§ Mr. GUINEYasked the Chief Secretary whether he is aware that Jeremiah Sheehan, an evicted tenant on the Smith estate at Knockardrahan, Kanturk, county Cork, several years ago applied to the Estates Commissioners for reinstatement in his own or on an equivalent farm; and will he state the cause of the delay in this case?
§ Mr. BIRRELLThe Estates Commissioners received an application from Jeremiah Sheehan for reinstatement in a holding formerly occupied by Daniel Sheehan and Jeremiah Sheehan as joint tenants on the Smith estate, county Cork, and, after inquiry and consideration, decided to take no action in the matter of Jeremiah Sheehan's application.
§ Mr. AUGUSTINE ROCHEasked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland whether he is now in a position to state what action the Estates Commissioners propose to take with regard to the reinstatement of Timothy Cummins and John Desmond, evicted tenants on the Arnott estate; whether, in view of the fact that Desmond's predecessor being the tenant in possession of the holding at the passing of the Land Law (Ireland) Act, 1881, the middle interest of Wheeler was not determined by virtue of Section 8 of the Land Law (Ireland) Act, 1881, by 1232W reason of the rent of the holding being fixed at a sum less than the rent received by the middleman, and which would have constituted Desmond an immediate tenant to the Arnott estate were the appeal contested by him; whether he is aware that hundreds of middle interests in Ireland have not been determined in the same way and the occupying tenants ipso facto become immediate tenants to the head landlords; whether he will again cause inquiries to be made as to the legal and equitable claims of Desmond to be reinstated, inasmuch as Wheeler could not in any circumstances have resumed possession of the holding had not circumstances arisen which gave the head landlord an opportunity of evicting Desmond out of the holding; and whether the tenants in question will be reinstated before an advance is made for the purchase of the estate?
§ Mr. BIRRELLThe Estates Commissioners do not propose to take any action in the cases of Timothy Cummins and John Desmond. Cummins obtained possession of a holding on the Arnott estate as executor of a Mrs. Murphy. He fell into arrears with the rent, and gave up possession on receiving compensation for doing so. Desmond, who appears to have held as subtenant to a Miss Wheeler, tried to get a judicial rent fixed under the Land Law Acts, but the lands being a town park the case was dismissed by the Land Commission Appeal Court, and does not therefore come within the Evicted Tenants Act, 1907. The nephew of Miss Wheeler, the former direct tenant of this holding, is now in occupation of it, and has signed an agreement for the purchase of the holding under the Land Purchase Acts.