But this is not all; the Land Act of 1880 has put a stop to all possible improvement of land, for no reasonable man will expose himself to the risk of losing his money on improvements, because, notwithstanding any contract he may have made with his tenant, the Land Commission may step in and legalize a breach of the contract.[85]
The typical landlords in Ireland, whom you hold up for public execration, are not rich noblemen; it would be better for Ireland if they were, but they are mostly men of the middle class, struggling hard to escape the pauperism your iniquitous legislation has brought upon them.
Mr. Gladstone on one occasion said:—
“If Great Britain has become a place where the majority can oppress the minority in this way, it has come to be a place of which I should say that the sooner we get out of it the better.”
I repeat Mr. Gladstone’s sentiment with greater emphasis. If Mr. Gladstone, with his majority, are allowed to oppress the minority in this way, England is no longer the place for honest and loyal subjects.
FOOTNOTES:
[82] Total livestock in Ireland in 1874, 9,665,700; in 1883, 8,667,000.
[83] Decrease of acreage farmed in 1882—
| Cereal crops | 20,356 | acres. |
| Green crops | 21,072 | ” |
| Flax | 33,643 | ” |
| Meadow and Clover | 39,256 | ” |
| ——— | ||
| Total decrease | 114,327 | acres. |
Statesman’s Yearbook, 1883.