,toacceptthephenomen,theexistenceofunlimitedlaborsupplyorlabor”surplus”,itispresumptuoustosaythatthepeasantsareignorantoffarmingmethods,,the”rock-bottom”,lackinganexplicitbehavioralpostulate,theaverage-productargumentisinconsistentwithwealthmaximizationunderprivateownershipofresources.

Thetheoryofsharetenancyderivedinchapter2providesadifferentexplanationforhigherratiosoflabortolandinAsianagriculture:thepeborforce,togetherwiththefact,itistothelandownersinterestthatnonegativemarginaleffortis”disguised.”Giventheexistingresources,crowdedfarmingistheresultofwealthmaximization,notof”irrationality.”

Itisnotdifficulttoshowthat”original”theoremsorhypothesesintendedtoexplainresourceallocationin”underdeveloped”,theaforementionedhypothesescanbereadilydismissedinlightofobservationsonlanduseandtheanalystsneglectofthepertinentpropertyrightconstraints.

First,letustakeacloserlookattheso-calledovercrowdedfarminginAsia,which”overcrowding”cannotbedeniedbyWesternstandards:

,[cane][cane],farmersoftenplantpeanuts,sweetpotatoes,canesgrowtall.[2]

Examplesasintricateasthisareabundant.[3]:

ItisevidentfromthismazeofdetailontheactualuseoflandbycropsinChina,that,inspiteoftheintensiveuseofcropsforhumanutilizationdirectlyratherthanindirectlybyfirstproducinganimalproducts,stillgreaterproductioncouldbeobtained.[4]

WhileBuckisamazedbythevariousmethodsofintensivefarmingandsoilconservationinChina,th,unfamiliarwiththeactualsituation,mighteasilyconsiderthecrowdedtillingwasteful,andhastilydevelopfancytheoremsandpoliciestoslaythedragon.

Evidencesuggeststhat,beforetheagrarianreformsinAsia,themarginalpro,forexample,wherein19,however,increasesinlaborandotherinputsontenantfarmsundertherentalsharerestrictionledtosignificantincreasesinoutputs.

Indeed,thefactthat,forexample,,andtheygenerallyrequireeighttimesasmuchlabortocultivate.[5]Forgoingsomemoncropsforvegetableplantingwillleadtoincreasinglaborinput,nAsia.[6]

Zeromarginalproductivityoflaborimpliesaconditionwhereitisnolongerpossibletochooseamorelabor-intensivecroptoobtainahigherine,ibletoadoptafastercroprotationratewithincreasinglaborinputandine,,too,t

Asecondreasonforrejectingthehypothesesofdisguisedunemploymentandthed,disguisedunemploymentcannotbederivedfromstandardeconomictheory,,however,zeroornegativemarginalproductoflaborisconsistentwiththegeneralbodyofeconomictheory.[7]Thisissobecausepetitionamonguserswillreducetherentalvalueoflandtozero,thusequatingtheaverageproductoflaborwiththewagerate(oralternativeearning).

Supposethat,asdevelopmenteconomistshavetakenforgranted,empiricalevidencedidconfirmthatthetwentyyears,asmanyofthemare,,conditionswhichtheirhypotheseshaveimplicitlypresupposed,,aswasmentionedinchapter1,mayinfacthaveledto”dual”,asanalyzedinthesecondpartofthisstudy,therentalsharerestrictionyieldsacondition