4

of late District

good if consistent

ed by the authority of the same, That from and after the passing of Certain By-laws this Act, no By-law of any of the late District Councils of Upper Councils to be Canada shall be quashed on account of any want of form, or on with this Act. account of any of the provisions thereof not being in strict accordance with the letter of the Act hereinbefore recited, so long as such provisions are in accordance with the true intent and meaning of this Act.

posed by such

firmed.

II. And be it enacted and declared, That any rate or tax, or rates Certain rates imor taxes, intended to be imposed on the lands in any of the late Dis- By-laws contricts of Upper Canada, by any By-law or By-laws heretofore passed by the District Councils thereof, and not disallowed by the Governor or quashed by any Court of competent jurisdiction, shall be held to be valid and justly chargeable on such lands, so long as the same did not in the whole exceed One Penny Half-Penny currency, per acre, in any one year: Provided always, that no increase or accumulation of such rates, Proviso. intended to be imposed or charged by any such By-law, in consequence of the non-payment of such rates, shall be held to be valid or chargeable on the said lands: Provided also, that if any such By-law or Bylaws shall have taxed the lands in any District by the acre unequally so that a different tax was intended to be levied in different Townships or localities, or a different tax upon unoccupied land from that at which land was rated on the Assessment Rolls, the whole of the land in such late District shall be held chargeable only with the lowest tax per acre at which any of the land was so intended to be rated: Provided also, that nothing in this Act shall be held to make lawful any Proviso. By-law disallowed by the Governor or quashed by any Court of competent jurisdiction as aforesaid, or the tax imposed by any By-law which rated or intended to rate unoccupied land only, and not all land. III. And be it enacted and declared, That if the By-laws of any of the late District Councils shall have taxed or rated land by the acre at such an amount that the rate so imposed, together with the tax of one eighth of a Penny per acre, charged on unoccupied land, in lieu of Statute labour, by the Act of Upper Canada, passed in the fifty-ninth year of the Reign of King George the Third, and intituled, An Act to repeal part of and amend the Laws now in force for laying out, amending and keeping in repair the Public Highways and Roads in this Province, would in the whole amount to more than One Penny Half-Penny per acre, the tax of one-eighth of a Penny as aforesaid shall be held to have merged in the tax imposed by such By-laws, and the land shall not be held to be chargeable therewith; but if the Otherwise in cerBy-laws of any of the said District Councils shall have SO taxed or rated the lands, that the District tax and the one-eighth of a Penny as aforesaid, together, did not exceed One Penny Half-Penny per acre,

Rate imposed by

Act of U. C. 59

G. 3, c &, merged in tax imposed by

said By-laws in

certain cases.

tain other cases.

As to taxes already collected

and if the said By-laws did not expressly release the land from the said tax of one eighth of a Penny, but the said tax continue to be demanded and received, from the date of the passing of the said By-law, then the unoccupied land shall be held also liable to the tax of one eighth of a Penny per acre.

IV. And be it enacted and declared, That any sum or sums of in Districts, un- money which shall have been paid to the Collector of any Township,

der such By

in satisfaction of the rates charged on the Assessment Roll, or to the Treasurer of any District, or of any County since the abolition of Districts, in satisfaction of any tax upon land, shall not be recoverable, although such rate or tax may have exceeded that which might legally have been chargeable, or may have been imposed by an informal Bylaw of the said District Councils; and no surcharge or additional demand shall be made, if the sums so received by such Collector or Treasurer fell short of what was legally chargeable. And all land for or in respect of which any such rate or tax has been so paid, shall be released from any liability or charge for the year or years in respect of which such tax was paid; but all lands liable to assessment, and upon which payment has not been so made, shall be held chargeable with such tax, as is hereinbefore declared to be chargeable upon it, notwithstanding any informality in the By-laws by which such tax was intended to be imposed, provided that such By-laws shall not have been disallowed or quashed as aforesaid.

V. And be it enacted and declared, That the subsequent repeal of any By-law of any District Council shall not be construed to have extinguished the arrears of the taxes imposed or intended to be imposed by such By-law, and which were due for the years previous to the repeal of the By-law: Provided always, that nothing herein contained shall be construed to continue the tax for the year in which such Bylaw was repealed, and another By-law passed in place thereof; but in all such cases the tax or arrear of tax shall for that year be taken to be that imposed by the repealing By-law.

VI. And be it enacted, That within six months after the passing of this Act, it shall be the duty of the Treasurer of every County in Upper Canada, and he is hereby required to inake out a list of every Lot or part of Lot in his County, upon which any taxes may appear to be unpaid and in arrear, whether the said taxes accrued before or after the establishment of District Councils. And he shall set down opposite each Lot or part of Lot the total sum which shall appear to be so due and in arrear up to the first day of January, eighteen hundred and fifty-three, including in such total sum the proportional charge for the cost of the advertisement hereinafter required, and distinguishing the

Calculation of

G. 3, c. 7.

taxes due before any By-law of the late District Council came into force, the taxes due under such By-law or By-laws, and the taxes due since the establishment of County Councils. And he shall calculate the amount of tax due on each Lot according to the provisions of the taxes, Act last above cited or of the Act of Upper Canada, passed in the same year of the same Reign, and intituled, An Act to repeal the se- Act of U. C. 59 veral laws now in force relative to levying and collecting rates and assessments in this Province, and further to provide for the more equal and general assessment of lands and other rateable property throughout this Province, and subsequent Acts of the Province of Upper Canada, amending the same, until such time as any By-law of the late District in which the land so in arrear was then included, came into force, altering the rate authorized and imposed by the said Acts; and from the time any such By-law as aforesaid came into force, and as long as it continued in force, he shall calculate the tax according to such of the provisions of this Act as define the rates and taxes which shall be chargeable upon the land in respect of the rates intended to be imposed by the By-laws of such District Councils.

advertised: and

VII. And be it enacted, That the Treasurer of each and every such Lists to be County in Upper Canada, shall cause such lists of land and arrrears in what papers. of taxes to be advertised for the space of one month in the Government Official Gazette, and in some one newspaper published within the County, or if none be so published, in some newspaper in an adjoining County, and no other advertisement of lands in arrears for taxes shall be required to be made, and no such arrears shall be included in the Collector's Roll, and no lands shall be sold for the non- Lands not to be payment of such arrears during the present year; any thing in the present year. Upper Canada Assessment Act of 1850 to the contrary notwithstanding.

sold during the

Provision touch

taxes imposed by

have not been

VIII. And be it enacted, That in case any lands have been sold for arrears of taxes, any part of which were calculated and claimed to be ing lands sold for due under any By-law of any of the late District Councils, which has By-laws which not been quashed as aforesaid, the Treasurer of the County in which quashed. such lands were situated shall within three months after the passing of this Act, prepare and advertise as aforesaid a list of all the lands so sold and not afterwards redeemed, which list shall show the date of List to be pubsale, the amount for which the land or any portion of it was sold, the amount of tax, which was justly chargeable upon the land according to the provisions of this Act, up to the date when it was advertised previous to such sale, and also all the taxes which have been paid upon the land since the date of the sale: Provided always, that if in any Proviso: certain District no By-law was passed imposing a rate on unoccupied land, or to be included.

lished, &c.

lands so sold not

Owners of lands included in List may redeem thein, and within

what conditions.

Fees.

a By-law was passed which did not vary the tax to which such land was liable under the Assessment Laws then in force in Upper Canada, it shall not be necessary to advertise the lands sold in any such District, nor shall the lands so sold be liable to be redeemed in the manner provided by the Section of this Act next following.

IX. And be it enacted, That at any time within one year after the date of the first publication of the advertisement required to be what time and on made by the next preceding Section, it shall and may be lawful for the owner of any Lot or parcel of land, or for any one duly authorized on his behalf, to pay to the said Treasurer the amount justly chargeable on the land, as is hereinbefore provided, and interest thereon from the date of such sale to the date of payment, together with all taxes which have been paid by the purchaser subsequently to the sale of such lands, which payment shall Certificate of re- be carried by the Treasurer to the account of the County; and the demption. said Treasurer shall thereupon, without any charge, give to the person so redeeming a Certificate, in the form prescribed in the Schedule appended to this Act, and marked A, that the land has been redeemed, which Certificate the Registrar of the County is hereby required to register, upon the payment to him of a fee of Two Shillings and Six Pence, and such Certificate, and the registry thereof shall annul and make void the Deed formerly executed by the Sheriff to the purchaser of the land for arrears of taxes, and shall re-convey the land to the former owner, and give him right to the possession thereof as fully as Proviso: as to im- if no such Deed of the Sheriff had been executed: Provided always, that if there shall be any improvements upon the land, and the land shall be in the occupation or possession of any person having a bona fide title or claim thereto, either as the purchaser at the sale for taxes or by Deed, Bond, or Written Agreement to sell from the purchaser, or from any person claiming through such purchaser, the original owner, before re-entering into possession, shall pay to such occupant reasonable compensation for his improvements made at any time after be determined the expiration of one year from the date of sale and before the passing under 12 V. c. 35. of this Act, and such compensation shall be determined in the manner and with the forms provided in case of erroneous surveys by the fortyninth and fiftieth Sections of the Act passed in the twelfth year of Her Majesty's Reign, and intituled, An Act to repeal certain Acts therein mentioned, and to make better provision respecting the admission of Land Surveyors and the Survey of Lands in this Province, unless the said original owner choose rather to tender, and do tender to the said occupant a good and valid title to the land upon condition of his paying him the actual value thereof only, to be determined as afore

provements on such lands.

Compensation to

Exception.

said, in which case, and in default of such occupant paying such value within six months after the determination thereof as aforesaid, the said original owner shall have an absolute and unconditional right to evict such occupant and re-enter into possession of the land; and all costs incurred under this proviso shall be paid in any case by the occupant.

lands to be pub

purchasers.

X. And be it enacted, That one year after the date of the advertise- List of redeemed ment required to be made by the eighth Section of this Act, it shall be lished. the duty of the Treasurer aforesaid to publish in the manner required for the other advertisements before mentioned, a list of all lands previously sold for taxes and conveyed by the Sheriff, but which have been redeemed in the manner provided by the ninth Section; And the Repayment to said Treasurer shall at any time after the redemption of the land, upon the demand of the purchaser, and the surrender by him of the Sheriff's Deed, pay out of any County money in his hands the sum for which the land was sold by the Sheriff, and the cost of the Sheriff's Deed and registry thereof, together with the interest upon the whole of such sums from the date of the sale to the date of redemption and the amount of all taxes which have been paid by the purchaser subsequently to the sale of such lands; and if the Treasurer shall refuse or neglect to pay the same, such total sum and interest shall become a debt due by the County Council of such County, and shall be recoverable in a manner provided by law for the recovery of other debts. And the Treasurer Cancelling shall cancel the Deed so surrendered to him, by writing across the face dered, of lands reof it a Certificate in the form prescribed in the Schedule appended to this Act, marked B, and he shall deliver the Deed so cancelled to the Registrar of the County in which the land is situate, who is hereby required without any charge to file it with the Certificate of the redemption of the same land.

Deeds surren

deemed.

so redeemed con

made under Assessment Laws, 12 V. c. 80.

XI. And be it enacted, That if any land sold for arrears of taxes as Sales of land not aforesaid shall not have been redeemed in the manner and within the firmed: as if period allowed and provided by this Act, such sales shall be confirmed and held valid as fully as if they had been made under the authority of the Assessment laws in force in Upper Canada, previous to the passing of the Act passed in the twelfth year of Her Majesty's Reign, and intituled, An Act to repeal the Acts in force in Upper Canada, relative to the establishment of Local and Municipal Authorities, and other matters of a like nature, and the arrears on account of which the sales took place, had not comprised any taxes imposed or intended to be imposed by any By-law of the late District Councils: Provided Proviso. that at the time of such sale the taxes (whether imposed by such Bylaw or by the said Assessment Laws of Upper Canada, or by both) were in arrear to the extent required by the said Assessment Laws in