An act to amend the laws relating to the removal of the poor / Jellinger C. Symons.

  • Symons, Jelinger C. (Jelinger Cookson), 1809-1860.
Date:
1846
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: An act to amend the laws relating to the removal of the poor / Jellinger C. Symons. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    that the sickness or accident will produce permanent disability. (/) (f) The question “ What is permanent disability V’ evi¬ dently promises a wide field of uncertainty and conflict of opinion. We are left by the Act to guess at what is meant by disability! probably disability to procure a livelihood : such disability as may be likely to cause chargeability: but very various will be the opinions of medical men on this point. If this be not the meaning of this vague phrase, it is difficult to devise any other, and it is still more so to con¬ ceive why, if this was the meaning of the legislature, they did not state it. The justices, or, on appeal the sessions, will alone judge upon each case what is or is not one of permanent disability; if they exercise their discretion, it will, in accordance with other cases, be final; but it will perhaps soon appear advisable that a case should be stated for the opinion of the Court of Queen’s Bench, in order that the statute may be construed, and some intelligible rule laid down for the guidance of Justices. In the interim it seems to be requisite that surgical or medical evidence be taken on each case of illness accompanying chargeability, for this clause applies to every order for the removal of a sick pauper, and is of course a preliminary to making it on a par with evidence of chargeability. It seems designed to strengthen and augment the cases of casual relief, which do not warrant removal. It will be observed that the justices who shall have satis¬ fied themselves of permanent disability are to state so in the order of removal. It may be thus worded, and the following passage inserted, (see form in Parish Settle¬ ments, p. 40, 2nd edit.) after the words “ is actually charge¬ able to the said parish of-And the said pauper being now sick and infirm of body [or disabled by accident], we the said justices, having examined a medical [or surgical] witness on