Placing wood, &c., on a rail from sunset to sunrise, any spring gun, man trap, or other engine which shall be set or placed, or caused or continued to be set or placed, in a dwelling house, for the protection thereof. Note. This clause is framed from the 7 & 8 Geo. 4, c. 18, with some slight verbal alterations. As to hard labour, &c., see ante, p. 5. 32. Whosoever shall unlawfully and maliciously put or throw upon or across any railway any wood, stone, or other matter or thing, or shall unlawfully and maliciously take up, remove, or displace any endanger rail, sleeper, or other matter or thing belonging to passengers. any railway, or shall unlawfully and maliciously turn, way, with intent to Casting move, or divert any points or other machinery belonging to any railway, or shall unlawfully and maliciously make or show, hide, or remove, any signal or light upon or near to any railway, or shall unlawfully and maliciously do or cause to be done any other matter or thing, with intent, in any of the cases aforesaid, to endanger the safety of any person travelling or being upon such railway, shall be guilty of felony, and being convicted thereof shall be liable, at the discretion of the Court, to be kept in penal servitude for life or for any term not less than three years, or to be imprisoned for any term not exceeding two years, with or without hard labour, and if a male under the age of sixteen years, with or without whipping. Note. This clause is taken from the 14 & 15 Vict. c, 19, s. 6, and the word "unlawfully" is substituted for "wilfully" throughout. As to hard labour, &c., see ante, p. 5. 33. Whosoever shall unlawfully and maliciously stone, &c., throw, or cause to fall or strike, at, against, into, or upon any engine, tender, carriage, or truck used upon any railway, any wood, stone, or other matter upon a railway carriage, tent to therein. or thing, with intent to injure or endanger the with insafety of any person being in or upon such engine, endanger tender, carriage, or truck, or in or upon any other the safety engine, tender, carriage, or truck of any train of which of any such first-mentioned engine, tender, carriage, or truck person shall form part, shall be guilty of felony, and being convicted thereof shall be liable, at the discretion of the Court, to be kept in penal servitude for life or for any term not less than three years, or to be imprisoned for any term not exceeding two years, with or without hard labour. Note.-This clause is taken from the 14 & 15 The word "unlawfully" is substituted for The introduction of the word "at" extends this clause to cases where the missile fails to strike any engine or carriage. The other words in italics were introduced to meet cases where a person throws into or upon one carriage of a train, when he intended to injure a person being in another carriage of the same train, and similar cases. In Reg. v. Court, 6 Cox, C. C. 202, the prisoner was indicted for throwing a stone against a tender with intent to endanger the safety of persons on the tender, and it appeared that the stone fell on the tender, but there was no person on it at the time, and it was held that the section was limited to something thrown upon an engine or carriage having some person therein, and consequently that no offence within the statute was proved: but this case would clearly come within this clause. As to hard labour, &c., see ante, p. 5. 34. Whosoever, by any unlawful act, or by any Doing or wilful omission or neglect, shall endanger, or cause to omitting be endangered, the safety of any person conveyed or anything being in or upon a railway, or shall aid or assist passengers therein, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and being by railway. to endanger convicted thereof shall be liable, at the discretion of the Court, to be imprisoned for any term not exceeding two years, with or without hard labour. Note. This clause is taken from the 3 & 4 Vict. c. 97, s. 15, the words of which were, any person who "shall wilfully do, or cause to be done, any thing in such a manner as to obstruct any engine or carriage using any railway, or to endanger the safety of persons conveyed in or upon the same." The present clause extends to any unlawful act and any wilful omission or neglect. In Reg. v. Holroyd, 2 M. & Rob. 339, where on an indictment under the 3 & 4 Vict. c. 97, s. 15, it appeared that large quantities of earth and rubbish were found placed across the railway, and the prosecutor's case was, that this had been done by the defendant wilfully and in order to obstruct the use of the railway; and the defendant's case was, that the earth and rubbish had been accidentally dropped on the railway :. Maule, J., told the jury, that if the rubbish had been dropped on the rails by mere accident, the defendant was not guilty; but "it was by no means necessary, in order to bring the case within this Act, that the defendant should have thrown the rubbish on the rails expressly with the view to upset the train of carriages. If the defendant designedly placed these substances, having a tendency to produce an obstruction, not caring whether they actually impeded the carriages or not, that was a case within the Act." And on the jury asking "what was the meaning of the term 'wilfully used in the statute?" the learned Judge added, "he should consider the act to have been wilfully done, if the defendant intentionally placed the rubbish on the line, knowing that it was a substance likely to produce an obstruction; if, for instance, he had done so in order to throw upon the company's officers the necessary trouble of removing the rubbish." This' decision may afford a safe guide to the meaning persons by 35. Whosoever, having the charge of any carriage Drivers of or vehicle, shall, by wanton or furious driving or carriages racing, or other wilful misconduct, or by wilful injuring neglect, do or cause to be done any bodily harm furious to any person whatsoever, shall be guilty of a mis- driving. demeanor, and being convicted thereof shall be liable, at the discretion of the Court, to be imprisoned for any term not exceeding two years, with or without hard labour. Note. This clause is taken from the 1 Geo. 4, c. 4, which was confined to stage-coaches and public carriages, and to the wanton and furious driving or racing, or wilful misconduct of coachmen and others having the charge of such coaches or carriages. The present section includes all carriages and vehicles, and extends also to wilful neglect: As to the meaning of the term "wilful," see the last preceding note. As to hard labour, &c., see ante, p. 5. Assaults. minister 36. Whosoever shall, by threats or force, obstruct Obstructor prevent, or endeavour to obstruct or prevent, any ing or assaulting clergyman or other minister, in or from celebrating a clergyDivine service or otherwise officiating in any church, man or chapel, meeting house, or other place of Divine wor- other ship, or in or from the performance of his duty in in the disthe lawful burial of the dead in any churchyard or charge of other burial place, or shall strike or offer any violence his duties. to, or shall, upon any civil process, or under the pretence of executing any civil process, arrest any clergyman or other minister who is engaged in, or to the knowledge of the offender is about to engage in, any of the rites or duties in this section aforesaid, or who to the knowledge of the offender shall be going to perform the same or returning from the performance Assaulting a magistrate, &c., on account of his preserving wreck. thereof, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and being convicted thereof shall be liable, at the discretion of the Court, to be imprisoned for any term not exceeding two years, with or without hard labour. Note. This clause is new in England, except that part which applies to the arrest of any clergyman while performing Divine service, or going to perform the same, or returning from the performance thereof, which was contained in both the 9 Geo. 4, c. 31, s. 23, and 10 Geo. 4, c. 34, s. 27 (I.). The rest of the clause is framed on the Irish Acts of the 27 Geo. 3, c. 15, s. 5; 40 Geo. 3, c. 96, s. 5; 5 Geo. 4, c. 25, s. 5; and 5 Vict., Sess. 2, c. 28, ss. 7, 19. The amendments consist in including ministers not of the Church of England and Ireland, and all places of Divine worship, and all burial places, and in adding the endeavour to prevent or obstruct, the offering any violence to, and the arrest under pretence of executing any civil process of, any clergyman or minister engaged in or about to engage in any of the rites or duties mentioned in this clause. As to hard labour, &c., see ante, p. 5. As to the summary conviction of persons making disturbances in churches and other places of religious worship, see the 23 & 24 Vict. c. 32, s. 2 et seq. 37. Whosoever shall assault and strike or wound any magistrate, officer, or other person whatsoever lawfully authorised, in or on account of the exercise of his duty in or concerning the preservation of any vessel in distress, or of any vessel, goods, or effects wrecked, stranded, or cast on shore, or lying under water, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and being convicted thereof shall be liable, at the discretion of the Court, to be kept in penal servitude for any term not exceeding seven years and not less than three years, or to be imprisoned for any term not exceeding two years, with or without hard labour. |
