The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-01-05
Ev|CTED TENANTS
BACK ON OLD ARMS
Reinstatement Act Provid-
ed For Victims
LANDLORDS OPPOSED
Some Who Had Emigrated Did Not
Care to Return and Some Who
Did Made a Poor Hand of
of Farming
Rx E. x. CULLEN


Dublin, January 4--(Special.)- OF
the most interesting chapters IN the
agrarian history of Ireland closed Decem-
ber 81, when the Evicted Tenants Act of
1907 and 1908 expired. With this expi-
ration the story of the great land war
may fairly be said to have ended.
These acts were measure of tardy
justice to the men and the defendants
Of the men who were evicted from their
farms and homes in the middle of the
last century In the course of the great
war between landlord and tenant. which
led to the Land Purchase Acts under
banished from Irish soil. Those victims
of the war were not provided for un-
der the Land Purchase Acts and 1t be-
came necessary to do something for
them.
1t was estimated that there were 1000
of these evicted tenants and in 1907
law was passed empowering the land
commissioners to acquire land compul-
sorily for their benefit, it being UNDER
stood that wherever possible their old
farms should be restored to them. The
act was to run for four years, but later
it was extended for another year. Tho
first years working of the act, however,
revealed a fatal flaw. This was the
proviso that mo tenanted land be ac-
quired compulsorily which is in the pos
session or occupation of bona fide
tenant using or cultivating the same as
an ordinary form in accordance with
proper methods of husbandry." OF
course, most of the evicted farms were
in possession of such tenants. most of
them Scotchmen or Englishmen imported
by the landlords, and the commissioners
found themselves up against stone
wall. The next year, therefore, short
amending act was passed providing that
the land might be compulsorily acquired
| if 'the tenant in possession consented
| In writing"
Victory For Tenants
This was a sweeping victory for the
evicted tenants for it., made it possible
at once to bring publi&sopinion to bear
on the tenants in possession. In many
districts they were vigorously boycotted
until they were glad to take the liberal
compensation offered by the land COM
| missioners and go. 1t made 1t impossi-
BILE for reactionary landlords to colon
ize the land with their favorites or SER
wants in order to bar the old holders.
Tt must be said for the landlords that
most of them accepted the situation
with a good grace and did all in their
power to expedite the working of the
act That Bourbon of the Bourbons,
Lord Clanricarde, however made last
fight In 1869 the commissioners pro-
ceeded to acquire some of his land for
the old tenants. with the consent of
the then holders. Lord Clanricarde took
the case to the courts, alleging that the
consents were not consents at all as they
| had been given for money consider
alton and tho courts upheld this view.
WI hu
war of boycotting which ended in a
crushing defeat for Lord Clandicarde.
who finally consented to SELL not only
the evicted farms, but all his estates
| The last official report of the commits
| sioners shows that up to March 81, last,
| los estates had been purchased and 443
| evicted tenants reinstated on 1882 acres.
| 1t is unofficially stated that since then
about so tenants have been put back,
making 523 in all. There are still couple
| of hundred applicants, unprovided for
| but they will be taken care of by the
commissioners in other ways. They will
| be provided with land, which probably
will not, however, be their old holdings.
Discrepancy Explained
The discrepancy between these figures
and the 1000 which formed the original
estimate is explained by various facts.
A good many of the evicted tenants had
settled voluntarily on other farms and
did not wish to move again. Others had
been provided for under the ordinary
land purchase acts, but by far the
greater number had emigrated to the
dominion and the United States. A few
| greater majority had no desire to give
| UP the prosperous conditions of Canada
and the United States to resume the
| struggle of agriculture in Ireland.
! 1t must be recorded, too, that some
of those who returned-sons. or even
grandsons of the original evicted tenants
made a sad mess of it. They had no
experience of farming and no knowl-
| edge of the ways of the country. Tho
| money advanced by the commissioners
| for the purchase of live stock, seed. i'm
| plements, etc. was squandered and in
some cases legal proceedings for its re-
covery have been begun.
| On the other hand many of the original