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brought before them by appeals and writs of errour to reverse decrees of the high court of chancery, judgments of the general court, and sentences of the court of admiralty; after those decisions shall be final there, if the matter in controversy be equal in value, exclusive of costs, to fifty pounds, or be a freehold or franchise; and also in such cases as shall be removed before them by adjournment from the other courts before mentioned, when questions, in their opinion, new and difficult occur; and moreover in such, wherein appeals to reverse decrees and judgments of the former general court, and sentences of the court of vice admiralty, as had not been determined, the one by the king of Great Britain in his privy council, the other by the high court of admiralty of Great Britain, before the fifteenth day of April, one thousand seven hundred and seventy six. The court shall appoint a clerk, tipstaff, Clerk, tipand crier, the first removable for misbehaviour, the staff, and two others at pleasure, and shall be attended by the sheriff of the county in which they sit, as their officer, tend. The party desiring to prosecute such appeal or writ Appeals, of errour, shall proceed in like manner, and shall be writs of erliable to like damages if the decree, judgment, or sentence be affirmed; and the said clerk shall issue the like process for summoning the adverse party, removing the records, suspending execution, and for every other requisite purpose, making those alterations in the form which are necessary to adapt it to the case, as are prescribed and ascertained in case of an appeal or writ of errour to reverse the decree, sentence, or judgment of a county, city, or borough court; and such prosecution shall be commenced within the time limited in the case last mentioned, unless it be such appeal to the said king or high court of admiralty, in which instance the prosecution shall be cominenecd within twelve months after the first session of the said court of appeals shall be ended. The said clerk shall Duty of carefully preserve the transcripts of records certified clerks, as to to his court, with the bonds for prosecution, and all records, bonds, &c. papers relative to them, and other suits depending therein, docketing them in the order he shall receive Docketting them, that they may be heard in the same course, un- causes. less the court for good cause to them shewn, direct any to be heard out of its turn; and shali faithfully record their proceedings and decisions, and certify such as

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shall be given upon appeals, writs of errour, and matters removed by adjournment to the proper courts. A Statements clear and concise state of the case of each party in such appeal, writ of errour, or controversy adjourned by reason of novelty and difficulty, with the points intended to be insisted upon, signed by his counsel and printed, the expence whereof shall be taxed in the bill of costs, shall be delivered to every judge time enough before the hearing for his consideration; but the court, if this be neglected, may nevertheless hear and determine the matter, and may take into their consideration any thing apparent in the manuscript record, although it be omitted in such printed case, and may give such decree, judgment, or sentence, if it be not affirmed or reversed in the whole, as the court whose errour Is sought to be corrected, ought to have given (affirming in those cases where the voices on both sides shall Decisions, be equal, with an allowance of the costs of appeal) to the party prevailing, to be certified as well as their opinion upon any adjourned question to the court, from which the matter was removed, who shall enter it as their own, and award execution thereupon accordingly. So much of a former act of assembly constituting a court of appeals, as comes within the perview of this act, is hereby repealed.

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CHAP. XXII

An act to secure the moveable property of those who have joined, or hereafter may join the enemy.

WHEREAS during the present war, particularly in the late invasion, many persons have left this commonwealth and gone off with the enemy, some of whom have left many articles of moveable property behind them; that such property therefore may be immediately secured, Be it enacted by the General Assembly, That the governour, with the advice of the council, is

hereby empowered and required to appoint a person in each county within this commonwealth, wherein it may be necessary, to inquire into and secure all the slaves and other moveable property of all such persons as already have, or hereafter may depart and join the enemy, until the same can be proceeded in according to law. And that after office found, such moveable property when secured, shall be disposed of by the es- escheator. cheator of the county according to law.

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An act for punishing persons guilty (See Revised of certain thefts and forgeries, and fixing the allowance to sheriffs, ve niremen, and witnesses, in certain

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BE it enacted by the General Assembly, That he or Stealing, or she shall be adjudged a felon and not have the benefit saking of clergy, who shall steal, or by robbery take from the possession or custody of another, any bill of credit or treasury note, or loan office certificate of the United States, or any of them, or any warrant of the

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nour or other person exercising that function, orany zielony, swithcertificate of the auditors for publick accounts to the out clergy. treasurer, authorising the payment of money, or shall present, or cause to be presented, such loan office certificate at a loan office of the United States, or any of them, for the discharge of the whole or any part thereof, or such warrant or auditors certificate at the publick treasury for the payment thereof, knowing such loan office certificate or warrant, or auditors certificate to have been stolen, or by robbery taken from the possession or custody of another. And he or she shall be adjudged a felon and not have the benefit of clergy, warrants, who shall falsely make, forge, or counterfeit, or aid or treasury assist in falsely making, forging, or counterfeiting a felony withwriting, signed and directed, or certified to the pub- out clergy

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lick treasurer, purporting to be a warrant of the governour, or other person exercising that function, or at certificate of the auditors for publick accounts to authorize the payment of money; or cause or procure such writing to be falsely made, forged, or counterfeited; or present such writing, or cause or procure it to be presented at the publick treasury, knowing it to have been falsely made, forged, or counterfeited, in order to receive the money, or any part of the money therein mentioned; or shall falsely make, forge, or counterfeit, or aid or assist in falsely making, forging, or counterfeiting, a writing to be offered to the auditors for publick accounts as a voucher, in order to obtain their allowance of a demand, and certificate of such allowance; or cause or procure such writing to be falsely made, forged, or counterfeited, or offer such writing, or cause or procure it to be offered to the said auditors, knowing it to have been falsely made, forged, or counterfeited, in order to obtain their allowance and certificate aforesaid. And he or she shall be adjudged a felon and not have the benefit of clergy, who shall forge or counterfeit, alter or erase, any bill of credit or treasury note, or loan office certificate of the United States of America, or any or either of them; or shall cause or procure such bill of credit or treasury note or loan office certificate to be forged or counterfeited, altered or erased; or shall aid or assist in forging or counterfeiting, altering or erasing such bill of credit or treasury note, or loan office certificate; or shall pass or tender, or shall cause or procure to be passed or tendered any such bill of credit or treasury note, or loan office certificate in payment or exchange, knowing the same to have been forged or counterfeitHaving in ed, altered or erased; or shall have in his or her custopossession, dy or possession, any press, types, stamp, plate, or for forging other instrument necessary to be used in the fabricaor counter- tion of such bill of credit or treasury note, or loan of feiting. fice certificate, and not actually used in some publick printing office; or any paper with or without signature, on which the characters, words, and numerical figures contained in a genuine bill of credit or treasury note, or loan office certificate, are or shall be impressed or inscribed in like order as they are in such bill of credit or treasury note, or loan office certificate, or any such bill of credit, treasury note, or loan office certifi

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cate, which hath been altered or erased, knowing the same to have been altered or erased, and shall not discover such press, types, stamp, plate, instrument, paper, or altered or erased bill of credit or treasury note, or loan office certificate, to two justices of the peace before the last day of June, in this present year, one thousand seven hundred and seventy nine, or within five days after they shall have come to his possession. When the justices of a county in which any such felo- Proceedings ny as is before described shall be supposed to have against of been done, shail have determined, upon examination, that the person charged therewith ought to be tried before the general court, the high sheriff, or if he be not able to attend, the coroner shall deliver to them a list of the names of thirty six good and lawful men, out of which, twenty four shall be stricken, one after another, the justices and the prisoner striking alternately, or if the prisoner refuse to strike, the justices striking only, and the remaining twelve men shall be summoned by the writ of venire facias for trial of the prisoner. When a justice of peace, before whom a person charged upon oath with any such felony as aforesaid, shall inform the governour that he hath cause to suspect that the offender, if he or she should be committed to the jail of the county in which the felony was done would be rescued (which information the justice is required to give in writing, with secrecy and despatch) or when a person shall be charged upon oath made before the governour with such felony, in either case, the governour, with advice of the council of state, may by his warrant, empower and order so many men as shall be judged sufficient to apprehend the person accused, and convey and cominit him or her to any other jail, in which he or she shall be detained, and shall by another warrant direct the sheriff of that county in which the last mentioned jail is, to summon the justices thereof to meet at the courthouse before the end of twenty days afterwards; and thereupon the said justices shall proceed in the same manner as they might have proceeded if the fact alledged against the prisoner had been done in their own county. And if he or she be remanded, the clerk of the peace attending the said justices, shall, within twenty days afterwards, certify the same to the sheriff of the county in which the fact was done, or failing to do so; shall forfeit one

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