cording to such Order, for the Transportation or intermediate Custody of such Offender; and all Acts in force in such Place touching other Offenders to be transported shall in all respects apply as well to the Offender himself so to be transported as to all other Persons whatsoever therein concerned.

Punishment for
Desertion,

XXI. And be it enacted, That every Soldier shall be liable to Subsequent be tried and punished for Desertion from any Corps into which Enlistment no he may have enlisted, or from Her Majesty's Service, although Protection from he may of right belong to the Corps from which he shall have originally deserted; and if such Person shall be claimed as a Deserter by the Corps to which he originally belonged, and be tried as a Deserter therefrom, or shall be tried as a Deserter from any Corps into which he may have enlisted, or if he shall be tried while actually serving in some Corps for Desertion from any other Corps, every Desertion previous or subsequent to that for which he shall be under Trial, as well as every previous Conviction for any other Offence, may be given in Evidence against him; and in like Manner in the Case of any Soldier tried for any Offence whatever, any previous Convictions may be given in Evidence against him; and every Certificate which shall purport to contain a Copy of the Charges, Finding and Sentence of a Court-martial, and of the Minute of Confirmation of such Finding and Sentence, made from the Entries thereof in the original Minutes of such Courtmartial or in the Court-martial Book, and which shall further purport to be signed by the Judge Advocate General or by his Deputy, or by the Officer confirming the Proceedings, or by his Adjutant General, Brigade Major, or other like Officer in case such Copy be taken from the original Minutes, or by the Commanding Officer, Adjutant, or other Officer having the Custody of the Court-martial Book in case such Copy be taken from the said Book, shall be sufficient Evidence before a Court-martial of a Conviction by a Court-martial, and it shall not be necessary to prove the Signature or official Character of the Person appearing to have signed the Certificate, nor, if the Court be satisfied from all the Circumstances of the Case that the Prisoner under Trial is the Person mentioned in any such Certificate, shall it be necessary to give other Proofs of the Identity of the Person of the Offender; provided that no such Evidence shall in any Case be received until after the Prisoner shall have been found guilty of such Offence, and then only for the Purpose of affixing Punishment; and provided also, that after he shall so have been found guilty, and before such Evidence shall be received, it shall be proved to the Satisfaction of the Court that he had previously to his Trial received Notice of the Intention to produce such Evidence on the same; and provided further, that the Court shall in no Case award to him any greater or other Punishment or Punishments than may by this Act and by the Articles of War be awarded for the Offence of which he shall have been so found guilty.

Deserter shall be found,

XXII. And be it enacted, That it shall be lawful for the Con- Apprehension stable of any Constable can be immediately met with, then for any Officer or Soldier in Her Majesty's Service, to apprehend or cause such suspected Person to be apprehended, and to cause him to be brought

or of any adjoining Place, and if no such

C 2

before

Fraudulent
Confession of
Desertion.

before any Justice living in or near such Place, and acting for the
same or any adjoining County, who hath hereby Power to examine
such suspected Person; and if by his Confession, or the Testimony
of One or more Witnesses upon Oath, or by the Knowledge of such
Justice, it shall appear that such suspected Person is a Soldier, and
ought to be with the Corps to which he belongs, such Justice shall
forthwith cause him to be conveyed to some public Prison in such
Place, or if there be no public Prison in such Place, then, at the
Discretion of such Justice of the Peace, to the nearest or most
convenient public Prison in the same or any next adjoining
County, or, in case such Deserter shall be apprehended within the
Vicinity of any Military Prison appointed under the Authority of
this Act, to the Governor or Provost Marshal of such Prison; or
if such Deserter shall be apprehended by any Party of Soldiers
of his own Regiment, or shall be apprehended in the Vicinity of
the Head Quarters or of any Depôt of the Regiment to which he
shall belong, then such Justice may deliver such Deserter to the
Party of his Regiment, or may order such Deserter to be taken
to the Head Quarters or Depôt of the Regiment to which he shall
belong, instead of committing him to Prison; and such Justice
shall transmit an Account thereof, in the Form prescribed in the
Schedule annexed to this Act, to the Secretary at War, specifying
at the Foot thereof the Commitment to Prison or Delivery of such
Deserter to the Party of his Regiment in order for his being taken
to the Head Quarters or Depôt of his Regiment, as the Case may
be, to the end that such Person may be removed by an Order from
the Office of the said Secretary at War, and proceeded against
according to Law; and such Justice shall also send to the Secre-
tary at War a Report, stating the Names of the Persons by whom
the Deserter was apprehended and secured; and the Secretary at
War shall transmit to such Justice an Order for the Payment to
such Persons of such Sum, not exceeding Forty Shillings, as the
Secretary at War shall be satisfied they are entitled to, according
to the true Intent and Meaning of this Act; and for such Infor-
mation, Commitment, and Report as aforesaid the Clerk of the said
Justice shall be entitled to a Fee of Two Shillings and no more;
and every
Gaoler or other Person into whose Custody any Person
charged with Desertion is committed shall immediately upon the
Receipt of the Person so charged into his Custody notify the Fact
to the Secretary at War, and transmit also to the Secretary at War
a Copy of the Commitment.

XXIII. And be it enacted, That any Person who shall voluntarily deliver himself up and confess himself to be a Deserter from Her Majesty's Forces, or the embodied Militia, or the Forces of the East India Company, or who, while serving in any of Her Majesty's Forces, or the embodied Militia, or the Forces of the East India Company, shall to any Officer or Non-commissioned Officer thereof confess himself to be a Deserter as aforesaid, or who, upon being apprehended for any Offence, shall, in the Presence of the Justice, confess himself to be a Deserter as aforesaid, shall be deemed to have been duly enlisted and to be a Soldier, and shall be liable to serve in any of Her Majesty's Forces, as Her Majesty shall think fit to appoint, whether such Person shall have been ever actually enlisted as a Soldier or not; or in case such

Person

Person shall not be a Deserter as aforesaid, he shall be liable to be taken before Two Justices of the Peace, and, on Proof that any such Confession as aforesaid was false, shall by them be adjudged to be punished, if in England, as a Rogue and Vagabond, and if in Scotland or Ireland by Commitment to some Prison or House of Correction, there to be kept to hard Labour for any Time not exceeding Three Months, or be deemed guilty of obtaining Money under false Pretences within the true Intent and Meaning, if in England, of an Act passed in the Seventh and Eighth Years of

His Majesty King George the Fourth, intituled An Act for con- 7&8 G. 4. c. 29. solidating and amending the Laws in England relative to Larceny and other Offences connected therewith; and if in Ireland, of an Act passed in the Ninth Year of the Reign of His Majesty King

George the Fourth, intituled An Act for consolidating and amend- 9 G. 4. c. 55. ing the Laws in Ireland relative to Larceny and other Offences connected therewith; or shall be deemed guilty, if in Scotland, of Falsehood, Fraud, and wilful Imposition; and every Person so deemed to be guilty of obtaining Money under false Pretences, or of Falsehood, Fraud, and wilful Imposition, as the Case may be, shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly; and the Confession and receiving Subsistence as a Soldier by such Person shall be Evidence of the false Pretence, or of the Falsehood, Fraud, and Imposition, as the Case may be, and of the obtaining Money to the Amount of the Value of such Subsistence, and the Value of such Subsistence so obtained may be charged in the Indictment as so much Money received by such Person; and in case such Person shall have been previously convicted of the like Offence, or shall have been summarily convicted and punished in England as a Rogue and Vagabond, or in Scotland or Ireland by Commitment, for making a fraudulent Confession of Desertion, such former Conviction may be alleged in the Indictment, and may be proved upon the Trial of such Person; and in such Indictment for a Second Offence it shall be sufficient to state that the Offender was at a certain Time and Place convicted of obtaining Money under false Pretences as a Deserter, or for making a fraudulent Confession of Desertion, without otherwise describing the said Offence; and a Certificate containing the Substance and Effect only (omitting the formal Part) of the Indictment and Conviction for the former Offence, purporting to be signed by the Clerk of the Court or other Officer having the Custody of the Records of the Court where the Offender was first convicted, or by the Deputy of such Clerk, or by the Clerk of the convicting Magistrates, shall, upon Proof of the Identity of the Person of the Offender, be sufficient Evidence of the first Conviction, without Proof of the Signature or official Character of the Person appearing to have signed the same; and if the Person so confessing himself to be a Deserter shall be serving at the Time in any

be dealt with by all Justices and Gaolers as a Deserter.

XXVII. And be it enacted, That, save as herein-before specially Term of Improvided, any Term of Imprisonment under the Sentence of a prisonment to Court-martial, whether original or revised, shall be reckoned as commence on commencing on the Day on which the original Sentence and Proceedings shall have been signed by the President; and the Place signing the ori.

of

the Day of

ginal Sentence,

and Place of Imprisonment to be appointed by the Officer commanding the District, &c.

moval of Pri

soners.

of Imprisonment under the Sentences of General Courts-martial shall be appointed by the Officer commanding the District, Garrison, Island, or Colony, and under the Sentence of any other Court-martial shall be appointed by the Officer confirming the Proceedings of such Court-martial, and in default of Appointment by any such Officer then the Place of Imprisonment shall be appointed by the Officer commanding the Regiment or Corps to Proviso for Re. which the Offender belongs or is attached : Provided always, that it shall be lawful for the Officer commanding the Regiment or Corps, in the Case of a Prisoner undergoing Imprisonment under the Sentence of a Regimental Court-martial, of his sole Authority, and in all other Cases with the Consent of the Officer commanding the District, Garrison, Island, or Colony, or of the Officer by whom the Sentence of the Court shall have been confirmed, to give, as often as Occasion may arise, an Order in Writing directing that the Prisoner be discharged, or be delivered over to Military Custody, whether for the Purpose of being removed to some other Prison or Place, there to undergo the Remainder or any Part of his Sentence, or for the Purpose of being brought before a Courtmartial either as a Witness or for Trial; and such Prisoner shall accordingly, on the Production of such Order, be discharged or be delivered over, as the Case may be; provided also, that the Time during which any Prisoner under Sentence of Imprisonment by a Court-martial shall be detained in Military Custody shall be reckoned as Imprisonment under the Sentence, for whatever Purpose such Detention shall take place.

Secretary at
War may set

apart Buildings
as Military
Prisons, and

appoint Officers, and make Rules and Regulations for Go

same.

XXVIII. And be it enacted, That it shall be lawful for the Secretary at War to set apart any Buildings now erected or which may hereafter be erected, or any Part or Parts thereof, as Military Prisons, and to declare that any Building, or any Two or more separate and detached Buildings, shall be, and thenceforth such Building or Buildings shall be deemed and taken to be, a Military Prison; and every Military Prison, whether the same now exist or may hereafter be established, which shall be or which under the vernment of the Provisions of any former Act of Parliament have been, so as aforesaid set apart or declared, shall be deemed to be a public Prison within the Meaning of this Act; and it shall be lawful for the Secretary at War from Time to Time to appoint a Governor or Provost Marshal, and all other necessary Officers and Servants, for any such Military Prison, and, as Occasion may arise, to remove the Governor or Provost Marshal, Officer or Servant, of any such Military Prison; and the General or other Officer commanding any District within which may be any such Military Prison, or such General or other Officer, and such other Person and Persons as the Secretary at War may from Time to Time appoint, shall be a Visitor or Visitors of such Prison; and every Visitor and Governor of any such Military Prison respectively shall, subject to such Rules and Regulations as may from Time to Time be made by the Secretary at War, have and exercise in respect of such Prison, and of the Governors, Officers, and Servants thereof, and of the Prisoners confined therein, all the Powers and Authorities, as well in respect of administering Oaths as otherwise, which any Visiting Justice or Governor of a County Gaol or House of Correction may respectively exercise as such;

and

and it shall be lawful for the Secretary at War from Time to Time to make, alter, and repeal Rules and Regulations for the due Government and Superintendence of any such Military Prison, and of the Governor, Provost Marshal, Officers, and Servants thereof, and of Offenders confined therein; and the Visitor or Visitors of every such Military Prison shall, on or before the First Day of July in every Year, transmit to the Secretary at War Copies of all Rules and Regulations in force on the Twenty-fifth Day of May in such Year, for the Government of such Prison, together with Copies of any new or additional Rules and Regulations which he or they may propose for the Government thereof; and the Secretary at War, on or before the First Day of August in each Year, shall transmit to the Visitor or Visitors a Copy, subscribed by him, of the Rules and Regulations which are to be observed and enforced, and the same shall accordingly be observed and enforced, within such Prison; and all and every the Powers and Authorities with respect to County Gaols or Houses of Correction which now are or which may hereafter be vested in any of Her Majesty's Principal Secretaries of State, shall, with respect to all such Military Prisons, belong to and may be exercised by the Secretary at War.

any

Gaol or

XXIX. And be it enacted, That every Governor, Provost Marshal, Gaoler, or Keeper of any public Prison or of House of Correction in any Part of Her Majesty's Dominions shall receive into his Custody any Military Offender under Sentence of Imprisonment by a General or other Court-martial, upon Delivery to him of an Order in Writing in that Behalf from the Officer commanding the Regiment or Corps to which the Offender belongs or is attached, which Order shall specify the Period of Imprisonment which the Offender is to undergo; and such Governor, Provost Marshal, Gaoler, or Keeper shall keep such Offender in a proper Place of Confinement, with or without hard Labour, and with or without solitary Confinement, according to the Sentence of the Court, and during the Time specified in the said Order, or until he be discharged or delivered over to Military Custody before the Expiration of that Time under an Order duly made for that Purpose; and whenever Troops are called out in aid of the Civil Power, or are stationed in Billets, or are on the Line of March, every Governor, Provost Marshal, Gaoler, or Keeper of any public Prison, Gaol, House of Correction, Lock-up House, or other Place of Confinement shall receive into his Custody any Soldier, for a Period not exceeding Seven Days, upon Delivery to him of an Order in Writing on that Behalf from the Officer commanding such Troops; and any Governor, Provost Marshal, Gaoler, or Keeper of any public Prison, Gaol, House of Correction, Lock-up House, or other Place of Confinement, who shall refuse to receive and to confine, or to discharge or deliver over, any Military Offender in the Manner herein-before prescribed, shall forfeit for every such Offence the Sum of One hundred

Pounds.

Custody of

Offenders under a Military Sentence.

Soldiers, and

XXX. And be it enacted, That the Gaoler or Person having Subsistence of the immediate Inspection of any public Prison, Gaol, House of Custody and Correction, Lock-up House, or other Place of Confinement in any Subsistence of Part of Her Majesty's Dominions shall diet and supply every Deserters, in

C 4

Soldier Gaols, &c.