The Reminiscences of an Irish Land AgentHussey, Samuel Murray
History
The Reminiscences of an Irish Land Agent
Hussey, Samuel Murray
Country life -- Ireland; Hussey, Samuel Murray, 1824-; Ireland -- History -- 1837-1901
In his next chapter is a tribute to Lord Kenmare, 'a kind and
considerate landlord, united to his people by strong ties of race and
creed, residing for a great part of the year on his estates, ready with
purse and influence to advance the interests of his neighbourhood. On
his mansion and on the town of Killarney, since his accession to the
property in 1871, he has spent L100,000. At his own expense he has
erected a town hall, and improved and beautified Killarney. Within the
last twenty years L10,000 of arrears have been written off. From last
year's rents ten to twenty per cent, was deducted. During the last few
years of distress, L15,000 has been borrowed for draining and other
improvements; regular work has thus been found for the labourer; on such
outlay in many instances no percentage has been charged. Since 1870,
three hundred labourers have been comfortably housed and provided with
gardens or allotments varying from one to three pounds annually.'
I could not myself so tersely put the situation to-day as by quoting
this contemporary narrative, the facts for which I supplied.
Once more let me draw upon Mr. Finlay Dun. 'Unmindful of all this
consistent liberality, ungrateful for the great efforts to improve his
poorer neighbours, popular prejudice has been roused against Lord
Kenmare; it has been impossible to collect rents; threatening letters
have been sent to him. Mortified with the apparent fruitlessness of his
humane endeavours he has been compelled to leave Killarney House.
'His agent, Mr. Hussey, who for twenty years has been earnestly and
intelligently labouring to improve Irish agriculture, to bring more
capital to bear on it, to render it more profitable, and has, besides,
most energetically striven to elevate and house more decently the
labouring population, has also brought down on himself the odium of the
powers that be. For months he has had to travel armed and guarded by a
couple of constables; now he has thought it discreet to leave the
country.'
This, however, is erroneous. I only took a house for my family in London
for the winter, and was backwards and forwards between Kerry and the
metropolis.
Against all this let me set another quotation. In _New York Tablet_ for
1880, a letter from Daniel O'Shea, who stated that for a large number of
years he was a resident in Killarney.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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