§ MR. JAMES O'CONNOR (Wicklow, W.)To ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland whether he is aware that a number of tenants who refuse to purchase their farms from Earl Fitzwilliam, on the ground that the price demanded is excessive, have been notified by the Estates Commissioners, through Mr. Fottrell, solicitor, that they intend to exclude those tenants from the sale of the estate unless they write by return post agreeing to purchase on the land lord's terms; and, if so, will he make inquiries into the action of the Commissioners in these cases.
598 (Answered by Mr. Bryce.) The Estates Commissioners inform me that in a few cases the tenants refused to accept the terms offered, upon the ground that these terms were excessive. In such cases the Commissioners required their inspector to state whether, in his opinion, the vendor's terms were reasonable, and he inspector's report was in the affirmative. As the tenants still refused to sign purchase agreements on these terms their holdings were excluded from the "declared" estate, upon the vendor's solicitor giving an undertaking that, as far as possible, these holdings would be included in a subsequent estate if terms acceptable to the tenants could be arranged. This course was taken in order to complete the proceedings for sale, affecting 1,055 tenants, upon that portion of the several estates for which agreements had been signed. The Commissioners have no information as to what communications passed between he solicitors for the vendor and the tenants. In such cases as these it is I he practice to inform the tenants that their holdings have been excluded, but that an opportunity would be subsequently avoided them of coming to terms with their landlord, in which cast (heir holdings would be included in another estate.