ON the 26th May,
1885, the tenantry of Glenlyon estate met together at the old
mansion house to present an address of welcome to the new Laird on
his entering into possession of the property. Shortly before two
o'clock the tenants assembled in large numbers from the Glenlyon
estate, from Garth, and from Breadalbane, and a most hearty welcome
was accorded to Sir Donald Currie and Lady Currie when they entered
the grounds.
Mr. Donald M'Dougall,
Drumchary, in the name of the tenantry, presented the following
address, remarking in the course of his speech that the two estates
of Garth and Glenlyon being now united the Laird could say—'S learn
fkein an gleann, 's leant fhein na tliann—the glen's my own and all
that's in it:—
To SIR DONALD CURRIE,
K.C.M.G., M.P., of Garth
and Glenlyon.
"We, the tenants of
your newly acquired estate of Glenlyon, beg to offer you our most
hearty welcome on the occasion of your first visit to us as our
landlord, and to congratulate you on the possession of so beautiful,
compact, and historical a property as the combined estates of Garth
and Glenlyon. Our knowledge of, and acquaintance with you hitherto,
as our neighbouring proprietor, and the great interest you have
always taken in everything which tends to the good of the whole
community of the district, give us such confidence in you that we
are both proud and happy in having you as our landlord. We feel that
you will be a worthy successor to our late esteemed laird, and that
you will always have the greatest pleasure in seeing us prosperous
and contented under you. We shall endeavour to do our duty towards
you as our landlord, conscientiously and heartily, and will, as far
as lies in our power, try to increase your enjoyment in your estate
and people. We wish you, sir, and your family, long life and
happiness to enjoy your fine Highland estate.
26th May, 1885.
After the
presentation, speeches were also made by Mr Archibald M'Gregor,
tenant of the Glenlyon Home Farm, and by Mr. Peter Haggart of
Keltnie Burn as representing the Garth tenants.
Sir Donald Currie, in
acknowledging the address, said:—My good friends, I thank you
cordially for your hearty welcome, and for your good wishes in
connection with my possession of the estate of Glenlyon. It gives me
great pleasure to acknowledge your warm expression of confidence,
and your assurance that you will do what may lie in your power to
add to my happiness amongst you. Let me assure you that one
inducement to join Glenlyon with Garth was the desire of myself and
my family to help forward your prosperity. There is certainly the
satisfaction of creating a more compact property by the union of the
two estates; but at this moment, from a financial point of view,
there is not much encouragement to invest money in land. We stand
here upon historic ground. In olden times this part of the Highlands
was the scene of many fierce and sanguinary struggles, the people
suffering terribly. Times are, however, changed. We are no longer
exposed to the risks of former days, or forced to depend upon feudal
ties. Happily, we are free from clan strife and the violence of
authority. As I have often said publicly, the tenant farmers of the
country are entitled to have a business-like connection with their
proprietors. On the other hand, the landlords may fairly claim to
have their rights considered from a business point of view. You have
alluded to my course of action since Garth came into my hands, and I
am grateful to you for the expression of your confidence that I will
act justly to my new tenantry. Unfortunately, the relations between
landlord and tenant in Scotland, as in England and Ireland, have
been such as to call for the intervention of Parliament. I have no
intention to introduce politics, but in view of your position as
tenant farmers, and as you have referred to past legislation, I may
remark that we have yet to dispose of some questions connected with
land tenure in consequence of the changed condition of agricultural
affairs. It is quite true, as has been said, that the alteration of
the Law of Entail has enabled the late proprieter to dispose of
Glenlyon as he desired to do. For my part, I am now experiencing the
effects of the Agricultural Holdings Act, by the necessary and
proper settlement of the compensation for unexhausted improvements
claimed by the outgoing tenant of the Home Farm. The abolition of
Hypothec takes away from me and from other landlords—and I am glad
of it—any chance of dealing in that direction harshly as a
proprietor ; and in a district where it is easy to raise a crop of
hares and rabbits, I daresay there is no small satisfaction among
you that you now enjoy the advantages of the Ground Game Act for
which I voted in Parliament. You may remember that on the day of the
address being presented to me by the tenants of Garth, at the time I
purchased that property, the tenants were told that
they were free to enjoy the privileges of the Act then passed into
law, during the currency of their existing leases; and on that
occasion I was glad to be able to accord the same privileges to the
farmers at Cluny, in Strathtay, where I had a lease as shooting
tenant for 8 or 10 years to come. Your future material and moral
prosperity will not depend upon legislation so much as upon
yourselves; but I may indicate to you how agricultural interests may
yet be dealt with in such a way as to secure your interests and my
own as tenants and proprietor. We may hope ere long to obtain a
simplification of the system of transfer of property; the total
abolition of the remnant of hypothec ; some modification of the
scope of the Ground Game Act; and amendments in the Agricultural
Holdings Act, now that we know the points on which that Act is not
sufficiently explicit or comprehensive. Hitherto it has been the
boast of Scottish farmers that they do not require, as in Ireland,
an appeal to a Land Court for the fixing of rent or adjustment of
difficulties between them and their landlords. In my humble judgment
the Scottish tenant farmer is endowed with good sense, and is clever
enough to be able to make a bargain for himself. In this district I
hardly believe you would care to have a Land Court, with all the
expenses incidental thereto, for the simple reason that from time
immemorial you have been accustomed to depend upon neighbours of
judgment and discretion to act as arbiters when differences arose.
If, however, it should appear to be the general wish of tenant
farmers to have a Land Court, or valuators appointed by the Sheriff
in order to give legal sanction to such references to arbitration,
there is no reason why this Court of Appeal, open to landlords and
tenants alike, should not be established. There is one point which,
without any reference to party politics, I may allude to ; it is to
legislation directed specially in favour of crofters in Scotland,
and I should like to hear from any of you who are interested in this
matter, and indeed from others in the county of Perth, whether it is
considered necessary or desirable to include our county within the
operations of the proposed Act. It has been said in the newspapers
that, with all the need there is for improvements in the estate of
Glenlyon, it is to be hoped that the proprietor will not improve the
people off the face of the earth. I am quite sure of one thing—there
is much need of improvement all over the estate; but as there is no
Bill passed to give the landlord compensation for his improvements,
exhausted or unexhausted—for the only place in which his bills for
improvements can be passed is through the Bank—the best return he
can look for will be the conviction in your minds, and in his own,
that he has not been neglectful of the responsibilities attaching to
his position. The people of Glenlyon are placed in the midst of
lovely and impressive scenery, unrivalled throughout Scotland. Let
me express the hope that the district may be equally renowned for
its social and moral excellence.
The Rev. David Campbell, minister of the parish
of Fortingall, said that, hearing of the movement among the tenantry
on the Glenlyon House estate, he had the desire to come and tender
Sir Donald his good wishes with the others. He had also been
requested, on behalf of the people on the estate, to tender their
good wishes on this occasion to Lady Currie and the others of the
family, and wish for them long life and happiness in connection with
this addition to the family property. And he did this very readily
because he knew that these good wishes were well bestowed. He knew
that Lady Currie would take that interest in the people on the
Glenlyon estate which the lady of the manor naturally takes in those
about her, and which she had taken since she had come to Garth. She
had taken an interest in the young, and in those whose circumstances
claimed the good offices of neighbour and friend. Standing as they
did there before that old house of Tullichmullin, Sir Donald would
permit to some of them a sentiment of sadness that the place was no
longer to be connected with the old name with which it was
associated so long. But changes would take place, and since there
was to be a change there it was desirable in all respects that the
estates of Garth and Glenlyon House should become one possession.
They were so mixed up and mingled together that there was great
inconvenience experienced. Sir Donald would be welcomed because he
had shown that he took an interest in the people and was desirous
for their comfort and happiness. No doubt among some of the humbler
homesteads upon such an estate as this, one of the chief features of
whose history had been an absence of disturbance or change, there
might be natural apprehension lest new lairds should make new laws,
and that more or less disturbance might be the result. But he felt
assured that in whatever Sir Donald did in that respect he would
have in view the people's good. While he had no sympathy with the
cry which was raised in some places of "Down with landlordism," at
the same time they would probably agree with him that the prolonged
or permanent absence of landlords from their estates was to be
deprecated. There was scarcely anything that would fully make up for
the proprietor's absence. Factors were in many instances admirable
men, and filled their often difficult posts well. Shooting tenants
were also all very well—at least some of them were—but what was most
to be desired was that the proprietor should pass a considerable
portion of his time at home among his people; and for a considerable
portion of the year at least they were glad to think that Sir Donald
and Lady Currie and their family would be resident on the Barony of
Garth and Glenlyon.
Sir Donald proposed the health of Colonel
Campbell, the late proprietor of Glenlyon, which was received with
acclamation. After dark, bonfires were lit on the eminences above
Glenlyon and Drumchary, and as the night was clear they were seen
from a long distance.
