Tenant to be charged, and not the Les. meet together for such purposes; and it was said, that if such lands were not liable to be rated, a person who inhabiteth in one parish might occupy the greatest part of the lands in another parish, and so churches might come to ruin. And although, seven years after this, in the case of Paget and Crumpton (g), a prohibition was obtained upon a surmise, that the person rated lived not in the parish; yet upon sight of this precedent, Popham, Chief Justice, changed his opinion, and it was resolved by him and the whole court, that a consultation should be granted; and now (Lord Coke says) this is generally allowed and received for law (h). Woodward and Makepeace (i), 1 Will. & M. Woodward, who lived in the diocese of Litchfield and Coventry, but occupied lands in the parish of D. in the diocese of Peterborough, was in the said parish of D. taxed in respect of his land, as an inhabitant, towards a rate for new casting of the bells; and because he refused to pay, was cited into the court of the Bishop of Peterborough, and libelled against for this matter. And by the court: This is not a citing out of the diocese within the statute of the 32 Hen. 8, c. 9, for he is an inhabitant where he occupies the land, as well as where he personally resides: Secondly, that although he doth not personally live in the parish, yet by having lands in his hands he is taxable: and whereas it was pretended, that the bells were but ornaments, it was held, that they were more than mere ornaments; that they were as necessary as the steeple, which is of no use without the bells; and Holt, Chief Justice, said, if he be an inhabitant as to the church, which is confessed, How can he not be an inhabitant as to the ornaments of the church? 6. Where such lands are in farm, not the lessor, but the tenant shall pay. For (as it was determined in Jeffrey's case before cited) there is an inhabitant and parishioner who may [ 383 ] be charged; and the receipt of the rent doth not make the sor. Exemptions from Church Rate-Property in actnal Posses sion of the Crown. lessor a parishioner. And so it was resolved in 4 W & M. (k), where a libel was in the Spiritual Court, for not paying a rate; and the suggestion in order to a prohibition was, that the lands were in the occupation of his tenant, and himself was not a parishioner; and it was held to be a good suggestion, and that the tenant should be charged, and not the owner (1). 66 [Dr. Lushington - Another ground of exemption supposed to exist, though I cannot find that it has been specifically treated of in the books, is where property is held jure corona. Where property is in the king's own occupation directly or indirectly, there can be no doubt, I think, that it is exempt from church rate. This principle is clear, that property actually in the possession of the crown is, honoris gratiâ, exempt (g) Cro. Eliz. 659. (h) Gibs. 196. (i) 1 Salk. 164. (k) 4 Mod. 148. (l) Gibs. 197; [Rex v. Douglas, 1 Jurist, 983.] from church rate," Smith and Moze v. Keats (n); and in this case the court proceeded to declare the Governor of Greenwich Hospital, to whom the property of a royal demesne had been transferred, was liable to be assessed for church rates (0). Public Wor [Stat. 3 & 4 Will. 4, c. 30, exempts from poor and church Places of rates all churches, chapels and other places of public worship. ship." A rate assessed on pew owners in respect of their personal property in the pews of a chapel is bad-because there cannot be a permanent property in pews (p).—ED.] the Founder 7. It is said, that the patron of a church, as in right of the In what case founder, may prescribe, that in respect of the foundation he and of a Church his tenants have been freed from the charge of repairing the ma church (q). [Building and repairing an aisle is no exemption, unless it be alleged that the builder, &c. has no benefit of the nave and seats in the aisle, for it might be built for a man's own convenience (r).-ED.] exempted. how far ex 8. The rectory or vicarage which is derived out of it, are not Rectory chargeable to the repair of the body of the church, steeple, empted. public chapels, or ornaments, being at the whole charge of repairing the chancel (s). But an impropriator of a rectory or parsonage, though bound to repair the chancel, is also bound to contribute to the reparations of the church, in case he hath lands in the parish which are not parcel of the rectory. This was adjudged by the whole court in Serjeant Davie's case, without any question made of it (t). of a Chapelry 9. The inhabitants of a precinct wherein is a chapel, though Inhabitants it is a parochial chapel, and though they do repair that chapel, how far exare nevertheless of common right contributory to the repairs empted. of the mother church. If they have seats at the mother church to go thither when they please, or receive sacraments, or sacramentals, or marry, christen or bury at it, there can be no pretence for a discharge. Nor can any thing support that plea, but that they have time out of mind been discharged (which also is doubted whether it be of itself a full discharge); or that in consideration thereof they have paid so much to the repair of the church, or the wall of the churchyard, or the keeping of a bell, or the like compositions (which are clearly a discharge) (u). Dr. Godolphin says, it is contrary to common right that they who have a chapel of ease in a village should be discharged of repairing the mother church, for it may be that the (n) [4 Hagg. 276.] (9) Degge, part 1, c. 12; [Smith (s) Degge, part Ĩ, c. 12. (t) Gibs. 197. (u) [Smith and Moze v. Keats, 4 Hall of a Stall in a Canals are rateable. Liability of a church, being built with stone, may not need any reparation within the memory of man; and yet that doth not discharge them, without some special cause of discharge showed (t). 10. The hall of a company being rated to the repairs of a church, the Spiritual Court in case of non-payment may proceed against the master and wardens of such company. For the hall is liable to pay, and they cannot proceed otherwise than by citation, which may be executed upon an aggregate corporation; and therefore the officers of the corporation are to be cited, and the rate paid by them is to be allowed in their accounts (u). [In a recent case, where the London Missionary Society occupied, under an agreement for a lease, a building in a parish, for conducting the affairs of that institution, and where no person slept on the premises, it was held that the treasurer, as representative of that society,' was properly assessed to the church rate of the parish in respect of their occupation (v).— ED.] 11. If a petty chapman take a standing, for rent to be paid by him, in the waste of the manor within the market, for two or three hours every market day to sell his commodities, the market being holden there one day every week, but he inhabiteth in another parish, he may not be rated to the reparation of the church for this standing (x). [The lessees of a market are to be assessed according to the real produce of the tolls, and not according to the rent only (y). [It has been decided that proprietors of canals are rateable to the poor rate of every parish through which the canal passes, and in each parish for the amount of tonnage dues actually earned there, not for a part of the whole amount earned along the whole line of the canal in proportion to the length of the canal in that parish, and on the net profits, nor for the gross amount of tolls received (z). [According to all principles of analogy these decisions would establish the liability of railways to poor rates, and of both canals and railways to church rates. [The following extracts are copied from two manuscript 2 Levinz, 186; 2 Keble, 809; Wise (t) God. 153. See Chapel. 187. (v) [See Reg. v. Wilson, reported 4 Jurist, 1128, Q. B.-Ev.] (a) 2 Rolle's Abr. 289. (y) [Sewell, &c. v. Twyford and Mason, 2 Lee, 150.] (z) [The King v. Nicholson, 12 East, 330; The King v. Trent and Merscy Navigation Company, 1 B. & C. 545; 2 Dowl. & Ry. 752; Rex v. Earl of Portmore, 1 B. & C. 551; 2 Dowl. & Ry. 798; Rer v. Kingswinford, 7 B. & C. 236 ; 1 Man. & Ry. 20; Rex v. Oxford Canal Company, 10 B. & C. 163; 5 Man. & Ry. 100.j opinions of a very eminent civilian (the late Dr. Lawrence) upon this subject. He was consulted as to the liability of the Company of the Proprietors of the Birmingham Canal Navigation to pay church rates, and as to the mode of citing them. [Extracts from First Opinion. ["The poor's rates and church rates are levied under different authorities and not necessarily on the same property always, and not necessarily in the same proportion. One may be at 3d. and another at 6d. in the pound, or at any other proportion according to the aggregate sum required by the parish. If not fairly and equally laid, the company, I ap- Citation to. prehend, may resist a church rate on the same grounds that a poor's rate may be resisted."..... "As the citation is not before me, I cannot tell whether any or what special matter of defence may appear on the face of it; but a citation addressed to a corporate body ought to call upon them to appear by their syndic, who is the party in the cause on their behalf. If the officers or managers or directors of the corporation against whom the citation issues, do not appoint a syndic in lawful form or sufficiently instruct him, the ecclesiastical judge may compel them by censures passed even to excommunication."Doctors Commons, Jan. 1800. [Extracts from Second Opinion. ["The citation should be directed to the managing part of the company by their proper description, as well as to the company generally;-as to the warden or masters, &c. of a city or company; governors and directors, &c. of the Bank of England; or chairman, deputy chairman, directors, &c. of the East India Company. What is the proper legal description of the Birmingham Canal Company, I know not, but whatever it is, unless that citation be used it is a nullity, and may be resisted with effect."-Doctors Commons, April, 1800. [Sir Vicary Gibbs gave an opinion coinciding with that of Dr. Lawrence upon the same case (a).—ED.] 12. An order and direction set down by Dr. King, Dr. Lewen, Dr. Lynsey, Dr. Hoane, Dr. Sweite, Dr. Steward and others, doctors of the civil law, to the number of thirteen in all, assembled together in the common dining hall of Doctors Commons in London, touching a course to be observed by the assessors, in their taxations of the church and walls of the churchyard of Wrotham, in Kent, and to be applied generally, upon occasion of like reparations, to all places in England whatsoever. (1) Every inhabitant dwelling within the parish, is to be charged according to his ability, whether in land or living within the same parish, or for his goods there; that is to say, for the best of them, but not for both. (2) Every farmer dwelling out of the parish, and having (a) [See Practice.] Manner of laying the Assessment. [ 385 ] Form of the lands and living within the said parish in his own occupation, is to be charged to the value of the same lands or living, or else to the value of the stock thereupon; even for the best, but not for both. (3) Every farmer dwelling out of the parish, and having lands and living within the parish, in the occupation of any farmer or farmers, is to be charged; but the farmer or farmers thereof are to be charged in particularity, every one according to the value of the land which he occupieth, or according to the stock thereupon; even for the best, but not for both. (4) Every inhabitant and farmer occupying arable land within the parish, and feeding his cattle out of the parish, is to be charged for the arable lands within the parish, although his cattle be fed out of the parish. (5) Every farmer of any mill within the parish, is to be charged for that mill, and the owner thereof (if he be an inhatant) is to be charged for his hability in the same parish, besides the mill. (6) Every owner of lands, tenements, copyholds or other hereditaments, inhabiting within the parish, is to be taxed according to his wealth in regard of a parishioner, although he occupy none of them himself; and his farmer or farmers also are to be taxed for occupying only. (7) The assessors are not to tax themselves, but to leave the "We the churchwardens and other parishioners of the parish of whose names are in the year hereunto subscribed, do hereby this day of Appeal against the 14. And if any person find himself aggrieved at the inequaAssessment. lity of any such assessment, his appeal is to the ecclesiastical judge, who is to see right done (d). Levying the 15. And if any of the parishioners refuse to pay their rates, being demanded by the churchwardens, they are to be sued (c) [God. Appendix, 10, 11.] (d) Degge, p. 1, c. 12. |