because of an
exceptionally bad season, and one who is suffering because of
progressive deterioration of his farm. The first may borrow and make
good the difference the following year; the latter will be unable to
extricate himself. He neither has means to increase his holding by
renting or buying more land, nor to improve the land which he has
already. His distress is cumulative:

Only one with sufficient resources can improve his land. By
improving land we add to our capital, while by robbing land we
immediately add to our income; in doing so, however, we diminish
out of all proportion our capital as farmers, the productive
value of our farm land. The individual farmer can therefore
improve his land only when in an economically strong position. A
farmer who is failing to make a living on his farm is more likely
to exploit his farm to the utmost; and when there is no room for
further exploitation he is likely to meet the deficit by
borrowing, and thus pledging the future productivity of his
farm.[124]

While small holders in the open fields were in no position to pay
higher rents, the land owners were suffering. Prices were rising, and
while the higher price of farm produce in the market was of little
help to the tenant whose own family used nearly everything he could
raise, the landlords felt the pressure of an increasing cost of
living.

Many of us [says the Gentleman, in Hales' dialogue] haue bene
driuen to giue over oure houshold, and to kepe either a chambere
in london, or to waight on the courte Vncalled, with a man and a
lacky after him, wheare he was wonte to kepe halfe a score cleane
men in his house, and xxtie or xxxtie other persons besides,
everie day in the weke.... We are forced either to minyshe the
thirde parte of our houshold, or to raise the thirde parte of our
Revenues.[125]

It was difficult for the landowners to make economic use of even those
portions of the land which were not in the hands of customary tenants.
If they were willing to invest capital in enclosing demesne land and
stocking it with sheep, without disturbing their small tenants, they
found it impossible to do so. Not only did the poorer tenants have to
cultivate land which was barely productive of more than the seed used,
because they could not afford to allow it to lie idle as long as it
would produce anything; not only did they