CRIMES AND PUNISHMENTS 1093

be accessory thereto, or who shall without such color of right and against
the consent of the parent or parents or lawful guardian or guardians of
such child, persuade or entice from the usual place of abode or house of such
child, or from the custody and control of the parent or parents, or guardian
or guardians of such child, or be accessory thereto, or shall knowingly
secrete or harbor such child, or be accessory thereto, with the intent to
deprive such parent or parents, guardian or guardians, or any person
who may be in lawful possession of such child, of the custody, care and
control of such child, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction
shall suffer imprisonment in the penitentiary for a term not exceeding
twenty years, in the discretion of the court.

Abortion.

An. Code, 1924, sec. 3. 1912, sec. 3. 1904, sec. 3. 1888, sec. 3. 1868, ch. 179, sec. 2.

3. Any person who shall knowingly advertise, print, publish, distribute
or circulate, or knowingly cause to be advertised, printed, published, dis-
tributed or circulated, any pamphlet, printed paper, book, newspaper notice,
advertisement or reference containing words or language giving or convey-
ing any notice, hint or reference to any person, or to the name of any person,
real or fictitious, from whom, or to any place, house, shop, or office, where
any poison, drug, mixture, preparation, medicine or noxious thing, or any
instrument or means whatever, for the purpose of producing abortion, can
be procured, or who shall knowingly sell, or cause to be sold any such
poison, drug, mixture, preparation, medicine or noxious thing or instrument
of any kind whatever; or from whom any advice, direction, information or
knowledge may be obtained for the purpose of causing the miscarriage or
abortion of any woman pregnant with child, at any period of her pregnancy,
or shall knowingly sell or cause to be sold any medicine, or who shall know-
ingly use or cause to be used any means whatsoever for that purpose, shall
be punished by imprisonment in the penitentiary for not less than three
years, or by a fine of not less than five hundred dollars nor more than one
thousand dollars, or by both, in the discretion of the court; and in case of
fine being imposed, one-half thereof shall be paid to the State of Maryland,
and one-half to the school fund of the city or county where the offense was
committed; provided, however, that nothing herein contained shall be con-
strued so as to prohibit the supervision and management by a regular prac-
titioner of medicine of all cases of abortion occurring spontaneously, either
as the result of accident, constitutional debility, or any other natural cause,
or the production of abortion by a regular practitioner of medicine when,
after consulting with one or more respectable physicians he shall be satisfied
that the foetus is dead, or that no other method will secure the safety of the
mother.

The giving of oral advice or information for the purpose of causing miscarriage or
abortion is not criminal under this section. Larkins v. State, 163 Md. 372.

The crime of abortion is a misdemeanor at common law when there is no intent to kill,
and this section does not change the rule. Causing the death of a woman by means
of an abortion is manslaughter and not murder. An indictment held not to be for the
statutory offense of abortion but for manslaughter as a consequence of an abortion.
In prosecutions for abortion the death of the woman is no part of facts which go to
constitute the crime. Dying declarations. Worthington v. State, 92 Md. 240.

In an indictment under this section, letters written by traverser to the woman con-
taining directions as to how a certain drug should be taken, and proof by the woman
that she took the drug and in other respects followed traverser's instructions, is com-
petent evidence, although traverser was not present when drug was taken and his di-
rections complied with. A conversation between traverser and woman in which she stated
that she had complied with his advice but without producing desired effect, is also