Page:Irish Emigration and The Tenure of Land in Ireland.djvu/88

Rh been principally confined to a class which cultivates the soil— the only class, in fact, which can Robert O'Brien, Esq., Agent, Tenant, and Land Proprietor."Has the consolidation of farms taken place; to what extent has it been carried; with what objects and by what means has it been accomplished, and with what consequences?—The system of consolidation is not carried on to any great extent in this district, and indeed bears no relative proportion to the subdivision of land, which is going on in spite of every effort of the landlords. However, here and there may be cases of clearing, and the desire to effect it exists, no doubt, in the minds of many who are deterred by unwillingness to enter into such a contest; others by humanity, knowing the wretched condition that the people so turned out would be in. The desire to effect it arises from the neglected state of the houses and land of such tenants; the frequent failure of their means to pay the rent, from bad tilling; the irregularity of their dealings and carelessness in fulfilling their engagements; the frequent disputes with landlords for cutting timber, burning land, wasting or selling turbary, dividing land amongst their families, letting strangers build cabins on their farms. The operation of the law, as it stands at present, frequently leads to a landlord turning out tenants, from whom, in the first instance, he would have been satisfied to recover his rent, which proceeds from the necessity of bringing an ejectment on the title where tenants-at-will are in arrear of rent, a course attended with considerable delay, and the tenant so evicted has no right to redeem."—Dig. Dev. Com. p. 466.

Captain Thomas Bolton, Land Agent to Lord Stanley."What is the more general size of the farms?—Under twenty acres decidedly. "Have you had the management of the estate for any length of time?—Since the year 1832. "In that time have you had occasion to make much alteration in the holdings?—I have altered in some cases the size of the farms, and in some cases I have removed tenants in order to do so.