LAND TENURE IN ENGLAND.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1888, 24 October 1913, Page 7

LAND TENURE IN ENGLAND.

— MR. LLOYD GEORGE'S PLANS, FOR RURAL TENANTS. STATE MONOPOLY ESSENTIAL. By Telegraph—Press Association— Copyright (Rec. October 23, 10.30 p.m.) London, October 22. i The Chancellor of the Exchequer (Mr, addressed an enthusiastic , audience of 3000 persons at Swindott in continuation of liis land campaign, i I/Ord Strachi-o (formerly representative in the House of Commons of tho Hoard of 'Agriculture) presided. Mr. Lloyd-Georgo said tho first esseni tial step was to assume complete eon- ■ trol of tho monopoly in land, and placing it under _ State direction. Tho Cabinet unanimously proposed to ;replaee tho Board of Agriculture by a Ministry of Land to deal with users of land in town and country ;• also with registrations of v titlo and transfer, be- ! sides valuation/ Tho Government had" found that largo farms had been fairly rented on the wholo, but that such was ' not so with respect to small ones. Tho ' Government proposed to. enable small | farmers to complain before tho Com- | missioners if existing rents were exeesI sivo, and- empower the Commissioners : to reduce thcsi. Moreover, rent that i was now reasonable might become trn- ■ reasonable in the event of a. statutory iiicroaso Sn labourers' wages. .Finally, I a temporary lessening of the rent might i bo sought in tho event of great agril; cultural depression. Land that was not suitablo for oulti- - vation would bo used for afforestation. ; Tho Ministry for Land would bo in- . 'stiructed to -acquire at a reasonable price derelict and neglected tracts, and improve and equip them wit if a view to their utmost, cultivation. Continuing, Mr. Lloyd-George said that the valuation of tho land would' bo completed by 1915, and the machinery for tho valuations would bo handed over to tho Minister of Lauds.'. "If," t ho said', "tho small holder gets 'a notice to quit,_ the Minister'will send an official to inquire into tho reason. If ho is told that that small holder voted for E- a Radical candidate, or went to tho 1 Methodist Church, ho will say that that - is not an adequate cause for the notice 3 to quit. If a tenant was a bad farmer, I it- was right that he should. bo dispossessed, in tho interest of tho coni--3 munity.;' but otherwise ho was entitled to compensation. In this way tenants will get security of tenure." There were, added tho Chancellor,' eight million aores capable of afforestation. The planting of trees would bring exposed lands into cultivation.. They were tho men of tho highlands and glens, who had given, Britain her ' refinements, who had arrested tho career , of Napoleon-; but the men of the glens had been swopt away, their erofta had been destroj'ea, and tho wholo pliico was now trodden by tho deer. "Tho Government wants to ropoptilate tho glens by reaiforesting tho hillsides, giving the iu<in winter employment in . the forests; in summer they could bo cultivating tho valleys. It is stupid to allow our tens of thousands of _ robust 9 workmen to go forth to the wilds of Canada, when there was bo much land! II at Homo. Our present conditions aro ) blooding tho country, aixd tho haemorrhage must bo stopped. If tho f i'a.rniers are unable to jiay tno minimum - wages, tho'Commission will fix abate- ! - ments of tho rents." Mr. Lloyd-Georgo continued:. "There is a deficiency of 120,000 cottages. Tho Government is going to uso tho Insurance Reserve Funds in giving tho agricultural labourers tho first out off that joint. The Commissioner will fix tho prico, thus getting land at a fair price. Every house will havo its vegetable garden. Tho resources of tho Stato aro t quite adequate to build country cottages for everyone. It, is to tho interest of' 1 tho country to induco everyone to live * outsido the towns.' Such, are the 1 r methods which will secure to ua tho Motherland, in which our children will rejoice, and tho. Empire, to the onds of " tho earth, be proud." r Mr. Lloyd-Gcorgo in the evening addressed a meeting of four thousand. Ho said that his land programme was not 1 unauthorised. He spolto on behalf of the and of tho whole of tho Cabinet. His. opponents aro already ? foaming. "In a few weeks," ho dor clared, "there won't be enough strait--1 waistcoats in England for them." " A NEW HORDE OF OFFICIALS." (Rec. October 23, 11.55 p.m.) London, October 23. Tho Conservative papers sum Mr. Lloyd-George's policy as tho inauguratioii of a golden ago in a.griculturo by tho creation of a now horde of officials ' and an appeal to cupidity, and class t envy. ___ e . ._