BELBROUGHTON 405 



The Parish Councillor has the eyes of the whole 

 parish on him : he stands or falls according to his 

 actions before a community with whom he is in 

 intimate connection ; and in this question of land, 

 if you take Castle Morton as an example, there is 

 no keener critic than the working man himself, 

 both in connection with the handling of public 

 funds and in the selection of suitable tenants. 



Small Holdings of the Parish Council at 

 Belbroughton. 



Belbroughton is situated six miles north-west of 

 Bromsgrove and six miles east of Kidderminster, 

 and fourteen miles from Birmingham. It is a village 

 of 1,850 inhabitants, a large number of whom are 

 employed in a local manufactory of scythes, hay 

 and chaff knives, and edge tools. 



In 1895 the Rector, the Rev. J. H. Eld, helped 

 the Parish Council to acquire 18 acres of land, 

 under the Allotments Act of 1890, which were 

 relet to thirty tenants. The rent paid amounted 

 to 45, and the amount received from the lots was 

 49 10s., and was paid in advance. Starting with 

 this small working balance, the Parish Council was 

 able during the next eight years to hire about 

 180 acres of land, at a total rental of 268 10s., 

 which are relet to seventy-five tenants at a rent of 

 359 12s. 4d. The following table shows the rate 

 at which this was done : 



