§ Order of the Day for the Second Reading, read.
§ THE DUKE OF RICHMOND,in moving that the Bill be now read the second time, said, that its object was to make better provision for the management in certain cases of lands allotted under local Acts of Inclosure for the benefit of the poor. Under the general Act which at present regulated these allotments—the 2 Will. IV. c. 42—the management was entrusted to open vestries. When the Act was passed those bodies were usually composed of a small number of persons; now they were sometimes composed of as many as 500 or 600. Such bodies were too numerous for the management of allotments, and the object of the Bill was to provide that where the number of persons entitled to attend such vestry exceeded 20 such vestry might annually appoint a Committee of Members of their own body, not exceeding 12 nor fewer than six, who should exercise all the powers of the authority appointing it. Should the proper authority fail to appoint a Committee as required by this Bill, the Inclosure Commissioners, on application of any person interested, might do so. The Bill applied not only to allotments for the poor under In-closure Acts, but to field-gardens, recreation grounds, and grounds set apart for any public purpose. He begged to move the second reading.
§ Motion agreed to; Bill read 2a, accordingly, and committed to a Committee of the Whole House on Friday next.