written lease, the tenant has the right to obtain the necessary lease. Should
the landowner refuse to give one, or should he refuse to confirm the conditions
of the lease which it is assumed were those according to which the tenant was
farming the land, then the court, on the application of the tenant, has the power
to confirm the conditions of the lease as far as they can be discovered after
investigation, and to the degree that they are in agreement with the law. Such
decisions of the court are as binding as a written lease, and, when they have
become operative, they can be placed on the records of the court.
The length of the lease is for the tenant’s lifetime or for a period of at least
fifteen years, unless the parties to the agreement mean to extend the life of a
lease which has already been in existence for fifteen years. If no fixed time
is mentioned in the lease it is considered as having been granted for fifteen
years, and the tenant can claim the right to give notice before the close
of the term of the lease. I f the period for which the lease was granted has
ended and the tenant still remains on the farm, the lease is considered as having
been renewed for fifteen years, unless, within six months’ time, the landlord
gives the tenant notice to leave.
With respect to the rent, it is determined that this can be paid either in money,
kind or labour. When the labour consists of farm-work, it may not be so
required in respect to time that the tenant is prevented from properly farming
his own land. In addition to the amount of day’s work or other labour fixed
by the lease, there may not be added to the agreement a clause reserving to
the landlord the right to claim the assistance of the tenant on other occasions.
If there should be a serious failure of crops, the tenant that pays his rent in
money or in kind, shall receive a reasonable reduction in the rent.
In general, the tenant enjoys the right, even if no special mention is made
of it in the lease, either of resigning his lease, or else of making it over, to
some other person. In the same way, the heirs of a deceased tenant have |he
right either to proceed with the farming or, within six months of the decease of
the tenant, place another person in his stead, if the landlord will not take back
the farm.
During the tenancy of the farm, the landlord is responsible for the erection
and repair of the buildings necessary for the proper farming of the land. Should
the landlord neglect his duty in this respect, the ten'ánt has the right to cabin
inspectors, who shall determine the amount of building or repairs to be done,
and direct the landlord to take steps to have the work carried out. If the
landowner still neglects to do so, the tenant, should he not prefer to resign pis
lease, has the right to have the work in question done at the expense of the
landlord. When the tenant begins his occupancy of the farm, the landlord shall
place him in possession of it with all that belongs to it, in a state in accordance
with what i s customary in the neighbourhood. If tHe landlord has failed
in this respect, the tenant may make good the defects and is entitled to compensation
from the landlord for what has thus been don e.1
In order that both parties to the agreement shall properly perform what the
lease enjoins on each of them, an inspection on the farm shall be made when
the tenant takes possession, and also when he leaves the farm. When he quits
the farm, the tenant has the right to compensation for breaking and farming
virgin land, or for work that has permanently increased the value of the farm.
Respecting the cultivation of virgin land, however, the law lays down that this
must not be done without the consent of the landlord when the land in question
is woodland with young trees, or is land where promising young trees are growing.
I f the tenant intends to demand compensation for the cultivation of virgin
land, the consent of the landlord is always necessary before the work is begun,
or an inspection must be carried out by a proper person, who shall decide
whether the land is suitable for farming and whether the farming will be of
permanent value to the estate.
The compensation may not be fixed higher than an amount corresponding to
the expense necessary for carrying out the work, and shall be equal to the
amount by which the estate has gained in value by the work at the time when
the tenant gives up possession.
An inspection of the farm may also be held during the running of the lease,
partly for the purpose of seeing if the landlord has carried out the repairs, etc.,
enjoined on him in order to make good the defects that may have existed at the
inspection held when the tenant took possession, and also to see whether such
work, or other work voluntarily undertaken by the landlord, has been properly
carried out.
If there is not sufficient pasture on the farm for the cattle and horses which
can be fed there during the winter, and if the farm form part of a larger estate
of the landlord’s, the tenant shall obtain the necessary pasturage in the woods
or outfield belonging to the estate.
The tenant has the right to obtain wood for house-fuel and the timber necessary
for repairs, fences, the short wooden fences used in Sweden for drying hay,
ditching, and implements. Should the woods on the tenant’s farm, or on the
kome-estate of which the farm forms part, during the period of tenancy have
been so diminished, in consequence of the action of the landlord, that the tenant
is unable to obtain from the said woods all the timber or forest-products to which
he is entitled, the landlord is obliged to make’ good in some suitable way what
is wanting in this respect. Otherwise the tenant shall not take timber, etc.,
from the landlord’s woods, unless a special agreement has been made in the lease.
The landlord has the right to give'the tenant notice to return the lease if,
in general, the tenant has been guilty of the same faults and neglect as those
mentioned in the. general law of tenant right. In addition, however, there is
another circumstance that may lead to the confiscation of the lease, viz., if the
tenant leads, or allows others to lead, a wicked and licentious life, such as may
tend to give the estate a bad reputation.
F in a lly ,-it should be observed that the Governor of the lan can suspend the
action of this law or of any certain part of it, should there exist any special
circumstances .making such a course necessary.
* *
Remark. For particulars concerning agricultural labourers, see the
article Labour Conditions and Workmen’s Wages (Part I).