LABOURERS' LAND COMPANY 145 



ment by instalment the only expenses would be 

 the collection of the annual payments, and the 

 capital would keep on returning each year in an 

 increasing ratio for further employment. It will 

 be seen, therefore, that it was practically a necessity 

 for the company to sell the land for it to be able to 

 carry on ; and, in the opinion of many people con- 

 nected with the undertaking, it was this absence of 

 the desire to buy which brought the company to 

 an end. 



Four properties were acquired : one, at Lam- 

 bourne, in Berkshire, was presented to the company 

 by Lord Wantage in 1885 ; two lots of land were 

 bought in 1886 at Histon and Cottenham, in Cam- 

 bridgeshire ; one at Foxham, in Wiltshire, in 1889 ; 

 and one in Essex in 1890. The land was offered 

 for sale on the following terms : A deposit of 10 per 

 cent, was to be paid on the purchase money ; the 

 balance, with interest at 5 per cent., was repayable 

 in equal half-yearly instalments extending over a 

 period of twenty years, or more if required. 



It was soon found, however, that, whereas there 

 were plenty of men ready to hire land, there was 

 practically no desire to buy, especially amongst the 

 local people. The working expenses of the com- 

 pany amounted to 400 a year. It was stated in 

 the report of 1892 that only about 10,000 capital 

 had been subscribed, whereas the machinery existed 

 for dealing with 100,000 ; and if no more capital 

 was forthcoming, the alternative was to reduce 

 expenses and merely look after the estates which 



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