Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-06-19

ninety individuals WHO OWL UctWCCh ~
900 and 5O.OOO acres and the 1so persons
who own between 10000 and 2O,OO-are
also nearly all noblemen. 1t would seem
that titles of nobility and large estates
70 together over here. That is the rule
in other countries and is perfectly nat
ural because a poor man has no use for
a title of nobility and a rich man Is
usually anxious to get one When An
drew Carnegie was interviewed the other
day on his arrival at Liverpool a re-
porter asked him whether he expected to
receive a title of nobility. and he replied
promptly that he didn't need one; that he
was a sovereign in his own country and
that was more than sufficient in the way
of honor for any man. This shows that
Mr. Carnegie is an exception to the gen.
eral rule and is not a safe standard or
COMPARISON William Waldorf Aston, the
only American that anybody knows or
who has been willing to relinqufsh his
sovereign rights as an American to be-
come the Subject of a king. is expecting
a peerage and has expended several hum
dred thousand dollars to encourage the
British government to gratify him. He
does not own very much land, out mas
several beautiful residences in the neigh
borhood of London, where he dispenses
expensive hospitality. Those who know
| the disposition of the British ministry
tell me that Mr.. Astor's ambition will
never be gratifed, although it Is very
likely that his son. who is said to be "a
very decent sort of fellow" and is much
more democratic than his father. may
call himself the Lord of Something or
Other. or at least Sir Waldorf, one of
these days.
The British hate a toady as much as
any one else, perhaps a little more than
the average. and while they are willing
to accept Mr.. Astor's hospitality and en-
Joy the benefits Of the arge sums OF
money he gives to charity and public
purposes. they do not appreciate some OF
the evidences of his loyalty to the British
crown. For example. no newspaper and
no individual in the British empire thus
mend his disposition of the flag of the
American ship Chesapeake. which was
sold at auction not long ago. When he
purchased this historical relic everybody
supposed that he would present 1t to the
Naval Academy at Annapolis or to the
National Museum at Washington, or In
some way restore it to its original owner,
from whom 1t was captured In battle at
sea- but he endeavored to gain little
glory and increase his popularity among
the British people by giving it to the
British navy. The admiralty officials re-
ceived 1t with great reluctance. The Brit
| ish newspapers gave Mr.. AstOr tremen-
dous roasting all around, and insisted
that he could not have done a more
graceful act than to return the flag to
the American navy, where 1t belongs
This mistake on Mr.. Astors part has eff
fectualiy settled his chances for title
The British government could not give 1t
to him now. But his performances have
nothing to do with the Irish land ques-
ton. and his ambitions are not involved
| In that great problem.
Complaints in Ireland.
A peer has just as much right to own
land as anybody, and the complaints
| the rank or the station of the landlords,
xhntr nf M
terests and their tenants especially be-
cause most of them do not spend the in
comes from their estates in making i'm
| provements or for the benefit OF their
| own people: they do not even spend it In
| ireland, but reside in London most Of
| the time and spend the money there
where the people who earned 1t receive
| no benefit from it directly or indirectly
| 1t is unnecessary to discuss the evils of
| large estates. They are too numerous to
mention, especially when they are owned
| by people who live outside of the coun-
| try. That is the great obstacle to the
development of Mexico, where millions OF
acres in large tracts. granted to Spanish
grandees before independence, still re-
main in the ownership Of their descend
| ants who live in Spain or Paris and
spend the revenues there. 1t Is true also
| of Russia. Poland. Austria and Of many
other countries and to a certain extent of
Cuba, where a number Of the valuable
and productive plantations belong to fam
| lilies who are living in Spain. Paris or
New York and never even visit them.
| No country ever suffered so much from
| absentee landlordiSm as Ireland, and
many great estates here have been en-
| tirely neglected or practically abandoned
| and allowed to go to ruin by the owners
who intrusted them to dishonest or in
/ ir,f<f rocf
| in their own property. No one can blame
the tenants upon such estates for their
enmity and resentment toward the pro-
prietors or condemn them for their re-
| fusal to pay rent when they received
very little or nothing in return. But the
system in Ireland has been very much
| improved of late years by various acts of
parliament and many people think that
every respect. Fifty years ago the land
lord was the owner and autocrat of the
soil and everything that stood upon it.
The tenant had no legal rights beyond
what was written down in his lease. and
when that expired the landlord could
| raise or lower his rent or drive him off
| the land at pleasure
Forcib!e evictions are things of the
past. Several years ago the demands for
| 1.-THE Three Fs"-free SALE fair rent and
fixed tenure-were complied with and to-
day the farms in Ireland are subject to
what is called "a dual ownership pecu-
| liar to this country. No landlord can
rob a tenant any longer. Disputes con-
corning rent are now settled by a tribunal
| which takes all the circumstances into
consideration and decides upon the equi-
| ties rather than the technicalities of the
case. This has revoutionized the land
system of Ireland, and by succession of
acts of parliament during the past few
| years the government has gone a great
way toward equalizing ownership and
| creating a nation of peasant proprietors.
| which, according to their ideas over
| here is the ideal condition.
The changes In the size of Irish farms
| has been remarkable. In 1871 81 per cent
| of the holdings were less than ten acres
Today. as you will see by the table
have printed above. out of 6SOOO farms
| only $500 are of ten acres and less.