Stores. Quantities to be ex-. pressed. sioners of the navy, ordnance, or victualling office, that V. [Persons sued may plead the general issue, &c.] Note. The presumption of the malus animus, arising from the bare fact of possession of the goods may, in last act. III. 9 Geo. 1, c. 8. Whereas, by an act, &c. [9 & 10 Will. 3, c. 41] a penalty of two hundred pounds, with costs of prosecution, and pain of imprisonment, is inflicted upon persons having in their custody, possession, or keeping, or concealing, contrary to the said act, any warlike, naval, or ordnance stores therein mentioned, or any other stores marked with the broad arrow, by stamp, brand, or otherwise; and whereas it is necessary to give power to mitigate the said penalties, and to explain and amend the said act: be it enacted by the authority aforesaid, that if any. person or persons shall, after the 25th day of March, 1723, be lawfully convicted of having in his, her, or their custody, any timber, thick stuff, or plank, marked with the broad arrow, by stamp, brand, or otherwise, or of concealing any timber, thick stuff, or plank, so marked, every such person so offending shall suffer, forfeit, and pay, as for having, keeping, or concealing, any other warlike, naval, or ordnance stores, contrary to the said act. Mitigation IV. Provided always, and it is hereby further enacted, of penalties that it shall and may be lawful to and for any judge, justice, or justices, bofore whom any offender or offenders shall be convicted of any of the crimes or offences before recited, enacted, or mentioned in this act, to miti gate the penalty for the same, as he or they shall see cause, and to commit the offender or offenders so convicted, to the common gaol of the county or place where the offence shall be committed, there to remain, without bail or mainprize, until payment be made of the penalty and forfeiture imposed by this or the said former act, or mitigated as aforesaid, or to punish such offender or offenders corporally, by causing him, her, or them to be publicly whipped, or committed to some public workhouse, there to be kept to hard labour for the space of six months, or a less time, as to such judge, justice, or justices, in his or their discretion, shall seem meet; any thing in the said recited act, or in any other act, to the contrary notwithstanding. 17 Geo. 2, c. 40. Stores. [Recites the two former acts, and thus proceeds] And whereas some doubts have arisen touching the method of trial and punishment of offenders against the said recited acts, whether, as the said acts are worded, such offender or offenders may be indicted and tried for the crimes and offences in the said acts mentioned, and whether any judge, justice, or justices of assizes, or justices of peace at the sessions, may hear, try, and determine same, and on conviction set such fine, or mitigate the same, and the forfeitures and penalties inflicted by the aforesaid acts, on such offender or offenders, as the nature of the offences may deserve; or whether such offenders, as aforesaid, in order for recovering the said forfeitures and penalties inflicted by the said act, can only be proceeded against by action of debt, bill, plaint, or information, in some of his majesty's courts of record at Westminster; by reason of which doubts, it has so happened, that offenders against the said recited acts, having been indicted for the same, have escaped unpunished, to the great encouragement of such offenders and others, to commit the like crimes and offences for the future; for the remedying whereof, and for the explaining the acts above-mentioned, it is hereby declared and enacted, that it shall and may be lawful to and Justice of for any judge, justice, or justices at the assizes, or justices assize or of the peace at the general quarter sessions, to be holden quarter for any county, city, borough, or town corporate, to hear, try, may try and determine, by indictment or otherwise, all or any the offences crimes or offences mentioned in the said recited acts; and relating to that the said judge, justice, or justices of assize, or jus- &c." tices of peace, as aforesaid, before whom such offender or offenders shall be indicted, or tried and convicted, of all or any of the crimes or offences in the said recited acts mentioned, may impose any fine, not exceeding the sum of two hundred pounds, on such offender or offenders; one moiety to be paid to his majesty, and the other moiety to the informer; and may mitigate the said penalty and forfeitures, inflicted by the said recited acts, or either of them, and to commit the offender or offenders so convicted and fined, to the common goal of the county or place where the offence shall be committed; there to remain, without bail or mainprize, until payment be made of the penalty and forfeitures imposed by this or the said former sessions the stores, Stores. acts, so mitigated as aforesaid; or, in lieu thereof, to punish such offender or offenders in the premises corporally, by causing him, her, or them to be publicly whipped, and committed to some house of correction, or public workhouse, there to be kept to hard labour for the space of three months, or less time, as to such judge, justice, or justices of assize, or justices of the peace, shall in his or their discretion seem meet; any thing in the said recited acts, or in any other act, to the contrary notwithstanding. Note.-Under this act it is holden, that the court have authority to adjudge the offender to suffer corporeal punishment, although he be ready and offer to pay the penalty sell or receive any new stores of war, &c. or who shall conceal be deemed of £200: Bland's case, 2 E. P. C. 760. But the power of sentencing to hard labour is considered to be taken away by the 39 & 40 Geo. 3, c. 69, s. 2: R. v. Bridges, 2 East, 53. 39 & 40 Geo. 3, c. 89. [Recites stats. 9 & 10 W. 3, c. 41; 9 Geo. 1, c. 8; and 17 Geo. 2, c. 40, s. 10; and then proceeds thus] And whereas, notwithstanding the penalties and punishments inflicted by the said recited acts, the stealers, embezzlers, and receivers of his majesty's warlike and naval ordnance, and victualling stores, have greatly increased, so that it has become necessary to make some further and more effectual provision for preventing their wicked pracEvery pertices in future : be it, therefore, enacted, &c. that, from son (not and after the passing of this act, every person, or persons, being a con- (such person, or persons, not being a contractor or contractor,&c.), tractors, or employed as in the said recited act, of the who shall ninth and tenth years of the reign of King William the Third, is mentioned,) who shall willingly or knowingly sell or deliver, or cause or procure to be sold or delivered, to any person or persons whomsoever, or who shall willingly or knowingly receive, or have in his, her, or their them, shall custody, possession, or keeping, any stores of war, or naval, ordnance, or victualling stores, or any goods whatsoever, marked as in the said recited acts are expressed, or any goods, and, canvass, marked either with a blue streak in the middle, as such, or with a blue streak in a serpentine form, or any transported for fourteen bewper, otherwise called bunting, wrought with one years, un- or more streaks of raised tape, (the stores of war, or less he pro- naval, ordnance, or victualling stores, or goods above men duces, on the trial, a tioned, or any of them, being in a raw or unconverted certificate state, or being new, or not more than one third worn,) and from the such person, or persons, who shall conceal such stores or navy board, goods, or any of them, marked as aforesaid, shall be deemed receivers of stolen goods, knowing them to have been stolen, and shall, on being convicted thereof, in due form of law, be transported beyond the seas for the term of fourteen years, in like manner as other receivers of stolen goods are directed to be transported by the laws and statutes of this realm, unless such person or persons shall, receivers stolen &c. .of upon his, her, or their trial, produce a certificate, under the hands of three or more of his majesty's principal officers, or commissioners of the navy, ordnance, or victualling, expressing the numbers, quantities, or weights of such stores or goods, as he, she, or they shall then be indicted for, and the occasion and reason of such stores or goods coming to his, her, or their hands or possession. Stores. Persons in whose cns Canvass or be convicted of any II. And be it enacted, by the authority aforesaid, that such person, or persons (not being a contractor, or contractors, tody shall or employed as aforesaid,) in whose custody, possession, or be found keeping, any of the said stores, called canvass, marked with bunting, a blue streak in a serpentine form, or bewper, otherwise marked as called bunting, wrought as above mentioned, shall be herein menfound, (such canvass or bewper, otherwise called bunting, tioned (not being not being charged to be new, or not more than one charged to third worn,) and all and every person and persons, who be new, or shall be convicted of any offence contrary to so much not more of the said recited act of the ninth and tenth years of the than onethird worn), reign of King William the Third, as relates to the making, and persons or the having in possession, or concealing any of his ma- who shall jesty's warlike, or naval, or ordnance stores, marked as therein specified, shall, besides forfeiting such stores, and offence conthe sum of two hundred pounds, together with costs of trary to so suit as therein mentioned, be corporally punished, by (pil- much of the lory), whipping, and imprisonment, or by any or either of the said ways and means, in such manner, and for such space will. 3, of time, as to the judge or justices, before whom such of- as relates fender or offenders shall be convicted, shall seem meet; to warlike stores, shall, any thing in the said last-mentioned act, or in the before- besides the recited acts of the ninth year of King George the First, and forfeiture the seventeenth year of King George the Second, to the thereby imcontrary thereof, in any wise, notwithstanding: provided posed, suffer always, that it shall and may be lawful to and for such punishment. judge or justices to mitigate the said penalty of two hun- Penalty, dred pounds, as he or they shall see cause. recited act of 9 & 10 corporal 2007., may be miti in recited shall III. Provided always, and be it enacted, that nothing gated. in this act, or in the said recited act of the ninth and tenth Nothing years of the reign of King William the Third, contained, herein, or shall extend, or be deemed, taken, or construed to extend act of 9 & to exempt from the operation of this act, or the said recited 10 Will. 3, act, respectively, any person, or persons, being a contractor, exempt or contractors, or employed as in the said last-mentioned contractors, act, is mentioned, except only so far as concerns stores or &c., except goods marked as aforesaid, which shall be bonâ fide pro- so far as vided, made up, or manufactured by such person, or per stores sons, or by their order, and which shall not have been which shall before delivered into his majesty's store, unless, having not have been so delivered, they shall have been sold or returned to been beforesuch person, or persons, by the commissioners of his ma- into his jesty's navy, ordnance, or victualling, respectively. concerns delivered majesty's store, unless IV. And be it enacted, by the authority aforesaid, that if they have any person or persons shall, from and after the passing of this been sold, missioners. majesty's Stores. or art, wilfully and fraudulently destroy, beat out, take out, cut out, deface, obliterate, or erase, wholly or in part, any or returned of the marks in the said act of the ninth and tenth years of by the com- the reign of King William the Third, or in this act menDefacing tioned, or any other mark whatsoever, denoting the pro mark on his perty of his majesty, his heirs or successors, in or to any warlike or naval, ordnance, or victualling stores, or cause, procure, employ, or direct any other person or persons so to do, for the purpose of concealing his majesty's property in such stores, such person or persons shall be deemed guilty of felony, and shall, on being convicted thereof, be transported to parts beyond the seas for the term of fourteen years, in like manner as other felons are directed to be transported by the laws and statutes of this realm. stores, felony. Second offence. Returning from transportation. Mitigation of punish inent. V. And be it enacted, by the authority aforesaid, that if any person or persons who shall hereafter be convicted of any offence contrary to this act, for which he shall not have been transported beyond the seas, or contrary to the said recited act of the ninth and tenth years of King William the Third, shall be guilty of a second offence, either contrary to that act or to this present act, which would not otherwise, as the first offence, subject him, her, or them to transportation, and shall be thereof legally convicted, such person or persons shall, by judgment of the court wherein he, she, or they shall be so convicted, be transported to parts beyond the seas for the term of fourteen years, in like manner as other offenders may be transported by the laws and statutes of this realm now in force. VI. And be it enacted by the authority aforesaid, that if any person or persons transported in pursuance of this act shall return, into any part of Great Britain or Ireland, before the end or expiration of the term for which he or she shall have been so transported, every such person or persons so returning shall suffer as felons, and shall have execution awarded against him, her, or them, as persons attainted of felony without benefit of clergy. VII. Provided always, and be it enacted by the authority aforesaid, that it shall and may be lawful to and for the court before whom any offender or offenders shall be indicted and convicted of all or any of the crimes or offences hereinbefore mentioned to be punishable with transportation, to mitigate or commute such punishment, by causing the offender or offenders to be (set on the pillory), publicly whipped, fined, or imprisoned, or by all or any, one or more, of the said ways and means, as such court, in its discretion, shall think fit; one moiety of which fine (if any imposed) shall be to his majesty, his heirs and successors, and the other moiety thereof to the informer, and also to order such offender or offenders to be imprisoned until such fine be paid; any thing hereinbefore contained to the contrary thereof in anywise notwithstanding. |