CHAPTER THE THIRTY-SIXTH. OF FORGING THE SECURITIES OF OTHER PUBLIC COMPANIES. of the South payment on a THE 9 Anne, c. 21, s. 57, relates to forgeries upon the South Sea Forging the Company, and enacts," That if any person or persons shall forge or seal, bond, &c., counterfeit the common seal of the said company, or shall forge, Sea Company; counterfeit, or alter any bond or obligation under the common seal or demanding of the said company; or shall offer to dispose of or pay away any forged bond, such forged, counterfeited, or altered bond, (knowing the same &c. 9 Anne, to be such,) or shall demand the money therein contained or c. 21, s. 57. pretended to be due thereon, or any part thereof, of the said company, or any of their officers, (knowing such bond or obligation to be forged, counterfeited, or altered,) with intent to defraud the said company or their successors, or any other person or persons whatsoever," every such offender shall be guilty of felony, without benefit of clergy. And the 6 Geo. 1, c. 4, s. 56, contains similar provisions. (a) South Sea The 6 Geo. 1, c. 11, s. 50, recites that the South Sea Company Forging remight issue out receipts under the hand or hands of one or more of ceipts or wartheir officers, from time to time, upon or for subscriptions to be rants of the taken by the said company for increasing their capital, pursuant Company. to the 6 Geo. 1, c. 4, and might also issue out warrants under 6 Geo. 1, c. 11, the hand or hands of one or more of their officers, for the dividend s. 50. from time to time to be made to the proprietors of the stock of the said company; and then enacts," that if any person or persons shall forge, counterfeit, or alter any such receipt or receipts, warrant or warrants, or an indorsement or writing, indorsements or writings. thereupon or therein, or shall tender any such forged, counterfeited, or altered receipt or receipts, warrant or warrants, or any such receipt or receipts, warrant or warrants, with such counterfeit indorsement or writing thereon or therein, knowing the same to be so forged, counterfeited, or altered, to the said company, or any of their officers, or shall offer to alienate or dispose of the same, knowing the same to be forged, counterfeited, or altered, and with intent to defraud the said company, or any other person or persons, bodies politic or corporate," every such person so offending shall be adjudged a felon, without benefit of clergy. (b) (a) The 9 Anne, c. 21, s. 57, and the 6 Geo. 1, c.4, s. 56, not being expressly repealed by the 1 Wm. 4, c. 66, or the offences contained in them made capital by that statute, the present punishment for such offences is regulated by the 1 Wm. 4, c. 66, ss. 1 and VOL. II. F F 26, and the 1 Vict. c. 90, s. 5, and is that (b) The 6 Geo. 1, c. 11, s. 50, is not Forging East Forgeries upon insurance companies, &c. The 1 Wm. 4, c. 66, s. 3, enacts, that "if any person shall forge or alter (inter alia) any bond under the common seal of the united company of merchants trading to the East Indies, commonly called an East India Bond, or any indorsement on or assignment of any East India bond, with intent, in any of the cases aforesaid, to defraud any person whatsoever, every such offender shall be guilty of felony, and being convicted thereof, shall suffer death as a felon." (c) Especial provisions have also been made respecting forgeries affecting some of the insurance companies; (d) the English linen company, (e) the British society for extending the fisheries, &c., (ƒ) and the governor and company of the British cast plate glass manufactory.(g) And the statute books probably contain provisions of a similar kind relating to other public companies, not requiring particular notice in this work; and which indeed may be considered as having been rendered of less importance by the general statutes applying to forgeries committed with the intention of defrauding any corporation whatsoever. (h) repealed expressly by the 1 Wm. 4, c. 66, (c) See the section in full, ante. p. 424, (d) By 6 Geo. 1, c. 18, s. 13, as to forging the securities of the London and Royal Exchange Assurance Companies; and by 39 Geo. 3, c. 83, s. 22, (public, local, and personal act,) as to forging those of the Globe Insurance Company. (e) 4 Geo. 3, c. 37, s. 15. (ƒ) 26 Geo. 3, c. 106, s. 26. (g) 13 Geo. 3, c. 38, s. 28, revived by 38 Geo. 3, c. 17, s. 23, (public, local, and personal act). (h) Post, Chap. Of the Forgery of Private Papers, &c CHAPTER THE THIRTY-SEVENTH. OF FORGING AND TRANSPOSING STAMPS. tutes. THE various statutes by which stamps, marks, &c., have been re- The forging, quired to be affixed to written instruments, plate, or other articles, transposing, in order to denote the payment of the duties imposed thereon &c., of stamps, in general by the legislature, have made the forging or counterfeiting such were capital stamps, marks, &c., offences of a very high degree; and, in general, offences, by punishable with death. And in some of the statutes are included various stathe offences of transposing stamps, and knowingly uttering and selling articles with the impression of a forged or counterfeited stamp, &c., upon them; and the privately or secretly using any genuine stamps, &c., for the purpose of defrauding the crown. The 52 Geo. 3, 52 Geo. 3, c. 143, (a) embraces offences of this description; having c. 143, s. 1, first enacted, in the following words, " that in all cases where any act breach of, or to be done or committed in breach of or in resistance to any part of in resistance the laws for collecting his Majesty's revenue in Great Britain, would to, the revenue laws, felonies. by the laws now in force subject the offender to suffer death, as guilty of felony, without benefit of clergy, by virtue of the said laws, or any of them, such act, so to be done or committed, shall be deemed and taken to be felony with benefit of clergy, and punishable only as such, unless the same shall also be declared to be felony without benefit of clergy by this act." (b) offences in marks, stamps, duties on This statute then enacts, " that if any person shall forge, or coun- 52 Geo. 3, terfeit, or cause or procure to be forged or counterfeited, any mark, c. 143, s. 7. stamp, die, or plate, which in pursuance of any act or acts of parlia-For ment shall have been provided, made or used by or under the &c., used by direction of the commissioners (bb) appointed to manage the duties the commison stamped vellum, parchment and paper, or by or under the sioners of the direction of any other person or persons legally authorized in that vellum, paper, behalf, for expressing or denoting any duty or duties, or any part &c., for dethereof, which shall be under the care and management of the duties of said commissioners, or for denoting or testifying the payment of any denoting any such duty or duties, or any part thereof, or for denoting any device device for the appointed by the said commissioners for the Ace of Spades, to be Ace of Spades, in any playing used with any playing cards; or shall forge or counterfeit, or cause cards; or or procure to be forged or counterfeited, the impression, or any forging, &c., resemblance of the impression, of any such mark, stamp, die, or blance of such plate as aforesaid, upon any vellum, parchment, paper, card, ivory, marks, stamps, gold or silver plate, or other material, or shall stamp or mark, or &c., upon (a) So much of this act "as relates to offences committed in breach of any law relating to his Majesty's customs, or for the preventing of smuggling," is repealed by the 6 Geo. 4, c. 105, s. 297. pointed for these offences they seem to be (bb) Now "the commissioners of stamps (b) As no punishment is specially ap duties, or for the resem vellum, paper, card, ivory, forged marks, using them, felony. cause or procure to be stamped or marked, any vellum, parchment, paper, card, ivory, gold or silver plate, or other material, with any such forged or counterfeited mark, stamp, die, or plate as aforesaid, with intent to defraud his Majesty, his heirs, &c., of any of the duties, or any part of the duties under the care and management of &c., or secretly the said commissioners; or if any person shall utter or sell, or expose to sale any vellum, parchment, paper, card, ivory, gold or silver plate, or other material, having thereupon the impression of any such forged or counterfeited mark, stamp, die or plate, or any such forged or counterfeited impression as aforesaid, knowing the same respectively to be forged or counterfeited; or if any person shall privately or secretly use any such mark, stamp, die, or plate, which shall have been so provided, made or used, by or under such direction as aforesaid, with intent to defraud his Majesty, his heirs, &c., of any of the duties, or any part of the duties under the care and management of the said commissioners; every person so offending, shall be adjudged guilty of felony, without benefit of clergy." (c) 52 Geo. 3, c. 143, s. 8. Transposing from one piece of wrought plate to another, or to base metal, any mark, stamp. &c. : or marking base metal with forged mark, stamp, &c.; or selling or exporting wrought plate By sec. 8, "If any person shall transpose or remove, or cause or procure to be transposed or removed, from one piece of wrought plate of gold or silver to another, or to any vessel or ware of base metal, any impression made with any mark, stamp or die, provided, made or used by or under the direction of the said commissioners of stamps, or by or under the direction of any other person or persons legally authorized in that behalf, for denoting any duty or duties, or the payment of any duty or duties, granted to his Majesty on gold or silver plate; or shall stamp or mark, or cause or procure to be stamped or marked, any vessel or ware of base metal with any mark, stamp or die, which shall have been forged or counterfeited in imitation of, or to resemble any mark, stamp or die so provided, made or used as aforesaid; or shall sell, exchange or expose to sale, or export out of Great Britain, any wrought plate of gold or silver, or any vessel or ware of base metal, having thereupon &c.; or trans- the impression of any forged or counterfeited mark, stamp, or die, for denoting any such duty or duties, or the payment of such duty or duties, or any forged or counterfeited impression of any mark, stamp, or die so provided, made or used as aforesaid, or any impression of any such mark, stamp, or die, which shall have been transposed or removed from any other piece of plate as aforesaid, knowing the same respectively to be forged or counterfeited, or transposed or removed as aforesaid; or shall wilfully and without lawful excuse (the proof whereof shall lie on the person accused) have or be possessed of any such forged or counterfeited mark, stamp, or die, for denoting any such duty or duties, or the payment thereof; every or base metal, with forged mark, stamp, posed mark, stamp, &c.; knowing, &c.; or wilfully having posses sion of any forged mark, stamp, &c., felony. (c) Mr. Lonsdale, Cr. St. Law, p. 78, observes, "The whole of this enactment is either superseded or repealed by the 55 Geo. 3, c. 184, s. 7, (post, p. 437,) c. 185, s. 7, (post, p. 439,) and the 9 Geo. 4, c. 18, s. 35, (post, p. 441,) except so far as the offences thereby made punishable relate to other than the materials specified in such enactment. With respect to which offences (the 1 Wm. 4, c. 66, not having made the same punishable with death, although so punishable at the time of the any passing of that act, and not having repealed the 52 Geo. 3, c. 147, s. 7,) persons convicted thereof are liable under the 1 Wm. 4, c. 66, ss. 1 & 26, and the 1 Vict. c. 90, s. 5, to the punishment at the head of this class of offences," i. e. the punishment mentioned in note (h), ante, p. 415. In such cases principals in the second degree and accessories are punishable under the 1 Wm. 4, c. 66, s. 25, and the 1 Vict. c. 90, s. 5. See ante, p. 410. C. S. G. person so offending shall be adjudged guilty of felony, without benefit of clergy. (d) 52 Geo. 3, session any paper, &c., or making paper, &c., with the words, "Exvisible in the substance; cise Office," or engraving, making, &c., By the ninth section it is enacted, "that if any person (not being lawfully appointed or authorized so to do) shall make, or cause, or procure to be made, or shall knowingly aid or assist in the making, or, without being so appointed or authorized as aforesaid, shall knowingly have in his, her, or their custody or possession, without lawful excuse (the proof whereof shall lie on the person accused,) any frame, mould, or instrument, for the making of paper, with the words Excise Office' visible in the substance of such paper, or shall make or cause, or procure to be made, or knowingly aid or assist in the making any paper, in the substance of which the words 'Excise Office' shall be visible; or if any person (except as before excepted) shall by any art, mystery or contrivance, cause or procure any marks, the said words Excise Office' to appear visible in the substance of stamp, &c., in any paper whatever; or if any person (not being so appointed or imitation of authorized as aforesaid) shall engrave, cast, cut, or make, or shall the mark, cause or procure to be engraven, cast, cut, or made, any mark, used by the stamp, or device, in imitation of or to resemble any mark, stamp, or commissioners device, made or used by the direction of the commissioners of excise in England or Scotland, or the major part of them respectively, for the purpose of printing, stamping, or marking of any paper to be used as or for a permit or permits to accompany any excisable commodity or commodities removing or removed from one part of Great Britain to any other part thereof, in pursuance of the directions of any of the several statutes requiring such permit," every person so offending shall be adjudged guilty of felony without benefit of clergy. (e) The stamp act, 55 Geo. 3, c. 184, s. 7, includes the cutting or getting off the impression of any stamp from paper, &c., with intent to use the same upon any other paper, &c., chargeable with the duties thereby granted; and makes this also a capital offence. This section (without referring to the former general act of the 55 Geo. 3, c. 143,) enacts, “that if any person shall forge or counterfeit, or cause or procure to be forged or counterfeited, any stamp or die, or any part of any stamp or die, which shall have been provided, made or used, in pursuance of this act, or in pursuance of any former act or acts, relating to any stamp duty or duties, or shall forge, counterfeit or resemble, or cause or procure to be forged, counterfeited or resembled the impression or any part of the impression of any such stamp or die as aforesaid, upon any vellum, parchment or paper, or shall stamp or mark, or cause or procure to be stamped or marked, any vellum, parchment or paper, with any such forged or counterfeited stamp or die, or part of any stamp or die as aforesaid, with intent to defraud his Majesty, his heirs, &c., of any of the duties hereby granted, or any part thereof; or if any person shall utter, or sell, or expose to sale any vellum, parchment, or paper, (d) See 5 Geo. 4, c. 52, (local and personal) s. 22, as to plate wrought or made within the town of Birmingham, and within thirty miles thereof. (e) As the 52 Geo. 3, c. 143, ss. 8 & 9, is neither expressly repealed, nor the offences in those sections made capital by that act, such offences are punishable as stamp, &c., of Excise for paper used for permits, felony. 55 Geo. 3, cutting or the same upon any other paper, &c., chargeable and makes such cutting, getting off, with the duties, &c., felony. |
