THOMAS SIM LEE, Efquire, Governor.

1792.

fum of five fhillings for every cord fo bought, and which the faid perfon fhall
refufe or neglect to have corded as aforefaid, or fhall refufe or omit to requeft one
or other of the faid corders to cord purfuant to this act; which faid forfeiture,
when recovered, fhall be laid out and expended in the manner prefcribed by the
act above mentioned.

CHAP. XLI.

C H A P.

XL.

A Further fupplement to the act, entitled, An act to enlarge the

powers of the high court of chancery.

WHEREAS the acts of affembly of this ftate giving power to the chan-

cellor to decree in certain cafes againft perfons refiding in other of the
United States, and againft perfons refiding beyond feas, have omitted
to extend the faid power to cafes where the party or parties againft whom relief
is or may be wanted have or fhall remove out of this ftate to parts unknown :
And whereas it is attended with great difficulty and expence to give fuch notice
as the faid acts require to perfons refident in fome one of the United States, or in
parts beyond fea; therefore,

Paffed De-
cember 22.

Preamble.

II. Be it enacted, by the General Affembly of Maryland, That in all cafes

where any perfon or perfons, his or their heirs, devifees or reprefentatives, are

bound by any contract or agreement, and are nonrefidents of this ftate, if any
bill is filed againft fuch perfon or perfbns, his or their heirs, devifees or reprefen-
tatives, nonrefidents as aforefaid, to compel a fpecific performance of fuch con-
tract or agreement, the chancellor fhall and may, without the appearance of or
hearing of the defendant or defendants, proceed to fuch decree as the juftice and
equity of the cafe may require; provided, that the complainant or petitioner fhall
give fuch notice of his or her application, in news-papers or otherwife, as the
chancellor fhall direct; and every fuch decree fhall have the fame operation,
effect and confequences, as a decree in virtue of the act aforefaid, againft perfons
refiding in any of the United States, to which this act is a fupplement.

In certain
cafes chancel-
or may de-
cree, &c.

III. And be it further enacted, by the General Affembly of Maryland, That in
cafe any deed hath been, or hereafter fhall be, executed, to the validity of which
deed recording is neceffary, and fuch deed hath not been, or fhall not be, record-
ed agreeably to law, without any fraudulent intention of the party claiming un-
der the fame, the chancellor, upon petition of the party to whom the faid deed
was executed, or of his, her or their legal reprefentative, or of any of them
claiming the land or other thing conveyed, or intended to be conveyed, by fuch
deed, and without the appearance or hearing of the defendant or defendants, fhall
have power to decree the recording of the faid deed, in the county or general
court records, within fuch time from the date of the decree as it ought originally
to have been recorded from the date of the deed; and that the deed, when fo re-
corded, fhall have the fame effect and confequence as if recorded agreeably to the
twelfth fection of the act, entitled, An act for enlarging the powers of the high
court of chancery; provided, that the petitioner or petitioners fhall give fuch no-
tice of his, her or their application, as the chancellor fhall direct.

May order
deeds to be
recorded, &c.

IV. And be it enacted, That if any perfon, having contracted for the fale of
any lands, tenements or hereditaments, and not having conveyed the fame, hath
died, or fhall die, without leaving an heir known of and capable of inheriting
his real eftate, it fhall be lawful for the chancellor, upon a bill filed by the per-
fon entitled to the conveyance, and fuch notice being given in the public news-
papers, or otherwife, as the chancellor fhall direct, to decree that the legal title
and eftate fhall be vefted in the perfon entitled to fuch conveyance, according to
the terms of the contract, and thereupon, and by virtue of fuch decree, fuch le-
gal title and eftate fhall be transferred and vefted accordingly; and if the perfon
filing his bill as aforefaid fhall not have paid the whole purchase money, the
chancellor may order that fuch purchafe money fhall be paid, or fecured in fuch
manner as he fhall think moft fafe and proper, for the benefit of the legal repre-
fentative of the perfon dying as aforefaid,

And, by de-
cree, veft the
legal title, &c.