faid, unless he or they have refpectively done the fame; and if any perfon or perfons, fo as aforefaid appointed agent or agents (who have not already done the fame) fhall refufe or neglect fo to do, on or before the first day of August, one thousand seven hundred and forty seven, in Great Britain, and on or before the first day of October, one thousand feven hundred and forty feven, in America, or other his Majefty's dominions; or if any perfon or perfons, hereafter to be appointed agent or agents for the purposes aforefaid, thall refufe or neglect to exhibit, and caufe to be registered in any of the courts of admiralty aforefaid, his or their refpective letter or letters of attorney, appointing him or them agent or agents as aforesaid, for the space of fix calendar months after fentence of condemnation of months after any prize or prizes fhall be given in any of the faid courts of ad miralty, for the care and distribution of which he or they shall be appointed agent or agents; fuch perfon or perfons, agent or agents, refufing or neglecting, fhall forfeit the fum of five hununder penalty dred pounds; to be recovered by him or them who will fue for of 500l. the fame., by action of debt, bill, plaint, or information, in any court of record in Great Britain, America, or in any other of his Majesty's dominions, or elsewhere; in which no efsoin, protection, privilege, or wager of law, or more than one imparlance, fhall be allowed.

within fix

condemna.

tion;

Agents upXII. Provided always, That if any agent or agents shall be pointed after appointed after the time any fentence of condemnation in any condemna- of the faid courts of admiralty fhall be given, fuch agent or ation of prize, to regif ter gents fhall, under the aforefaid penalty, regifter, or cause to be their le tters of registered, in manner aforefaid, his or their refpective letter or attorney with letters of attorney, appointing him or them agent or agents as in fix I nonths. aforefaid, within the space of fix calendar months after the date of his or their faid letter or letters of attorney.

&c.

Regist ers in the co urts of admir alty in

America, &c. fhall y early tranfc ribe all

courts, &c.

XIII. And be it further enacted by the authority aforefaid, That the register or regifters of all and every the court and courts of admiralty in any of his Majefty's plantations in America, or elsewhere, in any other of his Majefty's dominions, fhall, yearly and every year upon the twenty third day of October, or letters of atwithin three calendar months next after the same, make out torne regi- and transcribe true copies of all and every fuch letter and letters tered in fuch of attorney, as fhall be fo registered in the faid court or courts, and tranfmit to which the judge and judges of the faid court and courts shall the fame to affix his and their feal of office; and then the faid register and the treasurer registers shall tranfmit the fame to the treasurer of the said of Greenwich royal hofpital at Greenwich, to be there registered, and to be inHofp ital; fpected by any perfon gratis; the charges of which copies, and affixing the feal or feals thereto, and tranfmitting the fame to the treasurer of the faid hofpital, fhall be paid by the said agent or agents, at the time of making such registry as aforefaid; and in cafe fuch register or registers fhall neglect or refuse to transcribe and tranfmit fuch copy and copies of the faid letter and letters of attorney, in manner aforefaid (any ship or ships in that time failing from such port or place, to any port or ports in

Grea

Great Britain) fuch regifter and regifters fo neglecting or refufing, shall forfeit the fum of five hundred pounds, to be reco- Penalty 500l. vered by him or them who will fue for the fame, by action of debt, bill, plaint, or information, in any court of record in Great Britain or America, or in any other of his Majefty's dominions, or elsewhere; in which no effoin, protection, privilege, or wager of law, or more than one imparlance fhall be allowed.

dence.

XIV. And for the more effectual making fuch letters of at- Copies of the torney evidence of the agency of the perfon or perfons to whom letters of atthe fame are made, be it further enacted by the authority afore- torney, &c. faid, That true copies of fuch letter and letters of attorney, and good evi-. of transcripts, under feal, tranfmitted by the faid regifter or regifters of the court and courts of admiralty of his Majesty's plantations in America, and elsewhere within his Majesty's dominions, and registered by the said treasurer of Greenwich Hofpital, fhall, from time to time, and at all times hereafter, be good and fufficient evidence of the agency of the perfon or perfons to whom fuch letter of attorney is or fhall be made, and from time to time, and at all times hereafter fhall be admitted, without further or other proof thereof, to be legal evidence in all his Majefty courts of record of law or equity; any law, custom, or ufage to the contrary thereof in any wife notwithstanding.

XV. And whereas feveral of the agents for prizes have, fince the twenty ninth day of March, one thousand feven hundred and forty four, been vexatiously fued by perfons who have been made run in the lifts of the names of the officers, feamen, marines, foldiers, or others who were actually on board fuch of his Majesty's fhips or vessels of war, at the taking of fuch prize or prizes, and which faid lifts were duly certified after the condemnation of fuch prize or prizes, and tranfmitted to the faid agents, though the plaintiffs in fuch fuits knew, that by the feveral acts of parliament herein before recited, and paffed in the thirteenth and feventeenth years of his prefent Majefty, their respective shares of such prizes were forfeited by their running away from the fervice, and granted to the ufe of Greenwich Hospital, and that the faid agents are but the receivers thereof, and have the care and cuftody of the monies arifing by fuch shares, to and for the benefit of the faid hofpital, till the end of three years limited by the faid acts, and within three calendar months after the expiration of which three years the said agents are obliged by the faid acts to account for, and pay over the fame to the ufe of the faid hofpital, under certain penalties in the faid acts contained; which faid run-men very often commence thefe fuits before all the times appointed for the payment of the faid fhares are expired, and being generally paupers, they often difcontinue the faid fuits, and abfcond, whereby the faid agents are put to great cofts in the defence of the fame, and have no means of recovering the fame, and therefore deduct fuch cofts out of the monies arifing from fuch fbares, remaining in their hands, at the time of their accounting with, and paying it to the treasurer of the faid hofpital, or his deputy, who are not authorized by the faid Ets to allow the fame; nor can the governor and directors of the

faid hofpital enter into the defence of the faid fuits, whilst the said monies remain in the faid agents hands, till it becomes payable to the Agents not li- faid hofpital, according to the directions of the faid acts; be it thereable to be fued fore enacted by the authority aforefaid, That no agent or agents by perfons fhall be liable to be fued, impleaded, or arrefted, by any perfon made run. or perfons who fhall hereafter be made run from his Majesty's service, in the faid lifts tranfmitted to them of the names of the officers, feamen, marines, foldiers, or others intitled to fuch till 3 months fhares, till the end of three months next after the expiration of after the 3 three years, limited by the acts aforefaid, unless the person or years limited, unle's certifi- perfons fo made run, fhall obtain a certificate, before any action cates he firft brought, from the commiffioners of his Majefty's navy, who fubfcribed and tranfmitted the faid lifts, the faid agent or agents, or fome of them, or their proper officer or officers, that the R or R's are taken off, and the forfeitures of fuch share or shares discharged, and the faid agent or agents, on the producing such certificate or certificates, fhall refufe to pay the fame, in case the fame be due and payable, according to the directions in his Majefty's faid declaration, within two months after demand made on fuch certificate.

obtained of the R's being taken off, &c.

XVI. And whereas feveral of the common pensioners and nurses in the faid royal hofpital of late have pawned or otherwife difpofed of the wearing clothes, linen, and other goods delivered to them to wear and ufe, during their being penfioners or nurses of the faid hofpital, and continuing therein, and put the said hofpital to great charge in redeeming or purchafing the fame, and are much encouraged by pawnbrokers and other ill-difpofed perfons, for lucre's fake, fo to do, though they know the perfon or perfons who pawn or fell fuch clothes and linen, by the colour, make, and marks of and in the faid clothes and linen, bave no abfolute or legal intereft or property in the fame and that the faid penfioners and nurfes do often defert and run away from the faid hofpital, and carry away their clothes and linen with them: therefore for preventing fuch practices for the future, be it enacted by the authority aforefaid, That if any pawnbroker or other perfon or perfons fhall take to pawn, buy, exchange, or receive, any clothes, linen, or other goods or ftores belonging to his Majefty, his heirs or fucceffors, or to the governor and directors of the faid hofpital, appropriated to and for the wear of the faid penfioners or nurfes during their continuance in the said hospital, or belonging thereto, and to the use of the faid hofpital, from any of the faid penfioners, nurses, or other or changing perfon or perfons upon any account or pretence whatsoever, or the colour, or caufe the colour of such clothes, linen, or goods to be changed, marks, to foror the marks thereon to be taken out or defaced, the perfon or feit 51. perfons fo offending thall forfeit for every fuch offence the fum of five pounds upon conviction thereof, by the oath of one or more credible witnefs or witneffes, before any of his Majesty's juftices of the peace of the county wherein the faid offence or offences fhall be committed; which penalty or penalties of five pounds fhall be levied by warrant under the hand and feal, or hands and feals of the faid juftice or juftices of the peace, by

Perfons taking to pawn clothes, &c. belonging to the hofpital.

diftrefs

fale.

committed for

3 months;

distress and fale of the goods and chattels of the said offender or to be levied by offenders; one moiety of which faid penalty or penalties fhall diftress and be paid to the informer or informers, and the other moiety fhall go and be paid to the ufe of the said hofpital; and in cafe any Difpofal of the fuch offender or offenders, who fhall be convicted as aforefaid, forfeiture. of having bought, exchanged, received, or taken in pawn any For want of fuch clothes, linen, or other goods or stores as aforefaid, or of diftrefs ofhaving caufed the colour of fuch clothes, linen, or goods to be fender to be changed, contrary to the intent of this act, fhall not have fufficient goods and chattels, whereon diftress may be made, to the value of the penalty or penalties recovered against him, her, or them, for fuch offence or offences, or fhall not pay fuch penalty or penalties within four days after fuch conviction, then, and in fuch case, fuch juftice of the peace fhall and may, by warrant under his hand and feal, either commit fuch offender or offenders to the common gaol of the county where such offence or offences fhall be committed, there to remain without bail or mainprize for the space of three months, or cause such or to be pub offender or offenders to be publickly whipt, at the difcretion of lickly whipt. fuch juftice; and that if any penfioner, or nurfe of the said hofpital, fhall defert or run away from the fame, and carry a- Penfioners or way with them any clothes, linen, ftores, or goods delivered to off with the nurses going him, her, or them, to wear and ufe, whilft they, or any of hofpital them, was or were penfioners or nurses of or belonging to the clothes, &c. faid hofpital, or any other clothes, goods, or ftores belonging to be commit thereto; fuch perfon or perfons being lawfully convicted there- ted for fix of, by the oath or oaths of one or more credible witness or witneffes, fhall be committed to the common gaol or house of correction, where he, the, or they fhall be apprehended, for the fpace of fix months, without bail or mainprize.

months.

&c.

XVII. And be it further enacted by the authority aforefaid, Perfons fued That if at any time or times hereafter, any perfon or perfons on this act, fhall be fued for any matter or thing done in the execution of this act, or if the governor, mafter, lieutenant governor, directors, captains, or any other officers of the faid royal hospital at Greenwich, commonly called the officers of the house, who now are, or at any time hereafter shall be concerned in the government of the faid hofpital or house, or any steward, minifter, fervant, or agent, employed or to be employed by the governor, master, lieutenant governor, or directors, in collecting or receiving the rents and revenues of the faid house, or in any other matter or thing relating to the faid house, or any or either of them, fhall be fued for any matter or thing done in the execution of this act, or in any wife relating to the faid hospital or houfe, fuch governor, master, lieutenant governor, directors, captains, and officers of the faid house, and their stewards, minifters, fervants, and agents, and each and every of them, shall and may plead the general iffue, and give the fpecial matter in evidence; and if upon trial the plaintiff or plaintiffs fhall be to plead the come nonfuit, or if a verdict shall be given against him or them, general issue. the defendant or defendants fhall recover treble his and their Treble costs, VOL. XIX. cofts

F

cofts of fuit, and may levy the fame by execution, to be awarded out of the court, where fuch action or actions shall be brought.

CAP. XXV.

An act for repairing the high road leading from the town of Stockton upon Tees, to Darlington, and from thence through Winston to Barnard Castle, in the fame county.

Certain tolls granted for 21 years. Enlarged by 22 Geo. 2. c. 51.

CAP. XXVI.

An act for reviving and continuing an act paffed in the fixth year of the reign of his late majefty King George the Firft, intituled, An act for laying a duty of two penny Scots, or one fixth part of a penny ferling, upon every Scots pint of beer or ale vended or fold within the town of Bruntifland, and liberties thereof for increasing the publick revenue of the faid town, and for other purposes therein mentioned.

The act 6 Geo. 2. c. 8. revived and continued for 31 years.

CAP. XXVII.

An act for founding and building a chapel in Wednesfield, in the parish of Wolverhampton, in the county of Stafford.

CAP. XXVIII.

An act for repairing the road leading from Catherick Bridge in the county of York, to Yarm in the faid county; and from thence to Stockton in the county of Durham; and from thence through Sedgefield, in the faid county of Durham, to the city of Durham.

Certain tolls granted for 21 years.

CAP. XXIX.

An act to confirm an agreement made by the rector and veftrymen of the parish of Saint James within the liberty of Westminster, for enlarging the churchyard of the said parish, and for other purposes therein mentioned.

CAP. XXX.

An act for allowing perfons impeached of high treason, whereby any corruption of blood may be made, or for mifprifion of fuch treafon, to make their full defence by council.

HEREAS it is thought reafonable, that perfons impeached by the house of commons of high treafon, whereby any corruption of blood is made, or for misprifion of fuch treafon, fhould have the fame benefit and advantage in making their defence, as they may have on indictments, or other profecutions: the commons therefore humbly pray your Majefty that it may be enacted, and be it enacted by the King's moft excellent majefty, by and with the advice and confent of the lords fpiritual and temporal, and commons, in this prefent parliament affembled, and by the authority of the fame, That from and after the first day of June, lowed to perin the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and forty fons impeach- feven, all and every perfon and perfons whatsoever, who shall ed of high be impeached by the commons of Great Britain of any high treafon by the treafon, whereby any corruption of blood may or fhall be made

Council al

commons.

to