B. IM P R O V E M E N T O F S Y S T E M S O F C U L T IV A T IO N

C. L A N D R E C L A M A T IO N A N D I M P R O V E M E N T

0 . I M P R O V E M E N T OF V E G E T A B L E A N D A N IM A L P R O D U C ­T IO N

E. E Q U IP M E N T

F. R U R A L I N D U S T R I E S

G. R E D U C T IO N O F COSTS O F P R O D U C T IO N , O R G A N IS A T IO NOF S A L E S A N D M A R K E T S

H. S T A N D A R D I S A T I O N

A. L a n d T e n u r e , H o m e L a n d S e t t l e m e n t , A g r a r i a n

R e f o r m s

In Belgium, there are tw o m ethods of farm ing land :

1. D irect w orking or fa rm ing b y the owner himself.Such an ag r icu ltu r is t m a y devo te himself to utilising the

full resources of his land w ith no r isk of hav ing to leave the fa rm , such as always in terferes w ith the co n tin u ity essential to good farming. Moreover, on the security of his p ro p e r ty he can eas i ly o b ta in cred it for im p ro v em en ts or developm ents.

2. In d irec t w orking or fa rm in g by an agricu ltu r is t holding his farm on lease.

By the L aw of M arch 7 th , 1929, th e lessee is assured of a first tenancy of a t least n ine years. If th e lease is th en renewed, the owner m a y ev ic t the te n a n t , p ro v id ed only t h a t he observes the clause requ ir ing notice of tw o years. M any farm ers are urging t h a t g rea te r secu ri ty of ten u re is desirable, especially in th e form of renew als of leases for a fu r th e r nine years. A proposal to th is effect is a t p re sen t be ing discussed in P arliam ent.

Belgian law also em bodies th e principle of p ay m e n t of outgoing com pensa tion to a n ev ic ted fa rm er for works, p lan ting and developm ent ca rried o u t du ring his tenancy , an d for o u tlay on crops p la n te d a t the en d of the lease. The incom ing ten a n t frequently neglects to p repare an in v en to ry of the p ro p e r ty as required b y law, an d hence o ften forfeits the outgoing compensation.

22 BELGIUM

The organ isa tion of cred it for te n a n ts [might w ith advantage be m ade b roader a n d more flexible. I n this connection, however, the Raiffeisen ban k s have been of g rea t service.

An In s t i tu te of A gricu ltu ra l Credit was estab lished by royal decree on S ep tem b er 30th , 1937, b u t is still only a t the beginning of its work.

In the two following tables, agricultural holdings are classified according to their m ethod of working, a n d th e evolution is show n from 1880 to the p resen t day.

Classification of Holdings according to M ethod of Working.

(a ) N u m b er of holdings.

Freehold Leasehold

Year Total Number Percentage Number Percentage

1880 . . 910,396 293,524 32.24 616,872 67.761895 • ■ 829,625 231,319 27.88 598,306 72.121910 . . No returns available1930. . 1,131,146 5 4 5 , H 7 48.19 586,029 5 I . 8 l

(b ) Area of holdings.

Total Direct working On lease

1880.. 1,983,57° 7 I 3>°59 1,270,5111895.. 1,916,617 596,259 1,320,358I Q I O . . 2,017,964 616,753 r , 401,2111 9 3 0 . . 1,906,598 726,834 1,179,764

The ind irec t m e th o d of w ork ing (leasehold) will be seen to have s tead ily increased u n ti l 1910.

The re tu rn s for 1930 seem to ind icate a b reak in th is upward m o v em en t of the m e th o d of ind irec t working. This break is due to the tem p o ra ry period of p ro sp e rity experienced by agricu ltu re from 1925 to 1928, w hich enab led num erous agri­cu ltu r is ts to get r id of m ortgages an d to purchase or redeem p a r t of th e la n d th e y cu lt iva ted .

As regards the area of ag r icu ltu ra l holdings, there was a m ark ed p redom inance of small-holdings (5 to 10-15 hectares), toge ther w ith a ten d en cy to divide up land. F aced w ith the difficulties of to -day , th e g rea t landed proprie to rs find it to th e ir a d v a n tag e to divide u p the ir es ta tes in to holdings of m edium size.

Sm all-holdings have w ith s to o d the effects of the depression m ore firmly a n d m ore successfully, owing to th e v ar ied nature of the ir produce an d m ore especially to th e self-sacrifice of the

fa rm er an d his family.

B E L G I U M 23

In the following tab le , holdings are classified according to area a t in terva ls of th ir ty -five years :

Classification of H oldings by Area.

Number of holdings

Area in 1S95 in 1930

Less than 1 ha. . . 544,041 838,883

1-5 ha.5-10 h a .....................10-20 h a ...................20-30 h a ...................30-50 h a ...................50-100 h a .................More than 100 ha.

191,83349,06528,151

8,163 4,788 2,661

923

194,914 ) 56 ,3 H i 27,882 \

7,010 I 3,656 2,026 \

464

Total 829,625 1 ,131,146

T he agriculturist has an­o ther occupation.

Increase in th e num ber of small-holdings.

Decrease in the num ber of large holdings.

properties.

In this connection, a t te n t io n m a y also be d raw n to the activities of th e N a tio n a l Society for Small L an d e d P roperty . This society, fou n d ed in 1935, is s ta r t in g a “ b ack to the lan d ” movement. F o u n d ed u n d e r G ov ern m en t auspices, th e Society has been supplied w ith funds to p u t its p lans in to execution.

I t helps th e families of sm all ag r icu ltu r is ts or w orkers to become owners of sm all-holdings, ag r icu ltu ra l build ings or garden plots b y lending th e m a considerable p roportion of the purchase-price a t a low ra te of in tere s t. R ep ay m e n t is effected in ten to tw en ty-f ive years b y a n n u a l in s ta lm en ts w hich m ay not exceed a n o rm a l re n t or sim ilar charges.

Further, as regards social reform s, legislation is being p repared with a view to organising ag r icu l tu ra l wages.

Jo in t com m ittees are now being set u p to regu la te re la tions between em ployers an d ag r ic u l tu ra l wrorkers. Collective con ­tracts have been d raw n up which, th o u g h w ith o u t th e force of law, constitu te a semi-official guide to th e w ork of the agricu ltura l labourer (m inim um wages, len g th of w ork per day, based upon the to tal am o u n t of w ork perfo rm ed during the year, estim ates of perquisites in k ind, etc.).

The app lica tion of social laws to ag r icu ltu ra l workers has now reached the p rac t ica l stage.

B. I m p r o v e m e n t o f S y s t e m s o f C u l t i v a t i o n

The Belgian ag ricu ltu r is t fa rm s his land on a highly intensive system. By the ra tio n a l app lica tion of m ethods of cu lt iva tion and the ap p ro p ria te use of n a tu ra l an d chem ical fertilisers, he turns the p ro d u c tiv e power of the soil to the best ad v an tag e . This does n o t m ean th a t more could n o t be p roduced per h ec tare ;

24 B ELG IUM

b u t th e increase in expend itu re involved by fu r th e r improve­m en ts and heavier dressings of chem ical fertiliser would not be covered by the add itiona l yield from increase in production.

The Belgian ag ricu ltu r ist tries to reduce p roduc tion costs b y m odernising his m ethods of cu ltiva tion , including the reduc­tion of the n u m b er of hands w herever possible, b y the use of t rac to rs a n d of ag ricu ltu ra l m ach inery w ith a large output. L ab o u r is one of the chief i tem s in an ag ricu ltu ra l balance-sheet. The following are a few figures ta k e n from the 1937 accounts of fa rm s a t H esbaye, a p red o m in an tly ag ricu ltu ra l district.

On a farm of 10 hec tares, ou t of a to ta l expend itu re of 30,800 francs, 10,000 francs w en t to p a y labour costs.

On a fa rm of 20 hectares, o u t of an ex pend itu re of 63,750 francs, 20,000 francs were devo ted to th e sam e purpose.

On a farm of 100 hec tares, 100,000 francs were absorbed b y lab o u r costs o u t of a to ta l of 263,500 francs.

In o th er words, labour accounts for ap p ro x im a te ly 25 % to 35 % of p roduc tion costs. I t w ould therefore be highly desirable to reduce th is item b y the m echan isation of agricultural holdings. U nfo rtunate ly , such m echan isation w ould require a fresh o u tlay of capital, which agricu lture can ill afford. Secondly, m ost Belgian farm s are sm all ; hence th e w idespread use of t rac to rs an d powerful ag r icu ltu ra l m ach inery is n o t feasible.

The m echanisation of fa rm ing also p resen ts a b y no means negligible danger th rough the fac t t h a t i t is a d irec t competitor of horse trac tio n ; and th is is an im p o r ta n t consideration because horse-breeding is a very big b ran ch of Belgian agricultural economy.

C. L a n d R e c l a m a t i o n a n d I m p r o v e m e n t

The Belgian p easan t has always se t his h e a r t on possessing good land , k ep t in perfect condition ; a n d to achieve this result he has spared neither time nor trouble. U nfo r tu n a te ly , owing to the high cost of reconditioning it, he can n o t alw ays improve the lan d as he w ould wish. This question of fertilisers is one of the chief preoccupations of Belgian ag ricu ltu ra l circles.

As regards the periodical liming of land, g re a t progress has been recorded in the p as t tw en ty years. W hereas formerly only a m inority of farm ers limed th e ir land, all are now fam iliar with ad v an tag es gained and the m a jo r i ty have recourse to this process.

O ther im provem ents, such as dra inage an d th e removal of stones, are no t carried o u t as w'idely as could be desired.

I t w ould also be an ad v a n tag e if w aste lan d were properly utilised, a l though the area of such land is very sm all in Belgium. This wrill n o t be possible for some tim e to come, however, on accoun t of the cu r ren t price of agricu ltu ra l produce. In fact, the pay ing cap ac ity of land new ly b ro u g h t under cultivation

B E LG IU M 25

would have to be such as to provide rem u n era tio n for the c a p i ta l outlay . T he D e p a r tm e n t of A griculture places b o th the te c h n ic a l co-operation of the ag ricu ltu ra l w ater-supp ly service an d subsidies in m oney a t th e disposal of those wishing to im prove the quality of the ir land.

D. I m p r o v e m e n t o f V e g e t a b l e a n d A n i m a l P r o d u c t i o n

The fu tu re of ag ricu ltu re res ts on a ra tio n a l use of the scien­tific d a ta now availab le th ro u g h th e research w ork of ag ricu ltura l experts an d technicians.

B e l g i u m possesses a rem ark ab le g a laxy of research-workers and scientists en th u s ias tica lly devo ted to the investigation of agricultural problem s. The selection of seeds, n u tr i t io n tests and milk inspection all claim the ir skilled a tten tion .

To bring before the public th e theories evolved b y agricu ltural research workers, all the m odern m ethods are em ployed, such as new spaper articles, leaflets, booklets, lectures, broadcasts , practical dem onstra tions , etc. L ive-stock-breeding and crop- raising com petit ions co n tr ib u te to the sam e end.

Belgium m a y also be p ro u d of possessing a bo d y of agricu ltural experts whose skill a n d zeal are un iversa lly recognised. T hanks to this élite of officials, th e fa rm er receives co n s tan t advice and guidance in th e w ay of ag ricu ltu ra l progress.

Other factors m ak ing for the im p ro v em en t of agricu ltural production include G overnm ent m easures such as the g ra n t of subsidies for the con stru c tio n of silos a n d liqu id m anure pits, an d subsidies an d cred its for the im pro v em en t of stables, cow-sheds, etc ., in add ition to the organisation, u nder official auspices, of com petit ions a n d ex p e r t appra isem ents for the various categories of live-stock ra ised in Belgium. Subsidies are g ra n te d b y th e G overnm ent, in the form of bonuses, for Belgian d ra u g h t stallions, ap p ro v ed for public s tu d purposes by specially ap p o in ted official boards.

The owners of the b es t fillies a n d b rood m ares of Belgian draught s tock receive sim ilar prizes. Companies engaged in raising ca ttle , pigs, goa ts a n d sheep also receive subsidies for the im provem en t of th e species.

A tten t io n m a y also be d ra w n to the es tab lishm en t of the National Milk a n d Milk D erivatives Office, w hich is in tended to co-operate w ith the D e p a r tm e n t of A griculture in im proving the production , d is tr ib u tio n an d m ark e tin g of m ilk an d its derivatives.

E . E q u i p m e n t

If the s ta tis tic s for 1910 are com p ared w ith those for 1929 in regard to th e n u m b er of m achines u sed for ag ricu ltu ra l work, it will be found t h a t m ore or less p rim itive appliances such as

26 B E LG IU M

w ind-driven m achinery , simple ploughs, harrow s, etc ., have g rea tly declined in n u m b er or have a lm ost com plete ly dis­ap p eared a n d have been replaced b y m ore h ighly perfected m achines capable of a g rea ter o u tp u t , such as oil a n d petrol engines, double B ra b a n t and m ultip le-shere p loughs, weed- ex trac to rs , reapers an d mowers. Again, m achines w hich were unknow n, or a lm ost unknow n, in i g io h a v e m ade th e ir appearance in 1929 ; these include electric m otors, t rac to rs , motor-ploughs, po ta to -p lan te rs , s traw - an d forage-presses, sulphur-sprayers, in cuba to rs a n d foster-m others, D u tch barns a n d mechanical milking appliances.

In some m a tte rs , such as the im provem en t of c o u n try roads a n d the e lectrifica tion of farms, th e au tho rit ies m igh t do useful w ork to im prove the conditions of co u n try life. The State subsidises schemes for the im p ro v em en t of m ain roads in rural areas, a n d also for th e electrification of ou tly ing districts.

T h a t the ag ricu ltu r ist u n d e rs tan d s a n d apprecia tes the assistance w hich electrical energy offers him in his work is p roved b y the increase in the n u m b er of electric m otors used on agricu ltu ra l holdings from 348 in 1910 to 27,336 in 1929 (when the las t ag ricu ltura l census was taken).

F. R u r a l I n d u s t r i e s

Most industries depending on th e p ro d u c ts of agriculture, such as sugar-refining, milling an d brewing, have reached a h igh stage of developm ent an d m a y be reg a rd ed as models of th e ir kind.

These industries soon becam e highly concen tra ted , and the process has led to the fo rm ation of t ru s ts or v ir tu a l monopolies which in practice con tro l the entire m arke t.

The n u m b er of sugar-refineries fell from 100 in 1900 to fifty-one in 1928, a n d is no more th a n th ir ty -s ix a t th e present time. I n 1937, th e y produced some 230,000 tons of unrefined sugar. An agreem ent has quite recently been reached between sugar-refiners and sugar-bee t growers w ith a view to ensuring th e inspection of sugar-bee t received a n d th u s giving a full g u a ran tee to b o th parties.

In 1910, there were 3,350 breweries, large an d sm all ; this n u m b er fell to 1,555 in 1930 an d to 1,300 in 1934. The produc­t ion of beer in 1937 am o u n ted to 14,300,000 hecto litres, almost all of which was m ade from raw m ater ia ls (barley and hops) of foreign origin.

The local w aterm ills an d windmills are s tead ily disappearing in face of the com petition of in d u s tr ia l mills, the largest of which — to th e n u m b er of ab o u t e ig h ty — are ten d in g to replace the others.

B E LG IU M 27

The in d u s tr ia l mills chiefly use foreign w heat. W ith a view to ensuring a h igher price for n a tiv e wrheat, millers are now ob liged to include a var iab le p ercen tag e of n a tiv e w h e a t in their milling flour.

The p reserved-vege tab le in d u s t ry is of g rea t im p o rtan ce on a c c o u n t of th e m ark e ts which i t provides for agriculture. The productive c a p ac i ty of the Belgian factories, w hich are world- renowned, has increased in p a r t ic u la r since 1927, and , in 1935, am ounted to 100 million half- litre tins.

At the in s ta n ce of th e M in istry of A griculture, w hich was seeking new m ark e ts fo r our m ilk p roduc ts , chocolate-m akers concluded in 1937 a supplies ag reem en t wdth the Belgian m an u ­facturers of m ilk pow der, enab ling th e la t t e r p a r tia lly to reopen their factories, w hich h a d been closed for a n um ber of years.

Belgium co n ta in s som e 180 co-operative dairies, com prising36.000 m em bers a n d som e 109,000 cows. In 1934, these dairies sold m ilk p ro d u c ts (milk, b u t te r , cheese, etc.) to th e value of218.171.000 francs.

The cheese-m aking in d u s t ry is, in general, litt le developed. The D e p a r tm e n t of A gricu lture is m ak ing an effort to im prove it in d istric ts where it co n s t i tu te s a speciality.

G. R e d u c t i o n o f C o s t s o f P r o d u c t i o n :

O r g a n i s a t i o n o f S a l e s a n d M a r k e t s

In the p re sen t econom ic s i tu a t io n , ag ricu ltu ra l w ork consists mainly of an incessan t s truggle aga inst costs of p roduction .

Since th e p ay in g c a p a c i ty of his ho ld ing is ex trem ely precarious, th e ag r ic u l tu r is t m u s t endeav o u r to reduce his production costs to a m in im um . N o t even the sm allest expense can be in cu rred w ith o u t careful consideration, an d th e n only if abso lu te ly necessary.

F rom th e p o in t of view of professional organisation , i t is to be re g re t ted t h a t ag r icu ltu r is ts do n o t co-operate more, especially for purchases of raw m ateria ls .

After dev o tin g his whole a t te n t io n to reducing costs of production, the ag r icu ltu r is t m u s t t r y to o b ta in the best possible sale price, if th e re is to be a m arg in of profit. To do so, he m u s t offer the consum er a p ro d u c t of good quality , fresh a n d a t tra c t iv e .

The ag r icu ltu ra l p ro d u cer m u s t also learn to m ake supp ly meet dem and. H e m u s t be capab le of judg ing th e q u a n t i ty of p roduc ts w hich a m a rk e t can absorb ; he m u st also know in which m a rk e ts he can offer a n y given p ro d u c t for sale.

This com m ercial know ledge is, however, of va lu e on ly to fairly large producers w ho h av e th e requisite m eans of t ra n sp o r t and can afford ce r ta in expenses for the p rese rva tion of the ir products. The sm all ag r icu ltu r is t is obliged to sell his p ro d u c ts in the n ea res t m ark e t, as a n d w hen he h a rv es ts th e m ; a n d in

28 B E L G I U M

doing so, he is com plete ly a t the m ercy of the consum er or the m iddlem an. The m ilk in d u s try offers a ty p ica l exam ple of this un favourab le s ituation .

In the sphere of in te rn a tio n a l trade , we are obliged to protect our hom e m a rk e t a n d our p ro d u c ts aga inst foreign com petition a n d dum ping. Hence th e v ery flexible sys tem of quo tas and licences, which is co n s tan tly being a d a p te d to m ee t current requ irem ents .

W ith a view to increasing agricu ltu ra l m ark e ts ab road , the G overnm en t proposes to es tab lish a N a tio n a l A gricu ltu ra l and H o rt icu ltu ra l M arkets Office to co-ord inate the efforts already m ade b y p r iv a te enterprise , an d especially b y the Association for the D evelopm ent of A gricu ltura l a n d H o rt ic u l tu ra l Markets.

This M arkets Office will perform a useful service for Belgian agricu ltu re b y r idd ing our hom e m a rk e t of its surp lus, and thus au to m atica l ly raising the value of our ag ricu ltu ra l products w ith in the co u n try .

H. S t a n d a r d i s a t i o n

If the ag r icu ltu r is t wishes to build up a s te a d y an d regular custom — which is, indeed, th e only one w orth while— h e must alw ays t r y to offer his custom ers good q u a li ty p ro d u c ts similar in app earan ce to those to which th e y are accustom ed.

H ence th e necessity for ca rry ing on the m ovem en t to s tan d ard ise p ro d u c ts b o th in q u a li ty a n d in size, appearance an d packing.

S tan d a rd isa tio n enables the p roducer to m ake su re of his hom e m ark e ts a n d to develop m ark e ts abroad.

R egulations are g rad u a lly being d raw n u p to un ify Belgian agricultural p roduc tion . The first p ro d u c ts s tu d ied for purposes of s ta n d a rd isa t io n an d su b jec ted to fixed regu la tions were those for w hich there was still a definite m a rk e t ab road , such as “ W itloof ” chicory, po tatoes, eggs a n d fru it (cherries, apples).

Such s tan d a rd isa t io n m u s t of course be in tro d u ce d gradually, an d only af te r careful consideration of all the fac to rs concerned : possibilities of p roduction , m ethods of preservation , means of tra n sp o r t , consum ers’ requ irem ents , p ack ing a n d appearance , etc.

F u r th e r , the producer also requires tra in ing . Skilful and persuasive p ro p a g an d a in favour of s tan d a rd ise d products is required , so t h a t the qualities of p ro d u c ts th u s guaran teed m ay becom e know n a n d apprec ia ted b y th e consum ing public.

Consequently , th is is a far-reaching u n d e r ta k in g w hich can bea r fru it only in course of time. Once the first s tep has been tak en , all t h a t is needed is to persevere along these lines, and the logical ou tcom e will be the un iversa l ad o p tio n of guarantee m ark s for m ost ag ricu ltu ra l p roduc ts .

B E LG IU M 2 9

I I I . A G R IC U L T U R A L C O -O P E R A T IO N

C la ss i f ie d a c c o r d i n g t o c h a r a c t e r , a g r i c u l t u r a l a s s o c i a t i o n s in B e lg i u m f a l l i n t o f i v e m a i n g r o u p s :

A A SSO C IA T IO N S O F A N E X C L U S I V E L Y O F F IC IA L C H A R A C T E R

B. A SS O C IA T IO N S O F A S E M I-O F F IC IA L C H A R A C T E R

C. A U T O N O M O U S A S S O C IA T IO N S

D. A SS O C IA T IO N S W I T H U N R E S T R I C T E D OB JE CT S

E. A SSO C IA T IO N S W I T H R E S T R I C T E D OBJECTS

A. A s s o c i a t i o n s o f a n E x c l u s i v e l y O f f i c i a l C h a r a c t e r

These are organised on th e basis of th e comice (conference), which opera tes w ith in a g iven a d m in is tra t iv e area, usually a canton ; th e comice looks a f te r th e professional in teres ts of its m embers, a n d a rranges exh ib it ions a n d local com petitions. Its area of a c t iv i ty is fixed b y th e M inister of A griculture, who also decides its in te rn a l o rgan isa tion a n d functions.

The var ious comices in a p rov ince to g e th e r fo rm a Provincial Agricultural Association. The la t te r supervises a n d controls the comices a n d concerns itself w ith all m a t te r s connected w ith the ag ricu ltu ra l ac tiv ities of th e province. I ts executive, k n o w n as th e Provincia l A gricu ltu ra l C om m ittee , is responsible for ord inary ad m in is tra t iv e affairs. The C hairm an an d Vice- Chairman a n d a re p rese n ta t iv e of each comice are m em bers of the provincial association.

B. A s s o c i a t i o n s o f a S e m i - o f f i c i a l C h a r a c t e r

These m ay be reg a rd ed as a link be tw een the official and autonom ous associations.

F irs t come the Provincial Chambers of Agriculture, founded in 1924, one in each province . T h ey consist of :

(1) One rep resen ta t iv e from th e P rovincial A gricu ltu ra l Association for every comice ;

(2) A n equa l n u m b er of re p resen ta t iv e s of the au tonom ous associations founded to p ro m o te th e general in te re s ts of agriculture ;

(3) R ep resen ta tiv es of the au tonom ous associations formed for special purposes, n u m b erin g one-fourth of th e to ta l n u m b er of rep resen ta t iv e s in the first two groups. A rep resen ta tiv e of the P e rm a n e n t D e p u ta t io n is ex officio a m em ber of th e provincia l cham ber.

3 0 B ELG IUM

The provincia l cham ber takes a n y ac tion th a t it thinks m ay serve the general in te re s ts of agricu ltu re in its province, an d gives its views o n all questions affecting agricu lture progress. I t answ ers requests for in fo rm a tio n from th e cen tra l adm in is tra ­tion or H igher A gricu ltu ra l Council, an d repo rts to i t any facts pre judic ia l to ru ra l in d u s try t h a t come to its notice. I t assists in the organ isa tion of com petitions an d the enforcem ent of G overnm ent m easures to encourage and p ro tec t the various branches of agricu lture .

N ex t comes the H igher A gricu ltura l Council, the composition of w hich was am e n d ed in 1924 to p e rm it of the wider representa­tion of au tonom ous ag r icu ltu ra l associations. I t consists of :

(1) Six m em bers a p p o in te d b y the Minister of Agriculture ;

y[2) F ive rep resen ta tiv es of each provincial chamber, e lected b y secret ba llo t ;

(3) Twelve m em bers co-opted from am ong the best qualified a n d best in fo rm ed rep resen ta tives of the agricultural com m unity . These tw elve m em bers are ap p o in ted by the m inisterial rep resen ta t iv e s and th e rep resen ta tiv es of the provincia l cham bers a t th e ir first m eeting.

The H igher A gricu ltu ra l Council concerns itself w ith the deve lopm ent an d progress of the various branches of national agriculture, gives opinions on questions referred to it by the G overnm ent, an d s tud ies recom m endations an d proposals com m unica ted to i t b y th e provincia l cham bers an d m em bers of the Council. A cen tra l co m m itte e deals w ith ro u tin e business an d advises the G overnm en t on u rg en t questions an d on matters n o t of sufficient im p o rtan ce to be discussed by the Council.

C. A u t o n o m o u s A s s o c i a t i o n s

The com m on ob jec t of these associations is to im prove the well-being of the ag ricu ltu ra l com m unity . Their success is due to th e fact t h a t the ir im m ed ia te aims are no t pu re ly economic in charac ter, since th ey also c a rry on social activities. Some associations are definitely denom inational.

1. The Belgian “ Boerenbond ”, Louvain.

This association, which operates in the Flem ish provinces an d the W alloon p a r t of B rab a n t , is th e s trongest, best organised a n d m ost com prehensive of its kind. I ts ac tiv ities are both social a n d economic : social, because it concerns itself with th e corporate life of its subs id ia ry groups an d the religious, moral an d social well-being of its m em bers, th e ir voca tional training an d the defence of the ir ag ricu ltu ra l in te re s ts ; economic, because, a t the same tim e, i t looks af te r the ir m ater ia l in terests .

B E LG IU M 31

T he u n i t is t h e guild or lo c a l c o m m u n a l or p a r is h a g r i c u l t u r a l a sso c ia t io n ; o n l y t h e h e a d o f t h e f a m i l y is r e g i s t e r e d , b u t a l l m em b e r s o f t h e f a m i l y e n j o y t h e b e n e f i t s o f c o - o p e r a t io n .

R epresen ta tives of all the guilds in th e ad m in is tra t iv e area (arrondissement) co n s t i tu te th e D is tr ic t F edera tion , which looks afte r th e ag ricu ltu ra l in te re s ts of th e district, an d m akes itself responsible, in p ar ticu la r , for the political rep resen ta tio n of the agricu ltu ra l co m m unity .

At the top are th e H igher Council an d the M anag ing Committee ; the la t t e r deals w ith ro u tin e business and supervises and controls the var ious ac tiv ities of th e Boerenbond.

For ca rry ing o u t its p rog ram m e, the B oerenbond has various central services :

(a ) The General Secretariat, which fo rw ards to the guilds in s truc tions regard ing o rgan isa tion a n d social activities, looks af te r th e ir m oral a n d religious in terests , seeks to ex tend voca tiona l t ra in in g a n d general ed u ca tio n a n d to im prove ag r icu ltu ra l techn ique a n d th e yield of ru ra l holdings, and defends the professional an d social in teres ts of the farming co m m u n ity ;

(b ) T he Countrywom en's League, for the wives and daughters of m em bers, w hich looks a f te r the ir religious, m oral a n d social w ell-being a n d seeks to raise the level of general ed u ca tio n ;

(c) T he Inspection Service, w hich ac ts as an in te rm ed ia ry betw een th e D irec to ra te a n d th e local guilds and supervises the l a t t e r ’s various ac tiv ities ;

(d ) T he Technical Service, w hich directs a n d carries out works of im p o rtan ce to ag ricu ltu re a n d the ru ra l popu la tion , and furn ishes techn ica l advice a n d in fo rm a tion ;

(e) The B u y in g and Se lling Agency, which accepts orders from th e b u y in g a n d selling d e p a r tm e n ts of the guilds an d directs th e sale of p roduce ;

( f ) T he Central R ura l Credit B ank , which opens credit accounts, accep ts deposits, g ra n ts loans, etc. ;

( g) The Insurance Department, w hich tra n sa c ts insurance business— fire, life, acc iden t a n d hail.

2. The Belgian A gricu ltura l Union.

This b o d y was founded in 1930 b y the m erging of the provincial associations of Liège, L u xem burg , H a in a u t a n d N am ur. Its objects are to group the W alloon fa rm ing co m m u n ity in a professional C hris tian o rgan isa tion for the defence of their moral an d m ate r ia l in te re s ts a n d to p rom ote agricu ltu ra l prosperity.

32 B ELG IUM

The u n it of the organ isa tion is th e local parish association, these local bodies com bin ing to form district associations (circonscriptions régionales). A t the h ea d of the organisation are the H igher Council a n d the M a n a g in g Committee. The special func tion of the H igher Council is to defend the profes­sional in teres ts of the ag r icu ltu ra l co m m u n ity vis-à-vis th e public au tho rit ies an d political parties . The m ain d u ty of the Managing C om m ittee is to d irec t the com m ercial an d financial operations of th e associa tion for which i t is solely responsible. I t is also responsible for th e organ isa tion an d inspection of the local associations a n d clubs.

The Belgian A gricu ltu ra l U nion devotes itself to the profes­sional t ra in ing a n d educa tion of the fa rm er an d the defence of his in terests.

I t helps to ex te n d the professional knowledge of farmers th ro u g h its periodical pub lications (journal, review, a n d bulletin), special pam ph le ts , lec tures an d advice, b y m eans of its ex p e rim en ta l an d selection grounds, garden ing an d grazing com petitions an d correspondence courses in agricu lture , and b y organising post-school and teach e rs ’ t ra in ing courses.

I t has concluded a special ag reem ent regard ing economic services w ith the B uying an d Selling Agency of th e Belgian B oerenbond.

3. Professional Agricultural Unions (U .P .A .) .

A post-w ar creation, the Professional A gricu ltu ra l Unions, or U .P .A .’s, rec ru it m ost of their m em bers am ong the big farmers in the W alloon provinces. The unions, w hich are undenom ina ­tional an d n o n -p a rty , aim a t influencing public opinion in a policy favourab le to agriculture.

The u n i t is the cantonal association, these bodies being affiliated to a provincial federation. The various provincial federa tions form th e N ational Federation, whose powers are v es ted in a M anaging C om m ittee and a General Council.

As economic institu tions , the U .P .A .’s have founded the A gricu ltura l B an k of Belgium, which tran sac ts all k inds of b an k in g business, an d a com m ercial agency. In insurance transac tions , the unions deal w ith those insurance companies which, in their view, offer the ir m em bers the m ost advan tageous conditions. T hey have m ixed y o u th groups (J.A .P.), combined in provincia l federa tions which to g e th e r form a national federation.

O ther au tonom ous associations— such as the Eigenaars en Landbouwersbond, a t Bruges ; th e Redt u Zelven, a t A lost ; the Fédération des M énagères rurales ; the Boerenfront, e tc .— exercise, on a sm aller scale, ac tiv ities sim ilar to those of the larger professional organisa tions above-m entioned . There is

B E LG IU M 33

not room in the p re sen t m o n o g rap h to describe the ir o rganisa tion or activities.

** *

From the standpoint of activities, th e agricu ltu ra l o rganisa tions can be subd iv ided in to associa tions w ith u n res tr ic ted and restricted objects, respectively.

D . A s s o c i a t i o n s w i t h U n r e s t r i c t e d O b j e c t s

The m ain fea tu re of these associations is the crea tion in their ran k s of sections w hich are independent of one another, each hav ing the ir sep a ra te m an ag em en t, accoun ts an d funds. This is necessary in the p u rsu i t of ce rta in special objects, in view of th e v a r ie d n a tu re of th e ag ricu ltu ra l ac tiv ities a n d the manifold in te re s ts of the m em bers affiliated to these associations.

The la t te r include th e guild, th e local ag ricu ltu ra l union. Most guilds h av e a b u y in g a n d selling d ep a r tm e n t , a ru ra l credit departm ent, a y o u th section, a research section, a c o u n try ­women’s club and , accord ing to th e d istric t a n d th e in terests they have to defend, a b ee troo t-g row ers’ union, a co-operative dairy, a s tock -b reed ing union, an insurance d ep a r tm en t , etc. The guild tak es p a r t in com petit ions a n d agricu ltu ra l exhibitions and, w ith the su p p o r t of the pub lic au thorities , helps to organise agricultural a n d h o r t icu ltu ra l ins truc tion . A ctually , it con­stitu tes a local ag r icu ltu ra l “ clearing house ” for all activities designed to p rom ote the m ate r ia l a n d m oral well-being of the agriculturist.

E. A s s o c i a t i o n s w i t h R e s t r i c t e d O b j e c t s

These associations whose econom ic objec ts are s tr ic tly limited, do va luab le w ork on behalf of th e various b ranches of agriculture.

(1) Co-operative dairies a im a t p roduc ing b u t te r of b e t te r s ta n d a rd q u a li ty , while o p e ra t in g on m ore economic lines and o b ta in in g a h igher yield.

(2) Beet-grower s ’ un ions defend th e in te re s ts of their m em bers and a rrange for the jo in t m ark e tin g of their beets if necessary ; w hen th e crop is gathered , th e y supervise delivery a t th e fac to ry , weighing, taring , and check the analyses.

(3) M u tu a l associations for the insurance and re-insurance of ca ttle , farm -horses, goats , pigs, e tc .— The local m u tu a l associations are fed e ra ted w ith provincia l com panies, which receive large g ra n ts from the G overnm en t and the provinces.

3 4 BELG IUM

(4) Stock-breeding unions, w hich are num erous and diverse in cha rac te r , qualify for public g ra n ts b y uniting in provincia l federations, these in tu rn form ing national federa tions :

(a) C attle-b reed ing unions and bull unions, which help to im prove ca t t le b y encouraging good strains ; th e y keep herd-books, an d organise com petitions at which th e anim als are ju d g ed by reference to their ex te rn a l fea tu res a n d their origin, progeny, p roductiv ity , etc. ;

(b) Small live-stock unions, w hich endeavour to give th e ir m em bers u p -to -d a te ex p e r t in fo rm a tion con­cern ing th e rea r ing of birds, b reed ing of dogs, etc. ;

(c) Pig, g o a t a n d sheep unions, w hich supervise selection a n d breeding a n d look af te r th e professional t ra in in g of the ir m em bers.

(5) H orticultural, bee-keeping and other specialised unions are fo rm ed according to the special crops or ac tiv ities in a p a r tic u la r d istric t. There are, for instance , federations of growers of “ witloof ” , s traw berries, tobacco, federa tions of fru it-grow ers, hop-p lan ters , flower-growers, m arket-gardeners, chicory-grow ers, vine-growers, etc.

(6) Co-operative buying associations purchase , on behalf of th e ir m em bers, on favourable term s, all agricultural req u irem en ts— fertilisers, ca ttle-feed, coal, s traw , plants, seeds, ag r icu ltu ra l im plem ents.

(7) Co-operative selling associations a im a t securing for m em bers b e t te r prices an d new m ark e ts for th e ir produce. T hey also t ra in m em bers to give m ore careful consideration to the req u irem en ts of consumers.

There are jo in t sales agencies for po ta to es (Comptoir du Boerenbond Belge, Malines), eggs (Comptoir du Boerenbond Belge, H asselt, Brussels, G hent a n d A ntw erp), vegetables (.M inques du Boerenbond Beige, Malines a n d H asselt) , cereals an d b u t te r (M in q u es , a t A ntw erp , H asse lt an d Brussels).

(8) Credit institu tions accep t deposits from m em bers and g ra n t th em loans on security . There are also local rural cred it ban k s affiliated to a Centra l B a n k such as the Central R u ra l Credit B an k of th e B oerenbond a t Louvain .

** *

This „ p len itude of professional associations serving and effectively defending the moral, professional a n d m aterial in teres ts of the ag r icu ltu ra l co m m u n ity is evidence of the great progress ach ieved in the ag ricu ltu ra l sphere an d proves how well Belgian agricu ltu r is ts have realised th e need for co-operation.

B E LG IUM 35

IV. A G R IC U L T U R A L C R E D IT

A. T h e I m p o r t a n c e o f A g r i c u l t u r a l C r e d i t a s a M e a n s

o f r a i s i n g t h e S t a n d a r d o f R u r a l L i f e

A g r ic u l t u r a l c r e d i t , p r o p e r l y o r g a n i s e d , is c e r t a i n l y o n e of the m o s t e f f e c t i v e m e t h o d s o f s p e c i f i c a l l y i m p r o v i n g th e s ta n d a r d o f r u r a l l i fe .

I t enables several aim s to be ach ieved w hich all com bine to raise the s ta n d a r d of life of th e ag r icu ltu ra l class.

First of all, i t helps th e p ea sa n t to become an owner of land. By enabling h im to b u y th e la n d he tills an d th e fa rm he works, agricultural c red it conduces to an equ itab le d is tr ib u tio n of agricultural p ro p e r ty . Besides, to tu r n a t e n a n t in to an owner is to render a social service of th e first im portance . Moreover, a farmer will u n d o u b te d ly ge t the m ax im u m yield from lan d which is his ow n p ro p e r ty , an d th is is b o u n d to reac t fa v o u rab ly on the resu lts of his operations. The te n a n t fa rm er is always liable to have his lease te rm in a te d ; in secu r i ty of ten u re p reven ts him from u n d e r ta k in g long-te rm lan d im p ro v em en ts a n d reduces his chances of ea rn ing a profit.

Generally speaking , th e p e a sa n t who owns his fa rm will have an easier life an d , consequen tly , a h igher s ta n d a rd of living th a n th e p ea sa n t who is on ly a te n a n t . The value of agricultural cred it as a m e th o d of ex ten d in g the class of pea san t proprietors is v e ry considerable.

The sam e applies to th e o th e r d irec tly p ro d u c tiv e aim s which agricultural c red it ren d ers a t ta in a b le , such as cred its for the purchase of fertilisers a n d selected seed, cred its for the purchase of agricu ltura l m achinery , a n d cred its for th e pu rchase of live­stock. In th is la s t connection, p a r ticu la r ly , ag r icu ltu ra l c red it is a decisive fa c to r in ra is ing th e s ta n d a r d of ru ra l life— in the case of o u tb reak s of fo o t-a n d -m o u th disease, for exam ple. This scourge causes severe losses am ong live-stock. In such lamentable c ircum stances , ag r icu ltu ra l c red it m u s t come to the relief of th e sufferers an d su p p ly th em w ith the necessary funds to b ring up th e ir s to ck to its form er level. B y the very fact of b ring ing the n u m b e r of live-stock u p to th e level needed by the farm , ag r icu ltu ra l c red it m ain ta in s th e s ta n d a r d of ru ra l life. I t th e re b y p rev en ts th is s ta n d a r d from collapsing com ­pletely, an d enables i t e v e n tu a l ly to be raised.

A gricultural c red it m a y also c o n tr ib u te in d irec tly to the maintenance a n d im p ro v e m e n t of th e s ta n d a r d of ru ra l life. When p ro p e r ty passes b y d ea th , for exam ple , i t p reven ts excessive sp li tt in g -u p of ag r icu ltu ra l holdings, th e size of which should never fall below th e m in im u m sufficient to feed an d

3 6 BE LGIUM

m ain ta in a family. A gricu ltu ra l c red it will p rov ide for this con tingency b y g ra n tin g the necessary cred its to b u y ou t the o th e r beneficiaries, th u s ensuring th a t th e successor to the p ro p e r ty is p laced in a position where he can w ork i t economically.

The above resu lts , however, will n o t be ach ieved unless ag r icu ltu ra l c red it is ad a p ted to the needs of the ru ra l population w hich m u s t have a t i ts disposal short- , m ed ium - a n d long-term credits.

S hort- a n d m ed ium -term cred it m u s t a lw ays be made ava ilab le to the ag r icu ltu ra l co m m u n ity w ith the minimum of form alities, a n d a t cheap ra tes. To achieve th is purpose :

(1) R ep ay m e n ts m u s t be sp read over th e whole term of th e loan ;

(2) E arlie r re p a y m e n t m u s t be p e rm i t te d a t an y time, w ith o u t com pensa tion for loss of in te re s t ;

(3) Loans m u s t be m ade solely on personal security in coun tries w here m ortgage reg is try fees are high, as usually h ap p en s ;

(4) The ra te of in te re s t m u s t be low. T hough this m eans t h a t the no rm al ra te ch a rg ed for b a n k advances is g enerally p roh ib itive , i t does n o t necessarily im ply that th e public au th o ri t ie s are abso lu te ly b o u n d to provide ag ricu ltu ra l c red it a t excep tionally low rates.

M utua l cred it, as p rac t ised on a v e ry large scale in those coun tries where th e Raiffeisen sys tem is applied, has as a rule alw ays been g ra n te d a t m o d era te ra te s such as agriculturists can afford to pay. The principle of m u tu a l shar ing on which th e sys tem is b ased produces excellent results. T he surplus funds of some m em bers help those who need credit. On deposits, a reasonable ra te of in te re s t is paid, w hich in most cases ap p ro x im a te s to the ra te allowed b y th e public savings banks. O verhead expenses are ex trem e ly low— in m ost cases, less th a n a q u a r te r of general b an k in g costs.

L ong experience has show n th a t m u tu a l c red it is in fact the r ig h t k ind of c red it for agricu lturists , a n d is ex trem e ly beneficial in t h a t i t conduces to the economic p ro sp e r i ty of the agricultural po p u la tio n s to w hich i t is extended .

On the o ther h an d , there is no evidence th a t agricultural cred it, o rganised on official lines a n d a t reduced ra tes , would be serviceable to ag ricu ltu re or raise th e s ta n d a r d of ru ra l life.

If th is m e th o d were adop ted , th e re w ould h av e to be a g u a ran tee t h a t S ta te funds w ould alw ays be available to furnish the necessary capita l.

If, during a serious financial crisis, th e G ov ern m en t found itself sh o rt of m oney an d was obliged to suspend such loans,

B ELG IU M 3 7

agriculturists accustom ed to v e ry cheap credit, whose costs were ca lcu la ted accordingly, w ould be un ab le to m ee t co m p e ti ­tion if th ey su d d en ly h a d to o b ta in c red it a t no rm al ra tes . The whole purpose of th e scheme w ould be im m ed ia te ly f ru s tra ted , and the ag r icu ltu ra l co m m u n ity w ould be p lu n g ed in to a serious crisis which w ould lower i ts s ta n d a r d of living.

The so lution to be recom m ended is t h a t G overnm ents , by means of general or, where necessary , special fiscal m easures, and a p ro p e r sy s tem of supervision, shou ld assist ex is ting m utual cred it o rgan isa tions— an d th ere are m a n y of th em in Western E u ro p ean coun tries— to con tinue to p lay the rôle of d is tr i ­butors of ag ricu ltu ra l c red it w hich th e y have so successfully filled in the pas t .

This is how public au th o rit ies can m o s t effectively assist in raising th e s ta n d a r d of ru ra l life.

B . A g r i c u l t u r a l C r e d i t i n B e l g i u m

i . Raiffe isen B anks.

At the end of 1937, th e Belgian F a rm e r s ’ U nion C entra Agricultural Credit B ank , L o u v a in (Caisse cen tra le de créd it agricole du B oeren b o n d Belge) com prised 1,097 local branches (known as Raiffeisen B anks). Most of these b an k s are in the Flemish-speaking p a r t of the co u n try . T h ey are au tho rised to tran sac t all k inds of ag r icu ltu ra l c red it business, b u t m ost of the loans are m ade on personal security . A t the end of 1937, the to ta l am o u n t of loans o u ts ta n d in g exceeded 25 million francs, and, d u ring th a t year, 1,388 loans were g ran ted .

2. A gricu ltura l Agencies (Com ptoirs agricoles).

By a law of A pril 15th, 1884, th e General Savings an d Pensions B a n k of Brussels (Caisse générale d ’épargne e t de retraite) is au th o rised to em ploy a p o r t io n of its available funds in loans to ag ricu ltu r ists . These opera tions are co n d u c ted through the m edium of ag r icu ltu ra l agencies which are re sp o n ­sible to the Savings B an k for all business th e y su b m it to it. The ra te of in te re s t is 4 % on loans n o t exceeding 20,000 francs, and 4i% on loans over 20,000 francs. The m ax im u m a m o u n t which can be loaned b y ag r icu ltu ra l agencies is 100,000 francs. At December 31st, 1937, th e tw en ty - tw o b an k s th en ex isting in the c o u n try h ad 27,019 loans o u ts ta n d in g for a to ta l am o u n t

405»390,686 francs. Loans g ra n te d during 1937 n u m b e re d 3,853, and am o u n te d in all to 73,308,850 francs.

3 8 BELG IUM

3. The N ational Agricultural Credit Institu te .

This public in s t i tu t io n was set up by a decree of September 30th , 1937. I ts ob jec t is to assist or u n d e r ta k e , d irectly or ind irectly , all ag r icu ltu ra l c red it operations. As it has only re cen tly been set up, no su m m a ry of its a c t iv i ty so fa r can be given.

4. N ationa l Small-holders’ Society ( Société nationale de la petite propriété terr ienne).

The purpose of the N a tio n a l Sm all-holders’ Society, which was c o n s t i tu ted b y a R oyal decree of F e b ru a ry 27th, 1935, is to se ttle in d u s tr ia l w orkers in ru ra l su burbs an d to assist ag r icu ltu ra l laboure rs an d sm all-holders to acqu ire as much la n d as will afford th em the m in im um livelihood necessary to m a in ta in th e ir families. I t is therefore designed exclusively for the poorer c o u n try folk for w hom it tries to o b ta in small­holdings. The necessary funds are ad v an ced b y th e S ta te at low ra te s of in te re s t, and repa id by the beneficiaries in the form of annu ities which do n o t exceed a n o rm al ren t. A t the end of 1937, the Society h a d g ra n te d 1,055 loans, to ta lling in all 31,918,485 francs.

B E L G IU M 39

V. E D U C A T IO N

A. G E N E R A L , D O M E STIC , T E C H N IC A L A N D A D U L T E D U C A ­T IO N

B. P E A S A N T A R T , P E A S A N T C U L T U R E , F O L K L O R E

C. O R G A N IS A T IO N O F L E I S U R E I N T H E C O U N T R Y

A . G e n e r a l , D o m e s t i c , T e c h n i c a l a n d A d u l t

E d u c a t i o n

P a r t I . — G e n e r a l S u r v e y

i. The E lem entary School and the Part f la y e d by the Teacher.

E lem en ta ry education has been com pulsory since 1914, and, thanks to th is in s tru c tio n , ch ild ren receive th ro u g h o u t their school career a ty p e of educa tion a d a p te d to th e en v iro n m en t in which th e y are living.

A child b ro u g h t u p in the c o u n try learns th e nam es of the objects a n d c rea tu re s su rro u n d in g h im an d the w hy a n d w here­fore of the daily ta sk s p erfo rm ed b y his p a ren ts a n d fellow- villagers ; in th is w ay , he will lea rn also to app rec ia te life in the country a n d to u n d e r s ta n d th e b e a u ty of agricu lture, n o tw ith ­standing the h a rd sh ip s a t ta c h in g to fa rm ing life.

These first fav o u rab le im pressions of th e c o u n try will never be forgotten.

Not every fa rm e r ’s son can find occupation on th e land, b u t all children b o rn of p e a sa n t families will be anxious later, whatever occupation th e y tak e up, to a d d to the well-being of agriculture an d th u s im prove th e conditions of c o u n try life.

The im p o rtan ce of th is ed u ca tio n in early y o u th , in the elementary school, is ta k e n in to accoun t in the p re p a ra t io n of the train ing-school curricu lum . T he various p ro g ram m es and instructions stress th e p a r t ic u la r v oca tion of th e ru ra l teacher, and the following passage, for exam ple , appears in th e pedagogic instructions for e le m e n ta ry tra in in g schools issued b y the Ministry of E d u c a t io n :

" The school g a rd en shou ld produce in sufficient q u an ti t ie s specimens of th e var ious v ege tab le families described in the lessons. I t shou ld be looked a f te r by th e pupils them selves, under th e d irec tion of th e co m p e ten t teacher. Small animals shou ld be reared , to i l lu s tra te the lessons.

“ Our t ra in in g schools co n ta in m an y young people who know an d are in te re s te d in c o u n try life. M ost of th em will

4 0 BELGIUM

o b ta in posts as teachers in ru ra l e le m en ta ry schools. I t is im p o r ta n t t h a t th e y should be m ade co n v e rsan t with scientific m ethods , so as to ap p ly th em in the ir agricultural courses .”

These general principles are in ten d ed to c rea te in th e future tea ch e r a sy m p a th e tic ou tlook to ru ra l life an d to prepare h im for th e various ac tiv ities which m ay help to im prove rural conditions.

The M inistry of A gricu lture,1 w hen organising educational p ro p a g an d a am ong farm ers, decided a t once to enlist the help of ru ra l teachers. The la t te r , living as th e y do in th e midst of the ru ra l popu la tion , u n d e rs tan d in g th e ir m en ta l i ty , realising th e ir difficulties a n d occupational deficiencies, and , a t the same tim e, possessing the ir confidence, were em inen tly su ited to serve as a m ed ium betw een th e new science of agronom ics and those for whose benefit i t is in tended .

Thus, from th e ou tse t , general education has been instrum ental in fu r th e r in g the progress of ag ricu ltu ra l knowledge.

2. The Development and Principles of A gricu ltura l and Domestic Education.

Since i860, th e public au tho rit ies h av e d ev o ted particular a t te n t io n to ag r icu ltu ra l a n d dom estic education , which con­s t i tu te s th e p rinc ipa l fac to r in de te rm in ing th e s ta n d a rd of living am ong ru ra l popu lations .

Side b y side w ith all the different form s of ed u ca tio n properly so-called— to which a brief reference will be m ade in due course— th e M inistry of A griculture has em ployed, in th e education of the ag r icu ltu ra l classes, various m eans of p ro p a g a n d a which h av e finally won acceptance.

These efforts to m ake know n m odern scientific discoveries an d m ethods in th e sphere of agricu lture have du ly increased th e ag r icu ltu ra l p ro d u c tio n of Belgium, so th a t , no tw ithstand ing the density of th e p o p u la tion (243 in h a b i ta n ts p e r square kilom etre), th e ag ricu ltu re of the co u n try now supplies four- fifths of its food requ irem ents .

I t is believed, m oreover, th a t , th a n k s to th e close network of agricu ltura l, h o r t icu l tu ra l and dom estic science facilities a t p re sen t existing, th e m a jo r i ty of the young people of either sex are now co n v ersan t w ith the m ethods a n d processes best su ited to th e ir p a r tic u la r occupation.

One las t po in t is deserving of m ention.

1 U n ti l 1932, th e o rg a n isa t io n of ag r ic u l tu ra l ed u ca t io n w as en tire ly in the h a n d s of th e M in is try of A griculture . I n 1932, i t w as tran s fe r re d to th e Ministry of E d u c a t io n (Office fo r Technica l T rain ing), th e M in is try of Agriculture re m a in in g responsib le fo r i ts tech n ica l d irection .

B E LG IUM 41

The public au th o rit ie s , in all th e ir efforts to d issem inate recent scientific d a ta of in te re s t to farm ers, have consis ten tly borne in m in d th e following considerations :

(1) The need for encourag ing p r iv a te in itia tive an d gran ting subsidies w henever suitable. The subsidy sys tem was rev ised w hen th e Office for Technical E d u ca tio n was opened in 1932. T here are definite rules for subsidies, which are g ra n te d on th e reco m m en d a tio n of technical and ad m in is tra t iv e inspectors.

(2) The need for tak in g in to acco u n t regional requ irem en ts and the m e n ta l i ty of th e fa rm ers , to w hom th e well-known saying th a t " n o th in g reaches th e m in d o therw ise th an through th e senses ” is p a r tic u la r ly applicable.

(3) The need for fo rg e tt in g book-learn ing a n d seeing th a t the in s tru c t io n given is p rac tica l , se lf-explanatory and in keeping w ith th e realities of th e life of th e ag ricu ltu ra lmasses.

(4) T he need for fram in g su itab le program m es.

P a r t I I . — -Ag r i c u l t u r a l E d u c a t i o n a l E s t a b l i s h m e n t s

1. Education of Boys and Youths.

(a) Higher Education.

Higher A gricu ltura l In s titu te s .— T he organ isa tion of h igher agricultural ed u ca tio n has been ca rried o u t in v ir tu e of th e Law of i860, as a m e n d e d b y th e Law s of April 4 th , 1890, an d November 15th, 1919.

More recently , u n d e r the R oyal Decree of J u n e 30th, 1933, and, in p ar ticu la r , th e R oyal Decrees of October 31st, 1933, and April 30 th , 1934, th e cu rricu la a n d s ta tu te s of the S ta te institutes h av e been revised, as h av e th e conditions for the conferring of diplomas. There are th ree h igher ag ricu ltu ra l institutes : a t G em bloux, G hen t a n d L ouvain .

The first tw o, s i tu a ted respective ly in th e cen tre of the two main linguistic regions, are S ta te in s titu tio n s , th e th i rd being attached to th e free U n ivers ity of L ouvain .

All th ree e s tab lish m en ts p rov ide h igher ag ricu ltu ra l ed u c a ­tion.

The R oyal Decree of O ctober 31st, 1934, lays down the conditions for adm ission a n d for th e conferring of diplomas.

For adm ission to the first y e a r ’s course, s tu d e n ts m u s t be 16 full years of age a n d m u s t hold a h igher m iddle-grade certificate (certifica t d ’é tudes m oyennes du degré supérieur) or a certificate show ing th a t th e y h av e passed one of the

42 BELG IUM

p re p a ra to ry ex am in a tio n s p rescribed b y th e L aw of April ioth, 1890-J u ly io th , 1891, on the conferring of academ ic degrees and th e p rogram m e of un ivers ity exam ina tions. A dm ission is also g ra n te d to ho lders of certificates s ta t in g th a t th e y have passed th e en tran ce ex am in a tio n for th e M ilitary A cadem y (Special A rm s Section) or schools conferring th e d ip lom a of civil engineer,

Foreigners apply ing for adm ission m u s t p roduce evidence th a t th e y h av e a t ta in e d a degree of ed uca tiona l proficiency eq u iv a le n t to w h a t is req u ired in th e case of Belgian students.

U nder th e te rm s of the above-m en tioned R oya l Decree of O ctober 31st, 1934, the in s tru c t io n consists of th ree stages : th e first com prises two y ea rs’ s tu d y , on th e conclusion of which a d ip lom a of candidat ingénieur agronome is conferred ; the second also com prises tw o y ea rs ’ s tu d y , on th e conclusion of which the degree of ingénieur agronome or ingénieur chimiste agronome is conferred ; the th i rd com prises one y e a r’s optional s tu d y , on th e conclusion of which degrees are conferred in the following special sub jec ts : w atercourses an d fo res try (eaux et forêts), colonial agronom y, h o rticu ltu re , ru ra l engineering, ag r icu ltu ra l industries.

Holders of these degrees en joy legal p ro tec t io n (Law of S ep tem ber n t h , 1933).

A gricu ltura l S ta tions.— A tta c h ed to the S ta te Agricultural In s t i tu te s are the following ag ricu ltu ra l s ta tio n s : R u ra l Engineer­ing S ta tion , D airy -w ork S ta tion , P h y to p a th o lo g ica l Station, E n tom olog ica l S ta tion , R esearch S ta t io n for th e Im provem ent of P la n ts c u l t iv a te d on a Large Scale, A gricu ltura l Chemistry a n d Physics S ta tio n , F o res try S ta tion , R u ra l E co n o m y Station, S ta t io n for the Im p ro v e m e n t of Forage P lan ts . These various s ta t io n s are specially equ ipped for scientific an d experimental ag ricu ltu ra l research. T hey also provide fa rm ers w ith informa­tion on request.

Schools of Veterinary M edicine.— The schools of veterinary medicine are organised in accordance w ith th e principles laid down b y the L aw of April 4 th , 1890, as am en d ed b y the Laws of M ay 28th, 1906, a n d May 23rd, 1924, an d th e R o y a l Decrees for th e ir execution.

The o ldest school is th a t of C ureghem -A nderlech t.R ecently , a v e te r in a ry school, wThere the on ly language used

is F lem ish, w as a t ta c h e d to the Medical F a c u l ty of the State U n ivers ity a t Ghent.

F o r adm ission, s tu d en ts m u s t ho ld th e d ip lom a of candidat en sciences (ve te rinary medicine group).

The period of s tu d y is four years.The dip lom a of candidat vétérinaire is conferred after one

y e a r ’s s tu d y an d an ex am in a tio n consisting of a single test.

BELG IUM 43

The degree of docteur en médecine vétérinaire is o b ta in ed on the results of an ex am in a tio n consisting of th ree sepa ra te tes ts at intervals of n o t less th a n one year.

(b) Middle-grade A gricu ltura l Education.

The organ isa tion of the first m iddle-grade ag ricu ltu ra l schools in B elgium was due to p r iv a te in itia tive , supported , as s ta ted above, b y the public au thorities .

The education p rov ided a t this stage m ay be considered under two heads : schools an d sections. B o th are in ten d ed for farmers’ sons w ith a m iddle-grade education .

Schools.— Pupils are a d m it te d af te r hav ing passed the third e lem en ta ry s tan d a rd . T h ey con tinue to receive general instruction to the e x te n t la id dow n b y the Law on E lem e n ta ry Education a n d the special rules applicable to ag r icu ltu ra l schools.

The n o rm al period of s tu d y is th ree years.These schools u sua lly have a fa rm a t the ir disposal, w ith the

land requ ired for ag r icu ltu ra l a n d o th er dem onstra tions.There is on ly one S ta te m iddle-grade school. All th e o thers

belong to the provinces or to special au tonom ous com m ittees subsidised b y the S ta te .

Sections.— These are as a ru le a t ta c h e d to the m iddle-grade general educational es tab lishm en ts (hum anities section, lower standard). Pupils belonging to th e ag r icu ltu ra l section all attend ce r ta in ag r icu ltu ra l courses which are n o t a t te n d e d by students belonging to the classical or m odern sections, and vice versa.

(c) Post-school Agricu ltura l Education.

This type of educa tion applies to young people of 14 years and over em ployed on th e fa rm , w ho are no longer liable to compulsory school a ttendance .

I t m ay be considered from several aspects.

Post-school Sections .— These are organised by the G overnm en t agricultural expe rts , p r iv a te ind iv idua ls a n d agricu ltu ra l asso­ciations. T hey are on th e lines of the te m p o ra ry w in ter courses for adults.

The courses are generally he ld a t the e lem e n ta ry school an d the in s tru c to r is o ften the school-teacher himself, p rov ided th a t he holds the special d ip lom a conferred af te r a t ten d in g a norm al agricultural course.

The G ov ern m en t ag r icu ltu ra l ex p e rts are responsible for the technical inspection of post-school sections.

The in s tru c tio n is free of charge.

4 4 BELG IUM

As a rule, the p rog ram m e covers tw o y ea rs— i.e., 100 hours each y ea r— d ev o ted to the s tu d y of p la n ts a n d an im als in turn. B u t th e t im e-tab le m ay be reduced to a sm aller n u m b e r of hours (m inim um 30 hours).

One or two excursions of an op tional ch a rac te r to places of ag r icu ltu ra l in te re s t m ay be organised a t the conclusion of the course.

Regional A gricu ltura l Schools.— The regional school is in­ten d e d p rim arily for s tu d en ts who have prev iously attended a post-school sec tion course. This ty p e of educa tion m ay be com p ared w ith th e in d u s tr ia l school for technical education proper, which th e w orker a t te n d s a t n ight, a f te r his work, in o rder to o b ta in from specialist teachers the scientific know­ledge of his t ra d e which will enable h im to becom e a skilled worker.

The courses a t the regional ag r icu ltu ra l schools are held d u ring the day, th ro u g h o u t th e w inter. As in industrial schools, there is a specialist teach ing staff. I t is recruited from am ong ag r icu ltu ra l engineers, h o rticu ltu r is ts , electricians, mechanics, acco u n tan ts , v e te r in a ry surgeons a n d docto rs of law.

T he program m e, to ta lling 100 to 240 hours a yea r, m ay be sp re ad over a per iod of two years.

The S ta te organises schools of th is k ind th ro u g h its agri­cu l tu ra l experts . U nder ce rta in conditions, i t also subsidises schools founded b y p r iv a te ind iv iduals or ag r icu ltu ra l associations.

Courses and Lectures.— Courses an d lec tures are a popular m eans of d issem inating ag r icu ltu ra l knowledge.

T hey too are he ld d u ring th e w inter, during the week or on Sundays, accord ing to the region. T h ey consist of a ta lk on som e su b jec t inc luded in the p rog ram m e of ag r icu ltu ra l schools in general, a f te r w hich the lec tu rer converses w ith members of the audience a n d gives a n y ad d it io n a l in fo rm a tion connected w ith his lecture.

These ta lk s a n d th is form of d irect co n tac t w ith farmers, which a t first were in ev itab ly g ree ted w ith indifference and even m is trus t, finally becam e popular.

T hey did m u ch during a period of ag r icu ltu ra l depression (1884-1895) to assist farm ers, to help to get th e m o u t of a rut, a n d to in troduce m odern m ethods of cu l t iv a t io n an d stock- breeding. T hey are m ost va luab le in the p re sen t period of ag r icu ltu ra l difficulty.

The success of these ta lk s am ong young fa rm ers suggested th e sam e idea for th e o rgan isa tion of leisure in the case of men in m ili ta ry service.

“ Courses for th e t roops ” h av e now been in s t i tu te d in the b a r rac k s for m em bers of th e forces who are farm ers.

B E LG IU M 45

Lectures on su b jec ts of top ica l in te re s t are also g iven in connection w ith ag r icu l tu ra l congresses, com petitions an d exhibitions, a n d are large ly a t te n d e d by farm ers w ho come to these ag ricu ltu ra l gatherings.

Lectures subsid ised b y the M inistry of A griculture are sub jec t to inspection b y S ta te ag r ic u l tu ra l experts .

School of Farriery and Agricu ltura l M echanics.— Side b y side with agricu ltu ra l educa tion p ro p e r shou ld be m entioned , as of very real in te re s t from the p o in t of view of agricu lture, the training given in fa rrie ry and ag r icu ltu ra l mechanics.

There is on ly one fa rr ie ry school in B elgium — th e Centra l Practical F a r r ie ry School belonging to the S ta te , a t A nderlech t, a commune in the Brussels d istric t.

Pupils are rec ru i ted from am o n g those who h av e passed out successfully from the fa rr ie ry courses in s t i tu te d b y the M inistry of Agriculture.

The school confers the d ip lom a of M aître maréchal ferrant. The courses are he ld daily, ex c ep t Sundays, from October to the end of Ju ly .

This school has in d irec tly ren d e red g re a t service to agri­culture : village b lacksm iths ho ld ing its d ip lom a are tradesm en with superior tra in ing .

Moreover, being ac q u a in te d w ith the a n a to m y a n d physio ­logical a n d pa tho log ica l peculia rities of the horse 's hoof, th ey pursue th e ir t r a d e know ledgeab ly— one m ig h t a lm ost say in a humane fa sh ion— th u s p ro longing th e useful life of th e horse in a coun try , such as Belgium , where th e sm all an d m ed iu m ­sized farm s, of w hich th e arab le la n d m ostly consists, can n o t afford m echanical trac tio n .

Mechanics, w hich is inc luded in th e curricu la of the m iddle- grade schools a n d also of th e regional schools, is ta u g h t as a special su b jec t a t tw o schools.

2. Education of Girls.

In s tru c tio n in ag r icu ltu ra l dom estic science, like the instruction p ro v id ed for boys a n d y o u th s , is v e ry conven ien tly arranged in th ree stages : h igher-grade , m iddle-grade, e lem entary .

(a) Higher Education.

The first h igher-g rade school for ag r icu ltu ra l dom estic science w as fou n d ed b y th e M inistry of A griculture in 1919 ; it is the I n s t i tu t no rm al supérieur d ’économ ie m énagère agricole at Laeken (Brussels). Im m e d ia te ly afte rw ards, six o ther schools were fo u n d ed in succession, b y religious com m unities .

There are still five of these, ap p ro v ed a n d subsidised b y the State.

46 BELGIUM

The course is a th ree y ea r one, on th e conclusion of which the d ip lom a of régente ménagère agricole is conferred.

E lem en ta ry -schoo l teachers an d régentes are allowed to tak e the course in two years.

The period of s tu d y will sh o rtly be increased to fou r years, to su pp lem en t th e general a n d pedagogic t ra in in g of future régentes.

The ob jec t of these h igher-grade schools for agricultural dom estic econom y is tw ofold : to t r a in régentes ménagères agricoles who in te n d to teach , an d to p rep a re a p icked body of w om en for ru ra l organisations, who can if necessary take charge of a farm .

C andidates m u s t be 16 full years of age on D ecem ber 31st of th e y ea r of admission.

The curricu lum includes the usual general sub jec ts , natural science, ag r icu l tu ra l science, dom estic econom y an d pedagogics.

More th a n half th e tim e-tab le consists of p rac t ica l work.

(b) M iddle-grade Education.

Schools.— These schools are in ten d ed for girls who have passed o u t of th e th i rd e lem entary-school s tan d a rd . The course is no rm ally a th ree -y ea r one.

T hey are a t te n d e d b y fa rm ers ’ d au g h te rs a n d o th e r country girls desirous of p rep a r in g them selves for the ir fu tu re rôles as m others , ru ra l housekeepers a n d fa rm ers ’ wives.

The curricu lum is based on th is trip le ob jec tive a n d includes the usua l general sub jects , theore tica l courses in n a tu ra l science, dom estic econom y, ag r icu ltu ra l science an d hygiene, and , more p ar ticu la r ly , p ra c t ica l courses in n u tr i t io n (cookery) and housewifery.

All th e m iddle-grade ag r icu ltu ra l dom estic science schools, excep t tw o belonging to provinces, are organised b y autonomous com m ittees . The S ta te has no schools of th is k in d ; i t subsidises the o thers u n d e r ce r ta in conditions.

There is generally a board in g -es tab lish m en t a t ta c h e d to the school, which itself form s one of a group of schools belonging to som e au to n o m o u s organisation .

Sections.— The sections differ from the schools only as regards the per iod of s tu d y an d th e scope of th e curricu lum . The latter is sp read over a period of two years, each inc lud ing 300 hours, T he courses are h e ld th ro u g h o u t th e w inter, in th e daytime, on several days or h a lf-days each week.

F or admission, girls m u s t be n o t less th a n 14 y ea rs of age.

B E LG IU M 47

(c) Elementary Education.

E lem en ta ry in s tru c t io n in ag r ic u l tu ra l dom estic science, which is organised, as in th e case of boys, in th e form of p o s t ­school sections a n d courses a n d lec tures, also tak e s th e special form of trave lling S ta te schools.

Post-school A gricu ltura l Domestic Sections.— The m in im u m age of adm ission is 14 years.

In s tru c tio n is e n t ru s te d p re fe rab ly to régentes ménagères agricoles. Some sections are still s taffed b y e lem entary -schoo l teachers who have a t te n d e d o rd in a ry h o liday courses a n d hold the special d ip lom a for th e tea ch in g of ag r icu ltu ra l dom estic economy.

All post-school sec tions are on a foo ting of eq u a lity from the point of view of S ta te subsidies.

The cu rricu lum com prises 200 hours , which m ay be sp re ad over two years. T he courses a re genera lly held in th e w in ter, in the day tim e, a t th e h o u rs m o s t su itab le for regu la r a t ten d a n ce . Certain sections ho ld th e ir courses on S u n d ay m ornings.

The following tab le shows th e n u m b e r of hours d ev o te d to the various sub jec ts in a tw o -y ea r cu rr icu lu m :

N u tr i t io n .............................................................................. 48W ashing and i r o n i n g .................................................... 25D r e s s m a k i n g ........................................................................ 40H y g i e n e .................................................................................. 16D om estic e c o n o m y .............................................................. 9Z o o t e c h n i c s ........................................................................ 15D a i r y i n g .................................................................................. 15P oultry -keep ing .............................................................. 10Agriculture and g a r d e n i n g .......................................... 20Agricultural assoc iat ions .......................................... 2

T o t a l ................................. 200

Travelling A gricultural Schools of Domestic E conom y .—- The travelling ag ricu ltu ra l dom estic econom y schools afford an in teresting o p p o r tu n i ty for th e professional tra in ing of the country housewife. W hereas y o u n g girls who wish to a t t e n d secondary or in te rm ed ia te schools a re com pelled to leave the ir villages a n d exchange fam ily life for t h a t of the board ing school, the travelling schools m ove from village to village, p rov ided with all the necessary m a te r ia l for teaching , class equ ip m en t, kitchen, d a iry fittings an d the necessary m ach ine ry for cheese- making, laundering an d ironing. Som etim es agricu ltu ra l m ach i­nery is used for dem o n stra tio n s of in cu b a to rs a n d foster-m others .

The travelling schools also ca rry w ith th em a l ib ra ry of books.

48 BE LGIUM

The courses las t from th ree to four m o n th s (one session). Sometim es, where th e school a t ten d a n ce is sufficient, there is a second session in th e sam e locality.

The com m unal adm in is tra tions, or the associations which ap p ly for the trave lling school teaching, are obliged to supply ad e q u a te premises.

Teaching is g iven daily, except, as a rule, on Saturday. T he p rac tica l courses ta k e place in the m orn ing (three hours) a n d the theore tical courses in the a f te rnoon (two hours).

Teaching is th u s essentia lly p rac tica l an d b ased on actual d em onstra tions .

The pupils are d iv ided in to tw o g roups fo r th e practical courses an d com bined for the theo re tica l courses.

Pupils u nder 14 years of age are n o t accepted , excep t in very in freq u en t cases b y special permission of the C an tonal Inspector of E lem en ta ry E duca tion .

The teach ing is exclusively in th e h an d s of th e agricultural dom estic econom y teachers, tw o in n u m b er ; a n d th e m anagem ent of th e schools is in the han d s of the ag r icu ltu ra l dom estic economy advisers , who are a t ta c h e d to the P o p u la r isa tion Service which will be dealt w ith below.

T here are n ine teen trave lling schools— t h a t is to say, an average of two to each province.

Shortened Courses : Lectures.— S h o rten ed courses of agricul­tu ra l dom estic econom y are held where th e seasonal agricultural w ork is such as to m ake a t ten d a n ce a t a trave lling school for fou r m on ths impossible.

S hortened courses of two to th ree weeks m ay be organised e i th e r in ru ra l or sem i-ru ra l centres.

These courses follow th e p rog ram m e of the p e rm a n e n t and trave lling schools in an abridged form. T hey are excellent p ro p a g an d a for a m ore ex tensive sys tem of tra in ing .

T hey are generally organised b y th e ag r icu ltu ra l domestic econom y advisers. W here th is is so, th e S ta te is responsible for th e entire cost.

L ec tures are g iven on Sundays or in th e week, as local conditions m ay require , a t the d em an d of th e independent w o m en ’s associations. T he S ta te gives g ra n ts on the report of the agricu ltu ra l dom estic econom y advisers, one of whose d u ties it is to supervise th is p a r ticu la r form of ac tiv ity .

O ther featu res of in te re s t to fa rm ers’ wives are th e milking com petitions (at w hich th e ag ricu ltu ra l dom estic economy teach ers of the trave lling schools give d em onstra tions and advice on hygienic milking, conservation of c ream an d butter- m aking) a n d the garden ing a n d w indow -box competitions which are a deve lopm en t of th e m ovem ent, o rig inating in the celebra tions of the C en ten a ry of N ationa l Independence , to make B elgium a “ lan d of flowers

BELG IUM 4 9

3. Horticultural Training.

H orticu ltu ra l t ra in in g is o rganised on th e sam e lines as the a g r ic u l tu ra l tra in in g described ; and its deve lopm ent is proceed ­ing, within its n a tu ra l lim its, in d irections sim ilar to those of the latter.

H orticulture is a sub jec t in th e p rog ram m e of higher educational in s t i tu t io n s (h o r ticu ltu ra l section).

In in te rm ed ia te education , th e re are tw o S ta te schools, one at Ghent and th e o th e r a t V ilvorde. T he studies a t these schools last th ree years ; a n d th e best pupils are given facilities to enable th em to sp en d a fo u r th y ea r th e re as proba tioners .

These schools give preference to th e sons of ac tu a l h o rticu l­turists.

Besides th e tw o official schools, there are also ab o u t a dozen independent schools in receip t of g ran ts of public money.

In low er-grade in s titu tio n s , the teach ing of ho rticu ltu re is organised on similar lines to ag r ic u l tu ra l t ra in in g —viz., in tem porary courses, d is tr ic t schools a n d courses for teachers.

The S ta te h o r t ic u l tu ra l advisers are responsible for th e inspection of th e various courses.

4. Service of Agricu ltura l In form a tion Propaganda.

(a) State A gricultural Experts.

The S ta te A gricu ltu ra l E x p e r t Service dates from 1884, in which yea r th e M inistry of A gricu ltu re w as set up. F ro m the outset, these techn ica l expe rts have lived am ong persons ac tua lly engaged in agricu lture. T h e ir m ain du ties are :

(a ) To popularise th e conceptions a n d processes of agricultural science— e.g., b y lectures, v e rb a l or w rit ten consultations, d em o n s tra tio n s an d ex p e rim en ts a n d so on ; they get in to d irect to u ch w ith agricu ltu r is ts a n d give them advice, free of charge, as desired ;

(b ) To inform ag r icu ltu r is ts of the ad v an tag es th e y m ay derive from com bined organisa tion , an d furn ish p a r tic u la rs of the o rgan isa tion a n d w ork ing of ag r icu ltu ra l g roups ;

(c ) To keep th e C entra l A d m in is tra tio n inform ed as to the ac tiv ities of official ag r icu ltu ra l societies a n d ag r icu ltu ra l societies in rece ip t of S ta te g ra n ts w ith in th e ir several official d istric ts , a n d to re p o r t as to th e in d u cem e n ts which should be m ade ava ilab le ;

(d ) To organise a n d d irect ag r icu ltu ra l courses for adults w ith in th e ir several districts.

5o BELGIUM

C erta in provinces an d ag ricu ltu ra l associations, taking exam ple from the S ta te , have engaged ag r icu ltu ra l experts for the technical m an ag em en t of the ir in te rn a l or ex te rn a l activities.

(b) Horticultural Advisers.

The h o r t icu l tu ra l advisers are for h o r t icu ltu re w ha t the ag r icu ltu ra l ex p e r ts are for agriculture.

This service was set u p some years before the w ar a t the same tim e as the H o rt icu ltu ra l Office a t th e M inistry of Agriculture.

(c) A gricultural Domestic Economy Advisers.

The service of ag ricu ltu ra l dom estic econom y advisers was set up a f te r th e war. T h ey are, as the nam e indicates, primarily adv isers in connection w ith th e ac tiv ities of fa rm e rs ’ an d othgr ru ra l housewives.

The ag r icu ltu ra l domestic econom y advisers organise and direct the S ta te trave lling schools a n d sh o rten e d courses. Theyr ac t as inspectors for the courses a n d lectures to farmers’ wives : th ey help organise com petitions in the w om en’s associa­tions ; an d th e y g ive advice, an d rep ly to requests for advice. T hey organise milking com petitions, m ilk ing days, experiments in the ra tio n a l feeding of ca ttle , a n d so on.

There is one ag ricu ltu ra l dom estic econom y adviser for each province.

(d) Zootechnical Advisers.

The ac tiv ities of zootechnical advisers are l im ited to the app lica tion of genetic d a ta in connection w ith th e im provement of breeds of dom estic anim als.

(e) Publication of Literature.

The M inistry of A gricu lture publishes a collection of p am p h le ts in the form of advice to ag ricu ltu r is ts containing the laws, decrees a n d in s tru c tio n s concern ing agricultural train ing. Since 1932, w hen the ag r icu ltu ra l schools were a t ta c h e d to the M inistry of E duca tion , a special collection of d o c u m e n ta ry m ate r ia l re la ting to the legal position of agri­cu l tu ra l teachers in re la tion to the S ta te has been p repared to serve as an " A gricu ltu ra l E d u ca tio n Code

In ad d itio n to the regulations, the M inistry of Agriculture also publishes a n u m b er of p o p u la r p am p h le ts in the form of " Advice to A gricu ltu r is ts ” an d " Model Lessons for Horti­cu ltu r is ts ” , giv ing succinct a n d simple in fo rm a tio n of special in te re s t to agricu ltu r is ts , h o rticu ltu r is ts a n d fa rm e rs ’ and other ru ra l housewives.

B E L G IU M 5 1

A.BI-E Sho w in g the P r e s e n t S itu a tio n in regard to A g ricultural T r a in in g in B elgium 1

Nature of institution Numbers

A. S ta te V ete r inary S c h o o l ........................................................... 1Central School of P rac tica l F a r r ie ry .............................. 1

B. A gricu ltura l t r a in in g :

1 . A gricu ltu ra l in s t i tu t io n s :

S t a t e .................................................................................... 2In d e p e n d e n t ................................................... 1

2 . M iddle-grade schools :

S t a t e .............................................................................. 1I n d e p e n d e n t ........................................................... 18

M iddle-grade Sections :

In d e p e n d e n t ........................................................... 21

(a) After-school ag r icu ltu ra l sections . . 597(b ) D is tr ic t s c h o o l s ........................................ 100

(c) T eache rs’ t ra in in g c o u r s e s ..................... 6

C. H ort icu l tu ra l t ra in in g :

(a) M iddle-grade schools :

S t a t e ............................................................................. 2In d ep e n d en t ........................................................... 12

(b) Post-school t ra in ing :

(a) Post-school s e c t i o n s ........................................ 8(b) D is tr ic t c o u r s e s ................................................. 59(c) T e a c h e rs 't r a in in g co u rse s .............................. 1

D. A gricu ltu ra l D om estic E conom y T ra in ing :

(a) H igher in s t i tu t io n s :

S t a t e .............................................................................. 1In d e p e n d e n t ........................................................... 6

(b) M iddle-grade schools a n d Sections in rece ip t ofg r a n t s .............................................................................. 42

(c) D om estic econom y d is t r ic t courses .................... 31

W om en te ac h e rs ’ tra in in g c o u r s e s ........................................ 1

Post-school ag r icu ltu ra l dom estic econom y sections . . 16S

1 Y e a r 1 9 3 6 / 3 7 -

5 2 BELGIUM

B. P e a s a n t A r t , P e a s a n t C u l t u r e , F o l k l o r e

E d u c a t io n has been developed am ong th e p e a sa n t class, and , since th e m iddle of th e n in e teen th cen tu ry , has been e x te n d e d to the v e ry num erous ca tego ry of sm all agriculturists an d fa rm labourers. At the p resen t tim e, th e re are very few fa rm s in which a local n ew spaper or weekly is n o t ta k e n ; and the sam e applies to technical periodicals a n d books. Public lib raries in th e p a s t tw e n ty years or so have been increasingly p o p u la r in c o u n try districts. D uring the w in ter season, many villages organise p o p u la r lec tures (similar to u n iv e rs i ty extension lectures) which are ex trem e ly well a t te n d e d . Agricultural lec tu res , an d those which are specially in te n d e d for farmers’ wives a n d young agricu ltu r is ts , alw ays find an eager audience. P o p u la r th ea tre s an d m usical societies (bugle bands, choral societies, etc.) flourish even in the m ost ou t-o f- the -w ay parts of the co u n try . The younger generation , th a n k s to th e schools, is beginning to speak a m ore ed u ca ted language.

P ea sa n t a r t (or ra th e r “ p o p u la r a r t ”— t h a t is to say, the a r t of ru ra l artisans) has a lm ost en tire ly d isap p ea red in Belgium, w here com m unica tions are easy an d the process of industrialisa­t ion da te s from th e first half of th e n in e tee n th cen tu ry . Local cos tum es a n d fu rn itu re no longer exist, an d an y rev iv a l of them can only be artificial. On th e o th e r h an d , th e re is a very considerable m o v em en t for th e s tu d y of th e hom e country ( H eim atkunde). In m a n y places, th e re is a lre ad y a local m useum . The new' e lem en ta ry educa tion schedule attaches g re a t im p o rtan ce to a s tu d y of village conditions. T he collective “ folklore ” m an ife s ta tions (festivals, processions, pagean ts , etc.) h av e lo s t none of th e ir fo rm er spirit. I t is r a th e r fam ily and in d iv idua l folklore which has declined. Several organisations are t ry in g to revive th e old p o p u la r dances ; an d publications co n n ec ted w ith local history^ an d folklore are v e ry numerous.

C. O r g a n i s a t i o n o f L e i s u r e i n t h e C o u n t r y

In th e w in ter evenings, the family^ room is b e t te r hea ted and lig h ted th a n form erly. N ew spapers, reviews an d books have fou n d the ir w ay in to the farm . The fam ily reads. Oil the o th e r h an d , the fam ily folklore t re a su ry of stories, legends, songs, r idd les a n d th e like, which fo rm erly served to kill t im e round the h e a r th in a b ad ly lig h ted room , are becom ing a th in g of the past. The wireless has reached a n u m b er of farm s, bring ing a new m eans of en te r ta in m en t. Of fam ily pastim es, cards are almost th e on ly one rem ain ing .

Jo u rn e y m e n jobs in w in ter an d garden ing in sum m er have n o t ceased to find favour in th e eyes of m a n y p e a sa n ts ; and the w om en knit, m end, etc ., where th e ir g ra n d m o th e rs spun.

BELG IUM 53

On S undays a f te r Mass, th e p ea san ts visit th e café, and , in the afternoon, w hen th e w e a th e r is su itable , th e y go for a w alk in the fields. The younger gene ra tion tak e an in te re s t in cycling, or in carrier-p igeon com petitions. Cinemas a n d dance- halls (at th e in n u m erab le local K erm essen or in th e ne ighbouring town) are a p o te n t a t t ra c t io n ; b u t , in th e las t few years, there has been a considerable reac tion on th e p a r t of the y o u th organisations aga inst th e m ater ia lis t ic conceptions of life which were th rea te n in g in the p o s t-w ar years to ann ih ila te th e m oral sense of th e ru ra l , no less th a n of th e u rb a n , population .

The ac tiv ities of th e v ar io u s c u ltu ra l o rganisa tions (lectures and readings in th e F lem ish provinces, ac tiv ities of th e D avids Fund, m usical societies, village th ea tre s , etc.) are in general appreciated b y th e p ea sa n t popu la tion .

The in h a b i ta n t of th e c o u n try d is tric ts is no longer w ha t he was— a s tay -a t-h o m e. H e is q u ite p repared , for exam ple, to take p a r t in collective to u r is t excursions b y cycle or au tocar.

I t m ay in sh o r t be sa id t h a t th e p e a s a n t ’s spare t im e is at once b e t te r o rganised a n d m ore v a r ied th a n it used to be.

5 4 BELGIUM

V I. M E D I C O - S O C I A L P O L I C Y

The S ta te has ta k e n an ac tive in te re s t in im prov ing the h ea lth conditions of the ru ra l popu la tion , p a r ticu la r ly of recent years a n d since the creation of the Public H e a lth D epartm ent, w hich has done m uch to encourage th e es tab lishm en t of hospitals, hostels a n d m a te rn i ty hom es a n d th e in s titu tio n of h ea lth centres, playing-fields a n d sw im m ing-baths .

As a rule, the cen tra l au th o r i ty confines itself to encouraging d is tr ic t or local schemes. I t subsidises a n d supervises the work of the provinces, com m unes a n d co m m u n al associations. A d m in is tra t iv e ac tiv it ies follow th e princip le of communal au to n o m y . This princip le is ad h e red to, su b jec t to such m odifications as m a y be requ ired in the general in terest, and w ith occasional allowances for m ore local considerations. W hile, therefore , th e cen tra l a u th o r i ty does n o t d irec tly interfere w ith co m m u n al prerogatives, i t has one p a r tic u la r ly effective w eapon a t i ts disposal : i t can refuse to subsidise works of which it does n o t approve. W hen i t does give i ts approval, the subsidy is su b s tan tia l , o ne- th ird of the cost being p a id by the Public H e a l th D e p a r tm e n t a n d one- th ird by th e M inistry for Public W orks and U nem ploym ent.

N o tw ith s ta n d in g this encouragem ent, th e m ore thinly- p o p u la te d ru r a l com m unes show li tt le en terp rise . The G o v e rn m en t’s p roblem is to decide when, to w h a t e x te n t and b y w h a t m eans ce r ta in less fo r tu n a te ly p laced communes shall be given th e ad v an tag es a lre ad y possessed b y others. In s t i tu t io n s will often h av e to be opened or w ork be carried o u t to m eet th e needs of several sm aller com m unities : the idea of bu ild ing a small hosp ita l can n o t be en te r ta in ed . Rather, a com plete ly equ ipped hosp ita l shou ld be founded , to serve several com m unities . T he com m unes are n o t w idely separated a n d are usua lly supplied w ith excellent m eans of communication. A t the sam e time, d is tance still c o n s t i tu te s a difficult problem. A p e a sa n t only leaves his hom e w hen this is abso lu te ly essential. In less serious cases, a r rangem en ts m u s t be m ade to have him exam ined a n d t re a te d on the spot. T h a t is w hy the authorities are considering the crea tion of trave lling dispensaries completely equ ipped for such work. F o r some years, th e Province of Liège h as h a d a trave lling X -ray la b o ra to ry for detecting tuberculosis am ong school-children. A larger su p p ly of these vehicles wrould g rea tly increase the efficiency of school medical inspection, w hich still leaves m u ch to be desired.

Travelling d en ta l clinics are requ ired , to overcome the d eep-roo ted indifference of country^ dwellers to th e care of the m o u th and tee th .

B E LG IUM 55

The w ork done b y th e public au th o rit ie s in th e field of public h e a l th needs to be su p p o r ted b y in tensive p ro p a g a n d a w ith a view to m ak ing th e princip les of hygiene m ore widely known. Propaganda of th is k in d is p a r tic u la r ly necessary am ong the less enlightened c o u n try popu la tion .

P ro p ag an d a has in d ee d been v e ry successfully conduc ted by means of th e h e a l th drives in s t i tu te d b y the H e a lth D e p a r t ­ment under th e d irec tion of th e Belgian R ed Cross in 1937 a n d t 938.

W ith the p a r tic ip a t io n of all k inds of o rgan isa tions a n d the co-operation of the m edical a n d teach ing professions, of n a tiona l agencies, w om en’s leagues, a th le t ic associations, e tc ., these health drives h ave been th e m eans of organising b o th in ru ra l areas an d in u rb a n cen tres , lec tures, courses a n d d em o n s tra tio n s which have been en th u s ia s t ica lly a t te n d e d b y ten s of th o u san d s of adults an d children.

To tak e a case in po in t , in th e P rovince of N a m u r alone, with its 366 com m unes a n d a p o p u la t io n of a b o u t 356,000, the rep resen ta tives of th e C en tra l C om m ittee of the R ed Cross carried o u t a sy s tem atic inspection of 159 com m unes ; i t m ade a detailed inves tiga tion in to th e h e a l th s ituation , o b ta in ing its in form ation from bu rg o m aste rs , doctors a n d principa ls of schools, a n d drew u p re p o r ts on th e conclusion 'of each visit. In this province, th e h ea l th c rusade was p a r tic u la r ly ac tive ly carried on in th e schools : five im p o r ta n t pedagogical lec tures were organised, a t te n d e d b y 400 teachers. P rac tic a l ta lk s were given in 106 schools, for th e benefit of some 10,590 children.

In th e sphere of n u tr i t io n , public a t te n t io n was d raw n to the ad u lte ra tio n of foodstuffs b y m eans of th ree large exhibitions, at which ta lk s an d d em o n s tra tio n s were given, in p a r t ic u la r by the Belgian N a tio n a l A nti-T uberculosis League an d the “ Œ uvre n a tiona le de l ’enfance ” .

Em phasis shou ld also be la id on th e w ork done b y such agencies as th e c o u n try housew ives’ clubs, th e w o m en ’s C hristian leagues a n d th e “ F em m es p ré v o y a n te s socialistes ” , which reach th o u san d s of w om en an d girls in different com m unes.

The enorm ous in te re s t a roused b y these ac tiv ities a n d the various schemes which h av e been in i t ia te d as a resu lt show' the im portance a t ta c h e d to h ea lth questions by ru ra l a n d u rb a n dwellers alike.

56 B ELG IUM

V II . N U T R I T I O N

In 1935, the M inistry of H ea lth ca rried o u t an exhaustive su rvey of th e effects of the economic depression on the health of adolescents. The surprising discovery was m ade th a t i t was th e young people in the co u n try who were undernourished, n o t those who lived in industria l cen tres suffering from u nem ploym en t.

Like tow npeople, c o u n try dwellers do n o t consum e sufficient q u an ti t ie s of th e p ro tec tive foods (milk, b u t te r , eggs, meat, green vegetables, fresh fruit). T hey produce these foodstuffs b u t , from p o v e r ty or false economy, ab s ta in from ea tin g them. E x c e p t when th ey are well off, p e a sa n t families do not kill m ore th a n one pig a year an d th ey b u y m ea t only on Sundays; m argarine takes th e place of b u t te r , n o t enough vegetables are ea ten and, above all, the diet is n o t sufficiently varied.

B E LG IUM 57

V I I I . R U R A L P L A N N I N G

A. R e g i o n a l : T r a n s p o r t a n d C o m m u n i c a t i o n s ; W a t e r -

s u p p l y ; S e w a g e D i s p o s a l ; E l e c t r i f i c a t i o n , e t c .

i . Trans-port.

Belgium is one of th e countries where public t ran sp o r t facilities are v e ry h igh ly developed.

There is a n ex trem ely dense ne tw o rk of s tandard-gauge railways opera ting ab o u t 5,732 k ilom etres of lines over an area of 30,506 square kilom etres.

Narrow-gauge ra ilw ays t o ta l 5,130 kilometres, 3,863 kilo­metres w orked b y s team an d 1,267 b y e lec tr ic ity (in 1935).

M otor-bus services h av e g rea tly increased ; on Decem ber 31st,1937, there were 484 regu la r lines, w ith 1,400 vehicles, com pared with 125 lines in 1929.

As regards t ra n sp o r t , therefore , ru ra l areas are well served.

2. Communications.

The Belgian S ta te owns 8,832 k ilom etres of roads and the provinces 1,585 kilometres.

There are 1,703 k ilom etres of secondary roads, of which 1,411 kilom etres are of pavé (stone sets) while 292 h av e a m eta l surface. T he upkeep of th e l a t t e r m igh t be considerab ly improved.

3. W ater-supply : Sewage Disposal.

In 1850, only five com m unes h a d p roper w ate r-supp ly systems ; th e figure h a d risen to 573 in 1912 a n d 738 in 1935. On J a n u a ry 1st, 1938, 883 com m unes o u t of a to ta l of 2,672 had regular w a te r-su p p ly system s.

The above figures show th e s te ad y progress and th e special efforts m ade in recen t years.

This progress is due to th e Société nationale de d is tr ibu tion d’eau, w hich w as fo rm ed on M ay 15th, 1914, b y th e S ta te and the nine provinces, and to th e M inistry of th e In te r io r and Public H ealth , which, th ro u g h the agency of its Public H ea lth Works In sp e c to ra te , concerns itself m ore p a r ticu la r ly w ith the various au to n o m o u s w a te r-su p p ly services (com m unal and inter-com m unal services).

The Public H e a l th W orks In sp e c to ra te exam ines and rectifies p lans, sanc tions tende rs an d supervises th e execution of works.

58 B ELG IU M

W orks are subsidised to th e ex te n t of one-th ird b y the Public H e a l th D e p a r tm en t, and a fu r th e r one- th ird g ra n t m ay be made b y th e D e p a r tm en t for Public W orks an d U nem ploym ent.

I n sp ite of th e ac t iv i ty th u s shown, 67% of th e communes were still w i th o u t any w ate r-supp ly system on J a n u a ry ist1938. True, these were all smaller an d less thickly-populated com m unes, b u t th e y nevertheless com prised 3,288,561 out of a to ta l popu la tion of 8,330,959.

On D ecem ber 31st, 1930, th e re were 2,357 com m unes—out of a to ta l of 2,671—w ith less th a n 5,000 in h ab itan ts , making up 3,198,321 of th e to ta l popu la tion of 8,092,004. I t will be seen th a t th e 3,288,561 in h ab itan ts who, on J a n u a r y i s t , 1938, were w ith o u t any public w a te r-supp ly system , represen t almost th e whole p o p u la tion of the sm aller ru ra l communes.

T he n u m b er of w a te r-supp ly system s, however, is in point of fac t g rea ter th a n th e figures shown ; m an y com m unes have several independen t system s, chiefly in L uxem burg and the areas in th e sou th of th e provinces of Liège an d N am ur, where th e re are v ery large com m unes grouping a num ber of separate se tt lem en ts or ham lets.

On th e o ther hand , not all th e in h ab itan ts of communes w ith a w a te r-su p p ly system are necessarily supplied by that system . I n m an y cases, th e w ater is p iped only to p a r t of the com m une ; again, iso lated in h ab itan ts m ay often no t be connected w ith th e w ate r-supp ly because they'' live a t a d is tance from the b u ilt-u p area.

Bearing in m ind these two observations, th e p resen t position is th a t two ou t of every/ five Belgians still h av e to ob ta in their supplies from springs, wells or pum ps. Most of these peasants need large q u an ti t ie s of w a te r for the ir s tab les or byres, for p reparing ca ttle-feed an d for dairy work.

The lack of a w a te r-supp ly system m eans e x t ra physical fatigue, and considerable loss of time. Reckoning the time sp en t in fetching w ate r a t th e o rd inary wage ra te , i t will be found th a t th e cost of th is “ free ” w a te r is tw o or th ree times higher th a n if w a te r were la id on. T he ac tu a l installation costs per head of th e popu la tion are low. T hey vary , of course, w ith th e size of th e com m une, being p ro p o r tio n a te ly higher in th e less th ick ly -popu la ted com m unes. B u t even in com­m unes w ith under 3,000 in h ab itan ts , th e cost of installation does n o t on th e average am oun t to m ore th a n 21 cen tim es per h ead per day. Counting G overnm ent g ran ts , it is only 7 centim es per in h ab itan t per day

I t should be added th a t th e in s ta lla t io n of a public water- supp ly system not only lessens th e w ork of the ru ra l population, b u t is a t th e sam e tim e a powerful co n tr ib u to ry factor in im proving its hea lth , th e h ea lth of th e live-stock and th e quality of the fa rm produce.

BELG IUM 5 9

The effect of increasing th e n u m b er of w ate r-supp ly system s is particularly noticeable in connection w ith the cam paign against ty p h o id fever.

Between 1850 an d 1880, th e d ea th r a te from th is disease varied betw een 65 a n d n o per 100,000 in h ab itan ts ; th a t figure has gradually declined to u nder 10 in the las t tw enty-five years a n d under 2 in recen t years.

Closely connected w ith the p rob lem of w ate r-supp ly system s is that of sewage disposal.

On D ecem ber 31st, 1930, only 550 o u t of th e 2,670 com m unes had sewage disposal system s, these being lack ing m ainly in th e rural communes. Some of the la t te r possessed drains for th e evacuation of w aste w ater, b u t th e y h a d never worked out a comprehensive d ra inage scheme, even th o u g h S ta te g ran ts were available on th e sam e scale as for w ate r-supp ly systems.

Problems still aw aiting so lution are th e drain ing of ponds, which consti tu te centres of infection for anim al diseases— such as strangles, g landers and foo t-and-m ou th disease— an d represent a co n s tan t source of danger to children ; the im prove ­ment of dung-pits, which should be cem en ted and fi t ted w ith a curb to p rev en t th e leakage of liqu id m an u re ; and lastly , th e improvement of s tab les or byres, for which purpose th e S ta te makes a g ran t of 3 0 % of th e cost of th e work.

Much still rem ains to be done in these various respects.

4. Electrification.

There are only some te n com m unes left in th e whole of Belgium which are n o t connected up w ith some cen tra l source of electricity supply . To electrify iso la ted ham le ts a n d farm s, an additional 35,000 kilom etres of high- a n d low-tension lines would h ave to be construc ted . T he D e p a r tm e n t of A gricu lture gives gran ts to th e ex ten t of 20% of th e cost of w ork of th is kind. If the g ran ts rem a in a t th e sam e figure in fu tu re years, the electrification will be com ple ted by 1943.

While, how ever, e lectric ity is ava ilabe in alm ost all com ­munes, i ts effective a n d ra t io n a l use in fa rm houses an d on farm s is still litt le developed.

In m ost cases, fa rm ers only use electric ity to l igh t th e ir houses a n d sheds. The in s ta l la t io n is som etim es of a v e ry rudim entary c h a rac te r ; an d w ith th e ir ingrained frugali ty , farmers are satisfied w ith a few lam ps of v e ry low l igh ting power.

The use of electrical in s ta lla tions in households (cooking- stoves, dry ing-m achines, w ashing-m achines, irons, etc.) a n d farms (lighting of hen-houses, use of electric in cuba to rs a n d foster-mothers, h ea t in g of h o t-b ed s a n d greenhouses, etc.) is uncommon. D ev e lo p m en t in th is connection has still to come.

6o B E LG IUM

Electric th resh in g a n d p loughing are n o t practicable ex cep t on v ery large farm s, of which there are few. A company in the eas t of Belgium began to hire o u t electric threshers in 1933 a t a re la tive ly low charge (some 25 francs an hour). The following tab le shows the headw ay m ade by th is undertaking :

1933 1934 1935 1936

N um ber o l threshers used . . 3 3 3 4N um ber ol farms served 198 240 220 384N um ber of tons of grain

threshed ...................... 750 930 800 960Consum ption (kwh.) 5,750 7,870 8,202 11,801

Electric ploughing is unknown.

B. S t a t e A c t i o n i n S u p p o r t o f P u b l i c L i b r a r i e s

a n d C e n t r a l O r g a n i s a t i o n s

1. Public Libraries.

Belgium has a very com plete an d well-organised system of public libraries. I ts existence is due m ainly to the Law of October 17th, 1921, on Public Libraries, the principal provisions of which are as follows :

“ Com munes m ay establish com m unal libraries or adopt one or m ore such, according to the ir requirem ents. In com m unes where there is no library of the k ind to which the presen t Law relates, th e com m unal ad m in is tra t io n shall be b o u n d to establish such a lib rary whenever so requested b y n o t less th an one-fifth of the whole body of electors of the com m une. All com m unes establishing or adop ting libraries m ust devote n o t less th a n 25 centim es per h ead of the com m unal popu la tion to the installa tion , upkeep an d develop­m en t of th e library . Libraries, w hether com m unal, adopted or free, shall have the benefit of S ta te su p p o r t and State gran ts if th ey com ply w ith the following conditions :

“ (a) They m ust have suitable premises ;

“ (b) T hey m u s t have a m in im um n u m b er of books an d m ake a m in im um num ber of loans ;

“ (c) T h e y m u s t be access ib le to a l l ;

“ (d) T hey m u s t m ake no charge ;

“ (e) T hey m ust be open for lending purposes a m in im um nu m b er of times per week ;

B ELG IUM 61

“ (f ) T hey m u s t su b m it to S ta te inspection ;

“ ( g) T h ey m u s t be m an ag ed by a l ib rar ian possessing a certifica te of qualifica tions, issued b y a S ta te b o a rd of exam iners .”

The S ta te m akes an n u a l g ra n ts of books (the e x te n t of the grant vary ing accord ing to th e classification of the library) and pays an n u a l salaries to l ib ra r ians (varying accord ing to the size of the co m m u n e) .

As a re su lt of these inducem en ts , as also of con tinual propaganda b y pub lic l ib ra ry inspectors, libraries of this k ind have spread to a n e x te n t exceeding all expec ta tions, especially in country districts.

The following figures show th e progress m ade since the Law of 1921 was p assed :

In 1920, th e re were 1,370 lib raries of a m ore or less public character in Belgium. M any of th em were on ly semi-public —such as school libraries, techn ica l libraries, l ibraries ofsocieties, etc.

At the p re sen t tim e, th e n u m b er of recognised libraries complying w ith all th e cond itions la id down b y the L aw is 2,370.

In 1922, th e n u m b e r of vo lum es in th e possession of recognised pub lic libraries was 1,540,547. A t the p resen t tim e, the n um ber is 5,245,527.

In 1922, th e n u m b er of loans of books b y these libraries was 2,686,319. A t th e p re sen t tim e, i t is 9,898,967.

At the h ead of these libraries are 2,441 lib rarians, the m a jo r i ty of whom hold l ib ra r iansh ip certificates.

Belgium m a y n o t have th e large m odel libraries of w hich the United S ta tes a n d th e U n ited K ingdom can b o as t ; b u t i t m ay be said t h a t re ad in g facilities h av e p e n e t ra te d to th e rem o te s t parts of the Belgian coun tryside .

Both the lib rar ians , m oreover, a n d th e inspecto rs co n s ta n tly endeavour to ra ise th e s ta n d a r d of books borrowed.

2. Inducem ents to Private Organisations.

The inducem ents offered to p r iv a te organisations derive first from th e Post-school O rgan isation D e p a r tm en t and , secondly, from th e N a tiona l Office for W o rk ers ’ Spare-tim e. The former, w hich was set up in 1922, gives g ran ts to all school continuation tra in in g activ ities . T he g ran ts are given chiefly for lectures, educational film displays, high-class d ram a tic performances an d concerts.

In addition to th e w ork done b y th e M inistry of E duca tion , magnificent w ork is being done for th e c u l tu ra l developm ent of the Belgian ru ra l p o p u la tion b y p r iv a te in s t i tu t io n s su ch as

62 BE LG IUM

th e D avids F u n d and the Socialist W orkers Educational Centres :

(a) The Davids F u n d .— In 1936, th e local sections of th is im p o r ta n t fu n d gave 724 d ram atic perform ances or concerts and 1,316 lec tures (a large n um ber of them with f i lm s1) and h e ld 254 meetings of young people and 154 film exhibitions, an d a rranged for 360 t rav e l s tu d y tr ip s and 177 com petitions. I t fu r th e r organised 477 public libraries. The g reat m a jo r i ty of these ac tiv ities were for th e benefit of th e ru ra l population.

(b) The Workers' Educational Centre confines i ts activities alm ost en tire ly to in d u s tr ia l workers in tow ns and industrial centres, and consequen tly is no t a m ovem ent affecting the p u re ly ru ra l population.

M ention m ight also be m ade of th e W illems Fund , the ob jects of wThich are su b s tan tia l ly th e sam e as those of th e Davids F u n d ; b u t its em inen tly fru itfu l and well-organised activities are m ain ly confined to u rb a n centres.

C. R u r a l D w e l l i n g s a n d O u t b u i l d i n g s

N ot so very long ago, a well-to-do p ea san t w ith a ta s te for n o v e lty and display, w ho wished to build himself a fine house, w ould erect a com m onplace dwelling of an u rb a n type, with unw indow ed gables and more th a n one storey , which wTas both ugly and inconvenient, while th e poor peasan t sometimes lived in an in ad e q u a te and in san ita ry dwelling, w ithout air or light. B o th types of dwelling were a b lo t on th e beauties of th e villages, o u t of h a rm o n y w ith th e fine farm houses and o ther ru ra l build ings of th e pas t , w'hose sim ple and characteris­tica lly regional s ty le served to enhance th e ru s tic cha rm of the countryside . The problem was how to bring ru ra l dwellings up to date.

B ut th a t does n o t m ean th a t co u n try houses shou ld lose their rustic charac ter . A co u n try house which is no t rustic in ch a rac te r can never be any th ing b u t a m isplaced im ita tion of a to w n house. On th e o ther hand , a rustic ch a rac te r is not incom patib le w ith comfort.

The ideal dwelling is th a t which is best su ited to the needs,m an n e r of living, occupation and resources of th e fam ily whichoccupies it.

T he ex te rna l appearance of a co u n try house is incidentalto th e p r im ary consideration—viz., th e nu m b er of rooms

1 The Davids Fund has a centre for instruction by films, which has already 106 projectors of its own.

B ELG IUM 63

required . I t is for th e a rch itec t to produce som eth ing which is at once p leasing to look a t a n d in h arm ony w ith localcharacteristics.

In this respect, th e older ru ra l dwellings in Belgium, w ith a single p lain roof and m in im um upkeep requirem ents, were much more ra tiona l.

The regional s ty le , w hich is th e ou tcom e of regional hab its and local m ateria ls , shou ld be preserved as m uch as possible.

The defects still to be found in ce r ta in old buildings include :

Too few, or too small, room s ;Too low ceilings, n o t m ore th a n two m etres from th e floor ;Absence of, or defects in, s tone flooring, built flush with

ground level ;D am pness of w alls owing to sa l tp e tre ro t ;Absence or in ad e q u acy of cellarage ;W indow s too narrow or too low to give good light ;N on-exis ten t or in ad e q u a te ven tila tio n ;D efective o r ien ta tio n ;D irect com m unica tion betw een rooms occupied by the

family and premises occupied b y anim als.

To these con stru c tio n a l defects th e re m ay be added :

T ack of drinking-w ater, or w ate r-supp ly from d is tan t wells not always im m u n e from surface in fil tra t ion ;

R u d im e n ta ry , offensive an d in san i ta ry water-closets ;T ack of hygienic a rrangem en ts for disposing of d ir ty

water, a n d dung-heap in th e co u r ty a rd , rendering the surroundings d ir ty , u n h e a l th y or m alodorous.

Although these defects are n o t always found together, and the g reat m a jo r i ty of old buildings h ave been im proved as far as was possible, th e re are still too m an y unsa tisfac to ry dwelling-houses.

In th e case of fa rm s an d sm all properties, th e chief efforts made have been d irec ted to w ard s th e im provem en t of the fa rm buildings or sheds for anim als, tow ards which th e G overnm ent gives grants, especially th e im pro v em en t of stables, and th e construction of liquid m anure p its an d barns for storing fodder.

The slum scourge is n o t confined to cities : it ex tends to rural regions, th ough it is no t know n to w hat precise extent.

A recent enqu iry b y the Provincia l G overnm ent of W est Flanders showed th a t 3 0 % of th e slum dwellings in the province were in ru ra l com m unes. S ta tis t ics show th a t the n u m b er of victims of tubercu losis is p ro p o r tio n a te ly greater in ru ra l districts.

The N ationa l Sm allho lders’ Society, whose activities d a te from some tw o years back, is conduc ting a vigorous cam paign against ru ra l slums.

64 BE LGIUM

Since 1905, th e founders of th e N a tio n a l Commission for th e B eau tif ica tion of R u ra l Life h ave set them selves to improve ru ra l dwellings b y ac tive p ro p ag an d a and , in p ar ticu la r , b y the co n s tru c tio n of m odel ru ra l dwellings a n d farm s for show at in te rn a tio n a l exhibitions. T he p ub lic ity given to these models, w hich are fru its of s tu d y b y hygienists, ag r ic u ltu ra l experts and a rch itec tu ra l specialists, has h a d a favourab le effect on the w ork of im provem en t since th a t t im e in c o u n try districts.

B E LG IUM 65

C ONCLUSION

All things considered , th e Belgian cu lt iv a to r can c la im to have made in th e p a s t fifty years a big effort to im prove his situation in every respect.

I n d u s t r io u s and frugal, he is able, b y th e u n ited efforts of all the members of his fam ily , to w rest th e m eans of existence from the soil on p roperties which are often ex trem ely small. Bv continually increasing th e y ie ld of th e lan d and live-stock, the rural p o p u la tio n has co n tr iv ed to live— if n o t prosperously, at a n y ra te to su b s is t— on a lim ited area. I t has been asserted that the Belgians in th e p as t fifty years h av e treb led th e ex ten t of their c o u n try w ith o u t firing a shot.

As regards th e techn ical aspects of p roduc tion , th e Belgian cultivator need n o t fear com parison w ith an y of his neighbours ; but the same can n o t perhaps be said of th e m arke ting of his products. The com m ercial sense an d its coro llary th e co­operative sense a re n o t y e t sufficiently developed in him. The economic difficulties w ith w hich he is confron ted are no doubt due in the m ain to obstacles of an in te rn a tio n a l ch a rac te r ; and the co n tr ib u tio n th a t G o v ern m en t au tho rit ie s can m ake in this direction is to m itiga te as m u ch as possible th e effects of the prohibitions or o ther bars to th e m ain tenance and expansion of the n a tu ra l ou tle ts for Belgian ag r icu ltu ra l a n d h o rticu ltu ra l produce.

Rural life in Belgium is d o m in a ted a t th e present t im e b y th e econom ic prob lem — in o th e r wTords, b y th e problem of how to make agricu lture pay. All social or hygienic im provem en t seems to be conditioned by th e so lu tion of th is problem.

Accordingly, all efforts m u s t b e d irec ted tow ards th e improvement of th e sy s tem of m arke ting , which is th e p re ­condition of any rev iva l of ru ra l life.

(Photo L um ière — O B L U T . )

Landscape in Brabant (Gaesbeek neighbourhood).