21. The Patron of the Poor or pay any Monies for purposes of this Act. mentioned, namely, one by the major part of the Parochial Officers, And be it further Enacted, That the Patron of the Poor shall have not to receive no authority in virtue of his office to levy, collect or disburse any sum 10 or sums of Money for carrying into effect the provisions of this Act, the ordinary excepting as relates to the annual Premiums hereinafter directed to be given, but that all other receipts, collections and disbursements for the purpose of carrying into effect this Act shall be made by the Overseers of the Poor : Provided always, That any Engagement, Bargain or Contract, 15 and all payments of whatever kind made for the purpose of carrying this Act into effect, shall require, to render them lawful and valid, the signature of the Patron of the Poor for the time being; and upon such signature being affixed to orders, concerning the matter of which the said Patron of the Poor and the Parochial Officers have agreed, or to 20 those orders which shall be signed by him agreeably to any decision of the Arbitrators before mentioned, then in every such case the Overseer of the Poor is hereby authorized and required to obey the same, and to pay such sum or sums of money out of the Poor Rates as are thus certified and ordered to be paid. 22. Money may be borrowed from private Individuals for the pur poses of this A&. And be it further provided and Enacted, That in any case in which the sum of Money required for carrying into effect the provisions of this Act, in those Parishes in which the estimated amount of the annual value of the real Property assessed to the Property Tax in One thousand eight hundred and fifteen did not amount to the sum of 25 shall exceed in any one year the sum of One hundred Pounds, or in any other parish shall exceed One-fifth part of the Poors Rate disbursed in such parish on the average of the Five preceding years, for the relief and maintenance of the Poor, that then it shall be lawful for the Parochial Officers of such parishes respectively to. borrow the 35 Money required at interest, and to secure such Interest and the Principal thereof upon the Poor Rates of such parishes, in sums not exceeding One hundred Pounds each, for the greater ease of procuring, and of repaying the same when demanded; which Loans shall be contracted and entered in the Parochial Record, according to the Form in the Sche-' dule appended to this Act; which Debt shall continue on the Security of the said Rates until the Money so borrowed and all Interest thereupon shall be fully paid and satisfied; and the said Parochial Officers 40 shall 5 shall duly pay the Interest of the said Sums on the day on which it shall become due, and if the Principal be recalled, the same may be borrowed of some other person or persons, in like manner as it was first obtained and borrowed. 23. Money may from Sick be borrowed Clubs or And be it also further Enacted, That it shall be lawful for the Officer or Treasurer of any Sick Club or Friendly Society, with the concurrence and approbation of the members of such Club or Society, expressed in a general Meeting convened for that purpose, and of which dieties. due notice shall be given, to lend to the Parishes who may wish to 10 borrow Money for the purpose of carrying into effect this Act, any sum of Money which such parishes may require, and which such Club or Society were about to put forth to interest elsewhere; and the Sum so lent, and the Interest upon the same, shall be secured and paid as in the case of the Loans from private individuals as before mentioned. 15 And be it further Enacted, That if the Sums necessary for carrying into effect the provisions of this Act should not by these and other voluntary means be fully obtained, then that the Patron of the Poor for every parish where such deficiency shall arise, shall notify the same to the Commissioners of His Majesty's Treasury of the United Kingdom 20 of Great Britain and Ireland, who are hereby empowered to advance to such parishes, upon the security of their respective Poor Rates, any sums not exceeding Pounds to any one parish, and for the Sums so lent, Interest shall be duly paid by the Overseers of the Poor, as ordered by the said Commissioners of His Majesty's Trea25 sury, together with Ten per centum per annum upon the Principal lent, till both Principal and Interest are fully discharged and paid; and the said Commissioners of His Majesty's Treasury are hereby empowered to raise successive Loans as they may be required, not exceeding in their total amount Hundred Thousand Pounds, in order to 30 afford the assistance required by this Act to the Poor of the parishes 35 40 aforesaid in the manner prescribed by this Act; and the Interest at which such Sums shall be lent to the Parishes under this Act shall be that which shall be payable on the Public Loans to be contracted for the purpose herein stated. AND for the purpose of securing to the poor Labourers the greatest possible advantage from the Sums which shall be expended on their behalf under the authority of this Act, and to enable the Patron of the Poor and the Parochial Officers to fix upon the Cottages to be erected the lowest possible Rent; BE it further Enacted, That the amount of the Taxes upon the Materials subject to direct taxation which shall be used in constructing the Cottages erected in pursuance of this Act, namely, upon the Bricks, Tiles, Glass and foreign Timber so used, shall upon an estimate and calculation of each, made under the inspection of 343. the 26. The unemployed Poor to be set on work, and paid fufficient Wages. 27. A Parochial Record to be kept, and by whom. 28. The Labourers to be chofen as Tenants of the Parochial Cottages, &c. the Patron of the Poor, and verified by his signature, be returned to the Overseer of the Poor by the Collector of the Excise for the district in which such Cottages have been erected. And be it further Enacted, That in order to diminish as much as possible the Expense of inclosing the Allotments, as well as of building 5 the Cottages required by this Act, the Patron of the Poor may order such unemployed Labourers as are maintained out of the Parochial Rates to work at making such Inclosures and Buildings; and that in such case the Parochial Relief which they shall be receiving shall not be added to the cost of such Inclosures and Buildings, nor be estimated 10 in the Rent that shall be fixed upon the same. And be it further Enacted, That for the aforesaid purpose of avoiding all unnecessary Expenses, a Book of Record shall be provided, and be kept by the person who has the legal custody of the Parish Registers, in which shall be entered all Transactions necessary to be recorded, 15 agreeably to the several Forms prescribed in the Schedule Number Five appended to this Act; and all such Entries, of which copies signed by the Patron of the Poor and the Parochial Officers shall be given for the security of all parties concerned, and such Entries and Copies, shall be construed according to their plain intent and meaning, and shall have 20 the force of law, though without the form of legal instruments or stamps as required by law in other cases. And be it further Enacted, that the Labourers who shall be admitted as Tenants to the new Cottages, shall be selected, by the Patron of the Poor and the Parochial Officers of the parish for the time being, from 25 among those who are the most anxious to obtain that privilege and the most deserving of it, who have not increased the parochial burdens previously to their marriage, nor afterwards, by becoming the fathers of illegitimate children, who have good characters from their respective employers, and who are of sober, steady and industrious habits; and the 30 said Patron of the Poor and the Parochial Officers shall also select those who shall have the means afforded to them of keeping a Cow each, from among those Labourers that have evidenced the greatest industry and good conduct, who are members of some Sick Club or Friendly Society, who have or engage to have some Deposit in a Savings - 35 Bank, who have brought up in decency the largest Family with the least, if any, parochial assistance, and who accept this advantage in lieu of any such assistance in future, except in cases of unforeseen affliction and distress; and the parochial Tenants shall be continued in their several tenancies, whether Cottages, Gardens or Land, while they con- 40 tinue to manifest the same industrious and meritorious conduct; but if it should unfortunately happen that any of these parochial Tenants should become negligent or disorderly in their conduct, neglect their duty, 5 duty, or refuse to pay their rent to the Overseer of the Poor, then the Patron of the Poor and the Parochial Officers shall give them one full year's notice to quit, assigning at the same time their reason for so doing, at the expiration of which time, if they see no alteration and amendment in the conduct of the offending parties, they shall be ejected, and other and more deserving persons shall be selected, as before, and admitted to the parochial tenancies in their stead. And be it further Enacted, That the Patron of the Poor may order, under his handwriting, the Overseer of the Poor to lend to any poor 10 Labourer who shall be admitted to any of the Parochial Cottages or Gardens, but who may be destitute of the necessary means of beneficially occupying the same, any sum not exceeding Forty Shillings, for the purchase of young Fruit-trees for his wall or garden, or for buying a Pig, or for improving his circumstances in any other manner, or for 15 the purpose of keeping him from the parish when he may be labouring under some temporary difficulty or misfortune; which sum shall be returned by such poor Cottager at his convenience, but so that at least One-fourth part of it shall be annually discharged, till the whole shall be repaid. 20 29. Sums to be lent to induf trious Cot various purposes. tagers, for 30. Sums to be lent for the purchase of And be it further Enacted, That the Patron of the Poor may, under his handwriting, order the Overseer of the Poor to lend to any industrious Cottager who may be admitted as a parochial tenant of land, for Cows. the purpose of enabling him to keep a Cow, but who may not have money sufficient to purchase one, nor, owing to the unfortunate con25 dition to which the Labourers in Husbandry are in many places reduced, any reasonable prospect of saving or otherwise obtaining sufficient for that purpose, any sum not exceeding or Two-thirds of the price of the Cow to be purchased, of which sum so lent Thirty Shillings at least shall be annually repaid to the Overseers of the Poor 30 for the time being, till the whole is repaid; till which time such Cow shall be and remain the property of the Parish, excepting that part of the Purchase-money as the Cottager may have himself advanced, or of the Parochial Loan which he may have repaid. AND for the purpose of inducing the Patron of the Poor and the 35 Parochial Officers to make these necessary Loans, by affording sufficient security to the Parish for the same, and also to prevent the distress and ruin which befal the Poor Cottager on the loss of his cattle, or the grievous misfortune of having its winter keep destroyed; Be it further Enacted, That the Overseer of the Poor for the time being shall 40 receive from every such Cottager who is a parochial tenant, the sum of per month, as an Insurance upon his Cow, and per month, as an Insurance against fire for his Haystack; and when the sum in the hands of the Overseer of the parish 343. D for 31. The Cottager's Cow and Hay to be infured. 32. Premiums to the most me deferving Poor to be for the time being shall be deemed large enough fully to cover the annual risk of the whole of those thus insured, the monthly payments shall still continue, but the Surplus shall be divided annually on the among the poor Insurers, and according to the sums which they shall have respectively paid; and the Insurances so made shall not be liable to any Duty or Tax upon Insurances of whatever kind demanded in virtue of any other Act of Parliament. 5 And be it further Enacted, That for the purpose of further carrying retorious and into effect this Act, the encouraging and rewarding of the Industry and good conduct of the Labouring Poor, the Patron of the Poor may from 10 time to time receive the Gifts and Donations of any charitable and well disposed persons, and also any sum, not exceeding annually diftributed. 33. 'The Patron of the Poor, who, and how appointed. The Lord of the Manor, which the Parochial Officers may think it desirable to give out of the And be it further Enacted, That the office of Patron of the Poor shall the parish, shall take upon himself that office, in which case he shall devolve |