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The effect of this proviso has been to enable the Governors and
Guardians to retain any excess realised by a rate levied to meet the
requirements of the Vestry over and above the expenses of collection,
and so unknown to the Vestry to accumulate large balances in
reduction of the rates. This is to the exclusive benefit of the direct
ratepayer and large property owners, but to the injury of the
occupier of compound property; as the Vestry if they had known
these balances had existed would have included the same in their
Orders, without necessitating an increase of the General Rates, and
thereby would have been enabled to carry out many sanitary
and permanent improvements to the benefit of the Inhabitants in
general. In Support of this statement it should be mentioned that
in November 1891, a correspondence between the Vestry and the
Governors and Guardians disclosed accumulated balances of £3,000
in the hands of the Governors and Guardians on the levying of
local rates made under order of the Vestry, in addition to which
a further balance of £875 was secured by the Vestry in April 1892,
which gave the Vestry £3,875, an amount equal to a rate of 2d. in
the £, in addition to the ordinary General Rate levied in the Parish
of 2/8 in the £, the application of which amount enabled the Vestry
to carry out works f6r the advantage of the inhabitants in general,
whereas from past years' experience this excess money would have
been applied in reduction of rates to the exclusive benefit of the
direct shopkeeper, householder and large owners of property in the
Parish.
14. That your Petitioners being directly responsible to the electorate
for the amount of all local rates levied in the Parish, should be in
a position, in preparing their estimates for each year, to know what
balance there is in hand over and above the expenses of collection
on the making, assessing, and levying of the preceding year's rates.
15. That section 57 of the Local Act 54 Geo. 3 cap. 113 is also
objectionable, which prohibits the four Overseers appointed thereunder
from serving for more than one year. Although the Overseers
are required to take upon themselves the office of Governor and
Guardian and the Governors and Guardians all the powers and
authorities of Overseers, and they should therefore act as one body
in carrying out the duties ordinarily discharged by Churchwardens
and Overseers in those parishes not having a Local Act; the
Churchwardens and four Overseers in this Parish by custom elect
a Clerk to prepare the Jury Lists, the Register of Voters and
other matters, for which Fees are allowed under the statutes
relative to the duties of Churchwardens and Overseers, consequently
at the expiration of the year of office, when the four Overseers have
become acquainted with their duties, four fresh Overseers under
section 57 of the Act are appointed, the effect of which has frequently
been felt to operate against the interest of the Parishioners.
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