proprietor, but he cannot sell, he cannot burden with debt, and he cannot alter the order of succession in which the estate is settled. Subject to these, he is in the position of every landed proprietor in Scotland. A life-renter is in a different position, it is only life interest that he has got, and his powers are, in consequence, very limited as compared with an absolute proprietor.

20,325. (Mr. Dale.) What do you call the man in succession to the life-renter?-The far, the holder of the fee, as we call it in Scotland.

20,326. Then, if the life-renter cannot grant a lease of minerals, can the fiar?—The fiar can.

20,327. Even during the life of the life-renter ?— That we have never had experience of; we have never met with the case, but I do not think there would be any reason why they should not together let the minerals.

20,328. (Mr. Jamieson.) In practice you have only met with one case ?-Only one case.

20,329. And it is extremely rare ?—I never saw it before.

20,330. But so far as you can judge, the life-renter and fiar together, holding together the entire right to the estate, could have granted a lease?-They could do everything; they have the whole interest in that which is there between them.

20,331. It is merely a question of the divergence of interest between the fiar and the life-renter in that case?-In that case.

20,332. (Mr. Barnes.) Is there any power to charge an entailed estate for younger children? Yes, if the entail does not give the power the statute does. 20,333. (Mr. Jamieson.) You have said you have never met with an instance of a tenant desiring his lease extended beyond 31 years?—I think 31 years has been always rather assumed to be the period.

20,334. If you had, would you have had in your practice any difficulty in granting such an extension for such a more lengthened lease if you deemed it right in the circumstances?-If we deemed it right in the circumstances, of course, we should grant it.

20,337. I thought your ingenuity could have devised a means by which you could?-When a lease was half run you might.

20,338. Or with the consent of the next heir ?— With the consent of the next heir you might do it.

20,339. Practically, you would not look upon it as a very insuperable difficulty to concede such a length of lease if it were desired by a tenant for a reasonable purpose?-For a reasonable purpose I do not think it would be refused.

20,340. (Chairman.) But still, you have your statutory limit which would be an obstacle, apparently, to an original bargain being longer than the 31 years? -It would be so in settled estates.

20,341. (Mr. Jamieson.) In the case of entailed estates, which you say are now very rare ?-Very rare, and they are becoming rarer every day.

20,342. From your experience, would you object to Parliament extending the right to let leases for longer periods than 31 years ?-To give the right?

20,343. To give the right ?-I do not think I would have any objection to that, but I should not like it to be made a compulsory right.

20,344. You would not object to the right to confer the power in cases?—No.

20,345. (Chairman.) As you explained before, with certain safeguards ?-With certain safeguards.

20,346. As respects not accepting fines? - Not accepting fines and taking the best terms that can be had.

20,347. (Mr. Hood.) In the event of the next heir being a minor, you could not do it with the consent of the next heir ?—No, not with the consent of the next heir in that case.

20,348. (Chairman.) You are a solicitor ?-I am, in practice at Rotherham.

20,349. You have had, I believe, great experience in mining leases?-I have, particularly in Yorkshire and the Midland Counties.

20,350. Do you know anything of the Lancashire and Cheshire leases?-A little; not so much as I do of my own district.

20,351. Can you tell us whether where there is no power of surrender in a mining lease, there are usually provisions that the royalty shall cease when all the coal has been paid for?-Yes, in Yorkshire and the Midland district, when the lease itself contains no power of absolute surrender after the payment for the whole of the mineral, there is nearly always a power that when the whole mineral demised has been paid for there shall be no further liability for rent in respect of that mineral-any rents reserved for wayleave rights or matters of that kind running on still, but the coal rent itself ceasing.

20,352. You have been speaking of Yorkshire, I understand; is that the same with respect to the Midlands? I am speaking now of Yorkshire and the Midland Counties, and I would only qualify it to this extent, that it is not always the case in the older leases, which, as a rule, were not so carefully or so well drawn as they are at the present time; but in regard to all modern leases that statement, I think, will be found to be perfectly correct.

20,353. Can you say the same thing for Lancashire and Cheshire, or not? I would rather not speak with the same positive voice as to Lancashire and

Cheshire. In some leases that I have seen those clauses exist.

Mr. F. P. Rhodes.

20,354. (Mr. Hood.) Did I understand you to Coal unworksay, "When the minerals are all exhausted" ?-If I able to a did, that was a lapsus linguæ, and I ought to have profit. said, "When they were paid for." I have known some cases where a lease, evidently through bad drafting, has provided that the payment should cease when all coal had been exhausted and paid for. The effect of that has been, in one or two cases where that error has crept in, that the man has had to go on paying until he has exhausted the coal. I knew one particular case, where there was a pillar left which was inaccessible, where, after the lessee had paid for four or five years, he paid a lump sum down to be let off the liability to work. But those are only one or two of the instances which qualify every rule almost.

20,355. I just want to bring under your notice this point, that in working out a seam of coal long before the mineral is wholly exhausted, it becomes unworkable to profit, in consequence of little corners being left here and there ?—The lessee may be allowed for bad coal, but not for coal which he chooses to leave till by so leaving it it becomes unworkable to profit.

20,356. In such an event as that would the lessee be bound to pay for that coal which is left, and which he could not work to profit? That would depend, of course, upon the terms of the lease. In the more recent leases, as a rule, he would not, because the tendency is, in more modern leases, to make the lessee bound to pay for all good coal or to make him bound to pay for all coal except bad

lessee's solicitors, in order to arrive at something like a fair definition. The tendency in recent years undoubtedly has been to make that clause wider, and to practically allow for coal which cannot reasonably be worked and got without loss.

20,359. (Mr. Hood.) That is just the unworkable to profit clause, pure and simple-that it cannot be worked without loss?—I always prefer myself the definition that coal shall be excluded which cannot be worked without loss.

20,360. There is not much difference between that and coal which cannot be worked to profit ?—I would rather not enter upon that. I may put something down for the benefit of a future adversary; but I think there is.

77

MONS. HERMAN HUBERT.

a

Administration, 18,867-87; amalgamation of concessions, 18,845-7, 18,974-5; areas of concessions, 18,976-8, 18,986-7; collieries worked under leases held under concessionnaires, 18,825-9; communal taxes, 18,791-802; compensation funds, 18,863-7, 18,888-95; concessions granted since 1837, 18,782-3; concessions unworked, 18,848-55; development of the mining industry, royalty and profits, 18,946-52; free coal, 18,934; method of procedure for expropriating land, 18,829-34; miners' dwellings, 18,932-3; miners' wages, 18,896-931; power of surrendering concessions, 18,823; property in concession, 18,982-5; right of Government to withdraw concessions, 18,805–18; right of search, 19,008-9; right of surface owner to search, 18,979-81; royalties, 18,856-63; sale and lease of concessions, 18,963–73; selling prices, 18,941-5; strikes and miners' wages, 18,997-19,007; surface owners and fixed royalty, 18,823-4, 18,988; taxation of royalty, 18,953-62; the Cahier des Charges, 18,803-4; the Députation Permanente and Députation Provincial, 18,819-22; the droit de terrage, 18,989-96; the impôt foncier, 18,784-90; trades unions, 18,935; valuation of land expropriated, 18,835-44; wages and production, 18,936-40.

MR. T. R. MULVANY.

Amalgamation of concessions, 19,106-8; ancient royalties, 19,017-9; area of concessions, 19,023-4; coal in the Dortmund district, 19,119-25; coal production, 19,056-7; collieries worked by the State, 19,078–82; communal taxes, 19,037-41, 19,050-2; comparison between royalties in England and Germany, 19,150-2, 19,180; compensation funds, 19,157-8; Compulsory Insurance Act, 19,055, 19,159-70; compulsory taxes, 19,058-70; concessions unworked, 19,025; development of the mining industry, 19,071-7; effect of taxation on the industry, 19,095-105; effect of the German system, 19,211-3; exports, imports, and home production, 19,214-8; hours of labour, 19,175, 19,195-8; imperial taxation, 19,087-94, 19,181-94; income tax (1891), 19,042-9; mines worked by the State, 19,199-210; number of concessions granted, 19,053-4; powers of surrender, 19,114; production in Westphalia, 19,171-4; property in a concession, 19,083-4; right of Government to withdraw concessions, 19,117-8; right of search, 19,137-43, 19,219-22; sale of concessions, 19,020-2, 19,085–6, 19,109-13; taxation, 19,223-8; taxes on concessions unworked, 19,115-6; transit charges, 19,126-30; valuation of land expropriated, 19,033-6, 19,153-6; wages, 19,176-9; wages and cost of production, 19,144-9; wayleaves, 19,131-6; wayleaves, expropriation of land, 19,026–32.

MONS. RAOUL DUVAL AND MONS. E.

AGUILLON.

Action of Government in developing the minerals, 19,342-5; amalgamation of concessions, 19,271, 19,285-90; area of concessions, 19,308-13; communal taxes, 19,257-8; compulsory working of collieries, 19,439; concessionnaires, 19,406-7; concessions worked, 19,347-8; development of the mining industry, 19,412-6; economic effect of the mining law in France, 19,296-8; expense of the administration of mines, 19,293-5; formation of companies by concessionnaires, 19,427-35; form of procedure in granting a concession, 19,239; foreign competition, 19,332-5; Government interference in the sale of concessions, 19,273–84; Government supervision upon the working of concessions, 19,272; import duties, 19,368-9; imports and exports, 19,359-67; iron production from open workings, 19,270; jury of expropriation, 19,440-4; Law of 1810,

(Art. 22), 19,248; (Art. 39), 19,292; mineral statistics, (1888),19,346; miners' wages, 19,336-41; mines held under concessions granted previous to 1810, 19,238; mining companies, 19,305-7, 19,408-11, 19,436-8; production and consumption, 19,349; production of iron ore, 19,385-7; right granted by a concession, 19,245-7; right of State to work minerals, 19,236-7; rights of foreigners to obtain concessions, 19,327-31; royalties, 19,398-404; royalties and wages, 19,395-7; royalties and wages in the St. Etienne district, 19,376-8, 19,420-4, 19,445-8; royalties payable to surface owners, 19,250–6, 19,317–26, 19,419; selection of concessionnaire when more than one applicant, 19,239a-44; selling prices, 19,350-8; 19,370-2, 19,379, 19,388-90; selling prices and wages, 19,380-4; sub-letting of concessions, 19,291; surface damage, 19,425-6; taxation, 19,405; the Act of Concession, 19,249; total royalties paid, 19,417-8; transfer of concession on death of concessionnaire, 19,299-304; transit charges, 19,314-6; ventilation and drainage, 19,259-69; wages, 19,373-5, 19,391-4, 19,449-58.

MR. R. W. COOPER.

Arbitration, 19,638-9, 19,675-8, 19,760-8; assignment of leases to companies, 19,690-709; Bell v. Love, 19,587; capitalization of rent under the Settled Land Act (1882), 19,484-504; cases of leasing by corporations, 19,469-70; classes of owners, 19,469 compensation for breach of covenants, 19,679-89; compensation for surface damage, 19,629-37, 19,643-56, 19,756-9; compulsory powers of wayleave-arbitration, 19,675-8; difficulties in way of modification of conditions of leases, 19,515-6; Eardley v. Lord Granville, 19,572–3; easement charges, 19,607-28; exceptions, 19,466-8; existing difficulties, effect on the development of the mineral industry, 19,505-13; Gill v. Dickinson, 19,589-90; Hedley v. Fenwick, 19,590–600; law as to ownership of minerals, 19,466; limited liability companies surface damage, 19,769-72; minerals held in undivided shares, 19,544-59; Newcastle Corporation as lessors, 19,800-6; powers in respect of easements, 19,514; powers of landlords to refuse to re-let, 19,791-5; powers of leasing of corporations, 19,471, 19,727-8; powers of limited owners, 19,473-6, 19,723-6; powers of owners of surface and minerals, 19,472; powers of trustees-short workings, 19,717; reduction of rent and surrender of lease, 19,517-25, 19,718-22; regal rights of the Bishop of Durham, 19,796-9; rights of copyholders, surface damage, and underground wayleaves, 19,574-80; right of copyholders in common land, 19,581-9, 19,712-6, 19,745-7; rights of surface and mine owners, 19,640-2, 19,847-59; royalties, 19,811-7; sea-coal, 19,732-44, 19,818-32, 19,860-7; Settled Estates Act (1856), 19,477-9; Settled Land Act (1882), sec. 7, 19,480-3; severance of ownership, 19,560-1; Shafto v. Bolckow, 19,570-2, 19,589; short workings, 19,526-43; surface damage, 19,570; surface wayleaves, 19,662–74, 19,833-47; term of leases, 19,807-10; the Enclosure Acts, 19,601-6; underground easements, 19,657-61; way leaves, 19,710-1, 19,729-31, 19,748-55, 19,773-90.

MR. P. A. SCRATCHLEY.

Annual production, 19,930-2; development of the mining industry, 19,904; expropriation of the surface, 19,899-900; Government interference, 12,935-8; hours of labour, 19,939-40; inspection, 19,883; liability of concessionnaire to the State, 19,909-11; local taxes, 19,908, 19,927-9; mining companies, 19,881-2; royalties, 19,877-80, 19,905-7, 19,222-6; statistics furnished to the Government, 19,912-21; surface damage, 19,901-3, 19,933-4; taxation, 19,884-98; the Wohlfhart lead mines, 19,870–6.

MR C. A V. CONYBEARE, M.P.

Acquirement of leases, 20,123-8; comparison between wages in Cornwall and the North of England, 19,99320,000; compulsory powers of a mining court, 20,052–9; condition of miners in Cornwall, 20,001-6; customs of Cornish mining, 20,007-10; depression in the mining industry in Cornwall, 20,113-5; dues and profits, 20,089-98; effect of abolition of royalties, 19,984-9; effect of royalties on wages, 19,983; establishment of a tribunal, 19,959, 20,070, 20,116-22; high royalties, 19,974-5; legislation with respect to Cornish mining, 20,011-2; migration of miners, 20,148-52; miners' wages, 19,990-2, 20,084-8; miners' wages and selling prices, 20,141-7; payment of dues on profits or output, 19,960-7, 20,099-105, 20,153-61; personal action with reference to legislation dealing with Cornish mining, 19,942-58; remission of dues, 19,976; royalties, 20,109-12; royalties, effect on the mining industry, 19,968-73, 19,977-82; royalties and profits, 20,136-40; selling price of copper, 20,071-7; the cost book and limited liability systems, 20,013-41, 20,060-9; the Mining Leases (Cornwall and Devon) Bill, 20,078-83, 20,106-8; undeveloped minerals, 20,129-35; Violet Seton mine, 20,042-51.

MR R. STRATHERN.

Development of the minerals, 2054; effect of the law, 20,246; hiers of entail and life-renters, 20,324-32; life

renters, 20,248-53, 20,290-3; ownership of minerals in Scotland, 20,241-5; Act of 1892, 20,266-73; settled estates, 20,255-61; severance of ownership 20,262-3; 20,283-6, term of leases, 20,256-7, 20,294-322.

MR. F. PARKER RHODES.

Coal unworkable to a profit, 20,354-60; powers of surrender, 20,351–3.

SIR JOSEPH H. WARNER. Compulsory purchase of land, 20,167-9.

MR. J. F. ROTTON, Q.C. Rating of mines, 20,171-95.

MR. REGINALD GUTHRIE.

Wayleave charges in Northumberland and Durham, 20,196-225.

MR. OSWALD WALMESLEY.

Documents handed in on behalf of the Committee of Proprietors, 20,227-35.