§ Mr. P. WHITEasked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether he received a letter from the Rev. P. Barry, parish priest, Oldeastle, setting forth facts about the action of the Estates Commissioners-in dealing with the Wade estate, Clonabraney, and founding a complaint thereon; whether, in the interests of good public administration, he has instituted an inquiry; and what is the result?
§ Mr. DUKEI received Father Barry's letter. I have made inquiry of the-Estates Commissioners and they appear to me to have done their duty in this matter.
§ Mr. WHITEasked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether he will state the number and date of employment of inspectors, stewards, secretaries, and workmen, and their respective emoluments engaged in cultivating the Wade estate, Clonabraney, county Meath; also the number and cost of motor ploughs engaged, the number of horses working, the number of acres already ploughed, the number of acres sown and to be sown with corn; and the estimated cost of cultivating a statute acre and also that of seeding it?
§ Mr. DUKEA foreman and forty-six men have been engaged, as I stated on 28th March in answer to the hon. Member for South Meath. Two tractors have been in use, of which one was hired and has been returned; 275 acres have been ploughed, of which 240 acres are for corn. I cannot at present give the detailed and elaborate arithmetical particulars which are asked for
§ Mr. WHITEasked the Chief Secretary for Ireland what Section of what Act enables the Estates Commissioners to hold land and cultivate it themselves or let it for grazing purposes, as in the case of the Wade estate, Clonabraney, whilst numerous suitable applicants in the locality, for whose benefit it was intended, are waiting for its distribution; whether in this case any effort was made to make known to local people that the lands were available 2069W for any purpose, either tillage or grazing; how many years the present Mr. Wilson has held the lands for grazing; what is the number of acres and the rent per statute acre each year; by what process the rent was fixed; whether competition was invited; and why the Commissioners departed from their intentions stated in their communication to Mr. Bernard Flood, Creeragh, dated 21st September, 1915, to the effect that at the expiration of that year's lettings, in the December following, they proposed to arrange for the distribution of the lands; and why, having regard to the repeated applications for these lands, a reply was recently given to the hon. Member for North Meath that they had no knowledge of there being local people to take conacre?
§ Mr. DUKEAs regards the first part of the question I would refer to the answer given on the 18th instant to the hon. Member for North Westmeath. The lands let to Dr. Wilson were let to him before the Estates Commissioners had acquired the property, and the Commissioners continued the letting as they found him satisfactory. The present letting is in respect of 150 statute acres at £325 for eleven months, a somewhat higher rate than that paid to the previous owner, and the amount was fixed by agreement. In the letter of 21st September, 1915, the Estates Commissioners merely expressed the hope of being able to arrange for the distribution of the lands on the expiration of the grazing lettings in December last, but subsequently they decided to cultivate the greater portion of the lands themselves, and no scheme of re-sale has yet been prepared. The applications received from local people were for the distribution of the lands and not for conacre lettings,