The said section thirty is hereby repealed so far as Appndx. elates to clerks of special and petty sessions and lerks of justices of the peace, without prejudice to nything done in pursuance of that section.

Where it appears to a local authority that the ggregate amount received by the treasurer of that uthority in respect of court fees unduly exceeds or induly falls below the aggregate amount paid by that authority by way of salary to the clerks of petty sessional divisions, or in the case of a borough to the clerk to the justices of the borough, or that otherwise it is expedient so to do, the local authority may make a table of the court fees which in their opinion should be taken, and shall cause such table signed by the chairman, mayor, or other presiding officer of the local authority, to be laid before a secretary of state, and a secretary of state may, if he think fit, alter such table of fees and settle the same (having due regard to the relation of the aggregate amount so received and paid as aforesaid), and certify that the fees in the table as settled by him are proper to be taken within the jurisdiction of the said local authority.

Where complaint is made to a secretary of state that the aggregate amount received by the treasurer of a local authority in respect of court fees unduly exceeds or unduly falls below the aggregate amount paid by that authority by way of salary as aforesaid, or that for other reasons it is expedient that the table of court fees should be revised, he may, if he think fit, by order, require the local authority to make a return to him within the time specified in the order of the aggregate amount so received and paid during three years previous to the order, or of

Y

Appndx. the table of court fees in force for the time being,

as the case may be, and if, on receiving such return, or on the failure of the local authority to make the return, he is, after making such inquiry as he thinks proper, satisfied of the truth of the complaint, he may, by order, require the local authority to make and lay before him, within the time (not being less than four months from the date of the order) specified in the order, a table of court fees in pursuance of this section, and if the local authority fail to comply with the order, he may, in like manner (so nearly as circumstances admit) as if the local authority had laid before him a table of fees in pursuance of this section, settle a table of fees and certify that the fees in that table are proper to be taken within the jurisdiction of the said local authority.

A secretary of state, upon certifying a table of fees in pursuance of this section, shall cause copies thereof to be sent to the clerk of the local authority to be by him distributed to the clerks of petty sessional divisions and clerks to justices within the jurisdiction of that authority, and if at any time thereafter any of those clerks or any other person wilfully demands or receives any other or greater court fee than such as is set down in the said table, he shall forfeit for every such demand or receipt twenty pounds, to be recovered by action of debt by any person who may sue for the same.

Until a table is made in pursuance of this section, any of the said clerks may demand and receive such fees as he is at the passing of this Act lawfully authorized to demand and receive.

The expression "court fee" in this section means any fee, gratuity, or sum, which may by law be

nanded or received in respect of any business or Appndx. transacted or done by a clerk of special or petty sions or a clerk of justices of the peace as such rk, notwithstanding that by reason of such clerk ng paid by salary, or of the provisions of this t, he cannot receive the same for his own use, and ludes fees for the giving of copies of depositions any clerk mentioned in this section, whether ceived for his own use or not.

of fees by

9. The account of fees required by section eleven Account the principal Act, as amended by this Act, to be clerk. ndered by any clerk shall be rendered quarterly, at any less interval directed by the local authoy, and if any clerk wilfully omits from any such count any fee received by him he shall forfeit for very such omission twenty pounds, to be recovered action of debt by any person who may sue for

e same.

tion of Act

10. This Act shall, so far as is consistent with Construce tenour thereof, be construed as one with the and repeal rincipal Act; and so much of sections nine and ten 14 & 15 Vict. the principal Act as empowers a secretary of C. 55.

ate to direct that a clerk be paid by fees in lieu of lary (either generally or in respect of excepted usiness) is hereby repealed.

of part of

II. VEXATIOUS INDICTMENTS.

22 & 23 VICT. CAP. 17.

An Act to prevent Vexatious Indictments for certain
Misdemeanors.
[8th August, 1859.]

BE it enacted by the Queen's most excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords spiritual and temporal, and Commons. in this present parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:

1. After the first day of September, one thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine, no bill of indictment for of the offences following; viz. any

Perjury,

Subornation of perjury,
Conspiracy,

Obtaining money or other property by false
pretences,

Keeping a gambling house,

Keeping a disorderly house, and

Any indecent assault,

shall be presented to or found by any grand jury, unless the prosecutor or other person presenting such indictment has been bound by recognizance to prosecute or give evidence against the person accused of such offence, or unless the person accused has been committed to or detained in custody, or has been bound by recognizance to

r to answer to an indictment to be preferred Appndx. t him for such offence, or unless such indictfor such offence, if charged to have been comin England, be preferred by the direction or the consent in writing of a judge of one of the or courts of law at Westminster, or of Her ty's Attorney-General or Solicitor-General for nd, or unless such indictment for such offence, rged to have been committed in Ireland, be red by the direction or with the consent in g of a judge of one of the superior courts of in Dublin, or of Her Majesty's Attorneyral or Solicitor-General for Ireland, or (in the of an indictment for perjury by the direction y court judge or public functionary authorized o Act of the session holden in the fourteenth and nth years of Her Majesty, chapter one hundred, rect a prosecution for perjury (a).

It is enacted by the Debtors' Act, 1869 (32 & 33 Vict. , s. 18), that every misdemeanor under the second part at Act shall be deemed to be an offence within and subto the provisions of the 22 & 23 Vict. c. 17; and that any person is charged with any such offence before any ce or justices, such justice or justices shall take into conation any evidence adduced before him or them tending ow that the act charged was not committed with a guilty

t.

is a matter for the discretion of the judge to whom the ication is made under 22 & 23 Vict. c. 17, s. 1, to decide t materials ought to be before him, and it is not necesto summon the accused person or to bring him before judge in any way. Reg. v. Bray, 32 L. J. M. C. 11.

here a prisoner was committed upon one charge only false pretences, but an indictment was preferred without e as required by 22 & 23 Vict. c. 17, s. 1, and found by grand jury, containing a second charge of false pretences, the prisoner refusing to plead, the court directed a plea not guilty to the whole indictment to be entered for him, receive evidence of both charges; it was held that the

14 & 15 Vict.

c. 100.