5 10 A BILL To facilitate the Inclosure and Improvement of Commons and Lands held in common; the Exchange of Lands, and the Division of intermixed Lands; to provide Remedies for defective or incomplete Executions, and for the Non-execution of the Powers of General and Local Inclosure Acts, and to provide for the Revival of such Powers in certain cases. [Note.-The Words and Clauses printed in Italics are proposed to be inserted in the Committee.] W HEREAS it is expedient to facilitate the Inclosure and Preamble. Improvement of Commons and other Lands now subject to rights of property which obstruct cultivation and the productive employment of labour, and to facilitate such exchanges of Lands and such divisions of Lands intermixed or divided into inconvenient parcels, as may be beneficial to the respective owners, and it is also expedient to provide remedies for the defective or incomplete execution, and for the non-execution of powers created by General and Local Acts of Inclosure, and to authorize the revival of such powers in certain cases; it therefore 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, THAT it shall be Appointment lawful for one of Her Majesty's Principal Secretaries of State to 15 appoint any Two fit persons to be Commissioners under this Act, and at pleasure to remove the Commissioners so appointed, or either of them; and upon every vacancy in the office of such Commissioner some other fit person shall be appointed to such office in like manner; and the Commissioners so to be appointed shall, with the First Com20 missioner of Her Majesty's Woods, Forests, Land Revenues, Works and Buildings for the time being, be the Commissioners for carrying this Act into execution; and during any vacancy in the office of Commissioner under this Act, it shall be lawful for the continuing Commissioners or Commissioner to act as if no such vacancy had occurred. 1. of Commissioners. 2. Chairman of Commis- missioners. To have a And be it Enacted, That the said First Commissioner of Her Majesty's Woods, Forests, Land Revenues, Works and Buildings for the time being shall be the Chairman of the Commissioners acting in the Style of Com- execution of this Act; and such Commissioners shall be styled "The Inclosure Commissioners for England and Wales," and shall have their office in London or Westminster, and they or any Two of them may sit from time to time, as they deem expedient, as a Board of Commissioners for carrying this Act into execution; and the Commissioners shall cause to be made a seal of the said Board, and shall cause to be sealed therewith all awards and orders made or confirmed by the Commissioners in pursuance of this Act; and all such awards and orders and other instruments proceeding from the said Board, or copies thereof purporting to be sealed with the seal of the said Board, shall be received in evidence without any further proof thereof; and no award or order of the Commissioners under the authority of this Act, shall be of any force unless the same shall be sealed as aforesaid. 3. Commis- make annual 5 10 15 ვი And be it Enacted, That the Commissioners shall from time to time give to any one of Her Majesty's Principal Secretaries of State such information respecting their proceedings as such Principal Secretary 20 of State shall require, and shall on the First day of January in every year, send to one of the Principal Secretaries of State a general report of their proceedings, specifying the applications which may have been made to them under the provisions of this Act, and the several cases in which they shall have authorized Inclosures, and also the cases in 25 which they shall be of opinion that proposed Inclosures which may not be made without the direction of Parliament would be expedient, and such report shall separately distinguish all such proposed Inclosures as relate to Lands situate within Ten Miles of the city of London, and within such respective distances of other cities or towns as hereinafter mentioned, and shall state in each such case the special grounds on which they shall be of opinion that such Inclosure shall be expedient, and as well in the cases in which they shall have authorized Inclosures as in the other cases aforesaid, such report shall state the extent of the Land authorized and proposed to be inclosed, with such other particulars as hereinafter directed; and such report shall also specify the progress which shall have been made in Inclosures which the Commissioners may have authorized, and in the Inclosures which Parliament may have directed to be proceeded with; and every such report shall be laid before both Houses of Parliament within Six Weeks after the receipt of the same by such Principal Secretary of State, if Parliament be sitting, or if Parliament be not sitting, then within Six Weeks after the next meeting of Parliament; and such Commissioners may from time to time send to one of the Principal Secretaries of State 35 40 State such special reports in relation to all or any of the matters aforesaid as they may think fit. 4. appoint and missioners, And be it Enacted, That it shall be lawful for the Commissioners Power to from time to time to appoint a sufficient number of persons to be remove As5 Assistant Commissioners, and also a Secretary, and such Clerks, Mes-sistant Comsengers and officers as they shall deem necessary, and to remove such &c. Assistant Commissioners, Secretary, Clerks, Messengers and officers, or any of them; and on any vacancy in any of the said offices, to appoint some other person to the vacant office, and the persons so 10 appointed shall assist in carrying this Act into execution, at such places and in such manner as the Commissioners may direct: Provided always, That no such appointment shall be made by the Commissioners unless the Lord High Treasurer or any Three or more of the Commissioners of Her Majesty's Treasury shall in the case of 15 each such appointment consent thereto. And be it Enacted, That no Commissioner or Assistant Commissioner, Secretary or other officer, or person so to be appointed, shall hold his office for a longer period than Five Years next after the day of the passing of this Act, and thenceforth until the end of the then 20 next Session of Parliament; and after the expiration of the said period. of Five Years and of the then next Session of Parliament, so much of this Act as authorizes any such appointment shall cease. 25 And be it Enacted, That it shall be lawful for the Lord High Treasurer or Commissioners of Her Majesty's Treasury to direct a salary, not exceeding by the year, to be paid to one of the Commissioners for the time being appointed under this Act, but, except as aforesaid, no salaries shall be paid to the Commissioners in respect of their appointments under this Act, and the allowances to the Assistant Commissioners, and the salaries of the Secretary, Clerks, 30 Messengers and other officers to be appointed under this Act, shall be from time to time regulated by the Lord High Treasurer or the Commissioners of Her Majesty's Treasury, or any Three of them: Provided always, That the allowance to an Assistant Commissioner shall not exceed the sum of 35 for every day he shall be actually employed or travelling in the performance of the duties of his office: Provided also, That the said Lord High Treasurer or Commissioners may allow to any Commissioner, Assistant Commissioner, Secretary, Clerk, Messenger or other officer, such reasonable travelling and other expenses as may be incurred by him in the performance of his duties under this Act, in addition to his salary or allowance (if any) respectively. Allowances and Salaries of the Conso lidated Fund. And be it Enacted, That the allowances and salaries of such Comto be paid out missioner, Assistant Commissioners, Secretary, Clerks, Messengers and officers as aforesaid, and all other incidental expenses of carrying this Act into execution not herein otherwise provided for, shall be paid by the Lord Treasurer or the Commissioners of Her Majesty's 5 Treasury out of the Consolidated Fund of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. 8. Commis sioners and Assistant Commis sioners to make a Declaration. 9. Documents of the Tithe ers may be used. Power to summon Witnesses. And be it Enacted, That every Commissioner shall, before he shall enter upon the execution of his office, make the following declaration before one of the Judges of Her Majesty's Court of Queen's 10 Bench or Common Pleas, or one of the Barons of the Court of Exchequer; (that is to say) "I, do solemnly declare that I will faithfully, impartially and honestly, according to the best of my skill and judgment, execute the powers and duties of a Commissioner, under an Act 15 passed in the year of the reign of Queen 20 VICTORIA, intituled, [here set forth the title of this Act]:" And every Assistant Commissioner shall, before he shall enter upon the execution of his office, make the like declaration (substituting the words " Assistant Commissioner" for the word "Commissioner,") before such Judge or Baron, or before any Two Justices of the Peace for the county, riding, division, liberty or jurisdiction wherein such Assistant Commissioner shall be resident at the time of his appointment, or before a Master Extraordinary in Her Majesty's High Court of Chancery; and the appointment of every such Commissioner and Assistant Commissioner, with the time when, and the name or names of 25 the Judge, Baron, Justices or Master Extraordinary before whom he shall have made the declaration aforesaid, shall be forthwith published in the London Gazette. And be it Enacted, That all awards, apportionments, agreements, Commission- writings and maps in the custody of the Tithe Commissioners for 30 England and Wales shall be open to the use and inspection of the Inclosure Commissioners for England and Wales, or any person by them authorized, and such copies of or extracts from such awards, apportionments, agreements, writings and maps as the Commissioners shall require, shall be furnished to them for the purposes of this Act; 35 and that the Commissioners or any Assistant Commissioner, or any Valuer acting in the matter of an Inclosure under this Act, may, by summons under their or his hand, require the attendance of all such persons as they or he may think fit to examine upon any matter relating to any Inclosure or proposed Inclosure, or other proceeding: 40 under the authority of this Act; and also make any inquiries and call for any answer or return as to any such matter; and also administer or receive declarations, and examine all such persons upon declaration, |