case will admit of: Provided always, that it shall be competent to the Lord Ordinary, where any witness or haver is resident beyond the jurisdiction of the court, or by reason of age, infirmity, or sickness is unable to attend the diet of proof, to grant commission to any person competent to take and report in writing, according to the existing practice, the evidence of such witness or haver. (0)

XIV. Payment to certain Sheriffs.-The Commissioners of Her Majesty's Treasury shall annually pay to each of John Cay, Esquire, Sheriff of the county of Linlithgow; John Tait, Esquire, Sheriff of the counties of Kinross and Clackmannan; Erskine Daniel Sandford, Esquire, Steward of the stewartry of Kirkcudbright, and Sheriff of the county of Wigton; Robert Hunter, Esquire, Sheriff of the counties of Dumbarton and Bute; and Benjamin Robert Bell, Esquire, Sheriff of the counties of Banff, Elgin, and Nairn, out of monies to be voted by Parliament for that purpose, a sum equal to one-fifth of the total amount which shall be ascertained by the Queen and Lord Treasurer's Remembrancer in Exchequer to have been paid annually, on an average of the last three years, to the sheriffs-commissary, in respect of proofs taken by them in consistorial causes; but such sum shall only be paid as long as the said persons shall hold the office of Sheriff in any county in Scotland, and no longer.

XV. Actions of aliment.-Actions of aliment in the Court of Session between husband and wife shall not be considered Inner House causes, but shall be considered and disposed of in like manner as other consistorial causes, except as hereinafter provided as to decrees in absence; and actions of aliment at the instance of other parties shall not be considered Inner House causes, but shall be disposed of by the Lord Ordinary (subject in both cases to reclaiming note in common form against his interlocutors) in the same way as such causes are at present disposed of by the Judges of the Inner House: Provided always, that all actions for aliment shall be deemed summary causes both in the Outer and in the Inner House, and that where no appearance is entered for the defender decreet shall be pronounced in absence without proof, as in other cases before the Court of Session.

XVI. When a married woman succeeds to property, &c., husband or creditor not entitled to claim the same.-When a married woman succeeds to property, or acquires right to it by donation, bequest, or any other means than by the exercise of her own industry, the

(0) By § 100 of 31 & 32 Vict. c. 100, it is provided that notwithstanding the terms of this section it shall be competent for the Lord Ordinary to grant commission to any person competent to take and report in writing the deposition of a haver according to the existing practice, although such haver shall be resident in Scotland.

husband or his creditors, or ony other person claiming under or through him, shall not be entitled to claim the same as falling within the communio bonorum, or under the jus mariti or husband's right of administration, except on the condition of making therefrom a reasonable provision for the support and maintenance of the wife, if a claim therefor be made on her behalf; and in the event of dispute as to the amount of the provision to be made, the matter shall, in an ordinary action, be determined by the Court of Session according to the circumstances of each case, and with reference to any provisions previously secured in favour of the wife, and any other property belonging to her exempt from the jus mariti: Provided always, that no claim for such provision shall be competent to the wife if before it be made by her the husband or his assignee or disponee shall have obtained complete and lawful possession of the property, or, in the case of a creditor of the husband, where he has before such claim is made by the wife attached the property by decree of adjudication or arrestment, and followed up the said arrestment by obtaining thereon decree of furthcoming, or has poinded and carried through and reported a sale thereof. (p)

XVII. Court of Session empowered to make Acts of Sederunt.— The Court of Session are hereby authorised and empowered to make from time to time such orders and regulations as to forms of process by Acts of Sederunt as they may consider necessary for carrying into execution the purposes of this Act.

XVIII. Repeal of laws inconsistent with this Act.-All laws, statutes, and usages are hereby repealed in so far as the same are inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, but no further or otherwise.

XIX. Interpretation of terms.-The following words and expressions, when used in this Act, shall, in the construction thereof, be interpreted as follows, except where the nature of the provision or the context of the Act shall exclude or be repugnant to such con

(p) This section is retrospective.—Taylor v. Taylor, 23rd June, 1871, 8 S. L. R. 589; 28th Oct. 1871, 9 S. L. R. 22. As to what amounts to a reasonable provision to wife, see Mason v. Small, &c., 24th Feb. 1870, 7. S. L. R. 332; Somner v. Anderson, 2nd March, 1871, 8 S. L. R. 388; Taylor v. Taylor, 28th Oct. 1871, 9 S. L. R. 22.

Question as to reasonable provision where husband obtained possession of property. -See Clark v. Clark, 25th May, 1881, 8 R. 723.

Question between a wife and trustee on her husband's sequestrated estate as to a reasonable provision.-See Kinnear v. Ferguson, &c., 7th Nov. 1871, 9 S. L. R. 39; Reid, &c., 5th Feb. 1878, 15 S. L. R. 380; Jack v. Ferguson, 5th Feb. 1878, R. 624. Husband held not bound to make a provision to his wife out of a fund his own absolute property.-Miller v. Learmonth, 21st Nov. 1871,9 S. L. R. 95. A trust deed granted by husband and wife securing aliment to the latter, held not revocable by the husband.-Thomson v. Thomson, 17th Nov. 1868, 6 S. L. R. 110.

struction; that is to say, the expression "Lord Ordinary" shall include his successor; the word " "property" shall include and apply to all property falling under the jus mariti; the expression "consistorial action" shall include actions of declarator of marriage, of declarator of nullity of marriage, of declarator of legitimacy and bastardy, actions of separation a mensa et thoro, of divorce and of adherence, and of putting to silence, and actions of aliment between husband and wife instituted in the Court of Session.

XX. Short title.-This Act may in all proceedings be cited as "The Conjugal Rights (Scotland) Amendment Act, 1861."

XXI. Commencement of Act.-This Act shall come into operation on the 1st day of November now next ensuing, and not before.

XV.-ACT to amend the Law in relation to the Wills and Domicile of British Subjects dying whilst resident abroad, and of Foreign Subjects dying whilst resident within Her Majesty's Dominions.-[24 & 25 Vict. c. 121, 6th August, 1861.]

WHEREAS, by reason of the present law of domicile, the wills of British subjects dying whilst resident abroad are often defeated, and their personal property administered in a manner contrary to their expectations and belief; and it is desirable to amend such law, but the same cannot be effectually done without the consent and concurrence of foreign States: Be it therefore enacted by the Queen's Most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by authority of the same, as follows:—

I. No British subject dying in a foreign country to be deemed to have acquired a domicile unless resident there for one year immediately preceding his or her death, &c., and for all purposes of testate or intestate succession shall retain the domicile possessed at the time of going to reside in such foreign country.-Whenever Her Majesty shall by convention with any foreign State agree that provisions to the effect of the enactments herein contained shall be applicable to the subjects of Her Majesty and of such foreign State respectively, it shall be lawful for Her Majesty by any order in council to direct, and it is hereby enacted, That, from and after the publication of such order in the London Gazette, no British subject resident at the time of his or her death in the foreign country named in such order shall be deemed

under any circumstances to have acquired a domicile in such country unless such British subject shall have been resident in such country for one year immediately preceding his or her decease, and shall also have made and deposited in a public office of such foreign country (such office to be named in the order in council) a declaration in writing, of his or her intention to become domiciled in such foreign country; and every British subject dying resident in such foreign country, but without having so resided and made such declaration as aforesaid, shall be deemed for all purposes of testate or intestate succession as to moveables to retain the domicile he or she possessed at the time of his or her going to reside in such foreign country as aforesaid.

II. No foreign subject dying in Great Britain or Ireland to be deemed to have acquired a domicile unless resident therein for one year immediately preceding his or her death, &c.—After any such convention as aforesaid shall have been entered into by Her Majesty with any foreign State, it shall be lawful for Her Majesty by order in council to direct, and from and after the publication of such order in the London Gazette, it shall be and is hereby enacted, That no subject of any such foreign country who at the time of his or her death shall be resident in any part of Great Britain or Ireland shall be deemed under any circumstances to have acquired a domicile therein, unless such foreign subject shall have been resident within Great Britain or Ireland for one year immediately preceding his or her decease, and shall also have signed and deposited with Her Majesty's Secretary of State for the Home Department, a declaration in writing of his or her desire to become and be domiciled in England, Scotland, or Ireland, and that the law of the place of such domicile shall regulate his or her moveable succession.

III. Who this Act shall not apply to.-This Act shall not apply to any foreigners who may have obtained letters of naturalisation in any part of Her Majesty's dominions.

IV. When subjects of foreign States shall die in Her Majesty's dominions, and there shall be no persons to administer to their estates, the Consuls of such foreign States may administer.—Whenever a convention shall be made between Her Majesty and any foreign State, whereby Her Majesty's consuls or vice-consuls in such foreign State shall receive the same or the like powers and authorities as are hereinafter expressed, it shall be lawful for Her Majesty by order in council to direct, and from and after the publication of such order in the London Gazette, it shall be and is hereby enacted, That whenever any subject of such foreign State shall die within the dominions of Her Majesty, and there shall be no person present at the time of

such death who shall be rightfully entitled to administer to the estate of such deceased person, it shall be lawful for the consul, vice-consul, or consular agent of such foreign State within that part of Her Majesty's dominions where such foreign subject shall die, to take possession and have the custody of the personal property of the deceased, and to apply the same in payment of his or her debts and funeral expenses, and to retain the surplus for the benefit of the persons entitled thereto; but such consul, vice-cousul, or consular agent shall immediately apply for and shall be entitled to obtain from the proper court letters of administration of the effects of such deceased person, limited in such manner and for such time as to such court shall seem fit,

XVI. The Titles to Land Consolidation (Scotland) Act, 31 & 32 Vict. c. 101.-[31st July, 1868.]

CXVII. Heritable Securities to form Moveable Estate; except where conceived in favour of Heirs, excluding Executors and quoad fiscum-Not to belong to Husband jure mariti, nor to Wife jure relicta-Nor to be computed in legitim.-From and after the commencement of this act no heritable security granted or obtained either before or after that date shall, in whatever terms the same may be conceived, except in the cases hereinafter provided, be heritable as regards the succession of the creditor in such security, and the same, except as hereinafter provided, shall be moveable as regards the succession of such creditor, and shall belong after the death of such creditor to his executors or representatives in mobilibus, in the same manner and to the same extent and effect as such security would, under the law and practice now in force, have belonged to the heirs of such creditor: Provided always, that where any heritable security is or shall be conceived expressly in favour of such creditor, and his heirs or assignees or successors, excluding executors, the same shall be heritable as regards the succession of such creditor, and shall after the death of such creditor belong to his heirs in the same manner and to the same extent and effect as is the case under the existing law and practice in regard to heritable securities And provided also, that where a creditor in any existing or future security recorded, or on which an instrument has followed recorded in the register of sasines, shall desire to exclude executors, it shall be competent for him to do so by executing a minute in the form or as nearly as may be in the form of schedule (DD) hereto