288 FEES OF OFFICERS. [ART. 38.

ARTICLE XXXVIII.
Fees of Officers.

SEC. 1. All accounts for officers' fees shall be made out in a
fair and clear manner and in words at length; and whenever any
person interested in them or to whom the same shall be charged,
shall require a copy of such account, the several officers herein
named shall, in as short a time as may be convenient, give him
an account of such charges in words at length.

2. No officer, under the penalty of five hundred dollars, shall
send out his fees on execution more than once in every year, be-
tween the first day of January and the first day of May.

3. If any officer shall by himself, his deputies, agents or clerks,
charge, receive, ask or demand any larger or greater fees than
are allowed by this article, he shall for each offence forfeit and
pay a sum not exceeding one hundred dollars and not less than
twenty dollars, to be recovered by indictment in the Circuit
Court for the county where such officer resides; or if the offence
be committed in the city of Baltimore, by indictment in the
Criminal Court of Baltimore, one-half to the informer, the other
half to the State, and the informer to be a competent witness.

4. If any officer shall by himself or his deputies, agents or
clerks, ask, receive or demand any fees herein allowed, after the
same have been paid, he shall for each offence forfeit and pay ten
dollars, to be recovered before a justice of the peace as small
debts, one-half to the use of the informer, who shall be a compe-
tent witness, and the other half for the State, and shall in addi-
tion, return to the party the fees so improperly received.

5. For any service not mentioned in this article which any
officer may render, he shall be allowed the same fees herein
allowed for similar services.

6. Any officer entitled to any fees for rendering services to
any person who is not a resident of this State, or not assessed
on taxable property therein, may require such fees to be paid at