Page:Mrs Beeton's Book of Household Management.djvu/2211

Rh over, where a person is charged with the offence of neglecting to cause a child vaccinated, he may, although found not guilty of such offence, be convicted of the offence of not transmitting any certificate in accordance with the requirements, notwithstanding that there be no mention of the latter offence in the summons; provided, of course, that the circumstances justify such conviction. Any penalty imposed will be recoverable summarily before the justices (the stipendiary or police magistrate in a town), that is to say, if the order for its payment be not complied with the amount may be recovered by distress, and in the absence of sufficient distress the person in default may be committed to prison. Persons committed to prison for non-compliance with any order or for non-payment of fines or costs are, however, treated as first-class misdemeanants. The defendant in any proceedings may appear by a member of his family, or by any other person authorized by him in that behalf. Proceedings must be taken within twelve months after the alleged offence or omission.

Order may be made for Vaccination of a Child under Fourteen.—Where it appears to the vaccination officer for any district that there is within the district any child under the age of fourteen who has not been successfully vaccinated or has not already had smallpox, he may give notice to the parent or person responsible for the child to procure its vaccination. If the notice regarded, he may cause the parent, etc., to be summoned to attend, with the child, before a magistrate, who may order it to be vaccinated within a certain time; and if the order be not complied with, then, unless the child is unfit to be vaccinated or is insusceptible of vaccination, the parent or person who is responsible will, in the absence of reasonable excuse, be liable to a penalty not exceeding 2Os. But he cannot be fined a second time for disobedience to the same order; and after such conviction no new order can be made. Neither can the above proceedings be taken against the parent or person responsible, until the child has reached the age of four, if he previously been convicted for not having the child vaccinated within six months of its birth.

Re-Vaccination of Adults at Public Expense.—Where the operation of re-vaccinatiing any person is performed on his application, by the public vaccinator without charge, he must attend at the same time and place the following week to be inspected, in order that the result of the operation may be ascertained. On request, a certificate of the result will be obtainable. If, however, such person fail to attend for inspection, he will have to pay a fee of 2s 6d. for such re-vaccination.

WATER RATE

Supply of Water.—In the district supplied by the Metropolitan Water Board the supply is regulated by the private Acts of the various companies taken over by the Board, and also by the provisions of the Metropolis Water Acts. In other districts the terms of supply are regulated by the private Act of the particular company; in which may be, and usually are, incorporated certain provisions of what are known as the Waterworks Clauses Acts.

The duties and obligations, therefore, of a consumer and of the water company must necessarily depend in many cases upon the actual terms of the special Act governing the supply of water in the particular district. The provisions, however, of the Waterworks Clauses Act with respect to the supply of water are as follows:—