About 335 bce China’s potential cropland was so expansive that the philosopher Mencius wrote, “If the farmer’s seasons are not interfered with, there will be more grain in the land than can be consumed.” By the 1st century bce, however, wastelands were being reclaimed for cultivation, and there was a demand for limitation of landholdings. About 9 ce the first (unsuccessful) attempt was made to “nationalize” the land and distribute it among the peasants. By the end of the 2nd century ce, severe agrarian crises culminating generally in the downfall of the ruling dynasty had become a recurrent theme of ...(100 of 27369 words)