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being convicted thereof, shall suffer death as a felon, without benefit of clergy; and if any person shall unlawfully and carnally know and abuse any girl being above the age of ten years, and under the age of twelve years, every such offender shall be guilty of a misdemeanour, and being convicted thereof, shall be liable to be punished by fine or imprisonment, or both, at the discretion of the Court, and by being publicly or privately whipped, once or oftener, but not more than twice, if the Court shall also so think fit to adjudge.

XXI. And whereas, upon the trials for the crimes of buggery and of rape, and of carnally abusing girls under the respective ages, herein before mentioned, offenders frequently escape by reason of the difficulty of the proof which has been required of the completion of those several crimes, for remedy thereof; Be it, &c., That it shall not be necessary, in any of those cases, to prove the actual emission of seed, in order to constitute a carnal knowledge, but that the carnal knowledge shall be deemed complete upon proof of penetration only.

XXII. That all offences mentioned in this Act, which shall be committed within the jurisdiction of the Admiralty of England, shall be deemed to be offences of the same nature and liable to the same punishments, as if they had been committed upon the land, in the said islands, and may be dealt with, inquired of, tried, and determined in the same manner as other offences committed within the jurisdiction of the Admiralty of England, may be inquired of, heard, tried, determined and judged within these islands.

XXIII. Suspends 5 George 4, ch. 2.

XXIV. Suspends so much of 40 Geo. 3, ch. 2, as declares the following Acts of Parliament to be in force in the Colony, viz. : 25 Henry 8, ch. 16; 4 & 5 Philip and Mary, ch. 4; 18 Elizabeth, ch. 7 (in part); and 22 & 23 Charles 2, ch. 1.

XXV. Suspends 48 Geo. 3, ch. 10 (in part).

No. 2. Act 5 W. 4, c. 10.

Felony to set fire to Woods or Plantations of Trees.

Felony to demolish or pull

down any Church or Chapel, &c.

No. 2.-5 Wm. 4, ch. 10. An Act for the more effectual Punishment of Persons committing Malicious Injuries to Property. (October 6th, 1834.)

I. & II. Repealed by 4 Vic. ch. 25.

III. That if any person shall unlawfully and maliciously set fire to any standing woods on these islands, or to any plantation of trees, or to any stacks of wood, timber, or lumber, or to any crops on plantations, whether standing or cut down, every such offender shall be guilty of felony, and being convicted thereof, shall be liable to be imprisoned for any term not exceeding two years, and, if a male, to be once, twice, or thrice publicly or privately whipped (if the Court shall so think fit), in addition to such imprisonment. IV. That if any persons riotously and tumultuously assembled together, to the disturbance of the public peace, shall unlawfully and with force, demolish, pull down, or destroy, or begin to demolish, pull down, or destroy, any church or chapel, or any chapel for the religious worship of persons dissenting from the United Church of England and Ireland, or any dwelling-house, warehouse,

office, or shop, every such offender shall be guilty of felony, and being convicted thereof, shall suffer death.*

No. 2. Act 5 W. 4,

c. 10.

V. That if any persons riotously and tumultuously assembled, as aforesaid, shall unlawfully and with force, demolish, pull down, or destroy, or begin to demolish, pull down, or destroy, any stable, destroy any Felony to coachhouse, outhouse, barn, or granary, or any building or erection Coach-house, used in carrying on any trade or manufacture, or any branch Out-house, &c., thereof, or any machinery, whether fixed or movable, prepared or machinery. for, or employed in any manufacture, or in any branch thereof, every such offender shall be guilty of felony, and being convicted thereof, shall be liable to be imprisoned for any term not exceeding two years, and if a male, to be once, twice or thrice, publicly or privately whipped, in addition thereto, at the discretion of the Court

destroy any

vessel.

VI. That if any person shall unlawfully and maliciously damage, Felony to otherwise than by fire, any ship or vessel, whether complete or unfinished, with intent to destroy the same, or to render the same useless, every such offender shall be guilty of felony, and being convicted thereof, shall be liable to be imprisoned for any term not exceeding two years, and if a male, to be once, twice, or thrice publicly or privately whipped, in addition thereto, at the discretion of the Court.

fire engine.

VII. That if any person shall unlawfully and maliciously cut, Fele tocan break, or destroy, or damage with intent to destroy or to render or destroy my useless, any machine or engine, whether fixed or movable, prepared machinery, or for, or employed in, any manufacture whatsoever, or any fire-engine, every such offender shall be guilty of felony, and being convicted thereof, shall be liable to the punishments hereinbefore last mentioned.

VIII. Repealed by 4 Vic. ch. 25.

Felony to de-stroy any part of any vessel, or any goods thereunto belonging.

IX. That if any person shall unlawfully, maliciously, or wantonly, destroy any part of any ship or vessel, which shall be in distress, or wrecked, stranded, or cast ashore, or any goods, merchandize, or articles of any kind, belonging to such ship or vessel, every such offender shall be guilty of felony, and being convicted thereof, shall be subject to imprisonment, for any term not exceeding two years, and in addition thereto, if a male, may be once, twice, or thrice publicly or privately whipped at the discretion of the Court. X. That if any person shall unlawfully and maliciously kill, Felony to kill maim, or wound, any horse, mare, foal, mule, ass, or neat cattle, or sheep, every such offender shall be guilty of felony, and being convicted thereof, shall be liable to the punishments herein before last mentioned.

XI. That if any person shall unlawfully and maliciously cut, break, bark, root up, or otherwise destroy or damage, the whole or any part of any tree, sapling, or shrub respectively, growing in any pleasure ground, garden, orchard, plantation, or avenue, or in any ground adjoining or belonging to any dwelling-house, every such offender (in case the amount of injury done shall exceed the sum of two pounds,† Bahama currency), shall be guilty of felony, and

* The penalty of death for the offences mentioned in this section is abolished by 6 Vic. c. 5, sec. 2.

All sums in this Act are at the old rate of Bahama currency. See Note ante, page 41.

or maim any horse or cattle.

Felony to de

stroy any tree

or shrub.

No. 2. Act 5 W. 4, c. 10.

Punishment for
destroying any
fence, wall,
stile, or gate.

Punishment for committing damage to real or personal property.

Proviso.

Punishments

and forfeitures imposed by

this Act to be enforced.

Punishment of

accessaries before the fact.

After the fact.

being convicted thereof, shall be liable to be imprisoned for any term not exceeding six months.

XII. That if any person shall unlawfully and maliciously cut, break, throw down, or in any wise destroy any fence of any description whatsoever, or any wall, stile, or gate, or any part thereof respectively, every such offender being convicted before any Justice of the Peace, shall, for the first offence, forfeit and pay, over and above the amount of the injury done, such sum of money, not exceeding ten pounds,* Bahama currency, as to the Justice shall seem meet; and if any person so convicted shall afterwards be guilty of the same offences, and shall be convicted thereof, in like manner, every such offender shall be committed to the common gaol or workhouse, there to be kept to hard labour for such term, not exceeding six calendar months, as the convicting Justice shall think fit, and if such subsequent conviction shall take place before two Justices, they may further order the offender, if a male, to be once or twice publicly or privately whipped, after the expiration of four days from the time of such conviction.

XIII. That if any person shall wilfully and maliciously commit any damage, injury, or spoil, to or upon any real or personal property whatsoever, either of a public or private nature, for which no remedy or punishment is herein before provided, every such person, being convicted thereof before a Justice of the Peace, shall forfeit and pay such sum of money as shall appear to the Justice to be a reasonable compensation for the damage, injury, or spoil, so committed, not exceeding the sum of ten pounds,* Bahama currency, which sum of money shall, in the case of private property, be paid to the party aggrieved, except where such party shall have been examined in proof of the offence, and in such case, or in the case of property of a public nature, or wherein any public right is concerned, the money shall be applied in such manner as every penalty imposed by a Justice of the Peace, under this Act, is hereinafter directed to be applied; and if such sum of money, together with costs (if ordered), shall not be paid, either immediately after the conviction, or within such period as the Justice at the time of the conviction shall appoint, the Justice may commit the offender to the common gaol or workhouse, there to be imprisoned, with or without hard labour, for any term not exceeding two calendar months, unless such sum and costs be sooner paid: Provided always, that nothing herein contained shall extend to any case where the party trespassing acted under a fair and reasonable supposition that he had a right to do the act complained of.

XIV. That every punishment and forfeiture by this Act imposed on any person maliciously committing any offence, whether the same be punishable upon indictment, or upon summary conviction, shall equally apply and be enforced, whether the offence shall be committed from malice conceived against the owner of the property, in respect of which it shall be committed, or otherwise.

XV. That in case of every felony, punishable under this Act, every principal in the second degree, and every accessary before the fact, shall be punishable with death or otherwise, in the same manner as the principal in the first degree is by this Act punish

*All sums in this Act are at the old rate of Bahama currency. See Note ante, page 41.

able; and every accessary after the fact, to any felony punishable under this Act, shall, on conviction, be liable to be imprisoned for any term not exceeding two years and every person who shall aid, abet, counsel, or procure the commission of any misdemeanour punishable under this Act, shall be liable to be indicted and punished as a principal offender.

XVI. That when any person shall be convicted of any indictable offence punishable under this Act, for which imprisonment may be awarded, it shall be lawful for the Court to sentence the offender to be imprisoned, or to be imprisoned and kept to hard labour, in the common gaol or the workhouse, and also to direct that the offender shall be kept in solitary confinement for the whole or any portion or portions of such imprisonment, or of such imprisonment with hard labour as to the Court in its discretion shall seem meet. XVII. That for the more effectual apprehension of all offenders against this Act, any person found committing any offence against this Act, whether the same be punishable upon indictment or upon summary conviction, may be immediately apprehended without a warrant, by any peace officer or the owner of the property injured or his servant, or any person authorized by him, and forthwith taken before some neighbouring Justice of the Peace, to be dealt with according to law.

XVIII. That the prosecution for every offence punishable on summary conviction under this Act, shall be commenced within three calendar months after the commission of the offence, and not otherwise, and the evidence of the party aggrieved shall be admitted in proof of the offence.

XIX. And for the more effectual prosecution of all offences punishable on summary conviction under this Act; Be it, &c., That where any person shall be charged, on the oath of a credible witness, before any Justice of the Peace, with any such offence, the Justice may summon the person charged to appear at a time and place to be named in such summons, and if he shall not appear accordingly, then (upon proof of the due service of the summons. upon such person, by delivering the same to him personally, or by leaving it at his usual place of abode,) the Justice may either proceed to hear and determine the case, ex parte, or issue his warrant for apprehending such person, and bringing him before himself or some other Justice of the Peace, or the Justice before whom the charge shall be made, may, if he shall so think fit, without any previous summons (unless where otherwise specially directed), issue such warrant and the Justice, before whom the person charged shall appear or be brought, shall proceed to hear and determine the case.

XX. That when any offence is by this Act punishable, on summary conviction, either for every time of its commission, or for the first and second time only, or for the first time only, any person who shall aid, abet, counsel, or procure the commission of such offence, shall on conviction before a Justice of the Peace, be liable for every first, second, or subsequent offence, of aiding, abetting, counselling, or procuring, to the same forfeiture and punishment to which a person guilty of a first, second, or subsequent offence, as a principal offender, is by this Act made liable.

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XXI. That all forfeitures upon summary convictions under this Forfeitures on Act shall be applied, in the first instance, to the compensation of summary cou

No. 2.

Act 5 W. 4, c. 10.

victions, how applied.

Proviso.

How Justices are to proceed in default of payment.

King may extend his Royal

mercy.

Offenders released from further proceedings for the same cause.

the parties aggrieved, for the injury done (the amount of such compensation to be assessed in each case by the convicting Justice), except where such party shall have been examined in proof of the offence, and in that case or when the party aggrieved is unknown, such sum shall be applied in the same manner as a penalty, and every sum which shall be imposed as a penalty by any Justice of the Peace, whether in addition to such amount of compensation, or otherwise, shall be paid to the Receiver General and Treasurer of this Colony, to be applied in aid of defraying the expenses of this Government: Provided, That when several persons shall join in the commission of the same offence, and shall, upon conviction thereof, each be adjudged to forfeit a sum equivalent to the amount of the injury done, in every such case, no further sum shall be paid to the party aggrieved than that which shall be forfeited by one of such offenders only, and the remaining sum or sums forfeited by the other offenders, shall be paid to the Receiver General, as aforesaid, to be applied as aforesaid.

XXII. That in every case of a summary conviction under this Act, where the sum which shall be forfeited for the amount of the injury done, or which shall be imposed as a penalty by the Justice, shall not be paid either immediately after conviction, or within such period as the Justice shall at the time of conviction appoint, it shall be lawful for the convicting Justice (unless where otherwise specially directed) to commit the offender to the common gaol or workhouse, there to be imprisoned only, or to be imprisoned and kept to hard labour, according to the discretion of the Justice, for any term not exceeding two calendar months, where the amount of the sum forfeited, or of the penalty imposed, or of both (as the case may be), together with the costs, shall not exceed ten pounds Bahama currency, and for any term not exceeding four calendar months, where the amount with costs shall not exceed twenty pounds, Bahama currency, and for any term not exceeding six calendar months in any other case, the commitment to be determined in each of the cases aforesaid, upon payment of the amount and costs.

XXIII. That when any person shall be summarily convicted before a Justice of the Peace, of any offence against this Act, and it shall be a first conviction, it shall be lawful for the Justice, if he shall so think fit, to discharge the offender from his conviction, upon his making such satisfaction to the party aggrieved, for damages and costs, or either of them, as shall be ascertained by the Justice.

XXIV. That it shall be lawful for the King's Majesty to extend his royal mercy to any person imprisoned by virtue of this Act, although he shall be imprisoned for non-payment of money to some party other than the Crown.

XXV. That in case any person, convicted of any offence punishable upon summary conviction by virtue of this Act, shall have paid the sum adjudged to be paid, together with the costs, under such conviction, or shall have received a remission thereof from the Crown, or shall have suffered the imprisonment awarded for non-payment thereof, or the imprisonment adjudged in the first instance, or shall have been discharged from his conviction, in manner aforesaid, in every such case he shall be released from all further or other proceedings for the same cause.

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