COMPULSORY POWERS 391 



used when the time of its sale is not coincident 

 with the date of an application. Moreover, if such 

 land is to be made use of in connection with any 

 scheme for small holdings, it can only be done 

 profitably by buying quietly. This is quite im- 

 possible in the case of a public body, and in face of 

 all the preliminary public inquiries entailed. But 

 it is conceivable that much could be accomplished 

 by anyone so in touch with local requirements 

 and with such sufficient local knowledge as to have 

 ear-marked any farms or estates suitable for small 

 holdings, and who would be ready to buy them 

 without publicity when they came into the market. 

 In connection with this knowledge of estates, there 

 should be a register kept of all men wanting land, 

 and their requirements for every district. 



It is possible that a body of suitable Small 

 Holdings Commissioners could fulfil these functions 

 to such a degree that, by satisfying applications, 

 they would confine merely to its moral pressure 

 the power conferred by compulsory clauses for 

 acquisition of land. 



