James Caird, a Scottish agriculturist, born at Stranraer, county of Wigton, in 1816. He was educated at Edinburgh, leased a farm from the earl of Galloway, and in 1849 published a treatise on "High Farming as the best Substitute for Protection." In 1850-51 he visited every county in England as agricultural commissioner for the " Times " newspaper, and his reports were collected into a volume. He subsequently visited the United States, and in 1858 published an account of a visit to the prairies. In 1857 he was returned to parliament for Dartmouth, and in 1859 for Stirling. In 1860 he was appointed a member of the fishery board, and in 1863 chairman of the royal commission on sea fisheries, whose final report was presented in 1866. In 1864 he carried through parliament a resolution for the collection of agricultural statistics, in consequence of which these have been published annually since 1866. His seat in parliament was vacated in 1865 by his acceptance of office as one of the enclosure commissioners. In 1868 and 1869 he prepared papers on " the Food of the People," which were read before the statistical society, and were afterward published.

He is a magistrate and deputy lieutenant of the county of Wigton.