Land vesting, ordnance lands (1861) (WA)

25 VICTORIA. No. 2

Ordnance Lands

WESTERN AUSTRALIA

ANNO VICESIMO QUINT°

VICTORT7E REGINA

No. 2

An Ordinance for vesting the Ordnance Lands and Buildings in the Principal Secretary of State for the War Department.

[Assented to 18th Nvvember, 1861.

Preamble

HEREAS it is expedient to vest the lands belonging to the

Wthe War Department : Be it therefore enacted by His Excellency theOrdnance Department in the Principal Secretary of State for

Governor of Western Australia and its Dependencies, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Council thereof :—

All lands vested

in the Secretary

1. That immediately from and after the passing of this Ordinance, all lands, hereditaments, estates and property whatsoever which by virtue of any conveyance, surrender, or other assurance, or of any law, usage, or custom whatsoever, at the time of passing this Ordinance shall be vested in the principal officers of the Ordnance on behalf of Her Majesty, or which have been at any time before the passing of this Ordinance held, used, or occupied, or purchased, vested, or taken, by or in the name of or by any person or persons in trust for Her Majesty, for the use and service of the said department, or for the defence and security of the said Colony, and which have not been sold, aliened, or parted with, and all erections or buildings which now are or which shall or may hereafter be erected and built thereon, together with the rights, members, and appurtenances to the same respectively belonging, shall be and become and remain and continue vested in Her Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for the time being, to whom Her Majesty shall think fit to intrust the Seals of the War Department, on behalf of Her said Majesty ; and when and so often as the said last-mentioned Principal Secretary of State and any succeeding Principal Secretary of State to whom Her Majesty shall have intrusted the Seals of the War Department, shall cease to hold such office, the said several lands, hereditaments, estates, and property, and all lands, hereditaments, estates and property, which hereafter shall be purchased or otherwise acquired by any such last-mentioned Principal Secretary of State for the time being, on behalf of Her said Majesty, shall by virtue of this Ordinance be absolutely divested out of such Secretary of State so ceasing to hold such office as aforesaid, and shall, by virtue of this Ordinance, be transferred to and vested in Ms successor in the said office, immediately upon his receiving the seals of the said department, absolutely ; and the said lands, hereditaments, estates and property hereby vested and hereafter to be vested in the said last-mentioned Principal Secretary of State and his successors shall, as to such of them as were or shall have been purchased, or are or shall be held, for an

of State

25 VICTOBLE. No. 2

Ordnance Lands

estate of inheritance in fee simple, be so vested in such last-mentioned Principal Secretary of State and his successors in the same manner as if the fee simple thereof had been originally conveyed to such Principal Secretary of State as a corporation sole and his successors ; and as to all lands, hereditaments and property purchased or held for any less estate than an estate of inheritance in fee simple, as if the same lands, hereditaments, and property had been originally conveyed, surrendered, demised, or otherwise assured to such Principal Secretary of State as a corporation sole, and his successors, for all the existing estates or interests therein respectively, and so from time to time.

demise thereof, all other lands, hereditaments, estates and property, p,,t=rora

which shall at any time hereafter be purchased or taken by such Prin- State for war

cipal Secretary of State for the time being, or by any other person or

persons by his order for the service of the War Department, and all

erections and buildings which shall then or which may thereafter be

erected and built thereon, with the rights, members and appurtenances

to the same respectively 1 elonging, by whatsoever mode of conveyance

either unto or in the name of Her Majesty, her heirs or successors,

or otherwise, the same shall be purchased or taken, shall in like manner

be, and become, and remain and continue vested in such Principal

2. That from and after the purchase and conveyance, grant, or Lands hereafter aforesaid, according to the nature and quality of the said lands, heredita- ments, estates and property, and the several and respective interests of and in the same respectively, in trust as aforesaid.

3. That it shall be lawful for such Principal Secretary of State for Lands may be

the time being to sell, exchange or in any manner dispose of or to let or iii

or demise any of the said lands, hereditaments, estates and property

respectively which shall be vested in him under and by virtue of this

present Ordinance, with their respective appurtenances, either by public

auction or private contract, and in due form of law, to convey, assign

or make over or cause to be conveyed, assigned or made over or to

grant or demise the same respectively, or cause the same to be granted

or demised (as the case may require) to any person or persons who

shall be willing to purchase or take the same in exchange or otherwise

respectively ; and also to do any other act, matter or thing in relation

to any such lands, hereditaments, estates and property, which shall by

such Principal Secretary of State be deemed beneficial to the public

service in relation thereto or for the better management thereof, which

might be done by any person having a like interest in any such like

lands, hereditaments, estates or property.

4. That it shall be lawful for the Governor, upon receipt of a conveyances to

written requisition to that effect from such Principal Secretary of State clemeuec ovuerti:Y

for the time being or from any person or persons on his behalf, and by see „	c	1,
his authority, to convey in the name and on behalf of Her Majesty, the said lands, hereditaments, estates or property so purchased, exchanged or let by deed to a bond fide purchaser or lessee, and the purchaser's title (after the payment of the purchase money, and the execution of the conveyance and the enrolment thereof as hereinafter provided) shall be good and valid, the same as if the said lands, hereditaments, estates or property so purchased, exchanged or leased as aforesaid, were waste Crown Lands, and sold, exchanged or conveyed under the authority of

25 VICTORIIE. No. 2

Ordnance Lands

any Act of Parliament in that behalf ; and shall be freed and discharged of and from all manner of prior estates and encumbrances whatsoever (save and except such estates and encumbrances as shall be excepted

Enrolment	in any such conveyance or assignment) : Provided that such deed shall be duly enrolled in the office of the Registrar of Deeds within three months from the execution thereof.
for waste lands
The usual deeds	5. That lands, hereditaments, estates and property sold or ex- changed under the authority of this Ordinance may be conveyed by a deed of like form or as near thereto as circumstances permit, as the deed now and heretofore commonly used for the conveyance of waste lands of the Crown, and subject to the reservation contained in the original grant from the Crown of such lands, hereditaments, estates and property of the precious metals, and of a right of entry for certain public purposes.
may be adopted
Purchase money
shall be Paid to	6. That the moneys to arise and be produced by the sale or ex- change of any of the said lands, hereditaments, estates and property, which shall be so sold or exchanged under the provisions of this present Ordinance, shall be paid by the respective purchaser or purchasers thereof or the person or persons making such sale or exchange, unto the respective or other Chief Officer or Officers of the Commissariat in the said Colony for the time being or the Commanding Royal Engineer for the time being in t ae said Colony or to such other person or persons as such Principal Secretary of State for the time being shall direct or appoint to receive the same for the use of Her Majesty, her heirs and successors ; and that the receipt of the said respective or other Chief Officer or Officers or of the other person or persons so appointed as aforesaid, for such moneys (such receipt to be endorsed on every such conveyance as aforesaid), shall effectually discharge the purchaser or purchasers or person or persons by whom or on whose account the same shallbe paid, from allresponsibility as to the applica- tion thereof or for any irregularity in the sale or exchange: Provided that no Public Officer or other Agent of the Imperial Government concerned in the negotiating or completing the sale or exchange of any land, hereditaments, estate or property under this Ordinance, shall be deemed or taken to be in any way responsible for the goodness or sufficiency of the title of Her Majesty, her heirs and successors to the same.
Commissariat
ment may be
Action of eject-	7. That it shall be lawful for such Principal Secretary of State for the time being, and for the said respective or other Chief Officer or Officers for the time being, in the name of such Principal Secretary of State, and they are respectively hereby authorised and empowered to bring, prosecute and maintain any action or actions of ejectment or other proceedings at law or in equity in the Supreme Court in the said Colony or in any other Court there of competent jurisdiction, for re- covering possession of any lands, hereditaments, estates and property by this Ordinance vested in such Principal Secretary of State as aforesaid, and to distrain or sue for any moneys or arrears of rent which shall have become or shall become due for or in respect thereof under any parol or other demise from such Principal Secretary of State for the time being or other Chief Officer or Officers or other person or persons and also to bring, prosecute and maintain in the name of Her Majesty, her heirs and successors, any other action or slat in respect of or in
brought

25 YICTORIiE. No. 2

Ordnance Lands

relation to the said lands, hereditaments, estates and property or of any trespass or encroachment committedthereon or damage or injury done thereto.

8. That in every contract, conveyance, surrender, lease or other St secretary

assurance of any lands, hereditaments, estates or property with, unto or =In t.. by the last-mentioned Principal Secretary of State for the time being, yaarnemesaletylls and in every other deed or instrument relating to any lands, heredita- Principal Seem.meats, estates or property, or in anywise to the public service, to which talreyarState for

the last-mentioned Principal Secretary of State for the time being shall Department' for the time being by signing his name thereto, and if the instrument so executed be in the form of a deed by setting or affixing a seal thereto and delivering the same as his deed ; and whenever any contract, con- veyance, surrender, lease, assurance, deed or instrument shall be executed by any other Principal Secretary of State than the Principal Secretary of State for the War Department, the Principal Secretary of State so executing the same shall for that time and on that occasion, and for the purposes thereof, be deemed to be the Principal Secretary of State for the War Department.

be or shall be intended to be a party, it shall be sufficient to call or

describe him by the style or title of Her Majesty's Principal Secretary

of State for the War Department,' without naming him ; and every

such contract, conveyance, surrender, lease, assurance, deed or instru-

ment may be executed by such last-mentioned Principal Secretary of

A. E. KENNEDY,

GOVERNOR AND COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF.