Act.

provide for report annually to parliament on the execution of this Act (b), to make or direct such inquiries as are directed by this Act, and appoint from time to time such officers, clerks, and servants as he may require for the purposes of this Act, and at his pleasure to remove any such officers, clerks, or servants; And the commissioners of Her Majesty's treasury shall fix the salaries and allowances of such officers, clerks, and

Powers for inquiry

secretary of state.

servants.

LXXX. Any officer directed by one of Her Majesty's directed by principal secretaries of state to inquire into any matter into which such secretary is empowered to direct inquiry under this Act shall, for the purposes of such inquiry, have all the powers vested in superintending inspectors by the one hundred and twenty-first section (c) of the Public Health Act, 1848.

Order of secretary of state to be binding.

LXXXI. All orders made by one of Her Majesty's principal secretaries of state in pursuance of this Act shall be binding and conclusive in respect of the matters to which they refer (d);

or execute such works, at a cost exceeding or estimated to exceed one year's assessable value of the premises assessable within the district in respect of which the money for such works may be borrowed.

(b) Annual reports have been made for every year since the passing of

the Act.

(c) See ante. It is to be observed that the secretary of state is to send an officer, but, perhaps, the conduct of this inquiry will constitute an office.

(d) Questions of some difficulty may arise as to the effect of orders which exceed the powers given by those Acts, or with respect to which the preliminaries prescribed by the Act have not been strictly complied with. The Confirmatory Acts generally only confirm the orders so far as they are authorized by the Acts. In such cases it becomes important to determine how far the requisite preliminaries are conditions precedent to the validity of the order, although confirmed by statute. See Clayton v. Fenwick, in note on 11 & 12 Vict. c. 63, s. 10, ante. As to the force and effect of departmental orders which affect the rights of property, see Frewin v. Lewis, 9 Sim. 66; 4 My. & Cr. 249; Foster v. Dodd, 7 B & S. 140; 8 B. & S. 842. In Attorney-General v. Bishop of Manchester, L. R. 3 Eq. 455, V. Ch. Stuart quotes the following passage from the judgment of Cottenham, Ch. in Frewin v. Lewis, as laying down the rule of law," I apprehend that the limits within which this court

And any such secretary may make orders as to the costs of any appeal (e) to him under this Act, and the parties by whom such costs are to be borne; and every such order may be made a rule of one of the superior courts of law, on the application of any party named therein (f).

OXFORD AND CAMBRIDGE.

Oxford and

LXXXII. Notwithstanding anything contained in this Exception of Act, the Oxford and Cambridge commissioners, described in Cambridge. the thirty first section of the Public Health Act, 1848, (g), shall be the bodies authorized to adopt this Act for the districts respectively within their jurisdiction:

And in the event of the adoption of this Act by the said Cambridge commissioners, the said commissioners shall be the local board for the district of Cambridge;

And in the event of such adoption by the said Oxford commissioners, the local board of the Oxford district shall

interferes with the acts of public functionaries constituted like the Poor Law Commissioners are perfectly clear and unambiguous. So long as those functionaries strictly confine themselves within the exercise of those duties which are confided to them by the law, this Court will not interfere. The Court will not interfere to see whether any alteration or regulation which they may direct is good or bad; but if they are departing from that power which the law has vested in them, if they are assuming to themselves power over property which the law does not give them, this Court no longer considers them as acting under the authority of their commissioners, but treats them, whether they be a corporation, or individuals merely as persons dealing with property without legal authority."

(e) It is open to question what will be an appeal to the secretary of state. In several places in this Act it will be seen that petitions and memorials may be presented to him. They are not generally included under the term appeals; but the 32 & 33 Vict. c. 100, s. 9, post, in Appendix, enables the Secretary of State to make order for the payment of the costs of all inquiries or proceedings directed by him in pursuance of this Act, and provides that they may be enforced as under this section.

The orders which are made by him, other than for costs, will generally be enforceable by writ of mandamus.

See note on section 77, No. 3, ante.

(f) The statute 1 & 2 Vict. c. 110, contains the provisions for enforcing payment of costs upon rules of court, and these will be available against individuals; but in regard to costs awarded against the local board, the remedy will be by mandamus.

(g) Ante.

consist of the vice-chancellor of the University of Oxford and the mayor of Oxford for the time being, and of forty-five other commissioners, fifteen to be elected by the University of Oxford, sixteen by the town council of Oxford, and fourteen by the ratepayers of the parishes situate within the jurisdiction of the Oxford commissioners;

And the election of such commissioners by the town council and by the ratepayers of the parishes respectively shall be conducted at the same time, in the same way, and subject to the same regulations in and subject to which members constituting the body of Oxford commissioners are now respectively chosen by such town council and parishes; And the fifteen commissioners to be elected by the University shall be elected as follows;

Namely, four commissioners shall be elected by the University in convocation, and eleven commissioners shall be elected by the heads and senior bursars of the several colleges, and by the heads of the several halls;

And the elections shall be conducted by the said University, and by the colleges and halls respectively, at the same time and in the same way, and subject to the same regulations, in and subject to which guardians of the poor for the university and for the colleges and halls are now chosen by them respectively (d), save that in the election of commissioners the heads and bursars of all the colleges and the heads of all the halls shall be summoned by the vice-chancellor for that purpose, and shall be entitled to vote:

And differences between either of the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge and the local boards of Oxford and Cambridge respectively within the meaning of the one hundred and fifth section of the Public Health Act, 1848 (e), shall be settled by arbitration in the manner provided by that Act (f).

(d) See the local Act, 17 & 18 Vict. c. ccxix.

(e) See ante.

(f) See sect. 123, ante. This arbitration is substituted for the decision of the general board of health referred to in 11 & 12 Vict. c. 63; 8. 105, ante.

SCHEDULE.

FORM (A.)

Voting Papers (g).

At a meeting held on the

in the county of

day of

it was agreed that the following resolution should be proposed to the owners and ratepayers:

"That the Local Governmment Act, 1858, be adopted in the

of

-."

N.B.-The ratepayer will put his initials under the heading "in favour" or "against," according as he votes for or against the resolution. He is also required to subscribe his name and address at full length (h) If a voter cannot write, he must make his mark instead of initials, but such mark must be attested by a witness, and such witness must write the initials of the voter against his mark. If a proxy vote, he must add after his signature the words, "as proxy for," with

(g) See sect. 13 of this Act, ante.

(h) This is not quite according to the form of voting paper as given by 11 & 12 Vict. c. 63, sched. (A.) ante.

the name of corporation or company for which he is proxy. This paper will be collected on the

of

between

TAKE NOTICE." If any person wilfully commits any of the acts following, that is to say, fabricates in whole or in part, alters, defaces, destroys, abstracts, or purloins any voting paper, or personates any person entitled to vote in pursuance of the Public Health Act, 1848, or this Act, or falsely assumes to act in the name or on the behalf of any person so entitled to vote, or interrupts the distribution of any voting papers, or distributes the same under a false pretence of being lawfully authorized so to do, he shall for every such offence be liable on conviction before two justices, to be imprisoned in the common gaol or house of correction for any period not exceeding three months, with or without hard labour." (Local Government Act, 1858.)

(Signed by the summoning officer.)

FORM (B.) (a).

By virtue of the Public Health Act, 1848, the local board of Health for the district of do hereby declare and absolutely order that the inheritance (b) of the [dwelling house, shop, lands, and premises, as the case may be], situate instreet, in the parish of within the said district, and now in the occupation of, shall be absolutely charged with the sum of - pounds, paid by for the

of

(a) See sect 58, ante.

(b) This is a popular but not a legal term. According to the usual language of conveyancing, lands may be charged for an indefinite term, or until the amount to be recovered shall be paid, but the charge on the inheritance appears to mean a charge upon the fee simple, which only represents the description of the interest in the property. Moreover, as the charge is to last for thirty years, it is incorrect to say that the inheritance is charged.