WASTE LANDS, uncultivated and un profitable tracts in populous and cultivated countries. The term waste lands is not employed with reference to land not reduced to cultiva tion in countries only partially settled. There is a large extent of waste lands even in the British islands. Of the 77,800000 acres which they contain, only about 47,000,000 are arable land and improved pasture; 2,000.000 acres are occupied with woods and plantations; 7,000,0U0 acres in Scotland consist of sheep-pasture, gen erally at considerable elevation, and little im proved by art; 8,000,000 acres in Ireland are uninclosed pasture, generally quite unimproved; 3,000,000 acres are mountain and ; and the remainder is unimproved and ive.
In the United States, much of the land now practically waste is in this condition merely be cause the time has not yet come for profitable development of its capacities. A large portion
of the area which 40 years ago was known as the 'Great American Desert' has been brouttht under cultivation and is remarkably productive. With increase of population and multiplication of railroads, much of the land in the west now lying idle will be converted into fertile fields. Many of the 'abandoned farms' in the eastern States, some of which have been injured by a bad system of tillage, also will be reclaimed. While there are no authentic figures giving area of waste land in the United States, the follow ing items as reported by the last census are of value in considering the subject: Hence of the total land area in the United States only 46 per cent is in farms and only .6 per rent was claw :tq "improved` land Consult Halt A. D., 4rnatb,w of Waste Lands) (it Popular atievera eliaratkiy,