Lord Nelson on Friday ee'nnight made a speech to his
Hamp- shire tenantry of considerable interest, His lordship evidently believes that the position of an agricultural labourer might be im- proved, and accepts the plan we have so often propounded, of allowing them half-acre gardens in aid of wages, of offering -" cow lands"—that is, small pastures sufficient for a cow to the industrious—and of encouraging them to migrate from overcrowded parishes. He would also raise wages le. a week to all good hands, goodness being tested by their provi- fiance as well as their work ; encourage small farms, build good cottages, and provide cottages rent-free for wirlows,—the last a suggestion with too much of the almshouse flavour about it. lie held that a landlord should reside, should give long leases, and should take his share in paying the poor-rate, Alto- gether, Lord Nelson, though a little inclined to think bene- volence better than justice—whereas justice usually implies bene- -volenen plus self-sacrifice—comes out in Hampshire a great deal better and brighter than ho has tver done in the Lorde. A better- meaning or more kindly speech it would be hard to find, and it was not uttered on a hustings, but to tenant-farmers, who doubt- less swore under their breath.
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