10th GEO. 1. No. 176. A. D. 1723. be compellable to ride out of the Division where he lives; and every Officer to forfeit 10% of the Militia neglecting his Duty herein, shall forfeit ten Pounds current Money of this Island; and every other Person duly summoned and neglecting, shall forfeit five Pounds like Money. Officer neg lecting Duty, Private, 5/. Owner suffering his Slave to plant Cot tou, for such to forfeit 101. Slave's Use, Free Person XXXIV. And whereas Cotton Planters are injured by Thefts, because Slaves have been suffered to plant Cotton for their own Use; be it enacted by the Authority aforesaid, That any Person whatsoever, Owner or Possessor of Slaves, that shall permit his or her Slave or Slaves, to plant or gather Cotton for the Use of such Slave or Slaves, such Master, Owner or Possessor, shall forfeit ten Pounds lawful Money of this Island; and if any White Man, Free Negro, or Mubefore Justice; latto, shall expose to Sale any Cotton suspected to appertain to not denying it a Slave, any Justice of the Peace may cause the Party suspected, and forfeit Cotton having the Cotton in Possession to be brought before him, and to make Oath before him, that the Cotton doth not directly or indirectly belong to any Slave; and if the Party refuses to make such Oath, the Cotton shall be seized by the Justice's Order, and become forfeited to the Use of the Informer. on Oath, to to Informer. Arms seized from Custody of Slave, and carried before Justice, to be Seizer: unless rying Arms. XXXV. And be it further enacted by the Authority aforesaid, That if any Slave shall be taken out of the Plantation to which such Slave belongs, with any Fire Arms, Cutlashes, Swords, Pikes, or Lances, or other hurtful Arms, not having a Ticket from the Owner or Possessor of such Slave for carrying the same, or not being in Ticket for car- Company under the Direction of a White Person, sent along with such Slave or Slaves, any Person or Persons may seize such Slave with the Arms or Weapons, or the Arms and Weapons alone, and carry such Slave and Arms, or the Arms only, before a Justice of the Peace, and the Justice shall order the Arms to be forfeited, and the same are hereby declared to be forfeited to the Person or Persons that shall have seized the said Slave or Arms; but if there was a Ticket duly given for carrying the said Arms, and the same Ticket be lost, or was taken from the Slave, [or the Slave being attendant that Day on his Master to exercise,] then, upon Oath thereof made by the Owner, Master, Mistress, Renter, or Overseer, that such Ticket was so given, rade by Slaves. the Arms shall be again restored to the Owner. By Act of Soth March, 1793, (No. 485,) S. 28. Privates in Militia prohi bited from sending their Arms to Pa Persons selling Arms to Slave to forfeit 101. XXXVI. And it is also further enacted by the Authority aforesaid, That if any Person whatsoever shall hereafter sell, barter, or give to any Slave any Fire Arms, Cutlash, or offensive Weapons, except those given for Watching, he, she, or they, shall forfeit ten Pounds lawful Money of this Island. XXXVII. 10th GEO. I. any of Disorders in XXXVII. And for preventing Disorders by those who ride the Persons guilty Rounds, according to the Direction of this Act, if any Person so rid- riding Rounds ing the Rounds, shall break up any Negro Houses, or beat or abuse to forfeit 107. Slave, unless in Pursuit of a run-away, or criminal Slave flying or resisting, and due Notice of such Pursuit given to Master, Mistress, Owner, Renter, or Manager having the Care of such Plantation, every Offender shall forfeit ten Pounds lawful Money of this Island. XXXVIII. And be it, and it is hereby enacted by the Authority Justices and aforesaid, That if any Justice of the Peace, Provost Marshal, or his executing Deputy, or any Constable, shall refuse or neglect to do their respec-20 tive Duties pursuant to this Act, he or they shall each forfeit twenty Pounds for every Offence. and Act, to forfeit ticularly pro covered be Sessions, &c. Justice. And Costs XXXIX. And be it, and it is hereby also further enacted by the Fines not parAuthority aforesaid, That all Fines and Forfeitures laid by this Act vided for by (where no particular Method of Recovery, or particular Use is de- Act, to be reclared for recovering and disposing thereof) shall and may be re- fore Justices of covered before Justices of Peace in their Sessions, or Justices of Oyer by Bill, &c. and Terminer, and Gaol Delivery, by Bill, Plaint, Indictment, or In- or before one formation, and no Essoin, Protection, or Wager of Law to be allowed, or else before one Justice of the Peace of this Island; and the Offender Offender to be to be committed to close Custody in the Common Gaol of this Island, committed till Payment. until he pay the same, by the Warrant of a Justice of Peace founded on the Recovery at the Sessions, or Court of Oyer and Terminer, or before himself, directed to a Constable, or Provost Marshal, or his lawful Deputy; and, if the Offender be not to be found, to be levied If Offender abscond, Fine on his Goods and Chattels, which shall be sold as herein before di- to be levied as rected in Case of Executions on Judgments given by Justices of the in S.25. supra. Peace for illegal detaining Slaves, and the Offender or Offenders con- may be inflictvict shall pay reasonable Costs, if the Court or Justice, before whom ed." the Recovery is, shall think fit to give any Cost; and shall be disposed, Fines to go one Moiety to the Prosecutor, and the other Moiety to the Use of cutor, and Half His Majesty, His Heirs and Successors, to be paid into the Publick to Treasury Treasury of this Island, to be imployed in carrying on the Forts and fications: Fortifications, and Publick Works of the same; and all Fines and may be paid in Money or ProForfeitures whatsoever, laid by this Act, shall and may be paid either duce. in Money or the Produce of the Island, at Price-current. XL. And whereas several cruel Persons, to gratify their own Humours, against the Laws of God and Humanity, frequently kill, destroy, or dismember their own and other Persons' Slaves, and have hitherto gone unpunished, because it is inconsistent with the Constitution and Government of templates the killing or this Island, and would be too great a Countenance and Encouragement maiming Hh VOL. I. to towards Forti Repealed with the following 522. con 522, S. 1. maiming a Slave, the same as killing or maiming a Free Person, and assigns the same Punish ment. So also the General Act of the Leeward Islands of 21st April, 1798, 21. No. 176. 10th GEO. I. such Crimes. XLI. Be it therefore enacted by the Authority aforesaid, That if any (No. 36,) S. free Person or Persons whatsoever shall wilfully kill or cause to be killed any Slave whatsoever, either belonging to himself or Another, in any such Manner as is not excusable by the Laws of Great Britain, or allowed by the Laws of this Island, whether the same be by excessive Punishment or otherwise, or shall geld or dismember any such Slave, that then such Person or Persons shall and may be prosecuted by Presentment, Indictment, or Information before Justices of the Peace in their Sessions, or Justices of Oyer and Terminer, and Gaol Delivery, and upon Conviction of any such killing, the Offender or Offenders shall be fined each in any Sum not under one hundred Pounds, nor exceeding three hundred Pounds, lawful Money of this Island, and be imprisoned till said Fine paid, and all due Fees, and find Sureties for their good Behaviour for one Year; and in case of Gelding or Dismembring, and Conviction thereof, the Offender or Offenders shall each be fined any Sum not under twenty Pounds, nor above one hundred Pounds, lawful Money of this Island, and be imprisoned in the Common Gaol till the same paid, and find Sureties for their good Behaviour for a Year, so as the Prosecution be commenced in one Year after the Offence of Killing, Gelding, Maiming, committed, and not after; and shall likewise pay double Damages and Costs to the Party grieved, to be recovered by Action of Trespass in any Court of Record in this Island, the Moiety of which Fines for killing, gelding, or dismembring a Slave, shall be to the Use of His Majesty, His Heirs, and Successors, to be paid into the Publick Treasury of this Island, to be imployed towards repairing the Forts and Fortifications of this Island, and the other Half to the Informer prosecuting therefore. Persons sued for executing and give Act XLII. And be it also further enacted by the Authority aforesaid, Act may plead That in every Action, Suit, Indictment, Information, or Prosecution, General Issue wherein any Person shall be sued or prosecuted for doing any Thing by in Evidence; Virtue of this Act, the Person or Persons so sued or prosecuted, gaining Vertheir, or his, or her Executors or Administrators, may plead the General Issue, and give this Act in Evidence in any Court within this Island; and if there be a Verdict for such Party prosecuted, the Prosecutor shall pay treble Costs; and this Act shall be deemed a Pub dict, to have treble Costs. Act, Public. 10th GEO. 1. Nis. 176, 177. A. D. 1723 lick Act, and all Judges, Justices, and Juries are hereby required to take Notice thereof accordingly. in Churches, Head of Mili XLIII. And that all Persons may have due Notice of this Act, it Act to be read shall be read in all Parish Churches and Chapels of Ease in this and at the Island, on the Sunday before Christmas-day next, and the next Sunday tary Bodies before Christmas-day in every Year, and at the Head of the Troop of yearly. Carbineers, and the Head of each Regiment of Foot, at their next Meetings respectively, after passing the same, and at their first Meeting before Christmas-Day in every Year. Dated at the Town of St. John's, this ninth Day of December, in the Year of our Lord God one thousand seven hundred and twenty-three, and in the tenth Year of the Reign of our Sovereign Lord GEORGE, by the Grace of God of Great Britain, France, and Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith, &c. An Act for constituting a Court to hold Plea of foreign No. 177. Attachment, according to the Custom of the City of London. Dated 17th February, 1723. 10th GEO. I. Nis. 178-180. A. D. 1724. PRIVATE. No. 178. An Act for cutting off the Intail of certain Lands, and Tenements, and Hereditaments, in Antigua, belonging to John Vernon, of the Parish of Saint James's Westminster, Esquire. Dated 1st May, 1724. PRIVATE. No 179. An Act for encouraging Thomas Martin of this Island, Carpenter, in his new Projection of Wind-mills and Cattle-mills. Dated 12th May, 1724. No. 180. An Act for cleaning and amending the Highways in this ENLARGED by Act of 24th Sept. 1753, (No. 204.) ALTERED by Act of 20th (No. 381.) REPEALED Island, and to repeal an Act for cleaning and enlarging Sept. 1777, WHEREAS there is an Act now in Force, intituled, An Act for cleaning and enlarging Common Paths and Highways within this Island, made the eighth Day of April, one thousand six hundred and eighty, which Act is found very defective, since the Island is become so much improved, and a further Provision is necessary to be made by a Law for repairing and amending the Highways of this Island: IN PART by repealed. II. We Your Majesty's most dutiful, loyal, and obedient Subjects, the Governor in Chief in and over all Your Majesty's Leeward Caribbee Islands in America, and the Council and Assembly of Your Majesty's Island of Antigua, do humbly pray Your Most Sacred Act No. 56 is Majesty that it may be enacted and ordained, and be it, and it is hereby enacted and ordained by the Authority aforesaid, That the above recited Act be, and the same is hereby repealed and annulled. III. And be it, and it is hereby enacted and ordained by the Authority aforesaid, That from henceforth yearly, at the Sessions of the Peace held for this Island next after Christmas, there shall be elected and appointed, by the Justices of the Peace in their said Sessions, three Persons, being Freeholders, in each Division of this Three Waywardens to be chosen in each Division. By No. 204, S. St. John's have six Way Division to wardens. Island, |