Also for Po point the place or places for holding the next ensuing Municipal Election, otherwise the Election shall be held at the place or places at which the last Election for the Municipality or Wards was held. (a) 85.-The Council by which à Police Village is established lice Villages. shall, by the By-law establishing the same, name the place in the Village for holding the Election of Police Trustees. (b) Yearly elections of Councillors and Police Trustees. Fiast election in junior. Township 86.-The Electors (c) of every Municipality (d) (except a County) shall elect annually on the first Monday in January, the Members of the Council of the Municipality, and, on the second Monday in January, the Electors of every Police Village shall annually elect the Police Trustees of the Village, (e) and the persons so elected shall hold office until their successors are elected or appointed and sworn into office, and the new Council or Board of Police Trustees is organized. (ƒ) 87.-When a junior Township of a Union, has one hundred resident freeholders and householders on the last revised assessment-roll, (g) the Council of the County shall, by a Byafter separa- law (h) to be passed before the thirty-first day of October, in the same year, (i) fix the place for holding the first annual tion. (a) The right of the Municipal Council to appoint the place or places for holding municipal elections may be "from time to time exercised;" and when once exercised, the places appointed continue to be the places for all future elections until otherwise directed by by-law. (See secs. 10, 27, 29, 83, 85.) (b) On the petition of any of the inhabitants of an Unincorporated Village, the Council of the County within which the Village is situate may by by law erect the same into a Police Village (sec. 9); and by the same by-law, under the section here annotated, name the place in the Village for holding the election of Police Trustees. Only one place is authorized, and no power to change it as in the case of Municipalities under the last section appears to be given. (c) Electors. See sec. 75 et seq. (d) Municipality. See sec. 402, subsec. 1. (e) The elections must take place on the days named, and cannot take place on any other days. If any election do not so take place, appointments must be made pursuant to sec. 126, which appointments are to have the effect of elections. (Sec. 128.) (f) Sworn into office, &c. "Declarations" are in this respect substituted for oaths. See sec. 175 et seq., and sec. 401. (g) See notes to sec. 28. (h) By-law. See sec. 188. (i) The time for doing the act authorized being limited, the act cannot be done after the day named, unless the language used is to be construed as directory only. (Davison et al. v. Gill, 1 East, 64.) election of Councillors in the Township, and appoint a ReturnOfficer for holding the same, (j) and otherwise provide for the due holding of the election according to law. (k) United 88.-In case of the separation of a Union of Townships, Ward Divi the existing division into Wards, if any, shall cease as if the sions in same had been duly abolished by By-law, and the elections Townships of Councillors shall be by general vote until the Township or dissolution Townships are again divided into Wards under the provisions of Union. of this Act. (1) 89.-When there is no division of a Township into Wards, the election of Councillors shall be by general vote, (m) and shall be held at the place or places where the last election was held, or in such other place or places as may be from time to time fixed by By-law. (n) RETURNING OFFICERS. to cease on Where elecheld in tions to be Townships not divided into Wards. Officers to be 90.-The Council of every Municipality (0) in which the Returning, election is to be by Wards or electoral divisions, (p) shall from appointed by time to time by By-law, (q) appoint Returning Officers to hold the Munici the next ensuing elections. (r) WHEN CLERKS TO BE (EX-OFFICIO) RETURNING OFFICERS. 91.-In the case of a Municipality in which the election is not to be by Wards or electoral divisions, the Clerk shall be the Returning Officer at all elections after the first. ($) (j) The places may be from time to time changed by the new Municipal Council. (Sec. 84.) (k) See sec. 81 et seq. (1) This section does away with the complexity of the former law on the subject. (m) Should the County Council, in the case of a Junior Township having one hundred resident freeholders and householders, &c., not pass a by-law before 31st October appointing a place to hold the first annual election of Councillors in the Township, the election might, it is supposed, be conducted by general vote under this section. (n) By-law. See sec. 186, et seq. (0) Municipality. See sec. 402, subsec. 1. (p) Electoral Divisions. See sec. 268. (g) By-law. See sec. 186, et seq. (r) As to time for holding elections, see sec. 82. (*) The first elections are otherwise provided for.-See sec. 82 et seg., and sec. 92, and notes thereto. pal Council. When Clerk Returning For first election in Villages. After first election, Po lice Trustees, to appoint. Absence of Officer pro- Returning RETURNING OFFICERS FOR THE FIRST ELECTION IN VILLAGES. 92.-In every By-law establishing a Police or Incorpora ted Village, a Returning Officer shall be appointed who is to hold the first election for such Village. (t) 93.-In Police Villages, after the first election, (u) the Trustees thereof, or any two of them, shall from time to time, by writing under their hands, (v) appoint the Returning Officer. (w) IF RETURNING OFFICER ABSENT. 94.-In case, at the time appointed for holding an election, the person appointed to be Returning Officer has died, or does not attend to hold the election within an hour after the time appointed, (x) or in case no Returning Officer has been appointed, (y) the electors present at the place for holding the election may choose from amongst themselves a Returning Officer, and such Returning Officer shall have all the powers, and shall forthwith proceed to hold the election and perform all the other duties of a Returning Officer. (z) THE RETURNING OFFICER TO BE A CONSERVATOR OF THE PEACE. 95.-The Returning Officer shall, during the election, act Conservators as a Conservator of the Peace for the City or County in which of the peace, the election is held; and he, or any Justice of the Peace having jurisdiction in the Municipality in which the election is held, may cause to be arrested, and may summarily try and punish by fine or imprisonment, or both, or may imprison or bind over to keep the peace, or for trial, any riotous or dis (1) The appointment is to be made by the by-law establishing the Village, and if not then made may it is presumed be made pursuant to sec. 94. (See sec. 10.) (u) Which is provided for by the preceding section. (v) Police Villages, not being incorporated, of course have not a corporate seal. (w) A distinction is to be observed between the appointment of the place for holding an election in a Police Village and the appointment of a Returning Officer to hold it. The place is appointed pursuant to sec. 85. The Returning Officer pursuant either to sec. 92 or 93. (x) If the Returning Officer be not dead, but fail to attend, a full hour must elapse before the electors present can choose from among themselves a Returning Officer to supply his place, and when the substitute is so chosen it is apprehended the original Returning Officer cannot appear and take the business out of his hands. (2) Which may happen when the appointment is not made either at the proper time, "by the proper body," or in a proper manner. (z) See sec. 95 et seq. orderly person who assaults, beats, molests or threatens any voter coming to, remaining at, or going from the election, (a) and, when thereto required, all constables and persons present at the election, shall assist the Returning Officer or Justice of the Peace, on pain of being guilty of a misdemeanor. (b) MAY SWEAR IN SPECIAL CONSTABLES. stables may be sworn in. 96.-Every Returning Officer or Justice of the Peace may Special Conappoint and swear in any number of Special constables to assist in the preservation of the Peace and of order at the election; and any person liable to serve as Constable and required to be sworn in as a Special Constable by the Returning Officer or Justice shall, if he refuses to be sworn in or to serve, be liable to a penalty of twenty dollars, to be recovered to the use of any one who will sue therefor. (c) PROCEEDINGS AT ELECTIONS. 97.-The proceedings at elections shall be as follow: Elections. how con 1. Every Returning Officer shall, unless otherwise provided ducted. by law, give at least ten days' previous notice of the election Notices. to be held by him, by posting the notice in at least four public places in the Municipality, Ward, Electoral Division, or Police Village. (d) (a) In general, the Returning Officer will act under this section upon his own view. But when, instead of acting on facts observed by himself or within his own knowledge, he acts on the information of others, it is suggested he should take the regular information, and proceed as any other magistrate would be required to do under like circumstances. (See 16 Vic. cap. 178) An example would be, when the complaint is an assault upon a voter coming to or returning from the election, committed at a distance from the poll. The main object of the section is howevor to empower the Returning Officer to act promptly on the spot in the hearing and determining of offences occurring at the poll; but in point of authority he is not so restricted. (b) Misdemeanor. See note r to sec. 55. (e) It is the design of this section to confer additional powers on the Returning Officers, &c., of which it behoves all persons liable to serve as special constables to be advised and take notice. The penalty may, it is apprehended, though not so expressed, be sued for in any court of competent jurisdiction, for instance in a Division Court. (d) The notice of the intended election to be good, must be good both as to time and place. It must be given "at least ten days" and must be posted up "in at least four public places, &c." Now where a statute says a thing shall be done so many days, or so many days at least, before a given event, the day of the thing done and that of the event must both be excluded (The King v. Justices of Shropshire, 8 A. & E. 173; Mitchell v. Foster, 9 Dowl. P. C. 527.) Thus suppose the day for the intended election to be 3rd January, notice thereof, The Clerk to deliver Assessment Rolls to the Officer, 2. The Clerk of the Municipality shall deliver to the Recopies of the turning Officer who is to preside at the election for the same, or for every or any Ward, or lectoral Division thereof, a Returning correct copy of so much of the last revised Assessment-Roll for the Municipality, Ward, or Electoral Division, as contains the names of all male Freeholders and Householders rated upon the roll in respect of real property lying in the Municipality, Ward, or Electoral Division, with the assessed value of the real property for which every such person is so rated. (e) 3. The Clerk shall deliver with such copy his solemn declaverifying the ration, to the effect that the copy is a true copy of so much of the said roll as relates to such Municipality, Ward or Electoral Division, and contains the names of all male freeholders and householders rated upon the roll in respect of real property lying in the Municipality, Ward or Electoral Division, with the assessed value of the real property for which they are so rated respectively. (f) With his declaration same. to be good, would require to be given at latest on 23rd December preceding. As to the posting of the notice in four public places at least, there is less room for doubt. The only difficulty, if any, likely to arise, is to what places are to be deemed "public." To obviate the difficulty, the Returning Officer has only to choose the four most public places in the Municipality, &c., and he will be safe. It is apprehended that where a newspaper is published in the locality, the notice will, in a idition to posting up, be published in it for the requisite time, as being the most satisfactory mode of notification, though not the one authorized or required. (e) The law requires the Returning Officer to be furnished with a correct copy of so much of the last revised assessment roll for the Municipality, &c., as contains the names of all freeholders rated upon the roll, &c., and it is obvious for what purpose. The purpose is, not to enable the Returning Officer himself to judge of the sufficiency or insufficiency of votes taken, but that all persons interested in the election may have a check at hand at the time of polling the votes. (The Queen ex rel. Dundas v. Niles, 1 U. C. Cham. Rep. 198; see also secs. 75, 76, 77.) Persons whose names are on the original roll, though omitted by accident from the copy, may it seems claim a right to vote; but not persons whose names are on the copy, though not on the original roll. (The Queen ex rel. Helliwell v. Stephenson, 1 U. C. Cham. Rep. 270.) The copy of the assessment roll furnished to the Returning Officer ought to be alphabetical, and if not so the Returning Officer should himself make it alphabetical. (The Queen ex rel. Davis v. Wilson et al. Chambers, Richards, J., 3 U. C. L. J. 165.) Where the Returning Officer used the original collector's roll, instead of a copy, having first announced that he intended to do so, and no one objected, Held that the election was valid. (The Queen ex rel. Hall v. Grey et al, 15 U. C. Q. B. 257.) (f) In framing the declaration required of the Clerk, he cannot do better than adopt the very words of this enactment. Thus: I, A. B., |