138 EPPING FOREST. 



upon them, and had warned off the Crown officers from 

 the land. He had done this with impunity. 



In 1866, in consequence of the pressure of public 

 opinion, and the reports of the several Committees 

 which had dealt with the subject, a measure was 

 passed transferring- the management of the Crown 

 rights in the Forest from the Commissioners of Woods 

 and Forests who regarded the property of the Crown 

 only from the point of view of income and profits, and 

 who had been the instruments of the sale of the Crown 

 rights over more than a half of the Forest to the 

 Office of Works, presumably with the object of en- 

 forcing those rights, in the interest of the public, for 

 the abatement of inclosures and for the preservation of 

 the Forest. 



In the same session, the Chancellor of the Exchequer 

 Mr. Gladstone in answer to a question on the sub- 

 ject, stated that, with the entire sanction of the Queen, 

 these rights would be enforced in accordance with the 

 desire so often expressed by Parliament. Nothing, 

 however, followed upon this, and the inclosures re- 

 mained unabated, and continued to increase in number. 

 In 1869, an influential deputation waited on the then 

 Chancellor of the Exchequer Mr. Lowe with whom 

 practically rested the question whether to risk the public 

 money in vindication of these rights. They got little 

 satisfaction, however, from him. He treated the whole 

 subject with contempt and sarcasm, and declined to 

 take any step in the Courts of Law for the enforcement 

 of the Crown's rights. 



