182 LAND TENURE 



Sir Thomas Acland, and these were considered by the Council 

 on 8th March. The principle of both Bills was approved 

 in so far as they secured compensation, but a preference was 

 expressed for Mr. Chaplin's measure, as it established the 

 principle originally laid down by the Council in their draft 

 Bill of 1875, viz., that every tenant on quitting his hodling 

 should be compensated by law, by custom, or by agreement. 

 On 5th April, 1881, the Council debated two Bills intro- 

 duced by Sir Henry Holland and Mr. Stuart Rendel dealing 

 with distress for rent. They expressed approval of the 

 principle of exempting agisted stock and hired machinery 

 from distress, and suggested that the landlord's power to 

 distrain for rent in all cases be limited to two years only. 



1882. 



The Royal Commission on Agriculture (the Richmond Com- 

 mission) reported this year, and among their recommendations 

 were : Security for tenants' improvements unexhausted on 

 quitting their holdings ; amendment of the law of distress ; 

 and an improvement of the Land Law. With reference to 

 the last-named subject, the Council had unanimously adopted 

 the following resolution in May, 1880, on the motion of Earl 

 Carrington (Vice -Chairman of the Chamber) : 



" This Council desires to express a general approval of the 

 measures introduced by the late Government for the reform of 

 the Land Laws, and trusts that the present administration will 

 give early attention to the question." 



Two Acts the Settled Land Act and the Conveyancing 

 Act were passed this year. The Bills had been prepared 

 by Earl Cairns in the last years of the Conservative Ministry 

 and were taken up and passed with little alteration by the 

 Liberal Government, so that both parties may be credited 

 with passing two useful measures.* 



Sir Hy. Holland's Bill to amend the law of distiess, on the 

 lines suggested by the Council's resolution in 1881, was 

 reintroduced and approved by the Council in March. Later 



* Sir F. Pollock, " The Land Laws of England." 



