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C H A P.
LXIX.
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court, to wit, on the fecond Tuefday in the month of Auguft, in the year feven-
teen hundred and ninety-five, all caufes, procefs and proceedings, relative to
the trial of all felonies, and other crimes, offences, mifdemeanors, and all pro-
ceedings whatever, then depending in Baltimore county criminal court, fhall be
heard, tried and determined, before Baltimore county and city criminal court
and the faid criminal court fhall have the fame powers of adjudging criminals to
labour, and extending their time of fervice, and the fame jurifdiction refpecting
them in every other refpect, as now are or fhall by the legiflature of this ftate be.
vefted in the county courts, and fhall have and enjoy all other powers and jurif-
didions heretofore had and exercifed by the criminal court of Baltimore county;
provided always, that the appointment of recorder, and his two affociates, fhall be
approved of by the governor and council, before they fhall hold a court: The
times of holding the faid court fhall be on the fecond Tuefday in the months of
January, March and Auguft, and on the third Tuefday of November, of every
year, unlefs altered by the common-council: The recorder alone, or in his ab-
fence his two affociates, commiffioned as aforefaid, fhall have power to call and
hold the faid court, and any one of the faid affociates may adjourn the fame from
day to day, empannel and charge the grand jury, direct procefs to iffue on any
prefentment or indictment found in the faid court, order fubpoenas to iffue for
witneffes, or attachments of contempt to iffue againft witneffes or jurors for non-
attendance, and receive any verdict, prefentment or indictment: The fheriff of
Baltimore county, for the time being, fhall fummon forty-eight good and lawful
men of his county, qualified by law to ferve as jurymen in the county courts, fix
days before the day appointed for the holding of the faid court, as grand and petit
jurors, and fhall return a pannel of them accordingly; and if the faid fheriff
fhall negled to fummon and make fuch return, he fhall, for every fuch neglect,
be fined by the court, not exceeding three hundred dollars: All recognizances
for felonies, and other crimes, offences and mifdemeanors, committed within the
jurifdiction of the faid criminal court, fhall be returned from time to time by the
mayor, the recorder, or any alderman or juftice of the peace of the faid county
taking fuch recognizance, before the court aforefaid; and the mayor, recorder, or
any alderman or juftice, taking fuch recognizance, fhall lodge the fame with the
clerk of the faid court, on the day next before the day appointed for the holding
of the faid court; and the offenders and witneffes bound in fuch recognizance
fhall be obliged to appear by virtue, and according to the conditions thereof: If
any fecurity in any recognizance fhall require to furrender up the principal, it
fhall be lawful for the recorder, or any of his affociates, to accept fuch furrender
in or out of court, and he fhall thereupon require and take other recognizance, or
commit the principal to Baltimore county gaol, until he gives fuch fecurity as the
law requires: The expences of the aforefaid criminal court, the allowance for
conftables, and expences attending all criminals fentenced to labour, fhall be af-
feffed by the faid court on Baltimore county, collected with the county affeffment,
and paid by the collector to fuch perfon as may be appointed by the common-
council to receive the fame, but that part of the faid expences fo to be affeffed
and paid, which includes the falary of the chief judge, and the allowance for the
conftables, fhall not exceed their prefent eftablifhment; that is to fay, the annu-
al fum of one thoufand and fixty dollars and two thirds of a dollar; and the
common-council fhall caufe annually to be publifhed, a feparate ftatement of the
money thus received and expended on the aforefaid objects: The aforefaid crimi-
nal court fhall direct the application and kind of labour of all criminals fentenced
to hard labour: The mayor, or any alderman, fhall have full power to order any
perfon whom he may fufpect of being a vagrant, vagabond, or diforderly perfon
or common proftitute, to appear before the recorder and any two of the faid al-
dermen, and fuch order fhall be ferved by any conftable; and if, on the appear-
ance of fuch perfon, and examination by teftimony, the faid recorder and alder-
men fhall unanimoufly determine fuch perfon to come within any of the faid
defcriptions, they may adjudge fuch perfon to ferve and labour as a criminal,
according to the prefent criminal law, if a male, as a male criminal, if a fe-
male, as a female criminal, for any time not exceeding one year, unlefs good fe-
curity be given, to their fatisfaction, for the good behaviour of fuch perfon for
any time not exceeding one year thereafter; and every perfon who has no vifible
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