The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1903-05-02
A Scheme Which Really Gives to the Land
lord Far More Than the Value
of His Estate,
While 1t Fails to Give to the Tenant the
Full Ownership That He
Desires to Have

Irish thoughts and interests are now
OH the bill introduced OH
March % by Chief Secretary Wynd-
ham, says IAN Irishmun" in II letter to
the New York Evening Post, from
Dublin, dated April 4. The object of
the measure is to offer such pecuniary
inducements to landlords to sell and
to tenants to buy as will bring about ::
wholesale, or very large, transfer of
ow ncrslIip without actual compulsion.
So far as the landlords are concerned
this has been done. Whereas the sell
ing price of landlords estates III the
best of times was OH an average not
more than twcntythrcc years pur-
chas of the rental, and for the last
twenty years about seventeen years
purchase, the price which the bill pro-
poses will be from twenty years. pur-
chase for the worst class Of estates to
nearly thirty-three years for the best.
Hitherto, landlord sellers have been
paid in 2M per cont stock, worth be-
fore the South African war, 113, but
now only worth 80. Under the bill
they will be paid in cash. The money
required is estimated to amount to
about 100 millions sterling, and is to
be raised by the issue Of stock carry
ing 2M per cent interest for thirty
years, after which 1t will be redeem
able at par. The payment Of the in
tcrest OH the stock will be secured "a
by the annuities payable by tenant
purchasers; (g by various grants
which are now made from the EXchc
1uer in aid of local taxation for the
lunatics, police and for educational
purposes; G) by the local rates, which
the lord-lieutenant can order to be In
creased in case of any loss by default
in payment of the land-purcllase an
nuitics.
Under the fiscal system which has
been developed by Tory governments
during the last twenty years, the three
divisions Of the United Kingdom re-
ccive sundry grants in relief of local
taxation, for purposes which previous
ly had been considered to be the spe-
cial concern Of the local governing
units. The resulting confusion be-
tween local and imperial finance has
made all accounts of receipts and ex-
pcnditure Of taxation obscure and often
unintelligible; it has made efficient
supervision and control by parliament
almost impossible; and the effect Of the
financial provisions of the land bill OH
the general body Of taxpayers will be
apprchended by very few persons.
However, Mr.. Wyndham was able to
assure the British taxpayer that he
ran no risk; that the loan proposed to
be issued was secured over and over
again, and that England stood to win
financially. There can be no doubt
about that, though it may be difficult
to car-mark the particular Irish funds
that will be successively liable for the
losses that are inevitable in giving the
landlords prices for their estates far in
excess of any that they ever expected,
or would have taken twelve months
ago.
Mr.. Wyndham anticipated that it
would take fifteen years to issue the
whole amount Of purchase money;
and as there will be an immediate loss
on the issue at discount Of the 2 81
per cent stock, the fund made i'm
mediately liable for that loss is year.
Iy grant of f1S5,OOO for educational
purposes-a grant made to balance
similar one arranged last year for
Great Britain. 1t was hoped that the
now well-ascertaincd and almost uni
versally admitted over-taxation Of Ire
land might have been a sufficient rea-
son for throwing the expenses and
losses in carrying out this great reform
on the shoulders of the whole body Of
the United Kingdom taxpayers; but
that is not to be SO. The British rule
is, that Ireland is not a separate
financial entity when it is question
of increased taxation for British pur-
poses, but that she Is, and must bear
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