§ Bill considered in Committee.
§ (In the Committee.)
§ SIR CHARLES W. DILKEsaid, he had already, on the former occasion, made a speech upon Clause 1; and he 1326 need not, therefore, detain the Committee any longer. The discussion had been brought to an end on the last occasion by a division which showed that there were not 40 Members in the House. The hon. Baronet who had made the Motion (Sir Sydney Waterlow) which had led to that division was now satisfied, as also was his (Sir Charles W. Dilke's) hon. and learned Colleague (Mr. Firth), who had also, on the last occasion, made his speech, and who did not now intend to persevere with his opposition. The hon. and learned Member would content himself with the observations he had already made. With regard to his (Sir Charles W. Dilke's) proposals to leave out Clause 1, and sundry other clauses, as the noble Viscount in charge of the Bill (Viscount Lewisham) knew, it was with a view of amending the drafting of the measure, it being easier to leave out clauses and bring them up again in an amended form than to effect elaborate alterations in them.
§ MR. WARTONsaid, he felt himself obliged to enter a humble protest against the manner in which they were proceeding. They were about to make provisions in the Bill for what did not exist in it, but which were to be embodied in it presently. He entered a protest against that course, and also against the form of the clause to be proposed by the right hon. Baronet (Sir Charles W. Dilke).
§ SIR CHARLES W. DILKEsaid, the course he had taken was only adopted with a view of showing what the purpose was. It was true they were adopting consequential Amendments without having the preceding clauses before them; but it had been necessary to pursue that course, which could not be obviated except at great inconvenience.
§ Clause 1 (Election of two Members instead of one), and Clause 2 (Election of one Member each, instead of one jointly), on the Motion of Sir CHARLES W. DILKE, struck out of the Bill.
§ Clause 3 (Term of office).
§ On the Motion of Sir CHARLES W. DILKE, the following Amendments made:—In page 1, line 25, leave out "said six additional," and, after "members," insert "of the Metropolitan Board of Works first elected under this Act;" in page 2, line 1, leave out "third," and insert "members;" and 1327 in lines 3 and 4, leave out "constitute the one third," and insert "be the members."
§ Clause, as amended, agreed to.
§ Clause 4 (Acts to be construed as one Act), and Clause 5 (Short title), separately agreed to.
§ On the Motion of Sir CHARLES W. DILKE, the following Clauses agreed to, and added to the Bill, in lieu of Clauses 1 and 2, previously struck out:—
§ (Additional members of Metropolitan Board of Works.)
§ "From and after the passing of this Act the Vestries of the Parishes of Saint Mary Islington, Lambeth, Saint Pancras, Saint Mary Abbott Kensington, and the Board of Works for the District of Wandsworth, shall each be entitled to elect three persons to be members of the Metropolitan Board of Works, and the Vestries of the parishes of Camberwell and Paddington, and the Boards of Works of the Greenwich, Hackney, and Poplar Districts shall each be entitled to elect two persons to be members of the said Board, instead of the number in the said recited Act mentioned with respect to those Parishes and Districts.
§ (Districts of Plumstead and Lewisham.)
§ "The Districts of Plumstead and Lewisham shall, from and after the passing of this Act, cease to be united for the purpose of electing a member of the Metropolitan Board of Works, as in the said recited Act provided, and the Board of Works of each of those Districts shall be entitled to elect a separate member, as though each District were mentioned in the first part of Schedule B to that Act. The first election of a member for each district shall take place on or before the first day of October, one thousand eight hundred and eighty-five, and, on that day, the member elected for the united Districts of Plumstead and Lewisham shall go out of office, and, on the following day, the new members shall come into office."
MR. GEORGE RUSSELLsaid, he had been requested, on behalf of Fulham, to undertake charge of the Amendment proposing the separation of Fulham and Hammersmith, which would be only a slight alteration in the Bill. In order to show the Committee that there was no political or partizan feeling in the matter, he might remark that he had been requested to propose this Amendment by the Vestries of both Hammersmith and Fulham, and other Local Authorities.
§
Amendment proposed,
In page 1, after Clause 2, insert the following Clause:—
§ (Separation of Fulham and Hammersmith.)
§ "From and after the twenty-fifth day of March, one thousand eight hundred and eighty-six, 1328 the Board of Works for the District of Fulham shall be dissolved, and the Vestries of the respective Parishes of St. Peter and St. Paul, Hammersmith, and Fulham, shall from that date be incorporated, and shall have all such powers and be subject to all such provisions as if they had been named in Part II. of Schedule A to the said recited Act.
§ "The Vestry of each of the said Parishes shall on the said day elect one person to be a member of the Metropolitan Board of Works, and on that day the member elected by the Fulham Board of Works shall go out of office, and on the following day the new members shall come into office."—(Mr. George Russell.)
§ Clause brought up, and read the first time.
§ Question, "That the Clause be now read a second time," put, and agreed to.
§ Question, "That the Clause be there inserted," put, and agreed to.
§ SIR CHARLES W. DILKEI would suggest to the noble Viscount (Viscount Lewisham) that it would be as well, as considerable changes have been made in the Bill, that the measure should be reprinted before the Report stage is taken. I would also suggest that the Report should be taken this day (Friday) week.
§ Bill reported; as amended, to be considered upon Friday next, and to be printed. [Bill 200.]