§ MR. HOPWOODasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, Whether his attention has been called to section 5 of "The Summary Jurisdiction Act, 1879"(42 and 43 Vic. c. 49), enacted in place of" The Small Penalties Act, 1865"(28 and 29 Vic. c. 127), and the doubt which is entertained about its construction, viz., whether the maximum imprisonment in each case should be governed by the amount of the penalty which the justices have inflicted, or by the amount of the penalty and the costs combined; and, whether he can help the justices of the peace 549 with authoritative advice so as to secure correct and uniform practice under the section in question?
§ SIR WILLIAM HARCOURT, in reply, said, that the section of the Act in question provided that the maximum amount of imprisonment under the Act should be governed by the amount of the pecuniary penalty that might be inflicted in addition to, and not in exclusion of, costs.