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population, we shall divide the whole class of farmers
into big farmers and small fanners.

Gul and castorseed are raised by both these classes of
farmers as commercial crops. The rise in the prices of
these commodities obviously benefits them. As regards
food-grains, the big farmers sell some portion which to
them is a surplus ; the small farmers also sell a portion of
their food-grains, which, though not a surplus, has to be
sold in order to realise cash necessary for paying land
revenue. Thus, as in the case of commercial crops, the
rise in the prices of food-grains, also, benefits both classes
of farmers. In short, the apparent conclusion from this
brief discussion is that the rise in the prices of farm pro-
duce should have benefited the agricultural class as a
whole, including both big and small agriculturists.

But to what extent they have been benefited is a doubt-
ful question. In ascertaining this, the following table of
the wages of skilled and unskilled labour and the price of
plough cattle will be helpful,

Wages of skilled and unskilled labour and the price of
plough cattle expressed in terms of index numbers :

YŤar
Wages of skilled labour
Wages of unskilled labour
Price of plough cattle

1905
100
100
100

1914
140
120
150

1926
240
320
320

This table clearly establishes that during the period in
which there was a rise in the prices of farm produce there
was also a rise in the wages of both field and skilled
(carpenters and ironsmiths) labour, and in the price of
plough-cattle.
Looking at this rise in wages and in the price of plough
catde from the standpoint of the agriculturist, it becomes
obvious that since these form the principal items in his
cost of raising farm produce, the rise implies an increase