The number of unions formed, and places in which the rules ass regulations of the l'oor TAW Board are in force, to Lefty-day, 1860, i including 14,427 pariehen,ewith a population of 17,670,938 souls.
It will be convenient to state how the law stood previously to tie peering of the Poor-Law Amendment Act (4 & 5 Wm. IV. c. 76), nut then to notice more particularly some of its leading provisions.
Every indigent parson, whether a native or a foreigner, being in district of England or Wales, in which a fund is raised for the main tenance of the poor, has a right to be supplied with the necessarie of life out of that fund. Thhs right depends on statute, and princi pally on the 43 Eliz. e. 2, which enacts that the churchwardens o es.cry parish, and four, or two substantial householders there o be nominated yearly under the hands and seals of two or more usticos of the peace, shall be called overseers of the poor. (Oven ,eats.) Under this statute overseers could be appointed for parishes only. Thin proved very insufficient, because many large and populous listricte were not situate within any parish, and consequently no overseers whatever could be appointed for them ; and also because navy parishes themselves, were of such magnitude that one set of overseers could not properly attend to all the poor. To supply this lefect, the ]3 & 14 Car. IL c. 12, authorised the appointment of werseere in any township that was either extra-paroclual or was part ,of a pariah no huge as to require distinct sets of officers for the ma of its poor. The 20 Viet c. 19 made further provision for the appointment of overseers for extra-perochisl places,.
It is the duty of these overseers to raise the fund for the relief of the poor of their district This fund. which is called the poor-rate, they are directed by the statute of Elie. in parishes, and by the statute of Car. IL in townships, to raise " weekly or otherwise, by taxation of every inhabitant, parson, vicar, and other, and every occupier of lands, houses, tithes impropriate, propriations of tithim, coalmines or sale able underwoods in the said parish, in such competent sum and sums of money as they shall think fit, &c., according to the ability of the parish." The rate may be made according to the exigencies of the place, which, whether parish or township, may conveniently in either case be called a parish, for any period not less than a week nor exceeding a year. The rate, which is made in writing, gives the names of the persons rated, a description of the property for which they are rated, and the amount payable by them ; it contain, also a declaration, signed by the parish officers, that the rate is, to the best of their belief, correct, and that they have used their best endeavours to make it so.
The rate so made and signed must be taken to two justicee for their assent, which ie called the allowance of the rate, and public notice of arch allowance must be given on the Sunday following, or the rate will be entirely void.
As the etatute expressly mentions both inhibitants and occupiers, inhabitants were held liable to be rated in proportion to their ability within the parish, although they had no property there which was capable of occupation, and occupiers of property therein were held liable although they resided elsewhere. Accordingly both real cor poreal property and personal property within the parish may be assessed, as constituting " the ability of the parish ;" real corporeal property, as land or houses, may be assessed, wheresoever the occupier resides, and personal property, if the owner is resident within the parish. Incorporeal real property, since it is not the subject of occu pation, seems not to be rateable unless incidentally, when, as in the ease of the tolls of a canal, it is, n.s it were, annexed to and enhances the value of corporeal real property, which is the subject of occu pation. As it is the occupier and not the owner of real corporeal property who is rated for it, it will be obvious that the term " real property " is not used in the poor-laws according to its strict legal sense, and that the occupier of a house is rated for it, although Ito has a mere chattel interest in it. The term "personal property" is also used in a restricted sense ; it denotes stock in trade, and such things as are not at all of the nature of realty, and excludes chattels real. The assessment is laid in respect of the revenue or annual profit of the property rated, whether real or personal. Such property therefore as is incapable of yielding profit is not rateable. The a.'sefis. meat upon land and houses, &c., is calculated upon an estimate of their net annual value, which is defined to be the rent at which they would let from year to year, free of all tenant's rates and taxes, and tithe commutation rent-charge, if any, and deducting the probable average of annual costs of repairs, insurance, and any other expenses which may be necessary to maintain the promisee in a state to com mand such rent. Personal property was not rated unless it had, as it were, a local existence ; and therefore neither stock in the funds nor money was rateable. Furniture also was exempted, because it yielded no profit. In practice the only kind of personal property ever rated, and that in very few places, was stock in trade and ships. The rating of this species of property was attended with many disadvantages.