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With the exception of the personal expenses of the candidate, the cost of advertisements, the payment of expenses before the nomination day, and other current expenses requiring immediate payment in cash, all the expenditure at the election must pass through the hands of the election auditor.

No payment of any bill, charge, or claim, or of any money whatever in respect of an election, can be legally made (except as already mentioned), but through the election auditor. Any payment made otherwise, and any payment legally made by the candidate at the time, but not duly accounted for to the election auditor, will be deemed illegal payments. If any illegal payment is made by a candidate or by his authority, such candidate will forfeit, to any person suing for the same, the sum of ten ponnds, with double the amount of the payment, and costs. Sect. 18.

It is lawful for any candidate to name a banker through whom the several election bills are to be paid; and then the election auditor may draw cheques on the banker so named, which cheques will be countersigned by the candidate, or some one appointed by him for the purpose. Sect. 18.

As the election auditor has to pay all the election bills and expenses they must all be sent into him. This is provided for by the 16th and 17th sections. Within one month after the day of the declaration of an election, all persons, as well agents as others, must send in their claims upon the candidate in respect of the election, either to the candidate or to one of his authorized agents, otherwise the claims of such persons will be absolutely and entirely barred. In the event of a person having a claim dying within the

the time of the election)

a

whole of the claim,

month, the personal representative of such person is allowed a month to send in such claim, after obtaining probate or letters of administration. Sect. 16. The candidate (if he is in the United Kingdom at

or his agent, must send in all the claims so made upon him to the election auditor

, within three months after the day of the declaration of the election, or within two months after the legal representative of a deceased creditor has sent in his claim. The candidate must not send in any claims of creditors which are barred by the 16th section. At the time that the candidate sends in any claim to the election auditor, he must state whether he admits the

or how much of it he admits to be correct. If a candidate or his agent should wilfully make default in sending in these claims, and the statement as to their correctness, within the specified time, the candidate will be liable to a penalty of twenty pounds; and also to a further penalty of ten pounds for every week in which wilful default is made in sending in such claims and statement. Such penalty may

be recovered by any person suing for the same. If the candidate is absent from the United Kingdom at the time of the election, he must send in the claims and the statement as to their correctness, within one

Sect. 17. Many a candidate who has left the place of his election congratulating himself upon the small amount of the expenditure that he has incurred, has been much shocked and surprised at receiving months, sometimes years, after his election, a long list of bills and charges which he is assured by his agents he is bound to pay.

Sect. 16.

month after his return.

[graphic]

To all such, the provisions in the recent statute will prove a great boon. It is now a moral duty on the part of the candidate to say to any claimant who has neglected to send in his bill within the appointed time, “ I may not, and I will not pay you.” The consequences of making such an illegal payment have already been pointed out. Sect. 18.

As all the expenses of the election are to be paid by or through the auditor, the candidate must either deposit a sum of money with the auditor for the pur. pose, or he must place the money in the hands of a banker, with instructions to the banker to honor the cheques drawn by the auditor and countersigned by himself, or an agent named for that purpose.

The election auditor must pay, so far as he is provided with funds for the purpose, all the claims sent in to him and admitted to be correct. The creditors, whose claims have been duly sent in to the candidate, if the candidate should dispute any part of their claims, or if sufficient funds are not provided to enable the election auditor to pay them, may sue the candidate for the balance, or the full amount of their claims. Nothing in the act is to be taken to limit the right of such creditor to proceed against the candidate to recover his claim. If the creditor obtains a judgment against the candidate, the candidate must forthwith send to the election auditor a copy or certificate of the judgment, and the candidate must also send to the auditor a statement of all monies, which may be paid by him, or recovered by the creditor in respect of such judgment. Sect. 20. No action can be settled or compounded without the consent of the auditor. Sect. 21. When an action is brought by a

creditor against a candidate, the election auditor may, at the request of the candidate, and by leave of one of the judges of the superior courts of common law at Westminster or Dublin, or one of the judges of the court of session in Scotland, as the case may be, pay into court the sum required. Sect. 19. Any sum tendered by an auditor, by the authority of a candidate may be pleaded in an action, brought to recover a claim, as the tender of the candidate. It will not be necessary on any such proceeding to prove the appointment of the election auditor. Sect. 19.

The election auditor must, as soon as he can, make out an account of all the expenses incurred at the election; specifying all the sums paid to him, or by him on behalf of each candidate; all the sums claimed, whether they have been allowed and paid, or not; also every sum paid into court, or recovered by action; to whom every payment was made, and what was the particular debt or liability; he must also state the amount paid for advertisements, and the total amount of the expenses incurred by each candidate (a). Such account is to be signed by the auditor; when it is necessary, he must from time to time make out a supplementary account, to be signed in the same way. Sect. 26.

All such accounts are to be kept by the auditor in a convenient place, open to inspection; when all the business connected with the accounts is concluded, the auditor must hand over all the accounts to the

(a) It is not clear whether this includes the personal expenses of the candidate or not; but probably it does not, as there is no obligation on the part of the candidate to give an account of them to the auditor.

clerk of the peace in counties, to the town clerk or officer performing the duties of town clerk in boroughs, and to the sheriff clerk in counties in Scotland; and he must hand over to the candidates the balance of monies in his hands, and all vouchers, except vouchers appertaining personally to himself. Sect. 27.

An abstract of the accounts signed by the auditor, and specifying the amount of the claims, how much is admitted to be correct, and how much is objected to, with the names of the parties to whom monies have been paid or are due, or who claim to be paid, is to be inserted by the auditor, as soon as he conveniently can, in some newspaper published or circulating in the place where the election was held. Sect. 28. This last clause does not point out very distinctly at what time the election auditor is to insert the abstract of the account in the newspapers; but it is clearly intended that it should be done before the business of the election has been concluded by him as spoken of in the 27th section. As the abstract is to mention the parts of claims admitted to be correct, and the parts objected to, and also the names of persons claiming to be paid, it is obvious that the business must still be in an incomplete state at the publication of the abstracts. It is probably intended that the auditor should make and publish his abstract of account as soon as he can after the receipt of the claims and the candidate's statement as to their correctness; for at that time he knows all that has been already paid by the candidate, and also what is the total amount that the candidate can by any possibility be called upon to pay.

Remuneration of Auditor.] This is provided for in

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