ia 
scarcity of shipping. Fertilisers, on the other hand, did not rise 
in price so rapidly as agricultural produce, especially in the last 
three years of the period. 
During the latter part of this period, however, control of prices 
of agricultural commodities was in operation and between the end 
of 1916 and the end of 1919 there was not in the case of many of 
the more important products a free market. Control of prices 
was removed by stages and in most cases agricultural commo- 
dities were free from control by the end of 1920. 
In regard to the movement of agricultural prices in relation 
to that of feeding stuffs and fertilisers the changes which have 
taken place will be seen from the following table, which gives the 
percentage by which the average figure for each year from 1914 
to 1925 exceeded the average in the three base years 1911-13. 
1914 
1915 
1916 
1917 
1918 
1919 
1920 
1921 
1922 
1923 
1924 
1925 
Year. 
Agricultural 
Produce. 
27 
60 
101 
132 
158 
192 
119 
69 
57 
61 
509 
Feeding 
Stuffs. 
v 
37 
87 
174 
187 
168 
173 
31 
16 
36 
54 
59 
: 
g 
Fertilisers. 
a 
i5 
56 
96 
111 
115 
159 
120 
47 
23 
19 
14 
“ Decrease. 
These results are also shown in Diagram VIII, covering the 
period 1906-1925, which indicates the movements of animal and 
vegetable products separately. 
The vegetable products included are wheat, barley, oats, 
pulse, potatoes, hay, fruit and vegetables, and hops; the animal 
products comprise fat cattle, sheep and pigs, milk, butter and 
cheese, poultry, eggs and wool. The two sets of figures cannot 
be taken as strictly representing arable and pasture farming 
respectively, but they do show to some extent the different 
effects of price changes upon those farmers who depended mainly 
upon sales of vegetable products and of animal products re- 
spectively. 
The fourth period, 1920-1923, saw a very rapid fall in prices, 
as is indicated in the above table and in Diagrams VII and VIII. 
Agricultural prices again moved in close harmony with general