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10
London, requiring payment of the sum of £110 19s. 1d., being the
apportioned amount charged by him upon this district for defraying
the expenses of the Triennial Election in November, 1885. The
amount appearing to the Board to be excessive, they resolved to defer
for awhile the payment, and applied to Sir Thomas Chambers for a
detailed statement of the expenditure incurred, who, however, did
not reply to the communication addressed to him, and, having no
alternative, the Board, in the latter part of February, paid the
amount under protest. They also, in common with several other
District Boards and Vestries, caused a representation of the facts
of the case to be made to the Lords of the Education Department
of the Privy Council, in the hope that they might be induced to
intervene, but were informed that their Lordships had no power
to compel the Returning Officer to supply the desired information.
The matter was thereupon referred to the General Purposes
Committee of this Board for investigation, together with a letter
from the Wandsworth Board of Works, containing a series of
resolutions passed by them on the subject, and, on the recommendation
of such Committee, the Board expressed its concurrence with
the following, viz.:—(a) “ That the placing of such unlimited and
extraordinary powers in the hands of the Returning Officer is wrong
in principle, and calculated to spread increased dissatisfaction amongst
the ratepayers.“ (b) ” That the Education Department be requested
to maize such provision as will render it necessary for the Returning
Officer for the Metropolis, when issuing his Precepts to the Rating
Authorities for their contributions towards the cost of any future
School Board Election, to accompany such Precepts with a detailed
account of the total expenditure, and also a statement showing the
amount asked for from each Rating Authority." (c) " That the
fees paid to the Returning Officer, the Deputy Returning Officers,
Presiding Officers, Clerks, &c., together with all the other items of
necessary expenditure, should be limited by statute, and that all such
expenditure should be properly vouched and subject to taxation
A further communication was accordingly addressed to the Education
Department, transmitting a copy of the above resolutions, and
expressing an opinion that the law should be amended and an A.ct
similar in its provisions to the Parliamentary Elections (Returning