166 HISTORY or PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND.

in any other sense than as indicative of unwillingness, on his part at least, to make any such reasonable concessions to the tenantry as would afford that relief which is essential, in order to secure the colony generally from those mueh-to-be- dreaded evils which necessarily result from wide-spread agrarian agitation.”

The delegates returned to Prince Edward Island, and presented an elaborate report of their proceedings. No further attempt was made to settle the land question till, at the suggestion—as we are given to understand—of the proprietors, an act was introduced, in 1864, for settling the ditt‘erences between landlord and tenant, and to enable tenants on certain townships to purchase. the fee—simple of their farms at fifteen years’ rent. This act passed, and was supplemented in the following year by another act to facili— tate the working of the previous one,—anthorising the gov— ernment to provide a sum not exceeding fifty thousand pounds, in order to enable tenants to purchase their lands,— no leaseholder or tenant being entitled to aid beyond one half the purchase-money of his farm.

Here we must refer to an important mission on which the Honorable Joseph Hensley was sent by the island govern- ment to England, in the year 1867. He was autho- rized to raise a loan of money for the public services of the island; to apply to lhe various proprietors of township lands in Great Britain and Ireland, and ascertain the terms upon which they would be willing to sell their lands to the gov- ernment; and also to submit the views of the executive council to the imperial government in relation to a demand for the payment of nearly five thousand pounds, sterling, made for the transport and maintenance of troops. This force had been demanded to suppress disturbances which occurred on the island in 1865, and which were the very