§ MR. VILLIERS-STUARTasked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury. Whether the nineteenth Clause of the Land Law (Ireland) Act empowers the Board of Works to advance to tenant farmers sums of less than £100, for the purpose of enabling them to carry out the orders of the Land Commissioners and Sub-Commissioners relating to laborers' cottages and allotments; whether it is true that the Board of Works have hitherto omitted to avail themselves of the power thus given them under the Act; whether the difficulty experienced by tenant farmers in obtaining these loans has contributed to the failure of the nineteenth Clause; and, whether the Government will take such steps as will insure the Board of Works availing themselves of the power of granting small advances to tenant farmers for the purpose of carrying out the orders of the Commissioners and Sub-Commissioners under Clause 19?
§ MR. COURTNEYSir, no difficulties have been thrown in the way of applications for loans under the 19th clause of the Land Act. Only seven have however as yet been received. In two of these it was not stated that the application was made under the order of Court, and they were therefore treated as coming under the 31st clause. When the error was detected a copy of the Court's order, as is necessary, was asked for in each case; and upon receipt of this the loans were sanctioned. In a third case the loan has been sanctioned, but the tenant now appears to wish to evade the ne- 397 cessity of building. In the four other cases, which have been received comparatively recently, the Court's order was sought for without loss of time; but in spite of reminders none of them have yet been received. In the meantime, however, the cases have been referred to the Inspectors for report.