Ireland's disease

by Philippe Daryl

It should be distributed by the committee to each evicted tenant in the proportion of his contribution to the fund. A half-year’s rent is supposed to maintain a tenant for a half year, and based upon this calculation, a tenant who funded say £50 would be entitled when evicted to receive £2 per week.

But not one penny should go in law costs. This should be made an absolute rule. For to pay law costs, such as attorney’s letters, writs and judgments incurred by the landlord, is to arm your enemy for the quarrel and furnish him with provisions to boot. In a determined fight there are no “law costs” on the side of the tenantry, and they should remain out for ever rather than pay those which the landlord incurs in fleecing them.

Ejectment is the most common of the landlord’s remedies. Every legal and constitutional obstacle which could oppose or delay eviction should be had recourse to, for every hour by which the sheriff is delayed in one eviction gives another brother tenant so much more grace. There are only 310 days in the sheriff’s year, and he must do all the evictions in a whole county within the time.

If, after eviction, a tenant is re-admitted as caretaker he should go in, but never upon the understanding that he would care any other farm but his own. Should the tenant not be re-admitted, shelter must be procured for him immediately by the Managing Committee, and then, if necessary, a day appointed when all would assemble to build him a hut on some spot convenient to the farm where the landlord could not disturb him. Wooden huts, such as those supplied by the League, waste too much of the funds and become valueless when the tenant is re-admitted.

Sale is the resort of the landlord when he proceeds by writ or process as an ordinary creditor. From eight to twelve days are allowed after service of the writ before judgment can be marked. The sheriff may seize cattle if he finds them on the farm, or he may seize and sell the tenant’s interest in the farm. A tenant who has his mind made up for the fight will have his cattle turned into money before the judgment comes on. Every tenant who neglects to dispose of them is preparing himself to accept the landlord’s terms, for he will not wish to see the emergency men profit by taking his cattle at some nominal price, and if he buys he is in reality handing the landlord the amount of his demand. Sale of a farm is not of so much consequence. Every farm sold in this manner during the agitation either has come or is bound to come back to its owner even on better terms than he first held it. But if a man has a very valuable interest in his farm, he can place it beyond the sheriff’s power by mortgaging it to some one to whom he owes money. Mortgage effected thus for a bonâ fide debt or consideration bars the sheriff’s power of conveyance at a sale. If the landlord or emergency men be represented, the cattle should not be allowed to go at a nominal sum. They should be run up to their price, and, if possible, left in the hands of emergency men at full price. It should be borne in mind that if the full price be not realised the sheriff could seize again for the balance.

In bidding for a farm it should also be run to amount of debt, but by a man of straw, or some one who, if it were knocked down, would ask the sheriff for time to pay. By making the landlord’s bidder run it up to the amount of debt and costs, and leaving it on his hands, the sheriff cannot follow the tenant further. No auction fees should be allowed. A farm held on a lease for a life or lives, any one of which is extant, cannot be sold by the sheriff. After sale a tenant is still in possession of holding until a fresh writ is served and a judgment for title marked against him. All this involves the landlord in fresh costs. The eviction may then follow, and the observations above recorded in case of ejectment or eviction apply here.

Distress, another of the landlord’s remedies, cannot be resorted to for more than one year’s rent. Few landlords can have recourse to this without exposing themselves to actions. The chief points to attend to are:—That distress must be made by landlord or known agent, or bailiff authorized by warrant signed by the landlord or known agent; that particulars of distress be served; seizure on Sunday is unlawful; seizure before sunrise or after sunset is unlawful; or for any rent due more than one year. Distress is illegal if growing crops be seized, or the implements of a man’s trade; and if other property be on farm to ensure landlord’s demand, it is illegal to seize beasts of the plough, sheep, or implements of husbandry necessary for the cultivation of the land. These points should be carefully watched when landlord has recourse to distress.

Bankruptcy proceedings are too costly a machinery for general use, and no landlord is likely to have recourse to them.

It is unnecessary to add that landlords, and their partisans on the magisterial bench and among the Crown officials, will do all in their power to twist the operation of the law so as to harass the tenants.

A tenant taking possession of his house to shelter his family from the severity of the winter is not likely to escape. A summons for trespass must be preceded by a warning to the tenant if he be found in possession. We have known a case where the father complied with this warning, and on the bailiff’s next visit the mother only was found, and she complied. Next time the eldest daughter only was in possession, and so on through the length of a long family, such as an evicted tenant nearly always has. A goodly time had been saved before the father’s turn came again. He was fined and went to gaol. The prison then lost its terror for him. When he came out he stuck boldly to his home, and he soon won the victory which rewards determination.