1920.] 



Tithe Rentcharge. 



1233 



should be made forthwith. The proper forms and any instruc- 

 tions that may be necessary will be suppUed, post free, on re- 

 quest to the Ministry at 3, St. James's Square, London, S.W. i. 



Compulsory Redemption. — \\'hen the tithes in kind were 

 commuted into tithe rentcharge under the Tithe Act, 1836, 

 and the amending Acts, a tithe rentcharge was in some parishes 

 charged upon each field and in other parishes upon each farm. 

 Since the commutation, however, lands in many parishes have 

 become minutely sub-divided in ownership, either for building 

 or other purposes, and in such cases the tithe owner has the 

 right to call upon the owner of any part of the original field or 

 farm as shown on the tithe map to pay the whole tithe rent- 

 charge, leaving him the extremely difficult and expensive task 

 of recovering from each of the other property owners concerned 

 a due contribution towards the amount so paid. The most 

 satisfactory course open to the property owner thus called upon 

 to pay the entire rentcharge is to apply to the Minister for its 

 compulsory redemption. The Minister assesses the total cost 

 of redemption, including the redemption money and the official 

 fees, among all the properties comprised in the site of the origi- 

 nal field or farm, and collects the assessments from the owners 

 of such properties so that each property owner is required to 

 pay a fair share and no more. 



Tithe owners also have the right in such cases where the land 

 is minutely sub-divided to apply to the Minister for the com- 

 pulsory redemption of the tithe rentcharge. They are also 

 entitled to apply to the Minister for the compulsory redemption 

 of any tithe rentcharge not exceeding 20s. charged on fields 

 which have not become sub-divided. 



One series of compulsory redemption cases now in progress 

 affects 4,500 property owners in the district of Aston- juxta- 

 Birmingham. The schedules of assessment of redemption 

 money and expenses and the plans will in due coui'se be 

 deposited in the locality for the statutory period and twenty- 

 one days for inspection by all persons interested. Any 

 objections to the schedules will require to be heard and 

 determined under Section 39 of the Tithe Act, i860. As is 

 usual in proceedings of this character, most of the objections 

 will doubtless emanate from property owners who have been 

 fortunate enough to escape payment of the tithe rentcharge 

 altogether, their shares having been paid by one of the owners 

 in the original field of which their property forms part, as 

 owner who has not thought it worth while to go to the trouble 

 to recover contributions toward the payment made by him. 



4 N 



