§ MR. SPEAKER acquainted the House, that he had received from the Honourable Sir William Ventris Field, and the Honourable Sir John Charles Day, two of the Judges selected for the Trial of Election. Petitions, a Certificate and Report relating to the Southern Division of the County of Gloucester, and the same were read as follows:—
§ The Corrupt Practices Prevention Acts, 1854 to 1883.
§ >To the Right Honourable the Speaker of the House of Commons.
§ We, the Honourable Sir William Ventris Field, knight, and the Honourable Sir John Charles Day, knight, Justices of the High Court of Justice, and two of the Judges for the time being for the trial of Election Petitions in England, do hereby, in pursuance of the said Acts, certify that upon the eighth, ninth, and tenth days of March, one thousand eight hundred and eighty-six, we duly held a Court at the Shire Hall, Gloucester, in the County of Gloucester, and afterwards on the thirteenth day of April, in the year aforesaid, at the Royal Courts of Justice, Strand, London (by virtue of an Order of a Divisional Court of the High Court of Justice), for the trial of and did try the Parliamentary Election Petition for the Southern or Thornbury Division of the County of Gloucester, wherein Benjamin St. John Ackers was the Petitioner and Edward Stafford Howard was the Respondent, which prayed that it might be determined that the said Edward Stafford 1569 Howard was not duly elected or returned for the said Division of the said County, and that his Election and return were and are wholly null and void, and that the Petitioner, the said Benjamin St. John Ackers, was duly elected for the said Division, and ought to have been returned for the same.
§ Now we, in pursuance of the said Acts, report and certify in writing to you our determination that the said Edward Stafford Howard, being the Member whose Election and return were complained of in the said Petition, was duly elected and returned for the said Division, and that the said Benjamin St. John Ackers was not duly elected for the same.
§ And whereas charges were made in the said Petition of corrupt and illegal practices having been committed at the said Election. We, in further pursuance of the said Acts, report as follows: That no corrupt or illegal practice was proved to have been committed by or with the knowledge or consent of any Candidate at such Election, nor has any Candidate been proved guilty by his Agents of any illegal practice within the meaning of "The Corrupt and Illegal Practices Prevention Act, 1883," with reference to such Election.
§ We further report that there is no reason to believe that either corrupt or illegal practices extensively prevailed at the Parliamentary Election for the Southern or Thornbury Division of the County of Gloucester, to which the said Petition relates.
§ Dated this 13th day of April 1886.
§ WILLIAM V. FIELD.
§ JOHN C. DAY.
§ And the said Certificate and Report were ordered to be entered in the Journals of this House.