§ MR. PATRICK O'BRIEN (Kilkenny)I beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord lieutenant of Ireland if his attention has been called to the fact that at the statutory meeting for the election of mayor, held on the 23rd January last in Kilkenny, the 20 members present voting ten for each candidate, and the alderman entitled under the Municipal Corporations Act, 1840, to give a casting vote, being absent, no election could be made; and, seeing that no election can be made now except by order of the King's Bench, and that at a meeting of the Corporation, on 12th January, 1900, to elect a Mayor to fill a vacancy caused by the disqualification of the previous mayor, the members present were like wise equally divided, and there being no outgoing mayor to act as chairman, the meeting was unable to decide this preliminary question, and divided into two equal parts, each electing its own candidate as mayor, whether he will bring in a Bill to insure that at such elections in Ireland some person present shall have a casting vote, and make provision for the selection of a chairman when there is no outgoing mayor to preside and the meeting is equally divided on this question.
§ MR. WYNDHAMThe circumstances of this case are met by the provisions of 1262 Sections 52 and 53 of the Municipal Corporations Act of 1840, and further legislation in the matter is not considered necessary.