§ Mr. COURTHOPETo ask the President of the Board of Trade, how many acres of hops in this country have been grubbed during each of the last thirty years; and whether grubbing is increasing or decreasing during the present winter.
(Answered by Sir Edward Strachey.) We are unable to say to what extent grubbing has taken place during the last thirty years, inasmuch as our Returns only give the net loss or gain, and do not show the acreage of new plantations. The total area under hops in 1907 was 26,851 acres less than in 1878.