§ MR. J. E. ELLIS (Nottingham, Rushcliffe)asked Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer, Whether, in view of the letter from the Marquess of Londonderry, dated 20th February, 1888, to his tenants in County Down, urging them to purchase their holdings from him "at 20 years' purchase of their present rent," and the fact that none of the applications for fair rents from the Marquess of Londonderry's tenants have been entered for hearing at the sitting of the Land Court in that district in May next, he will take care that no loan of public money is sanctioned to complete purchases to which the Marquess of Londonderry's tenants may be induced to agree until a full opportunity has been afforded them of having their applications heard and fair rents judicially decreed?
§ THE SECRETARY TO THE TREASURY (Mr. JACKSON) (Leeds, N.)(who replied) said: The Land Commissioners inform me that no application for advances on the Marquess of Londonderry's estate have been received. It 253 has always been the practice of the Land Commissioners that whenever an agreement for sale is signed by a tenant and has been lodged, they satisfy themselves of the security, and provisionally sanction the advance, to allow the tenant a month from the date of such sanction, in which he may apply to stay proceedings. The views and practice of the Land Commissioners in such cases were fully explained by the Chancellor of the Exchequer on Tuesday last, in answer to a Question from the hon. Member.