112 SMALL HOLDINGS ACT, 1892 



of a peasant class in this country. Other 

 County Councils were content to wait for peti- 

 tions which were not forthcoming. But in 

 Worcestershire, although at first no great en- 

 thusiasm was displayed, inquiry discovered that 

 there were many persons who, while com- 

 petent and anxious to acquire a small holding, 

 had refrained from making a petition owing to 

 the terms of the Act being prohibitive, which 

 demanded one-fifth deposit on the land. A 

 small holding of eight acres at £30 per acre 

 would cost an applicant nearly £50 in deposit 

 before possession could be taken. The balance 

 of capital would in most cases be inadequate 

 to satisfactorily commence operations, and it 

 would be quite hopeless to expect success on an 

 insufficient working capital during the critical 

 period of the first two or three years. A deposit 

 under such circumstances spells failure. 



The Worcestershire County Council for- 

 tunately overcame this difficulty by accept- 

 ing their applicants as tenants for three years 

 until the necessary deposit had been paid off" 

 by instalments, when they were given purchase 

 agreements according to the Act, their rent 

 being charged to the credit of their capital 



