Page:Public General Statutes 1896.djvu/290

270 barristers shall, so far as respects trade unions and such societies as aforesaid, be construed as applying t6 the central office.

(2.) The central office shall, with the approval of the Treasury—

(a) prepare and cause to be circulated, for the use of societies, model forms of accounts, balance sheets, and valuations; and

(b) collect from the returns under this Act and from other sources, and publish and circulate, either generally, or in any particular district, or otherwise make known, such information on the subject of the statistics of life and sickness, and the application thereof to the business of friendly societies, and such particulars of their returns and valuations, and such other information useful to the members of or to persons interested in societies registered or capable of being registered under this Act, as the chief registrar may think fit; and

(c) cause to be constructed and published tables for the payment of sums of money on death, in sickness, or old Age, or on any other contingency forming the subject of an assurance authorised under this Act which may appear to be calculable: Provided that the adoption of the tables by a society shall be optional.

3.—(1.) The assistant registrars shall, except as in this Act provided, be subordinate to the chief registrar.

(2.) They shall, within the parts of the United Kingdom for which they are respectively appointed, exercise all functions and powers by this Act given to the registrar, and may also by the written authority of the chief registrar, exercise such of the functions and powers by this Act given to the chief registrar as he may delegate to them.

4—(1.) Subject to any regulations to be made under this Act, the assistant registrars for Scotland and Ireland respectively shall continue to exercise the functions and powers formerly vested—

(a) as respects trade unions, in the registrar of friendly societies in Scotland and Ireland; and

(b) as respects building societies, in the registrars of building societies in Scotland and Ireland; and

(c) as respects benefit building societies and societies instituted for purposes of science literature or the fine arts, in Scotland, in the Lord Advocate or his deputes appointed to certify the rules of any such societies, and, in Ireland, in any barristers appointed for the like purpose;

and shall be entitled to receive all fees payable to those registrars, the Lord Advocate or his deputes, and those barristers respectively; and all provisions in any Acts of Parliament relating to those persons respectively shall be construed as applying to those assistant registrars.

(2.) Subject as aforesaid, the assistant registrars for Scotland and Ireland shall—

(a) send to the central office copies of all such documents registered or recorded by them as the chief registrar may direct: and