What evidence to be given in divorce cases.

When petitioner for bill

to attend committee.

Committee to report bill in all cases.

Lords' bills subject to the same intervals and stages.

"To require evidence to be given before them that an action for damages has been brought in one of her Majesty's courts of record at Westminster, or in one of her Majesty's courts of record in Dublin, or in one of her Majesty's supreme courts of judicature of the presidencies of Calcutta, Madras, Bombay, or the island of Ceylon respectively, against the persons supposed to have been guilty of adultery, and judgment for the plaintiff had thereupon; or sufficient cause to be shown, to the satisfaction of the said committee, why such action was not brought, or such judgment was not obtained."

It is also ordered,

"That the committee shall, in all cases in which the petitioner for the bill has attended the House of Lords upon the second reading of the bill, require him to attend before them to answer any questions they may think fit that he should answer;' and,

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"That the committee shall report every such bill to the house, whether such committee shall or shall not have agreed to the preamble, or gone through the several clauses, or any of them."

The party opposing a divorce bill may appear before the committee without presenting a petition to the house against the bill; and the promoter of the bill must serve him or her with the orders of the house, and a copy of the bill. In case he should not be able to do this, his agent should present a petition, stating the circumstances, and praying that service upon the agent of the party may be good service. On the appearance of the opponent's agent, and his consent to accept the service of the orders, and a copy of the bill for his client, the house make the necessary order in answer to the petition. In compliance with the instruction and standing orders of the house, the committee make the necessary inquiries, and report,

"That they have examined the allegations of the bill as to the marriage of the parties, the adultery charged as the ground for dissolving the marriage, the verdict at law, and the sentence of divorce in the ecclesiastical court; and upon evidence satisfactory to the committee, found the same and other allegations to be true."

Nothing need be added concerning the progress of lords private bills through the commons. They are subject to the same rules, and, with the exception of the ingrossment,

pass through the same stages, and with the same intervals and notices, as those which have already been detailed, in reference to private bills originating in the commons; but if received at the close of a session, more indulgence is usually shown in dispensing with the orders of the house, and in permitting them to pass with less delays.

private bills.

All private bills, during their progress in the commons, Divisions of are known by the general denomination of private bills; but in the lords the term "private" is applied technically to estate bills only, all other bills being distinguished as "local" or "personal," although in the standing orders no such distinction is expressed. After they have received the royal assent, private bills are divided into three classes: 1. Local and personal, declared public; 2. Private, printed by the Queen's printers; and 3. Private, not printed.

sonal Acts.

1. Every local and personal Act contains a clause, declaring Local and perthat it" shall be a public Act, and shall be judicially taken notice of as such," and receives the royal assent as a public Act. The practice of declaring particular Acts of a private nature to be "public Acts," commenced in the reign of William and Mary, and was soon extended to nearly all private Acts by which felonies were created, penalties inflicted, or tolls imposed.1 Such Acts were printed with the other statutes of the year, and were not distinguishable from public Acts, except by the character of their enactments; but since 1798 they have been printed in a separate collection, and are known as local and personal Acts. With the exception of inclosure, or inclosure and drainage Acts, all the three classes of bills so often referred to, are included in this category, and contain the public clause.

2. From 1798 to 1815, the private Acts, not declared Private Acts printed. public, were not printed by the Queen's printers, and could only be given in evidence by obtaining authenticated copies from the statute rolls in the Parliament Office; but

Preface to Spiller's Index to the Statutes.

2 In the black letter edition of the Public General Acts.

Private Acts not printed.

Legal distinctions.

since 1815 the greater part of the private Acts have been
printed by the Queen's printers, and contain a clause de-
claring that a copy so printed "shall be admitted as evi-
dence thereof by all judges, justices and others." These
consist, almost exclusively, of inclosure, or inclosure and
drainage and estate Acts.

3. The last class of Acts are those which still remain
unprinted: they consist of name, naturalization, divorce,
and other strictly personal Acts, of which a list is always
printed by the Queen's printers, after the titles of the other
private Acts.

The main distinction in law between these classes of Acts is, that a local and personal Act, declared public, may be used for all purposes, as a public general statute. It may be given in evidence upon the general issue, and must be judicially noticed, without being formally set forth. Nor is it necessary to show that it was printed by the Queen's printers, as the words of the public clause do not require it, and the printed copy of a public Act is supposed to be used merely for the purpose of refreshing the memory of the judge, who has already been acquainted with its enactments. A private Act, on the contrary, whether printed or not, must be specially pleaded, and given in evidence like any other record; but the copy printed by the Queen's printers in the one case, is received as an examined copy of the record; while in the other, an authenticated copy must be produced from the statute rolls in the Parliament Office.1

CHAPTER XXIX.

FEES PAYABLE BY THE PARTIES PROMOTING

OR OP

POSING PRIVATE BILLS. COSTS OF PARLIAMENTARY

AGENTS AND OTHERS.

THE fees which are chargeable upon the various stages Fees payable on of private bills, and are payable by the several parties private bills. promoting or opposing such bills, or obtaining the introduction of clauses for their particular benefit, have been settled in both houses. The tables of fees are well known to parliamentary agents; they are published in the standing orders of the commons, and in the House of Lords they are readily accessible to parties interested.

In both houses there are officers whose special duty it How collected, is to take care that the fees are properly paid by the agents, who are responsible for the payment of them.1 In

the House of Commons the whole of these are collected and applied. and carried to a fee fund, whence the salaries and expenses of the establishment are partly defrayed; the balance being supplied from the consolidated fund. In the House of Lords a considerable portion of the fees is appropriated in the same manner, to a general fee fund; but a part is still reserved for the particular use of officers, whose emoluments are derived from that source.

costs.

By two Acts of Parliament, a system has been estab- Taxation of lished for taxing the costs and expenses of parliamentary agents and others, in soliciting private bills in both houses. In the House of Commons, if the suitors for a bill complain Commons. of the costs charged by a parliamentary agent, or solicitor, or others engaged in soliciting private bills, or in complying with the standing orders of the commons; or if the 252 Geo. 3, c. 11. 36 Geo. 4, c. 123 (commons); 7 & 8 Geo. 4, c. 64 (lords).

See supra, p. 397.

Lords.

latter complain of the nonpayment of costs, the speaker is authorized and required, on the application of the parties, to direct the costs to be taxed, so far as they relate to the House of Commons. The speaker may appoint any persons to tax the costs, who are authorized to receive fees for that duty. On their report, the speaker is required to give a certificate, signed by himself, expressing the amount of the costs and expenses allowed, which is conclusive evidence of all the demands certified. If parties refuse to pay the amount certified, the speaker's certificate has the force of a warrant to confess judgment, and the court in which an action may be commenced is required to order judgment to be entered up accordingly.

In the House of Lords, if any petitioners for or against a private bill, or their agents, apply to the clerk, or clerk assistant of the Parliaments, complaining of the amount of the costs, charges, and expenses charged by a parliamentary agent, or if the latter complain that he is aggrieved by nonpayment of the costs, the clerk is required to appoint persons to tax the costs, so far as they relate to the House of Lords. These persons are entitled to fees, as in the House of Commons, and on their report the clerk gives a certificate, which has the effect of a warrant to confess judgment, in the same manner as the speaker's certificate in regard to the costs incurred in the House of Commons.

The taxators appointed by the clerk of the Parliaments have power to administer oaths, and to require the production of proper vouchers for all monies charged as having been paid by a parliamentary agent. And the clerk is further required to prepare a list or scale of charges proper to be paid to parliamentary agents soliciting or opposing bills in the House of Lords, which is to be binding upon all parties concerned.