had been intended in 1881.

We must now turn to the introduction of land purchase. In 1847 Lord John
Russell, in a project which was subsequently dropped, advocated, as did
J.S. Mill in later years, the solution of the land question by the
establishment of a peasant proprietary. The nidus, however, out of which
this policy germinated was the right of pre-emption which John Bright
secured for the tenants of ecclesiastical land under the Church Act of
1869. A further step in the same direction was taken in the Land Act of
1870--not more than two-thirds of the purchase-money being advanced to
the tenant under its provisions. Under the Church Act 6,000, and under
the Act of 1870 1,000, tenants purchased their farms.

In 1878 Parnell urged the establishment of peasant proprietorship, and
under the Act of 1881 three-quarters of the purchase-money was to be
advanced on such terms as to be repayable by instalments of five per
cent, per annum for thirty-five years, but only 1,000 tenants took
advantage of the facilities thereby offered.

Four years later was passed the Ashbourne Act, so called from the Irish
Lord Chancellor responsible for its introduction, and in it we have the
first Act--purely for land purchase--which has been applied to Ireland.
By it the Treasury found the whole of the purchase-money up to a total
of five millions sterling out of the Irish Church Surplus Fund, and
forty-nine years were allowed for repayment of the purchase-money to the
State at 4 per cent., of which £2 15s. was interest on the advance and
£1 5s. went to a sinking fund for the liquidation of the loan.

Only 2,000 tenants took advantage of the terms of this Act, but it is
nevertheless of importance as marking the point at which the principle