sites to the right of voting, certain official acts are to be performed by public officers, as preparing lists of voters, &c.; and as these are preliminary to any of the necessary proceedings to be taken on the part of claimants and objectors for prosecuting proceedings in court, it will be proper here to state the duties of such officers in the first instance.

The various qualifications conferring the title to vote, should, however, be previously enumerated; qualification, in all cases, being the title (or ground of the right) to vote, and must be the guide to the overseer in forming his list of voters, as indicating the persons entitled to claim the right. They will therefore be succinctly set forth in the manner of table or catalogue, for the convenience and accommodation of ready reference.

The consideration of this subject must, therefore, have precedence of all others, and will constitute the topic of the next chapter.

CHAPTER III.

OF QUALIFICATION.

SECTION 1.

Restriction and Extension of Qualification for Right of Voting.

THE first fundamental principles of the Bill having been settled, stated, and established, the various localities defined, and the objects of destruction and creation, or restriction and extension, expressed and identified, the first practical subject-matter of the provisions of the statute is the right of voting for members of Parliament or the qualification on which it is founded.

County Qualifications (generally).

Qualification

freeholds for

limited to the

occupation, or

By the 18th Section of the Act, after limiting the s. XVIII. right of voting for counties and county cities and in respect of towns in cases of freeholders having life interests only life, in future in lands and tenements, the right of voting or qualifi- owner's actual cation is restricted to owners of the property in actual derived by occupation, or having title by marriage, will, or or promotion ecclesiastical promotion to benefice or appointment office. to office, and of the clear yearly value of 10l. above all charges thereupon. Existing rights saved by proviso.

marriage, will,

to benefice or

S. XIX. Qualification

By the 19th Section the qualification to vote for

extended to county members is extended to copyholders having of 101. value an estate for life or lives, or larger estate, in law or

Copyholders

per annum,

holders of 502. value.

and to Lease- equity, of the same value and so estimated: and by the 20th Section, leases for residue of terms of sixty years of 107. annual value, or not less than twenty years of not less annual value than 50l. above rents and charges, henceforth confer a right of voting in virtue of qualification by estate, in election of members of Parliament for counties, as do sub-leases of the same interest and value if the sub-lessee be in actual occupation, and an occupation as tenant of lands or tenements at a bonâ fide rent of not less than 50%. per annum.

Disqualifying sections for Counties.

Registration made neces

26.

Certain disqualifying incidents to the right of voting in respect of estate are introduced in Sections 24, 25, and 26.

In the 26th Section there is a proviso excepting certain estates derived by particular sources of title from the operation of the clause.

By that Section the necessity of registration of sary by Sec. voters for knights of shires is imposed by an express enactment that "NO PERSON SHALL BE ENTITLED TO VOTE IN THE ELECTION OF A KNIGHT OR KNIGHTS OF THE SHIRE TO SERVE IN ANY FUTURE PARLIAMENT, UNLESS HE SHALL HAVE BEEN DULY REGISTERED" according to the provisions of the Act.

* i. e. the person qualified to vote.

11

Borough Qualifications (generally).

Sections for

The qualifications of voters for cities and boroughs Qualifying are given and defined by the 27th, 28th, 29th, 31st, boroughs. 32d, and 33d Sections.

In the 36th Section there is a general disqualify- Disqualifying provisions. ing provision, and by the 35th there is a partially disqualifying incident, introduced with an excepting proviso.

There are also disqualifying or incapacitating provisions incorporated in the 27th, 28th, 32d, and 33d Sections; and in the 31st there is a disqualifying provision with an exception.

The necessity of registration of voters in boroughs, &c., is imposed either in the guise of a condition, or by proviso, and not as in the case of voters for counties by positive enactments generally disqualifying the voter by negative words, unless he shall have been registered.

So many and so various qualifying and disqualifying clauses, with their several exceptions, having made the conditions of qualification very complicated, and somewhat confused, it may be a convenient and ready mode of explaining the general and particular nature of qualification, by stating severally and singly all the various entire qualifications, with their respective positive and negative qualities, and essentials integrally, so as to furnish at one short view the whole of each of them.

These will be found in the next Section.

County Qualification. S. XVIII.

Freeholds of

40s. per ann. clear;

SECTION 2.

QUALIFICATION (by Estate) conferring a Right to vote at the Election of Candidates for COUNTIES, and CITIES or Towns being Counties.

Freeholds.

1. All registered freeholdst of inheritance, that inheritance of is, lands or tenements, or interest in lands or tenements (the property of a man and his heirs) of the clear, i. e. unincumbered and uncharged by the party or the persons from or through whom he claims, but not over and above, public or parliamentary taxes, or church, county, or parish rates, [Section 21.] yearly value of not less than 40s. in actual seisin of the owner, whether in the occupation of the freeholder or not-where (unless derived by descent, &c. tion, or condi- S. 26,) he shall have been in the actual possession, or in receipt of rents and profits of the property for six calendar months before the last day of July in the year of registration; § provided it be not a house, &c. occupied by the owner, situate, in a City or Borough sending members to parliament, of the annual value of not less than 107.,|| in reto boroughs, spect of which he might vote for members for such City or Borough.

Incidents of

this qualifica

tions of regis

tration.

Transfer of

qualification

&c.

If the freehold tenement, or interest in and arising out of land, be a rent charge granted

* S. 37.

+ S. 18.

+ S. 26.

§ Where no term of previous possession, or other incident of qualification, is stated here, none is necessary.

|| S. 24