(5.) For any purpose for which Quarter Sessions or the County Council are authorized by any Act to borrow. The County Council must not, however, except for the purpose of discharging a loan already made, borrow money without the consent of the Local Government Board, who, before giving their consent, will take into consideration any representation made by any ratepayer or owner of property rated to county contributions. The consent of the Local Government Board will dispense with any other consent which may be required by the Acts relating to such borrowing.

If the County Council propose to borrow any sum, when their total debt, including that sum, and excluding the amount of any sinking fund, exceeds one-tenth of the annual rateable value of the rateable property in the county, according to the basis for the county rate; then that sum must not be borrowed except in pursuance of a Provisional Order made by the Local Government Board, and confirmed by Parliament.

During the period, however, which was fixed for the discharge of any loan raised by the County Council or their predecessors, the County Council may, without the consent of the Local Government Board, borrow such amount as may be required for paying off the whole or any part of such loan. If the County Council have already borrowed for the purpose of paying such a loan, and have so paid it, they may again borrow for the purpose of paying off such second loan, so that without consent of the Local Government Board, the County Council may take advantage of any rise in the price of their stock; but all money so borrowed must be repaid within the period fixed for repayment of the original loan.

The County Council may borrow for such period not exceeding thirty years, as they, with the sanction of the Local Government Board, determine in each case.

If the County Council raise a loan for any special county purpose they must charge the sums payable in respect of that loan to the corresponding Special County Account.

Every loan must be paid off, either by equal yearly or halfyearly instalments of principal, or of principal and interest combined, or by means of a sinking fund.

A County Council authorized to borrow may raise money either by one loan or several loans, and in the following ways:Ist. By the issue of county stock under the Local Government Act, 1888.1

1 Local Government Act, 1888, sec. 70.

The Local Government Board has powers to make regulations with regard to the creation, issue, transference, and redemption of county stock.

2nd. By debentures under the Local Loans Act, 1875 (38 & 39 Vict. c. 83).

3rd. By annuity certificates under the Local Loans Act, 1875. Such a debenture is an instrument taking effect as a deed, and charging the county revenues, or any part of the county revenues, or any county property in such debenture mentioned, with the payment of the principal sum and interest, in the manner mentioned in the debenture.

The principal sum may be made payable to the bearer of the debenture, in which case the debenture is transferable by delivery; or the principal sum may be made payable to a person to be named therein, his executors, administrators or assigns, in which case the debenture is termed a "nominal debenture," and is transferable by writing in such manner as the County Council may direct.

There may be attached to debentures, coupons, payable to order or to bearer; or the interest on a debenture may be made payable to the owner for the time being of the debenture, or otherwise, as may be mentioned in the debenture.

A debenture may be for any sum not less than £5.

An annuity certificate issued by a County Council is an instrument taking effect as a deed, and charging the county revenues, or part of the county revenues, or any county property, with the payment of the annual sum therein mentioned, in the manner in the certificate mentioned.

Like the principal sum in a debenture, the annual sum in an annuity certificate may be payable to bearer; or the certificate may be a nominal certificate. An annuity certificate may be issued for any sum not less than £3.

The County Council issuing nominal debentures, or nominal annuity certificates must cause a register of such securities to be kept, in which must be entered the names and addresses, and the descriptions of the owners for the time being, of every such security, with a statement of the securities held by each person registered, and also the date at which the name of any person was entered in the register, in respect of any such security.

Any person may inspect the register at any reasonable time, upon payment of such fee, not exceeding one shilling, as the County Council may fix, and may purchase from the Registrar copies or extracts certified by him to be true copies or extracts.

The Commissioners of Inland Revenue may supply the County Council with debentures, coupons, and annuity certificates, upon such terms as may, with the sanction of the Treasury, be agreed upon.

4th. The County Council may borrow by mortgage of their revenue in accordance with the provisions of the Public Health Act, 1875 (38 & 39 Vict. c. 55), secs. 236, 237, if any special reason exists for so doing; but if the County Council have already borrowed by means of stock they must not borrow by mortgage for any period exceeding five years.

The mortgage must be by deed, and must truly state the date, consideration, and place of payment, and must be under the common seal of the County Council.

The County Council must, at their office, keep a register of the mortgages on each source of revenue, and within fourteen days after the date of any mortgage an entry must be made in the register of the number and date thereof, and of the

parties thereto, as stated in the deed. The register must be open for public inspection during office hours free of charge.

A loan borrowed by a County Council must, as we have seen, be paid off within the time fixed at its issue, in equal yearly or half-yearly instalments, or by means of a sinking fund.

If the loan is raised by stock, the Local Government Board may make regulations for the repayment. If the loan is raised by annuity certificates they may be made terminable and limited to expire within the prescribed period.

If the loan is raised by debentures, they may be made payable in such a manner that in each year a certain number will become due and be paid off; or an annual appropriation may be made of a fixed sum to the discharge of a certain portion of the loan.

In this case the County Council must in each year raise such equal sum as will, at or before the expiration of the fixed period, pay off the whole of the loan and the interest thereon. Out of this fixed sum in each year the County Council must pay the interest due, and with the remainder pay off a corresponding amount of the principal sum secured by the debentures.

The debentures to be paid off in any year must be ascertained in such manner as may be fixed at the time of issue of the debentures, or as may thereafter be arranged. If the debentures to be paid off are to be determined by lot, the lots must be drawn in the presence of the County Council and of any owners of debentures who choose to be present; the County Council must give not less than one month's previous notice of the time and place at which lots are to be drawn, by advertisement published at least once in each of four successive weeks in some newspaper circulating in the county.

Any fractional sum remaining over must be carried to the credit of the annual sum to be raised in the ensuing year.

Where the loan is raised by debentures, a sinking fund may be established, when the following provisions apply :

:

Ist. Such equal yearly or half-yearly sums must be paid into the sinking fund as, being accumulated at compound interest at the rate the Local Government Board may prescribe, will at the expiration of some period not longer than the period prescribed for the repayment of the loan, be sufficient, after payment of all expenses, to discharge the loan.

2nd. The first of such payments must be made within one year from the date of the loan.

3rd. All sums paid into the sinking fund must, without delay, be invested, and the proceeds of such investments must be re-invested.

4th. The County Council may apply the sinking fund, from time to time, in discharge of the loan, but to no other purpose.

5th. The debentures, to the payment of which the sinking fund is, for the time being, applicable, must be ascertained in the same manner as the debentures to be paid off when the payment is made by the appropriation of a fixed annual sum.

6th. Any surplus of the sinking fund, after the discharge of the loan, must be paid into some other sinking fund under the control of the County Council, or if there is no such fund, must be applied to any purpose to which the loan was applicable, as the County Council may, with the consent of the Local Government Board, think expedient.

7th. When any part of the sinking fund is invested in securities of the County Council, or is applied in paying off any part of the loan before the prescribed

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period, the interest which would otherwise be payable on such securities, or on such part of the loan, must be paid into the sinking fund and invested.

8th. If the annual income of the sinking fund is not less than the annual interest payable on so much of the loan as remains undischarged, the equal annual payments into the sinking fund may cease to be paid.

The accounts of the receipts and expenditure of the County Council must be made up to the end of each local financial year, and be in the form for the time being prescribed by the Local Government Board.

The accounts of the County Treasurer must be made up halfyearly to such dates as the County Council, with the approval of the Local Government Board, may from time to time appoint. A return must be made annually to the Local Government Board of the receipts and expenditure of the County Council in such form as the Local Government Board may direct.

The accounts of a County Council and of the County Treasurer, and of the Officers of the County Council, must be audited in accordance with secs. 247 and 250 of the Public Health Act, 1875 (38 & 39 Vict. c. 55), by the District Auditors appointed by the Local Government Board under the District Auditors Act, 1879 (42 & 43 Vict. c. 6).

The County Council must pay a stamp duty for accounts thus audited.

The District Auditor will give notice of the time and place at which he proposes to attend for the audit, and after receiving that notice the County Council must give at least fourteen days' notice of that time and place, and also of the deposit of accounts they are required to make, by advertisement in one or more local newspapers.

A copy of the accounts, duly made up and balanced,. together with all rate books, account books, deeds, contracts, accounts, vouchers, and receipts, mentioned or referred to in such accounts, must be deposited in the office of the County Council and must be open during office hours to the inspection of all persons interested, for seven clear days before the audit, and all such persons may take copies or extracts free of charge.

For the purpose of the audit the District Auditor may, by summons, in writing, require the production of all books, deeds, accounts, &c., that he may deem necessary, and may require any person holding or accountable for such books, &c., to appear before him and sign a declaration as to their

correctness.

1 Local Government Act, 1888, sec. 71.

Any ratepayer or owner of property in the county may be present at the audit, and may make any objection to the accounts before the District Auditor, and such ratepayers and owners have the same right of appeal against allowances by a District Auditor as is given in the case of disallowances.

The District Auditor must disallow every item of account contrary to law, and surcharge the same on the person making or authorizing the making of the illegal payment; he must charge against any person accounting the amount of any deficiency he has incurred by the negligence or misconduct of that person, or of any item which ought to have been, but is not, brought into account by that person. In every case of disallowance or surcharge, he must certify the amount due from such person, and on application by any party aggrieved, must state in writing the reasons for his decision in respect of such disallowance or surcharge, and also of any allowance which he may have made.

Any person aggrieved by disallowance, may apply to the Queen's Bench Division of the High Court for a writ of certiorari, to remove the disallowance into that court; or such person may appeal to the Local Government Board.

Every sum certified to be due from any person by the District Auditor, must be paid by such person to the Treasurer of the County Council within fourteen days after the same has been so certified; unless there is an appeal. If the sum is not paid, the Auditor may recover the same.

Within fourteen days after the completion of the audit, the District Auditor must report on the accounts audited, and deliver his report to the Clerk of the County Council, who must deposit the same in their office and must publish an abstract of the accounts in one or more local newspapers.