Treasurer of Presbyterian Church, Singapore Ordinance 1899

Source: Singapore Statutes Online | Archived by Legal Wires


Treasurer of Presbyterian
Church, Singapore
Ordinance 1899
2020 REVISED EDITION
This revised edition incorporates all amendments up to and including 1 December 2021 and comes into operation on 31 December 2021
An Ordinance to incorporate the Treasurer of the Presbyterian Church in Singapore.
[29 December 1899]
Whereas the Presbyterian Church of England, constituted at Liverpool on 13 June 1876, has a congregation in Singapore who worship at a church erected upon a piece of land granted to certain persons as trustees by the Governor:
And whereas Thomas Dunman, formerly of Singapore, Commissioner of Police, being entitled to the 2 pieces of land described in the First Schedule for the respective residues of the terms of 999 years mentioned in the said Schedule, subject to the payment of the rents reserved by and to the observance and performance of the covenants and conditions contained in the indentures mentioned in the said Schedule, subdivided the same into 31 building allotments, which he demised by 31 indentures of lease unto certain lessees for terms of 99 years, reserving to himself the yearly rent of $2 on each of such leases:
And whereas by an indenture dated 14 February 1879, and made between the said Thomas Dunman of the first part and Robert Little, John Hutchinson Robertson, Samuel Dunlop, John Anderson, Robert Jamie, Alexander Maughan Martin, Thomas Cuthbertson, William McKerrow and William Alexander Pickering of the second part, the said Thomas Dunman conveyed the said 2 pieces of land together with the said rents unto the parties of the second part, thereinafter referred to as the said trustees upon trust, that they should stand possessed of the said pieces of land and the yearly rents and profits arising out of the same, to receive the said rents and profits, and to expend and apply the same for the purpose of maintaining and upholding the said church or any church which should thereafter be erected in substitution therefor, and for the purpose of defraying all expenses in connection with the said church and with the religious worship in Singapore of the denomination of Christians holding as their confession of faith the ecclesiastical documents received by the different branches of the Presbyterian Church and known as the Westminster Standards, in such manner from time to time as the said trustees or a majority of them should from time to time, in their discretion, think proper:
And whereas the indenture in recital contained certain powers enabling the said trustees to sell the said pieces of land and to perform certain other acts, and a provision whereby vacancies in their number could be filled up, followed by a proviso that it should not be imperative to fill up such vacancies until the number of trustees should be reduced to 2:
And whereas the piece of land upon which the said church is erected is described in the Second Schedule and is held under a Statutory Land Grant dated 16 August 1892, whereby the Governor of the Colony granted to John Anderson, Charles Phillips, Alexander Johnston, Robert Park, Theodore Page, Robert Allan, Arthur Knight, David James Galloway, John Graham, Robert Little, William Paterson Waddell, Joseph Mactaggart Allinson and Francis Warrack, as trustees for the Presbyterian Church in Singapore, thereafter named the trustees, the said piece of land to hold to the said trustees, their heirs and assigns, in trust for the purposes of the Presbyterian Church, on the said piece of land, erected or any buildings thereafter to be thereon erected, for religious worship and use of any denomination of Christians holding as their confession of faith the ecclesiastical documents received by the different branches of the Presbyterian Church and known as the Westminster Standards for ever:
And whereas the Statutory Land Grant contained a provision for appointing new trustees, with liberty upon any appointment to increase or diminish the original number of trustees but so that it be not reduced below 2, and also a proviso that if at any time thereafter public worship should cease in the church aforesaid or in any building thereafter to be erected on the said land for the space of 2 years, or if such building or buildings should not be maintained thereon or kept in such a state of repair as to fit them for the purposes for which they were built, the said land should forthwith revert to Her Majesty together with all the erections and buildings thereon:
And whereas the finances of the said congregation are managed by a Treasurer who is appointed by the Board of Managers of the said Congregation, the present Treasurer being Francis Warrack:
And whereas it is expedient for conveyancing purposes to incorporate the Treasurer for the time being of the said congregation and to appoint him trustee of the said indenture of 14 February 1879, and of the said Statutory Land Grant of 16 August 1892:
It is hereby enacted by the Governor of the Straits Settlements, with the advice and consent of the Legislative Council thereof, as follows:
Short title
1.  This Ordinance may be cited as the Treasurer of Presbyterian Church, Singapore Ordinance 1899.
The Treasurer of the Presbyterian Church in Singapore to be a body corporate
2.—(1)  Francis Warrack and his successors for the time being in the office of Treasurer of the said congregation, duly qualified as hereinafter provided, shall be a body corporate, hereinafter called the Corporation, and shall for the purposes of this Ordinance have the name of “The Treasurer of the Presbyterian Church in Singapore”, and by that name have perpetual succession and shall and may have and use a corporate seal.
(2)  The said seal may from time to time be broken, changed, altered and made anew as the Corporation thinks fit.
(3)  The Corporation may acquire, purchase, take, hold and enjoy movable and immovable property of every description, and may sell, convey, assign, surrender and yield up, mortgage, demise, reassign, transfer or otherwise dispose of any movable and immovable property vested in the Corporation upon such terms as the Corporation thinks fit.
Use of corporate seal
3.—(1)  All deeds, documents and other instruments requiring the seal of the Corporation shall be sealed with the seal of the Corporation in the presence of the said Francis Warrack or his attorney duly authorised by a power of attorney deposited under section 48 of the Conveyancing and Law of Property Act 1886, or in the presence of his successor for the time being in the said office of Treasurer or his attorney duly authorised as aforesaid, and shall also be signed by the said Francis Warrack or his said attorney or by his said successor or his said attorney.
(2)  Such signing shall be sufficient evidence of the due sealing of such deeds, documents and other instruments.
Qualification of Treasurer
4.—(1)  No successor of the said Francis Warrack in the office of Treasurer of the said congregation shall be deemed to be duly qualified as aforesaid unless and until he has caused an extract from the minutes of the Board of Managers of the said congregation appointing him such Treasurer, certified as correct by the Chairman of the Board, to be filed in the office of the Minister of the Colony, and unless and until a notification of such filing has appeared in the Gazette.
(2)  Such notification shall be sufficient evidence of the appointment and that the person named therein is duly qualified as by this Ordinance is required.
Corporation appointed trustee of property described in Schedules
5.—(1)  The persons now trustees of the said indenture of 14 February 1879, and of the Statutory Land Grant of 16 August 1892, are hereby removed from their offices of trustees.
(2)  The Corporation is hereby appointed sole trustee of the said instruments in place of them notwithstanding the provisions contained in the said instruments, providing against the number of the trustees thereof not being less than 2, and the powers of appointing new trustees contained in the said instruments are hereby cancelled.
Property described in First Schedule vested in Corporation
6.  The pieces of land described in the First Schedule are hereby vested for the respective residues of the said terms of 999 years mentioned in the First Schedule in the Corporation, subject to the payment of the rents and to the observance and performance of the covenants and conditions contained in the leases mentioned in the First Schedule, and subject also to the said 31 indentures of leases, but nevertheless upon the trusts contained in the said indenture of 14 February 1879.
Property described in Second Schedule vested in Corporation
7.  The piece of land described in the Second Schedule is hereby vested in the Corporation for an estate in fee simple, but nevertheless upon the trusts contained in the said Statutory Land Grant of 16 August 1892.
Saving of Government and other rights
8.  Nothing in this Ordinance shall affect the rights of the Government, or of any bodies politic or corporate, or of other persons than such as are trustees of the said indenture of 14 February 1879, and of the said Statutory Land Grant of 16 August 1892.
[7/97]
FIRST SCHEDULE
1.  All that piece of land situate in the District of Singapore Town, bounded on the north by Grant No. 502, on the east by North Bridge Road, on the west by No. 2 of the Grant No. 501, and on the south by Cross Street, now called Bras Basah Road, containing 3085.7 m2, as described in the plan annexed to an Indenture No. 1 of the Grant No. 501, dated 30 September 1828, and made between the United Company of Merchants of England, trading to the East Indies of the one part and C. H. Thomson of the other part, which piece of land was by the said Indenture No. 1 of the Grant No. 501 demised unto the said C. H. Thomson, his executors, representatives, administrators and assigns for the term of 999 years, subject to the payment of the rent reserved by and to the observance and performance of the covenant and condition contained in the said Indenture.
2.  All that piece of land situate in the District of Singapore Town, bounded on the east by the land lastly described, on the west by Lot No. 1 of Lot No. 2 of Lease No. 501, on the north by Lease No. 502, and on the south by Cross Street, now called Bras Basah Road, containing an area of 1063.7 m2, as described in the plan annexed to an Indenture Lot No. 2 of Lot No. 2 of Lease No. 501, dated 14 June 1832, and made between the said United Company of Merchants of the one part and Robert Hunter of the other part, which piece of land was by the said Indenture, Lot No. 2 of Lot No. 2 of Lease No. 501 demised unto the said Robert Hunter, his executors, representatives, administrators and assigns for the term of 999 years, subject to the payment of the rent reserved by and to the observance and performance of the covenant and condition contained in the said Indenture.
SECOND SCHEDULE
All that piece of land situate at Singapore Town, containing by admeasurement 7208.5 m2, and bounded on the north by Orchard Road, now called Stamford Road, and State land, on the south by State land, on the east by State land and Orchard Road, now called Stamford Road, and on the west by State land, which piece of land with the dimensions, abuttals and boundaries thereof is delineated in the plan drawn on the Statutory Land Grant above referred to.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

Treasurer of Presbyterian Church, Singapore Ordinance 1899

 

This Legislative History is a service provided by the Law Revision Commission on a best-efforts basis. It is not part of the Ordinance.
1.  
Ordinance XXII of 1899—An Ordinance for the Incorporation of the Treasurer of the Presbyterian Church in Singapore
Bill
:
G.N. No. 465/1899
First Reading
:
20 June 1899
Second Reading
:
27 June 1899
Third Reading
:
19 December 1899
Commencement
:
19 December 1899 (assent)
29 December 1899 (publication)
2.  
1920 Revised Edition—Ordinance No. 184 (Treasurer of Presbyterian Church, Singapore)
Operation
:
28 November 1921
3.  
1926 Revised Edition—Ordinance No. 217 (Treasurer of Presbyterian Church, Singapore)
Operation
:
1 August 1926
4.  
1936 Revised Edition—Treasurer of Presbyterian Church, Singapore Ordinance (Chapter 255)
Operation
:
1 September 1936
5.  
1955 Revised Edition—Treasurer of Presbyterian Church, Singapore Ordinance (Chapter 325)
Operation
:
1 July 1956
6.  
G.N. No. S(N.S.) 177/1959—Singapore Constitution (Modification of Laws) (No. 3) Order, 1959
Commencement
:
20 November 1959
7.  
G.N. No. S 224/1985—Metrication (Treasurer of Presbyterian Church, Singapore Ordinance) Order 1985
Commencement
:
23 August 1985
8.  
1985 Revised Edition—Treasurer of Presbyterian Church, Singapore Ordinance (Chapter 383)
Operation
:
30 March 1987
9.  
Act 7 of 1997—Statutes (Miscellaneous Amendments) Act 1997
(Amendments made by section 6 read with item (35) of the First Schedule to the above Act)
Bill
:
6/1997
First Reading
:
11 July 1997
Second and Third Readings
:
25 August 1997
Commencement
:
1 October 1997 (section 6 read with item (35) of the First Schedule)
10.  
2020 Revised Edition—Treasurer of Presbyterian
Church, Singapore
Ordinance 1899
Operation
:
31 December 2021

Abbreviations

 
(updated on 29 August 2022)
G.N.
Gazette Notification
G.N. Sp.
Gazette Notification (Special Supplement)
L.A.
Legislative Assembly
L.N.
Legal Notification (Federal/Malaysian)
M.
Malaya/Malaysia (including Federated Malay States, Malayan Union, Federation of Malaya and Federation of Malaysia)
Parl.
Parliament
S
Subsidiary Legislation
S.I.
Statutory Instrument (United Kingdom)
S (N.S.)
Subsidiary Legislation (New Series)
S.S.G.G.
Straits Settlements Government Gazette
S.S.G.G. (E)
Straits Settlements Government Gazette (Extraordinary)

COMPARATIVE TABLE

Treasurer of Presbyterian Church, Singapore Ordinance 1899

This Act has undergone renumbering in the 2020 Revised Edition. This Comparative Table is provided to help readers locate the corresponding provisions in the last Revised Edition.

2020 Ed.
1985 Ed.
FIRST SCHEDULE
SCHEDULE A
SECOND SCHEDULE
SCHEDULE B

Archived for legal research. Authoritative version at sso.agc.gov.sg.