140 



THE PREDECESSORS OF THE 



A somewhat similar office was created by Act XYII of 

 1843, which, after reciting that the property of infants, 

 feme-coverts and others, vested in trustees, was exposed 

 to peculiar risks and burthens in the territories subject to 

 the Government of the East India Company, not only from 

 the insolvency of trustees, but from the frequent difficulties 

 occasioned by their death, or absence, or refusal, or incapacity 

 to act, it was enacted that in all cases in which any property 

 was subject to any trust, and there should be no trustee 

 willing to act or capable of acting within the jurisdiction of 

 Her Majesty's Courts in the said territories, it should be 

 lawful for the Supreme Court of each of the Presidencies to 

 appoint the Eegistrar or some other officer of the Court to be 

 a trustee of such property ; and afterwards it was by Act 

 XYII of 1864 enacted that for each of the Presidencies of 

 Bengal, Madras, and Bombay there should be an Official 

 Trustee appointed by the Chief Justice of the High Court, 

 and that such office might be held by the Administrator- 

 General for the time being. 



Rules had been made by the Courts at the several Presi- 

 dencies for the relief of insolvent debtors according to the 

 provisions of the Lords' Act (32 Geo. II, c. 28), but doubts 

 were entertained whether any of these Courts were competent 

 to administer such relief. Power was therefore given by the 

 39 and 40 Geo. Ill, c. 79, s. 23, to the Judges of the Supreme 

 Courts at Fort William and Madras, and the Court of 

 the Recorder at Bombay, to make and publish such rules 

 and orders as to them respectively should seem meet, for 

 extending the relief intended by the Lords' Act to such 

 insolvent debtors as should be in execution under the process 

 of such respective Courts, or of any Court previously estab- 

 lished at such Presidency respectively, for sums under the 

 amount to be prescribed by such rules and orders ; and, by 

 section 24, all rules and orders theretofore made for the relief 

 of insolvent debtors were ratified and confirmed, and all suits 



