132 
Cottages  for  Rural  Lahourers. 
sanction  of  the  Board  of  Agriculture,  charging  their  estates 
with  a rent  charge  for  a term  not  exceeding  thirty-one  years. 
A hope  was  expressed  in  tlie  article  in  question  that  as  works 
of  a durable  hind,  such  as  substantial  buildings  (including 
cottages),  were  usually  in  good  condition  at  the  end  of  that 
period  the  repayment  might  be  extended  to  forty  years,  and 
this  extension  was,  I am  glad  to  say,  subsequently  granted  under 
the  Tmprovement  of  Land  Act,  181hh 
The  advantage  thus  gained  will  no  doubt  act  as  a stimulus 
to  the  provision  of  better  cottages,  as  the  decrease  in  the 
amount  of  the  annual  charges  for  repayment  shown  in  the 
following  Table,  submitted  by  Sir  Thomas  Elliott  to  the  Boyal 
Commission,  will  show  : — 
Table  of  the  annual  Sums  which  will  pay  off  100/.  ivith 
Interest  by  way  of  Annuity  at  the  several  Rates  and 
for  the  several  Periods  understated,  calculated  upon  the 
Basis  of  the  Payments  being  made  half-yearly. 
No.  of  years. 
Rate  3J  per  cent.  Rate  .3}  per  cent. 
Rate  3|  per  cent. 
Rate  3i  per  cent. 
20 
£ .S’,  (t. 
(>  15  3 
£ s.  ft. 
()  16  10 
£ s.  (/. 
6 18  4 
£ .s.  (t. 
6 19  10 
:io 
5 3 2 ■ 
5 4 10 
5 6 6 
5 8 2 
40 
4 8 0 
4 9 H 
4 11  6 
4 13  4 
50 
3 19  4 
4 1 2 
4 3 1 
4 5 0 
The  rent  charges  resulting  from  the  employment  of  the 
Land  Tmprovement  Companies  have  hitherto  varied  from 
about  .5/.  6s.  to  6/.  7s.  tod.  ]>er  cent.,  according  to  the  term  of 
y(‘ars  and  the  nature  of  the  ini])rovement ; but  on  the  forty 
years  principle  these  figures  will  be  considerably  modified.’ 
No  doubt  the  effect  of  this  is  aj)parent  from  the  fact  that 
the  Annual  Bejiort  for  1903  of  the  Board  of  Agriculture  shows 
that  the  expenditure  sanctioned  by  the  Board  for  the  erection 
of  labourers’  cottages,  which  had  been  declining  for  some 
years  previous  to  the  extension  to  forty  years  in  1899,  im- 
mediately began  to  increase  after  that  year. 
’ I am  indebted  to  the  General  Land  Drainage  and  Improvement  Company 
for  information  on  this  point.  They  state  that  “the  annual  instalment  (sinking 
fund  and  interest)  to  repay  an  Improvement  Loan  in  forty  years  is  4/.  16.s.  1 1 \d. 
per  cent. — the  interest  being  calculated  at  .SJ  per  cent.,  which  is  the  lowest  rate 
of  interest  at  which  Improvement  Loans  can  be  obtained  at  the  present  time. 
If  money  could  be  obtained  at  per  cent,  interest,  the  instalment  for  forty 
years  would  be  4/.  9.«.  8id.  or  at  3i  per  cent,  interest,  the  annual  instalment 
would  be  it.  I3x.  3.p/.” 
