(Ireland.) A BILL To facilitate the Improvement of Landed Property in [Note.-The Words and Clauses printed in Italics are proposed to be inserted in the Committee.] c. 33. s. 32. HEREAS by an Act passed in the Session of Parliament Preamble: held in the first and second years of the reign of his late 1&2 W. 4, Majesty King WILLIAM the Fourth, intituled, "An Act for the Extension and Promotion of Public Works in Ireland," it is amongst ther 5 things enacted, that it should and might be lawful for the Commissioners of Public Works acting in execution of the said Act to make loans and advances in aid of the drainage, embankment, reclaiming, or the improvement of land on the credit of mortgages, assignments or other assurances of the estate and interest, freehold or leasehold, 10 on such land which is to be the subject of such drainage, embankment, reclamation or other improvement, upon the terms and conditions in the said Act mentioned: 15 And whereas by a further Act passed in the Session of Parliament 9 Vict. c. held in the ninth year of the reign of Her present Majesty, intituled, An Act for the further Amendment of the Acts for the Extension and Promotion of Public Works in Ireland," it is enacted, that it should and might be lawful for the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland, subject to such conditions and restrictions as are thereinafter provided, to make any loan or advance for the purposes afore said: s. 6. 9 & 10 Vict. c. 101. 1. Repeal of authority to raise One And whereas a further Act was passed in the Session of Parliament held in the ninth and tenth years of the reign of Her present Majesty, intituled, "An Act to authorize the Advance of Public Money to a limited Amount, to promote the Improvement of Land in Great Britain and Ireland by Works of Drainage:" And whereas it is expedient that so much of the said thirdly-recited Act as extends to Ireland should be repealed, and that greater facilities, under proper conditions and restrictions, should be given for the improvement of lands in Ireland; 5 BE it Enacted, by The QUEEN's most Excellent MAJESTY, by 10 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 so much of the said thirdly-recited Act as authorizes the Commissioners of Her Majesty's Treasury to Million under issue, for the loans to be made under the provisions of the said Act, 15 any sums of money not exceeding One Million of Pounds for Ireland, and all the provisions and powers in the said Act contained relating to Ireland, and to the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland, be and the same is hereby repealed. said Act. 2. Treasury may make advances not exceeding 1,500,000%. for Ireland. 3. The Commissioners of to be the Commis execution of this Act. And be it Enacted, That it shall be lawful for the Commissioners 20 of Her Majesty's Treasury, upon application of the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland, from time to time to issue and advance out of the growing produce of the Consolidated Fund of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, such sum or sums of money, to be applied for the purposes and under the provisions hereinafter contained, 25 as may from time to time be required, not exceeding in the whole the sum of One Million Five hundred thousand Pounds. And be it Enacted, That the Commissioners of Public Works in Public Works Ireland for the time being shall be the Commissioners for the execution of this Act, and shall for the purposes of this Act be a corpora- 30 sioners for the tion with perpetual succession and a common seal, to be by them altered or varied at their pleasure; and such Commissioners shall have full power, with the sanction of the Commissioners of the Treasury, to appoint so many civil engineers, surveyors, agriculturists, architects, builders, clerks and other officers as may be necessary for 35 the purpose of carrying this Act into execution, in the same manner as the said Commissioners of Public Works may now appoint any officers and clerks under any Act or Acts now in force in Ireland, and to pay to them such salaries as may be determined on by the said Commissioners of the Treasury. And 5 10 15 And be it Enacted, That it shall be lawful for the said Commissioners of Public Works, upon application made to them under the provisions of this Act, to make loans under this Act for the following purposes; (that is to say) for the drainage of any lands by any such means as the said Commissioners shall approve, for subsoiling, trenching or otherwise deepening and improving the soil, for irrigation or warping of land, for embanking lands from the sea, enclosing, fencing any land or improving the fences, drains, streams or watercourses of any land, for the reclamation of waste or other land, for making farm roads, or clearing lands of rocks and stones, erecting and making corn mills, with the necessary buildings and watercourses for the use of the same, erecting substantial farm-houses and buildings, or otherwise in the opinion of the said Commissioners permanently improving lands in Ireland. 4. Commis sioners may make ad vances for Works of improvement. 5. And be it Enacted, That no loan under this Act shall be made Works to be until sanctioned by the said Commissioners of the Treasury. And be it Enacted, That any person seised of or entitled at law or in equity to land, as tenant in fee-simple or in fee-tail, general or special, or as tenant in dower or by curtesy, and also any person who shall be 20 entitled under any will or settlement, or any other deed or instrument (except a grant or lease reserving rent) for his own life or the life of any other person, or jointly for his own life and the life of any other person or persons, or for years determinable on such life or lives, and also any person who shall be entitled under any lease granted by any 25 collegiate or ecclesiastical body, or other corporation sole or aggregate, or under any lease granted by any person having immediate or derivative title from or under any such collegiate or ecclesiastical body, or other corporation sole or aggregate, which lease shall contain a toties quoties covenant of renewal, or shall be renewable by custom 30 for ever, and also any person who shall be entitled under any grant, lease or any other deed or assurance for an estate in fee, or for an estate or interest for any life or lives, renewable for ever, or for a term of years absolute, whereof Forty Years or more shall be unexpired at the time of application, or for any term of Forty Years or more, renew35 able on the fall of any life or lives, or for any term or terms of years renewable for ever, whether such last-mentioned person shall be entitled to any such estate, term or interest, either absolutely or as tenant in tail, or as quasi tenant in tail, or for his life; and also every archbishop, bishop, parson, or other ecclesiastical person, as to lands 40 held by them in their respective corporate characters; and also every feoffee or trustee of any land, or of any such estate or interest therein. as aforesaid, for charitable or other purposes; and also every trustee of any such estate or interest as aforesaid who shall be in the actual possession of the land, or in receipt of the rents payable by the sanctioned by the Treasury before advances made. 6. Who shall owner. be deemed 5 tenants of such land, shall be deemed an owner of such land for the purposes of this Act; and in every case in which any person seised, possessed of, or entitled to any such land for any such estate or interest as aforesaid, shall be an infant, feme covert, idiot or lunatic, the guardian of such infant, the husband of such feme covert, and the committee of the estate of such idiot or lunatic, shall be deemed an owner of such land for the purposes of this Act: Provided nevertheless, That when the land to which the application for a loan under this Act shall relate, shall be land held in right of any ecclesiastical benefice, the Commissioners of Public Works shall not proceed 10 thereon, unless the bishop of the diocese and the patron of such benefice shall have consented in writing to such application; and for the purposes of this Act the person or persons (if not more than Two), or the majority of the persons (if more than Two), or the guardian, committee, husband or attorney (as the case may be) of any such 15 person or persons respectively, being minors, idiots, lunatics, femes covert or beyond seas, or the corporation who or which would for the time being be entitled to the right of presentation to any benefice if the same were then vacant, shall be considered as the patron thereof; and the consent of The Queen, being the patron, shall for any bene- 20 fice above the yearly value of Twenty Pounds in The Queen's books be testified by writing under the hand of the First Lord Commissioner of the Treasury for the time being, and for any benefice not exceeding the yearly value of Twenty Pounds, by writing under the hand of the Lord Chancellor of Ireland; and any corporation may 25 consent by writing under the common seal of such corporation : Provided always, That no person, except a mortgagee in possession, or receipt of rent of the mortgaged lands, or any part thereof, shall be deemed an owner for the purposes of this Act, for or by reason of any estate vested in him, which shall have been created by 30 way of mortgage, or for securing the payment of any sum of money, but that the person who would be deemed an owner for the purposes of this Act, if such estate by way of mortgage or of securing any money had not been created, shall, notwithstanding such mortgage or security, or any other incumbrance, be deemed such 35 owner as aforesaid: Provided also, That a feme covert entitled to rents and profits for her separate use, and whether or not restrained from anticipation, shall for the purposes of this Act be considered as a feme sole: Provided also, That where several persons in succession shall have in any land such estates or interests as would otherwise 40 entitle each of them, under the provisions aforesaid, to be so deemed an owner, such of the said persons shall be deemed the owner for the purposes of this Act, as shall be in actual occupation of the said land, or in case the person in actual occupation shall not be entitled to be deemed an owner under this present clause, then the person who shall have the first such estate or interest as aforesaid therein, in reversion or remainder to or above the estate or interest of the person in actual occupation 45 5 occupation as may entitle him to be deemed an owner under the present clause: Provided also, That when the owner first entitled as aforesaid shall (after notice given to him in such form and for such period as the said Commissioners of Public Works shall from time to time direct, by the person having the next such estate or interest as aforesaid in reversion or remainder) refuse or neglect to make any such application, then the person having the next such estate as aforesaid may, if he think fit to apply for a loan under this Act, be deemed the owner of such lands for the purposes of 10 this Act, and shall be deemed the owner for all such purposes, if any loan or advance on account thereof shall, upon his application, be made under this Act. And be it Enacted, That any person seised or possessed of any land, under any lease, reserving rent for Two or more lives then in 15 being, or for any term of years determinable on any Two or more lives in being at the time of application, or for any term of years absolute, whereof there shall be at the time of application Twenty-five Years or more unexpired, who shall apply, under the provisions of this Act, and shall give such security as the said Commissioners of Public 20 Works shall direct for the payment of the annual amount of any rentcharge which may become chargeable on such land, in respect of any loan to be made under the provisions of this Act by the person so applying, his executors, administrators or assigns, during the continuance of the residue of such his estate or interest in the said lands, 25 or for so many years as such rent-charge under this Act shall be payable if his interest shall so long continue, may be deemed the owner of such land under the provisions of this Act: Provided always, That unless specially provided by the terms of holding, no such application as aforesaid, nor any act or proceeding consequent 30 thereupon, under this Act, nor the charging of any rent-charge, shall be construed as a breach of any covenants or conditions, subject to which any person applying under this or the last preceding clause may hold the land: Provided always, That in case there shall be several persons having such interest as last-mentioned in the 35 lands, the person entitled to apply for a loan under the provisions of this Act, or in case there shall be several such applicants, the person to be preferred shall be the person in actual occupation of the lands, or in his default, then the person whose estate or interest, in remainder or reversion, shall be nearest to that of the actual occupier; so always 40 that no loan shall be granted to any applicant under the present clause, except upon such security as before mentioned being given for the payment of any rent-charge chargeable under this Act by the person to whom any loan shall be granted during the continuance of the residue of his estate or interest in the land, or for such other period as before-mentioned. |