Or to any building whatsoever.] A church is included under these general words of the statute. Leach's Cr. L. 296. East's Cr. L. 592.

accuse persons

LETTERS, THREATENING.]-By 30 Geo. 2. c. 24, All persons Sending letters, who shall knowingly send or deliver any letter or writing, with threatening to or without a nime subscribed thereto, or signed with a of crimes. fictitious name, letter, or letiers, threatening to accuse any person of any crime punishable by law with death, transpor tation, pillory, or any other infamous punishment, with intent to extort or gain money, goods, wares, or merchandises*, from the person threatened to be accused, shall be deemed offenders against law, and the public peace, and the court before whom such offenders shall be tried shall, in case they be convicted, order such offenders to be fined, and imprisoned; or to be put in the pillory; or publicly whipped; or to be transported, as soon as may be, according to the laws made for transporting of felons, for the term of seven years, as the court shall think fit. s. 1.

LODGERS.-It was formerly a doubt, whether a lodger, by reason of the special property he had in the furniture of his lodgings, could be guilty of felony in taking them away. Kel. 21. Show. 50, 57. i Hawk. c. 33. s. 10.

But now by 3 & 4 Will. & Mar. c. 9, It is enacted, that if any person or persons shall take away with intent to steal, imbezzle, or purloin any chattel, bedding or furniture, which by contract or agreement, he or they are to use, or shall be let to him or them to use, in or with such lodging, such taking, imbezzling or purloining, shall be adjudged larceny and felony.

s. 5.

An offender to come within the meaning of this act, must be a lodger at the time the larceny is committed. Old Bail. sess. 1785, No. 74.

And where a whole house is let ready furnished, and according to some where the party by agreement is to make good every thing which is missing or injured in a common lodging, for stealing the goods out of such a lodging house, or ordinary lodging, no indictment will he on this statute.

MARRIAGES.]-By 26 Geo. 2. c. 33, If any person shall solemnise matrimony, except the parties are Quakers or Jews, in any other place than a church or public chapel, where banns have been usually published, unless by special licence from the

* If it demand in express terms any money, venison, or valuable thing, or threaten to kill, murder or barn, it is felony without clergy,by 9 Geo. 1.c. 22. and 27 Geo. 2. c. 15.-See Black Act, intrą,

Destroying en

gines therein.

archbishop of Canterbury: or shall solemnise matrimony, without publication of banns, unless licence of marriage be first obtained from some person, having authority to grant the same, he shall be guilty of felony, and transported for fourteen years, and the marriage be null and vo.d.-The prosecution to be within three years. s. 8, 9.

MINES OF LEAD, TIN, COPPER, AND OTHER MINERALS.]— By 9 Geo. 3. c. 29, If any person hall wilfully or maliciously set fire to, burn, demolish, pull down, or otherwise destroy or damage, any fire-engine, or other engine erected for draining water from collieries or coal mines or for drawing coals out of the same; or for draining water from any mine of lead, tin, copper, or other mineral; or any bridge, waggon way, or trak erected for conveying coals from any colliery or coal mine, or staith for depositing the same, or any bridge or waggon way erected, fo conveying lead, tin, copper, or other mineral, from any such mine; every such person convicted within eighteen months of any of the said offences, or of procuring the same to be done, shall be adjudged guilty of felony, and the court shall have power to transport such felon for seven years. s. 3. See also Black Lead.

MUTINY.]-By 22 & 23 Car. 2. c. 11. Every MARINER who shall have laid violent hands on his commander, to hinder him from fighting in defence of his ship and goods, shall suffer death as a felon*. s. 9.

And by 2 & 3 Ann. c. 20, If any officer or soldier of THE ARMY, either upon land out of England, or upon the sea, shall raise any mutiny or sedition in the army, or shall refuse to obey his superior officer, or shall resist any officer in the execution of his office, or shall strike, draw, or offer to draw any weapon against his superior officer, he shall be guilty of felony; but without corruption of blood or loss of dower: and such felony may be enquired of in the King's Bench, or before such commissioners and in such county as shall be assigned by the crown but if such person shall be tried and acquitted, or convicted in a court martial, the same shall be a bar to any indictment or proceeding for the same offence: and peers not having been tried by martial law, shall have their trial by their peers. s. 35, 36, 40, 41, 42. See also Desertion.

NAVIGABLE RIVERS AND CANALS.]-Drawing up floodgates on navigable rivers is felony, and transportation for seven years. 4 Geo. 3. c. 12. s. 5.

See also PIRACY.

OATHS.]-By 37 Geo. 3. c. 123, Persons administering oaths to engage in any mutinous or seditious purpose, are declared to be guilty of felony, and may be transported for seven years. See general title SEDITIOUS PRACTICES.

PERJURY.]-Persons convicted of wilful and corrupt perjury, or subornation of perjury, may be ordered by the court to be sent to some house of correction within the county, for not exceeding seven years or to be transported for not exceeding seven years; but this is not to work corruption of blood, loss of dower, or disherison of heirs. 2 Geo. 2. c. 25. s 2. (ex. tended to quakers making false affirmation, 22 Geo. 2. c. 46. 1.36).-See general title PERJURY.

POLYGAMY. By 1 Jac. c. 11, If any person within England and Wales, being married, do marry any person, the for er husband or wife being alive, every such offence shall be feloAy, and the person so oftending shall suffer death, as in cases of felony. s. 1

And shall receive the like trial and execution in such county, where such person, shall be apprehended, as if the offence had been committed in such county. s. 1.

And by 35 Geo. 3. c. 67, If any persons shall be so convicted under the said act of Jac. 1. they shall be subject to the same punishment, pains, and penalties, as persons convicted of grand or petit larceny. s. 1.

This by 4 Geo. 1. c. 11. may be transportation for seven years.

And if the offender return to Great Britain, before the expiration of the term for which he shall have been transported, he shall be guilty of felony without benefit of clergy, and may be tried either in the county where convicted or where ap. prehended, and a short transcript from the clerk of the assize, shall be evidence of the first conviction. 35 Geo. 3. c. 67. s. 2, 3.

But this shall not extend to any person whose husband or wife shall be continually remaining beyond the seas for seven years together; or whose husband or wife shall absent him or herself, the one from the other, for seven years together, in any part within his majesty's dominions, the one of them not knowing the other to be living within that time. 1 Jac. 1. c.

11. 8. 2.

Nor shall it extend to any person who shall be at the time of such marriage divorced by sentence in the ecclesiastical court; -nor to any person where the former marriage shall be by sentence in the ecclesiastical court declared void and of no effect:-nor to any person by reason of any former marriage had within age of consent. 1 Jac. 1. c. 11. s. 3-that is, fourteen in males and twelve in females.

And no attainder for this offence shall work corruption of

blood, loss of dower or disinherison of heirs. 1 Jac. 1. c. 11. 5.4.

Upon the construction of these statutes it has been held, 1. This law is general, and extendeth to all persons, of what estate or degree soever, 3 Inst. 89.

2. If the first marriage were beyond sea,and the latter in Eng. land, the party may be indicted for it here, because it is the latter marriage that makes the offence; but if the first marriage were in England, and the latter beyond sea, the offender cannot be indicted here, because the offence was not within the kingdom. 1 Sider. 171. Kely. 79. 1 Hale's Hist. 693.

3. The words being married, extend to a marriage de facto, though voidable by reason of a precontract, or of consanguini ty, or of affinity, or the like: for it is a marriage in judgment of law, until it be avoided, and therefore though neither marriage be de jure, yet they are within the statute. 3 Inst. 88.

And in a prosecution for this offence, a marriage in fact, must be proved; and proof of acknowledgment, cohabitation, reputation, and other circumstances, from which a mar. riage may be inferred, will not be sufficient. 4 Burrows. 2009.

And the first and true wife is not to be allowed as a witness against the husband; although the second wife may, for she is not his wife so much as de fucto. 1 Hale's Hist. 693.

4. Under the words shall marry any person, the former husband or wife being alive. It is agreed, that, if a woman marries a firet husband and then a second, the former being living, and then thefirst dies; if she marry a third, pending the life of the second, this is not within the statute; for it is not marrying a second husband, the former being alive; the marriage to the second, pending the life of the first, being merely void, and the party conse quently no husband; but if the first and lawful husband had been living, it would have been felony to marry the third. I Hale's Hist. 693.

And although the second marriage be simply void, yet the parliament thought it just to make it felony, 1 Hale's Hist. 692.

5. Although the trial may be in the county where the offender is apprehended, yet this is added cumulative; for he may be indicted where the second marriage was, though he be never apprehend. ed, and so outlawed. 1 Hale's Hist. 694.

6. The exception whose husband or wife shall be continual ly remain ng beyond the seas, intends also the king's dominions beyond the seas; as the plantations, or Ireland. 1 Hale's Hist. 693.

And although the party in England hath notice that the other is living beyond the seas, yet it is no felony. 1 Hale's Hist.

693..

but in the further exception in favour of husband or wife absenting the one from the other for seven years together, in

eny part within his majesty's dominions, "the one of them not knowing the other to be living" within that time; if the party have notice that the other is living, it is felony, for the notice 1 Hale's Hist. in that case is material, and makes the offence.

693.

But it is to be observed, that in both cases the second mar. riage is void. 1 Hale's Hist. 693.

7. The excep ions as to persons divorced by any sentence in the ecclesiastical court, has been holden to extend not only to those who are divorced a vinculo matrimoni, but also those who are divorced only a mensa et thoro for adultery or cruelty, for this being a penal statute shall be construed favourably. 1 Hawk. c. 43. s. 5.

But in the duchess of Kingston's case, it was resolved, a sentence in the ecclesiastical court against a marriage, in a suit for jacuitation* does not preclude the crown from proving the marriage on an indictment on this statute; and admitting that such a sentence were conclusive as to the fact of marriage, the crown may avoid the effect of the conclusion, by giving evidence, that the sentence had been obtained by fraud and collusion. 11 St. Tri. 262.

7. Where either of the parties are within the age of consent, at the time of the first marriage, not only such person as was within such age, but also the other who was above it, is within the exception of the statute, because the power of disagreeing to such marriage is equal on both sides.

c. 43. s. 6.

1 Hawk.

money received

POST-OFFICE.]-By 5 Geo. 3. c. 25, If any deputy, clerk, Embezzling agent, letter carrier, or other servant, appointed and entrust. for postage; deed to take in letters or packets, and receive the postage there stroying letters, of, shall embezzle. or apply to his own use, any money by him or advancing received with such letters for the postage thereof: or shull postage,and uoɛ burn or otherwise destroy any letters or packets by him receiv. accounting. ed; or who, by virtue of their offices, shall advance the rates, and not account for the money received for such advanced postage; every such offender shall be deemed guilty of felony.

Aud by 7 Geo. 3. c. 50, it is further enacted that if any deputy, clerk, agent, letter carrier, or officer or other person whatsoever employed in any business relating to the postoffice, shall receive into his possession any letter or packet,

the

*When one of the parties boasts or gives out that he or she is married to the other, whereby a common reputation of their matrimony may ensue ; party injure may proceed against the other in the spiritual court; asd nn. less the defendant undertakes and makes proof of actual marriage, he or she is injoined perpetual vilence upon that head, which is the only remedy the ecclesiastical court can give for this injury. 3 Black. Cɔm. 93,