Policemen in Scotland Helped Farmers from March 1917 to the End of the War

Both county and burgh police forces in Scotland in equal numbers released policemenPolicemen into agriculture in Spring 1917. Locations varied between highly industrialised and small rural areas. The numbers in each force from which ex-ploughmen were drawn varied considerably from tens to hundreds in the larger cities. The proportion released from each force also shows considerable variation. The driving force for release was the Department of National ServiceDepartment of National Service which approached local authoritiesLocal authority(ies) and businesses to plead for help for agriculture in Spring 1917 and again for harvest and in Spring 1918. Most policemenPolicemen were released full-time. There was little evidence of a relationship between the proportion of police released from each force and areas of industrial unrest by farm workersFarm workers.