CHAP. 23. An act for the better regulation
of
attornies and solicitors.
CHAP. 24. Parliament.
CHAP. 25. An act for the more effectual prevention
and further punishment of forgery, perjury
and subornation of perjury, and to make it
felony to steal bonds, notes or other securities for
payment of money. |
CHAP. 23. This statute contains a variety
of
provisions as to attornies, &c. in England, but
was not applicable to the province. See the notes
on 15 Edw. 2, Ch. 1, and 4 Hen. 4, Ch. 18.
CHAP. 25. See the note on 5 Eliz. Ch. 14.
It
is a fact well known that this statute and 7 George
2, CH. 22, respecting the forgery of the writings
therein mentioned have been rigorously executed
in Great-Britain, as tending to support the commercial
credit of the kingdom; but no case is to
be found in the records, to shew that they were
used or practised under in the province. And a
review of the acts of assembly on the subject,
will tend to prove that they were not.
It 1733, an act was passed for emitting bills of
credit, which directed that the counterfeiters of
such bills, &c. should suffer death without benefit
of clergy; under which a person was indicted in
1742, and sentenced to death. It was made a capital
offence to forge the bills of credit emitted by
the act of 1766, Ch. 26, and the same as to the acts
of 1769, Ch. 14, and 1773, Ch. 26.
There was also in 1758, an act making it penal
to forge or counterfeit the bills of credit of Virginia,
&c. which expired in 1762. And in the inspection
law of 1763, the forgery or counterfeiting
of the stamps, notes or receipts, was made
punishable by whipping and pillory. The subsequent
inspection laws have provided for such offences,
short of capital punishment.
The act of March 1778, Ch. 17, declared, that
persons who should forge the certificates to be
issued thereby, should suffer death as felons without
benefit of clergy, and the like provision was
made as to the money to be issued, under the act
of May 1781, Ch. 23, Sec. 9.
The act of 1790, Ch. 5, and the other acts respecting
the banks, may be referred to for the punishment
of forging, or stealing bank notes,
checks, &c. but it will be recollected that in 1806,
notes, negotiable notes, &c. was made felony
without benefit of clergy, which was repealed in
1808; probably from a belief that the severity of |
