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ing to the Eoss of Mull, which belongs to the less 

 mountainous and more varied area of the Highlands, 

 the farming divisions exhibit a still more remarkable 

 example of a great variety in the size of posses- 

 sions. The maximum rent of any one is only ;^50O. 

 Between that rent and ;^300 there are three farms. 

 Between ^f 300 and ^100 there are no less than eight 

 farms, of which one-half are less than ^200. Between 

 the line of ^100 and the crofting line of /^^o there are Number of 

 seven farms ; whilst as regards the crofting class itself, 

 I have already shown that its status and condition has 

 been immensely raised and improved. In 1847 the 

 estate was crowded with possessions below the ^5 

 line, on which it was impossible to maintain a family 

 in comfort, even if the land had been rent free. The 

 crofts have now been all doubled, and many have been 

 trebled and quadrupled in size, some of them having 

 been thus lifted altoo-ether out of the croftino; class "into 

 the class of small farms. As regards the cottars, I see Cottars, 

 that some of the crofters complained to the Commis- 

 sion that the cottars had cottages upon their land. 

 But this has always been so, and the continuance of 

 the fact has arisen from the extreme reluctance I 

 have always had to evict even cottars if they could 

 possibly maintain themselves by labour. When, 

 however, it was asserted by some witnesses that 

 poverty has increased, I observe with some surprise 

 that not a single question was put to the witnesses for 

 the purpose of biinging this assertion to some definite 

 test. One well-known test is to be found in the 

 poor's rate ; and when I mention that in the parish 

 which contains the Ross of Mull this rate has fallen 

 from seven shillings, which was the rate at one time, 



