The San Francisco call., 1909-07-29
Congested Districts Of
Ireland Much Improved
Thousands of Tenants Have Become Owners
of the Land They Cultivate
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phatically with each passing year. The
congested Districts constitute a prob
lem within a problem condition
which demanded special and drastic
treatment aside from the application
of the basic principles Of land purchase.
PRACTICAL recognition of the great
task and practical efforts to cope with
IL are due to A. j. Balfour, once (con-
serVatlve) chief secretary for Ireland,
iater prime minister and now leader of
the opposition in the house of COM
mons. 1t was when chief secretary
that he conceived the idea of placing
the poorest districts of Ireand under
tine management and control of spe-
cial body of nominated, unpaid, consci-
entious men. They were to be endowed
with large powers and made administra-
TORS OF a fund to be devoted to the bet
terment of the condition of the people
and the development OF the agricul-
tural, fishing and industrial resources
OF the districts most needing such aid.
The congested districts board was
created in 1891, and Its powers have
been enlarged by six supplementary
acts. Further and radical expansion Of
these powers is proposed in the land
act now under consideration in the
mousse of commons. Wide latitude has
been given to the board by the success
sive statutes. 1t can purchase unten-
anted lands with government funds,
acting through the land commission. 1t
can enlarge and rearrange holdings to
the satisfaction of tenants and make
them owners by agreements of pur-
chase on the annuity plan. 1t can
move families, where that is possible
and desirable. 1t can build roads and
FENCES, construct drains, open and de-
Velop uninhabited tracts, level woods,
deepen and divert rivers, advance funds
for individual improvements, and it can
erect comfortable, sanitary dwellings
for the helpless occupants of novels and
start families STEPPED in poverty upon
the road to self-respecting self-sus-
tanning industry and comfort.
All this the board can do, and all this
it has done and Is doing to the extent
of the funds at its disposal. Already it
has to its credit amazing accomplish
ments, as will be described in succeed
ing letters and inquiry makes it palpa-
Bile that the passage of the present
land act will enable the board to solve
completely the vast, intricate and dis
tressing problem of the most unfortu-
nate part of Ireland.
THE CONGESTED DISTRICTS
To understand clearly the nature of
the work and the almost incredibly
SutlhCu COHulllOn Ol the ptODI6 WHO'LL
it is sought to rescue the reader must
learn the character and extent of the
congested districts. The trainers Of
the act of 1891 had first to define the
area with which the proposed board
should be empowered to deal. After
exhaustive inquiry and various tests.
it was decided that the electoral divi-
sions-of which there are 1852 in Ire
land-should be considered the unit of
hot -frir
should be scheduled as congested where
the average annual ratable valuation
was under $3.50; that is, where the
average assessment of annual value
was less than $3.50 for each person. It
should be noted that the taxes are lev
led upon annual" value. and not upon
market or selling, value as in Amer
ica.)
1t was obvious, however, that there
would be found a few electoral divi-
sions in every county that would meet
this test. Hence there was made a re-
stricting provision that no division in
any county should be scheduled as con-
gested unless at least one-fifth of the
total population of the county lived in
congested districts as defined.
Under these provisions 429 electoral
divisions in the counties of Donegal.
Leitrim, Sligo. Mayo, Roscommon, Gal
way. Kerry and Cork were recorded as
congested within the meaning of the
act. There was a deliberate purpose
here. of course, to concentrate the eff
forts of the board. but the restrictions
obviously worked injustice. Many cleo
toral divisions quite as poor as those
scheduled were excluded because they
lay in the midst of rich counties other
than those named, or in the midst of
prosperous districts in the eight coun-
ties referred to. Through no fault of
their own the inhabitants of such divi-
sions have been excluded from the bene-
fits of the boards operation. There
was even the anomaly of the boards s