c. What persons may act as commissioners for general purposes, in putting the act in execution.

sioners of land

tax.

By 46 Geo. 3. c. 65, the commissioners for putting in Commissioners xecution the land tax act, being respectively qualified to act to be chosen s commissioners in the execution of the said act, shall meet from commist such place within each district as shall have been the usual, lace of holding the general meetings of commissioners of the nd tax act,(or if such meetings shall not have been usually held ere, then at the place where the quarter sessións shall be acally held therein in the week after the close of Easter or next ter Easter in every year): which meetings shall be convened by sheriff's of counties and by the chief magistrates of all boroughs, que ports, towns and places in Great Britain, whenever the ne shall have been certified to them to be necessary by the amissioners for the affairs of taxes, and shall be held between first day of March and the fifth day of April yearly in ry year, after such notice shall have been given to such of Is accordingly. s. 6.

Manner of

And at each such general meeting the commissioners of land or the major part of them then present, shall choose, and choosing acting down in writing the names of such of the commissioners ap. commissioners; ited as aforesaid, who shall respectively be qualified as herefter is required, and who shall be fit and proper to act in several hundreds, or in the several parishes or wards of ities, boroughs, cinque ports, towns and places; observing ys in forming such districts,the same limits which shall have settled for the districts under the land tax act; and the s of such persons who shall be so chosen shall be set down e order in which the major part of the commissioners then nt shall judge fit they should respectively be appointed aissioners in their respective districts; and any seven, or less number than seven not being in any case less than , of the persons so set down, and in the order in which they be so set down in such list, shall be commissioners for the al purposes of this act, and of the duties granted. s. 6.

cies.

id any seven, or any less number than seven, not being in and for supcase less than three, of the persons so set down next in order plying vacan e list of names before mentioned, shall be commissioners pply vacancies as the same may arise, in the manner hereinmentioned.

s.6.

it if the commissioners appointed as herein first mentioned In want of not find amongst themselves and set down the names of seven land tax com. missioners, ns to act and seven others to supply vacancies for each other fit percts, it shall be lawful for them to appoint any persons re-sons residing 5 within such district, who shall respectively be qualified in the district rein after is required, and who in their judgment shall be fit may be named; roper persons to be commissioners for the purposes aforeuntil the number of seven in each such list shall be completed, ugh such persons shall not have been appointed to act as issioners in the execution of the said land tax act. $. 5.

or from adjoining districts.

Commission

ers' nanes to

be sent to the tax office.

None other to

act.

And if at such meeting the commissioners shall not find and set down fourteen persons of the descriptions before mentioned to act as commissioners and to supply vacancies in each dis. trict, it shall be lawful for them to select such number as shall be requisite from the persons acting in any adjoining district of the same county, city, town or place, in order that there shall be no failure in the execution of this act. s. 6.

And the names of such persons who shall have been so cho sen as aforesaid for any district in England, shall be transmi'. ted to the tax office, in the order in which they shall have been set down in such lists. s. 6.

And where seven persous, qualified as hercin-after required, shall be chosen to act as commissioners for any district, o With powers to other person shall interfere as a commissioner in the execution commissioners of this act so long. as such seven persons shall continue to ach before appoint- except in the districts hereinafter mentioned. s. 6.

ed to continue

to act.

The district

And any person residing in the district of Bedlingtonshi being duly qualified, may act as a commissioner together w of Bedlington- the commissioners chosen and acting for Morpeth ward o Northumberland, in all matters relating to Bedlingtonshire, decmed part of and which shall upon all assessments be charged as parti in Northumber- Morpeth ward.

shire to be

Morpeth ward,

Jand.

holding a gene

s. 7.

And if in any county, city, town or place, any default stalli In default of happen in holding such general meeting for any year, the ral meeting the commissioners already appointed or to be appointed, and commissioners as such immediately before and at the time when such may continue ought to be held, shall continue to act as such commission to act without without any new appointment, and it shall be lawful for to supply any vacancies then existing. & S.

further ap-
pointment.

How vacancies
are to be
piied.

When any one or more of the commissioners for general) shall die or decline to act, or having begun to act poses supdecline to act any further therein, then the remaining missioners shall choose one or more of the persons on the to supply vacancies, who shall be appoint d commissionet the place of the cominissioners so refusing or declining to ad dying; provided the person so to be appointed shall have chosen to supply such vacancy in the same manner as the pers so refusing or declining to act, or dying; and the commissio of land tax shall at such their general meetings, and the serd persons hereinafter authorized to appoint commissioners certain cities and towns herein mentioned, shall, on noi thereof from the clerk to the acting commissioners for the st cities and towns respectively, as often as occasion shall re select and add new names to the persons before chosen 1080 vacancies, who shall be commissioners for general purposes. 2 such vacancy shall happen; and if the list for supplying cancies shall at any time be defective, so that the due numir commissioners cannot be supplied therefrom, the same siz filled up and renewed from time to time by the acting come

ers in the district where such failure shall have Bap:

additional

commis.

And within and for London, Bristol, Exeter, Hall, New- Within cer castle-upon-Tyne, Norwich, Birmingham, Liverpool, Leeds, tain places Manchester, King's Lynn, and Great Yarmouth, it shall be lawful for the persons herein-after mentioned to choose commissioners may sioners, and persons to supply their vacancies, to act together be chosen. with the persons chosen as before directed; and in and for the city of London, two commissioners and two to supply their vacancies shall be named by the mayor and aldermen of London out of eight persons, four of whom shall be aldermen, to be returned to them by the common council; two other commissioners and two to supply their vacancies, by the governor and directors of the Bank of England; one other commissioner and one other to supply his vacancy, by each of the companies erein-after mentioned; videlicet, the directors of the unitel ompany of merchants of England trading to the East Indies, be governor and directors of the South Sea company, the overnor and directors of the Royal Exchange insurance comaby, the governors and directors of the London asurance comany, the directors for conducting and managing the affairs of the Vest India dock company, and the directors for conducting al managing the London dock company for the time being; Td it shall be lawful for the magistrates and justices of the peace,' acting in and for the city of Norwich, to choose ht persous to be commissioners, and eight persons to suptheir vacancies, not more than four of the said eight comssioners, and not more than four of the said eight persons to aply their vacancies, to be chosen from out of the said magistes and justices, and the remaining four commissioners, and ir persons to supply their vacancies to be chosen from the jabitants of the said city; and in and for each of the other es and towns before montioned, it shall be lawful for the gistrates and justices of the peace acting in and for the said for town, or the county, riding or division where the said For town is situate, to choose eight persons to be commisaers and eight persons to supply their vacancies as herein is ntioned; and the persons so chosen by the land tax commissio. together with the other persons chosen as herein is particularlirected, shall be commissioners for the purposes of this act, -to-sapply their vacancies as the same may arise, within the seal districts in which such cities and towns respectively shall be nate, or which shall be formed by such cities and towns, and such other places which have usually been assessed in same, district with such cities and towns towards the land Where sufand the names of all persons so chosen as last aforesaid ficient com be returned to the commissioners for the affairs of taxes. §.8. case there shall not be a sufficient number of commis- cities and ers chosen for general purposes as aforesaid or to supply towns, the ancies capable of acting according to the qualification re edy by this act, for any city, borough, town or place, any person qualified to act for the county at large in because rh or adjoining which sech city, borough, town or place, be situate may be chosen to act as commissioner. 8. 9.

missioners are not chosen for

Commiss on-
GIS for the

country my

Power to

choose persons duly qualified, although not named in

land tax act.

Commissioners of land tax act

to execute the

of commissioners;

Also any person residing in the county, city, town or place where a commissioner shall be wanting and qualified as herein. after mentioned, who shall be willing to act as a commissioner for general purposes in any district where a commissioner shall be wanting, may be chosen in manner aforesaid to be such commissioner, although such person shall not have been appointed to act in the execution of the land tax act. s. 12.

If in any district there shall be a neglect in appointing commissioners for general purposes, or the commissioners ap act on neglect pointed shall neglect or refuse to act, or having begun to act shall decline to act farther therein, it shall be lawful for the commissioners appointed to execute the land tax act, being qualified as directed by this act, not in any case exceeding the number of seven, on notice of such neglect and want of appoint. ment by any inspector or surveyor of the duties under the hands of three of the commissioners for the affairs of taxes for the districts in England, to take upon themselves the exec tion of this act, and execute all matters which commissioners are hereby required to do: and if in any district there shall be a want of such last mentioned commissioners, the commissioners of any adjoining district in the same county, being qualified, stal on like notice execute this act by themselves, or in concurre with any persons willing to act as commissioners of the distaat: and if the persons aforesaid to whom such notice shall lave been given, shall not take upon themselves the execution of dy act, then it shall be lawful for two of the commissionen fat special purposes, to be appointed under the authority of th act, to execute this act in such district in all matters berby directed to be done by commissioners for general purpos and where commissioners willing to act in each district not be returned to the tax office, then it shall be lawfulf the commissioners for the affairs of taxes, to cause such nefie as aforesaid to be given to two or more of the persons on wh the right of executing this act shall devolve in pursuance this act. s. 13.

and commis

sioners for

special purposes, on neg

lect of land

tax commissioners.

Commis

stoners may

And the commissioners to be appointed for general purpo appoint a clerk in manner aforesaid shall appoint a clerk, and assistant if nec sary, for the duties to be assessed by them in each district, shall execute their office according to the regulations of

and assistant.

act, s.14.

Qualification of No person herein required to be qualified in respect of estat commissioners shall be capable of acting as a commissioner for general purp for counties in in execution of this act for any county at large within Eng England. (the county of Monmouth and the dominion of Wales excepte or in or for any of the ridings of the county of York, or county or divisiOLS of Lincoln, or in or for the cities of Lond or I4 estminster, unless such person be seised or possessed lands, tenements, or hereditaments, in Great Britain, of value of two hundred pounds per annum or more of his e estate, being freehold or copyhold, or leasehold for a t whereof not less than seven years are unexpired,over and abo all ground rents, incumbrances, and reservations payable a

being counties of themselves,

of the same respectively, or unless such person shall be possessed of a personal estate of the value of five thousand pounds, or a personal estate or an interest therein producing an annual income of two hundred pounds, or of lands, tenements, or hereditaments and personal estate, or an interest therein, being together of the annual value of two hundred pounds, estimating in every such case one hundred pounds personal estate as equivalent to four pounds per annum, and an interest from personal estate of four pounds, per annum, as equivalent to one hundred pounds of personal estate, or unless such person be the tldest son of some person who shall be seised, or possessed of a like estate of thrice the value or more as is above required as the qualification of a commissioner in right of his own state, for such county at large riding, division, or city. 8. 15. And no such person shall be capable of acting as such com- In Monmouth, issioner for the county of Monmouth, or for any county in Wates, Ely, Vales, or for any other city, town, or place being a county of and towns self, or for the liberty of Ely, or for any cinque port, unless uch person be seised or possessed of an estate of the like nagre, and of three fifths of the value as is herein required for he estate of a commissioner acting for any county at large in ngland, as aforesaid; nor for any other city, borough, liberty, wn or place, not being a county of itself, nor for any of the 25 of court and inns of chancery, or liberty of the rolls, uns such person be seised or possessed of an estate of the like ture, and of one half of the value as herein required for the ate of a commissioner acting for any county at large in Engd; or unless such person be the eldest son of some person o shall be seised or possessed of some estate of thrice the ue or more as is above required as the qualification of a nmissioner in right of his own estate. But nothing herein shall require any qualification of a com- Exemption for sioner in the district of the palaces of Whitehall and Saint officers particu nes Westminster, for any officer who shall have acted as a larly authori missioner for putting in execution the said land tax act in

said district. s. 19.

s. 16.

For other cities, towns, or places.

zed.

But no estate consisting of lands or tenements, as the quali- The qualifier. tion of a commissioner, shall be required to be situate tio in lands the county for which such person shall be a commissioner.

0.

nd the proof of such qualification shall lie on the person ng in the execution of this act in such manner as is directed = y act with respect to commissioners of the land tax act.

need not be in the county.

henever it shall be deemed by the commissioners for gene. For choosing rpose, to be expedient that certain of the powers herein additional.com. ned shall be executed by commissioners other than and in missioners.