The Sun.
London, England, 1822-07-15 00:00:00

urns :

Be it therefore enacted by the King's most Excellent Ma-
jesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spi-
ritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parlia-
ment assembled, and by the authority of the same, That at
any time before the hour of of the day next
but (or if that be a Sunday, then of the day next
but ) after the order issued for a new writ, or pro-
clamation made for calling a new Parliament, any two or more
of the electors, or any one or more candidate or candidates for
the representation of any place in England or Wales, returning
a Member or Members to Parliament, may deposit in the
office of the Clerk of the Journals and Papers of the
House of Commons, a Notice, subscribed with their respective
names and places of abode, the form whereof shall be according
to Schedule (A.) to this Act annexed, signifying that it is the
intention of such electors, candidate, or candidates, to require,
at the approaching election for such place, the assistance of an
Assessor, to be appointed as hereinafter directed; and the said
notice shallj be filed in the said office for a fee of •
and no more ; and if any two or more other electors, or any
one or more other candidates for the representation of the same
place, shall be desirous of checking any such appointment,
it shall be lawful for them or him, at any time before the said
hour of oa the day aforesaid, to deposit -in
the said office, either a Notice similar to that hereinbefore pre-
scribed, or a notice (the form whereof shall be accOrdin* to
Schedule (B.) to this Act annexed,) signifying, that it is tneir
or his intention to check any such appointment ; and the said
last mentioned notice shall also be filed in the said office, for a
fee of and no more. _

And for the purpose of securing proper persons to execute
the office of Assessor, be it enacted, That the Clerk of the
Journals do, on or before the day of in
each year, obtain from the under Treasurer of each of the four
Inns of Court, a list, which shall contain the names of all the
barristers belonging to each respective inn being of not lefis
than years standing, and usually resident and prac-
tising in London, except such as shall within months
then last past have signified: to such under Treasurer, in writ-
ing, their dissent from the insertion of their names in such list;
and that the said lists, when so obtained, be depeSited and filed
in the said Journal Office, without fee or gratttify, aati be and
remain open to general inspection ; and that Is true copy there-
of, if requested, be furnished from the said Journal Office, at
the usual rates, to each of the parties haying deposited any
such notice as aforesaid.
And be it enacted, That for preventing undue practices in
the appointment of Assessors under this Act, every such ap-
pointment shall be by such one of the Masters' of the High
Court of Chancery, as, at the time to be fixed in manner here-
inafter directed for that purpose, shall be the Master, in the
rotation of the public office, unless such Master be then, or
shall at any time within years then last past, have
been a Member of the House of Commons, and in that case by
the next Master in the said-rotation for the said public office,
then being at anyplace within the•distance of
miles from the said office, who shall not be then, or at any
time within the said ' years, have been a Member
of the House of Commons.
And be it further enacted, That immediately upon the ex-
piration of the time limited for the deposit of notices, that is to
say, between the hours of ' and in the after-
noon of the clay aforesaid, or --so soon after those hours as,`-the
Master; on whom the duty hereinafter prescribed in4--kitevolve,
shall fir for that purpose, which he shall do in the-course of the
same day; and at the-earliest possible time, the party or parties
on whose behalf any such notice-or:notices map have been de-
posited, shall attend the said Master at his office, by himself,
themselves br their agents • and that the said Clerk of the
Journals, or some deputy by lam authorised; shall attend .at
the same time and place, with an examined copy of the said
lists of barristers ; and that if' more than one party claim an
interest in the appointment, the said Master, upon examination
of the parties on oath, which he- is hereby empowered to ad-
minister, shall adjudge which of them may have, bona fide,
separateinterests, entitling them-to the challenges hereinafter
mentioned; and then these said parties, in the order of priority
•wherein their notices were respectively deposited, shall chal-
lenge and strike from the lists one name each, And so on in
the same rotation, until there shall remain 'not more than
nor fewer than "

.
names • except where there shall be only; one party attenduig,,
in which case such party shall strike no more than of
the names still leaving always ' =' at the'leait un-,
challenged ; and the names so left in either of the foregoing
cases shall be written down upon a paper in' such order of prio-
rity as the said parties, if more than ones shall.agree ; or if the
said parties cannot agree, or if there be only one party attend-
ing, then in such order of priority as the said Master shall di-
rect ;, and the appointment of Assessor shall be offered to the
barrister whose name shall stand the first ill' such order' of piio-
rity ; and if such barrister'refuse, then to the barrister whose
name shall stand second, and so on in the order of the said
names, until one of the said named barristers accept, or until
the said names be exhausted by refusal of alI the said named
barristers ; in which last case, or in case the .acceptance of some
one of the banisters so named on the` said paper, be not sig-
nified by o'clock in , the evening of the day' next
following that on which the lists shall havet been 'strucks then
the said Master may appoint any barrister not included in the
said list, provided he be of not less than years stand-
ing : And the said Master and Clerk from the Journal Office
attending before him, are hereby respectively authorized to de-
mand and receive from each of the partiesnttending before the
said Master as aforesaid, such fees as shall from time to time be
fixed by any resolution of the House of Commons, to be borne
equally by all the said parties ; but the fee of the Assessor
shall be at the sole charge of, those electors, candidates or can- '
didate, who shall have deposited a notice or notices according
to. Schedule (A.) free of all expense to. any party or parties
who shall have deposited no notice, or whose notice or notices
shall have been deposited merely . according to. Schedule (B.)
provided that where more notices than one shall have
been deposited according to Schedule (A.) each such no.
tice shall be liable to an equal contribution toward the
Assessor's fee ; and that each agent Or other person depo.
siting any notice according to Schedule (A.) shall, before the
striking of the lists as aforesaid, deposit in the office of the said
Master, such sum of money as the said Master shall direct for
the fee of the said Assessor, or in default of such deposit money,
the party making such default shall be deprived of all right or
benefit given by this Act.
And be it further enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That
the Assessor who shall have been appointed in any of the modes
aforesaid, and whose appointment shall be in the form of Sche-
dule (C.) to this Act annexed, and signed and sealed by the
said Master, shall immediately on his arrival at the place of
election, produce his appointment to the Returning Officer, and
upon production thereof shall be entitled and required to direct
such Returning Officer, in the exercise of all the powers en-
trusted to such Returning Officer by law, in allowing or re-
jecting votes, in continuing or closing the poll, in granting or
refusing a scrutiny, and in all other discretionary matters what-
soever ; and the Returning Officer, in all particulars relating to
his discretion as such, shall wholly conform himself to the di-
rection of the said Assessor, and shall, not be liable to any
action, indictment, punishment or censure, for any thing boleti
fide done or omitted by him in conformity thereto ; and as to
all wilful acts or omissions of the said Assessor, or of the Re-
turning Officer, with the said Assessor's authority, such As-
sessor shall himself incur and he subject to the same liabilities,
which, by the law now existing, or hereafter to be made or de-
clared, would attach upon the Returning Officer, 'when unas-
sisted by any Assessor.
Provided always, That nothing in this Act contained, shall
be construed to extend to any place in Scotland or in Ireland.