Evening star., 1914-12-12
LAND TITLES.
xII.-In Foreign Countries.
BY Frederic J. Haskin.

The American system Of iandholding
contemplates the division Of the soil
among individuals In moderate quantities.
so as to produce an Independent and
prosperous class of agrtculturfsts as
foundation for sound political stete-
Such an idea has been approved by phil
usophers during all of known history
and SooD. the Athenian aw-giver. pro-
cured a redivision of the landed proper
= OF Athens on this basis as q means to
remedy existing political evils.
But in all ages IL has been found that
lie increase in population has brought
about complications which modified and
finally. in most instances, destroyed the
.lllodial basis of land titles which seems
To be the natural and primitive one Cl-
tinlately, instead Of right arising from
occupation ami use of the soil. rights de-
rived from acquisition and conquest die
rated the character of land tenures. and
with the single exception of the Hebrew
nation the holding of the agricultural in
terest became subservient to some po-
tentate. king or over-lord-
The land system Of the Hebrews was
founded on the conception that property
in land was the direct gift of the SUI
preme Being. The land. according to the
Hebrew theology. was selected for the
ion among them according to fanll'es
was divine institution. The religion
OF the Hebrews required that the iand
should lie idle every seventh or sapoal-
cal year and that at the end OF each
nifty years. IN the year of jubilee, all
transfers and membranes should pe-
come invalidated and the land returned
free of all restraint to the ,amiiy 10
L@oy tnft tad
This renewal and refreshment prevented
the incruStation of customs and artifclai
restraints which have entirely changed
the character of other land systems, orig
inally entirely allodial
Thus, the primitive condition of the
Europe, as well as of England. was the
T u % ic
Primitive Condition of folk system
European Land Titles. popui alton
the individuals of each clan possessing
interests of three sorts in the total body
of land included within the boundaries
of the location of the clan. Thus each
clansman had proportionate interest In
administered entirely in common He
also had right to an allotment Of a pro-
portionate share of agricultural land
which he titled as an Independent farmer,
except that he was bound by community
laws as to the manner of tillage. His
third right was to a residence plot which
he owned In severalty, and with which
the community could not interfere after
segregation had been made
The effect of the overlays of arti-
fetal privilege during the passage OF
centuries is best exemplifed by the
land systems found to be in existence
by the English when they took possess
sion of India and which have been
minutely studied and described by the
English administrators of the various
provinces. These systems illustrate
the course of dealings with the land
in a condition of a high rate of popu-
intensive cultivation and use.
The origin of land systems in India
is hidden in the obscurity OF prehls-
toric times. 1t is theorized that the
condition which existed Immediately
prior to known history was one Of
feudal tenure in which there was
regular descent from the king through
military subordinates down to the cul-
begins with the Mohammedan conquest
of India and the wiping out of class
distinctions among the ruling people,
since coreligionists under the Moham-
medan form of belief are on theo-
reticaI ground of equality.
The theory that was substituted for
the feudal system. if that existed, was
probably as oppressive as the FORMER
system since, while the ownership or
the land was not disturbed, it was
charged with taxes and exactions that
took from one-third to one-half of the
gross products of the land as the share
of the state. Portions of these reve-
nues were granted out to favorites and
officials and eventually became Gus
tomary membranes on the land and
a portion of the title of the land itself
When the English came into control,
il was their policy to confirm, as far
as possible, the existing land titles,
and they recognized not only actual
possession and title in the usual sense.
but the servitudes to which the lands
had been subjected, SO that the land
laws of each Indian state are in real
ity the results of its total history
modified by reforms which the English
administrators have been able to make.
Opposition to s'landlordisn'' is historic
in the United States as the result of
many of
Landlordism Opposition its mani
Historic in the U. S. ~ sns,ons
and especially in Ireland, yet the eco
nomic advantage of the administration
of land in large estates has frequently
been urged and the trend of modern
thought seems to be toward landlord
ism on comprehensive scale in the