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May be made by an iniant.

Infant must

always be a

paupers.

case out of the common rule of law, which makes the contracts of infants void.)

And the other contracting party, the master, may also be an infant. And it is perfectly immaterial what is the trade or occupation.

2dly. Except in the case of parish appren consenting tices, even if the contract be not the sole act party, ex- of the parties who are to stand' in the relation cepting of master and apprentice, it is absolutely necessary that they should both be consenting parties, in order to obtain a settlement by the service under the contract. The proof of that consent, in the apprentice, is his signature, testifying his consent, without which the con, tract is not a valid contract to confer a settleSignature ment.§ But the signature of the master iş not absolutely necessary, because his accepting sential. the apprentice is proof sufficient of his con sent.||

of the mas

ter not es

Parol contract void.

Will not

ensue as a

hiring.

3dly. The contract must be a written one, and not by parol. For a parol contract for an apprenticeship eo nomine, is void as an apprenticeship, and it cannot be converted into a hiring, so as, with a service under it, to confer a settlement.**

* 1 Bott. 613.-2 Bott. 363.
† 4 Term. R. 196.—377.

Bott. 610.

§ 8 East's R. 25,

2 Bott. 267.-371,

5 Term, R. 153.

** 2 East's R. 298.-4 Term. R. 170.

cessary.

4thly, It must be stamped with the proper Stamps nestamps, as regulated by statutes,* of which there are two descriptions; one in respect of the instrument, as such; the

of the fee or sum given, as

other in respect

a consideration

with the apprentice. And the deed or indenture cannot be produced in evidence of the fact of apprenticeship, unless it be stamped with the proper stamps.†

5thly. The full sum or consideration given, Full consimust be set forth in the indenture, in words deration to be expresat length, and the duties paid on it; and this sed in words provision is not to be evaded by giving other at length. things instead of money.§

These are the principal points of form on Indentures which settlements by apprenticeship, in the of ordinary apprentices ordinary course, are usually resisted, upon Appeal to the Quarter Sessions. The apprenticeships of the poor exclusively fall under a different consideration, so far as respects the contract itself, and therefore are necessary to be noticed, before we proceed to consider the effects and consequence of contracts of apprenticeships generally,

Thus apprentices bound out under the Poor apprentices provisions of any public charity are exempt,

from Stamp duties.

* 6 Term R. 317.-1 East's R. 55.

† Burr. S. C. 198.-2 Bott. 449.

Stat. 8 Ann. c. 9.

§ 48 Geo. 3, c. 98.

"

by the statutes imposing them, from the duties payable on the consideration money.

And parish apprentices being bound out under the provisions of a particular statute for

*

that purpose, the contract must be conform, able with the particular directions of the statute itself, and subsequent ones passed to amend it, which are:

1st. That the binding must be by the ma jority of the churchwardens and overseers of the parish to which the pauper belongs.†

2lly. That the children must belong to parents whom the churchwardens and overseers shall judge not able to maintain them.

3dly. That boys shall be bound till 21, and girls till 21, or marriage.

4thly. That two Justices, having jurisdic tion, must be assenting parties to the inden ture, and being a judicial act, must be together at the time of assenting.‡

5thly. That such apprentices may, by the assent of two such Justices as aforesaid, be assigned; and such assigned apprentices, shall be subject, to all such regulations as if they had

* 43 Eliz. e. 2,

+ For the explanation of the words "majority of churchwardens and overseers,' ," See 51 Geo. 3, c. 80. and also 54, Geo 3, c. 107, and Pract. Expos. Title Poor, settlement by apprenticeship.

+ 3 Term R. 380.

continued to serve under the original indenture.*

The residence under the contract, and the effects

of it.

The settlement of an apprentice does not Residence. necessarily depend on the settlement of the master or mistress, but on his own residence during his apprenticeship in the actual service of such master or mistress. Thus where an apprentice works in the day-time with his master in the parish of A. but sleeps in the contiguous parish of B. where his home is, B. is the place wherein he obtains his settlement under the indenture.† Because the place where a person lodges is always understood to be the criterion of residence.+

the service

But, as has been observed, the residence Must be in must be in the service of the master; for the of the maswords of the stat. creating this species of settle- ter.

66

ments binding and habitation" must be un

illness.

derstood of an habitation referable in some way Absence on to the apprenticeship. Therefore it has been account of decided that if an apprentice, on account of illness, go into another parish than that in which his master lives, merely as a temporary residence to get cured, without performing

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1

Residence

necessary.

any sort of service for his master during such residence, a settlement is not gained there by such temporary residence in such other parish.*

Forty days is, in all cases, the residence nefor 40 days cessary for gaining a settlement, which is by inference, from the statute making settlements depend on residence; for it enacts, "that church, wardens and overseers may obtain the removal of any person coming to inhabit and not renting to the amount of 10l. per annum, upon complaint to the Justices within forty days after such persons shall have so come to settle ;" the neces, sary inference from which is, that, after a resi dence of forty days, such removal shall not take place, or in other words a settlement will have been gained; and by a subsequent stat.‡ apprentices, bound by indenture, are excepted out of the former provision for removal,

It has been already shewn, that residence under a contract for an apprenticeship will not confer a settlement, if the contract itself was originally defective. And the construction put tion of con- by the Court of B. R. on these contracts is this,

Construe

tracts.

viz. that one party contracting to teach, and the other to learn, a trade, shall be construed an apprenticeship; and that nothing but the clearest intention in the parties to make the service contracted for one of a different descrip

* 11 East's R. 176.-7 East's R. 466.

13 and 14 Car, 2, c. 12.

+ 3 W. c. 11.

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