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From Rev.

Bills of 1779,

oh. XXIX.

and warran

CHAP. LXVII.

An act providing that wrongful alienations of lands shall be void so far as they be wrongful.

1. BE it enacted by the General Assembly, That Alienations all alienations and warranties of lands, tenements, and ties of land, hereditaments, made by any, purporting to pass or to pass only assure a greater right or estate than such person may what grantor lawfully pass or assure, shall operate as alienations or might lawfully convey. warranties of so much of the right and estate in such lands, tenements, or hereditaments, as such person might lawfully convey; but shall not pass or bar the residue of the said right or estate purported to be conveyed or assured.

tenaut

How far

II. But if the deed of the alienor doth mention that he heirs barred, and his heirs be bound to warranty, and if any heritage or bound to descend to the demandant of the side of the alienor, then recompense he shall be barred for the value of the heritage that is to him descended. And if in time after any heritage descend to him by the same alienor, then shall the tenant recover against him of the seizin warranted by judicial writ, that shall issue out of the rolls of the justices, before whom the plea was pleaded, to re-summon his warranty, as before hath been done in cases where the warrantor cometh into the court, saying, that nothing descended from him by whose deed he is vouched.

Commeuce

III. This act shall commence and be in force from ment of act. and after the first day of January, one thousand seven hundred and eighty-seven.

From Rev.

Bills of 1779, ch. XXXV.

Penalty for circulating

CHAP. LXVIII.

An act to prevent the circulation of private bank notes.

1. BE it enacted by the General Assembly, That private bank it shall not be lawful for any person to offer in payble to bearer. ment, a private bank bill or note for money, payable

notes, paya

to bearer, and whosoever shall offend herein, shall not. only forfeit to the informer ten times the value of the sum mentioned in such bill or note, but may be apprehended by warrant of a justice, and upon due proof of the fact made to him, or upon his own acknowledgment thereof, be bound to the good behaviour, or if he afterwards offend in the like manner, it shall be deemed a breach of the condition of the recogni

zance.

III. This act shall commence and be in force from Commenee. and after the first day of January, one thousand seven ment of act, hundred and eighty-seven.

CHAP. LXIX.

An act to prevent losses by pirates, enemies, and others, on the high

seas.

From Rev.

Bills of 1779; ch. XXXVII.

pirates and

I. BE it enacted by the General Assembly, That Premium for when any ship or other vessel of this commonwealth defending shall have been defended against pirates or enemies, vessel against and brought to her port of delivery, and in making enemies, how such defence any of the officers or seaman shall have adjudged and been killed or wounded, the judges of the admiralty, paid. on the petition of the master or seamen, shall call unto them four or more good and substantial merchants, and by advice with them, shall levy on the respective adventurers and owners of the ship or other vessel and goods, by process out of the said court, such sums of money as themselves and the said merchants, by plurality of voices, shall judge reasonable, not exceeding two pounds per cent. of the freight, ship or other vessel, and goods, according to the first cost of the goods, and shall distribute the same among the captain, master, officers and seamen of the ship or other vessel, and the widows and children of the slain, proportioning the same according to their best judgment, and having special regard to the said widows and children, and to

how suppressed.

such as shall have been wounded. And if the commander, master, or other officer, or any seaman or mariner, in any vessel carrying guns and arms, shall not, when attacked by any pirate or enemy, fight, and endeavour to defend themselves and their vessel, or shall utter any words to discourage the other mariners from defending the same, and by reason thereof the said vessel shall fall into the hands of such pirate or enemy, such offender shall forfeit all wages due to him to the owner, and shall suffer imprisonment at the discretion of a jury, if in their opinion such vessel might have been saved by a defence.

II. If any combination shall be set on foot for runMutiny on board vessels ning away with, or destroying any vessel, or the goods and merchandizes therein laden, the captain, commander, or måster, on due proof thereof, shall give a reward of fifty dollars, if the vessel be of one hundred tons or under, and seventy-five dollars if of greater burthen, to such person as shall first make discovery thereof; payment to be made at the port where the wages of the seamen ought next to be paid, and to be reimbursed as in other cases of salvage.

Commence.

III. This act shall commence and be in force from ment of act. and after the first day of January, one thousand seven hundred and eighty-seven.

From Rev. Bills of 1779, ch. XXXIX.

Method of

appraising

estrays.

CHAP. LXX.

An act concerning estrays.

I. BE it enacted by the General Assembly, That it shall be lawful for any person by himself or his agent, taking up and to take up any estray on his own land, and having taken it, he, or his agent, shall forthwith give information thereof to some justice of the peace for the said county, who shall thereupon issue his warrant to three disinterested freeholders of the neighbourhood, commanding them, having been first duly sworn, to view and appraise such estray, and certify the valuation under their hands, together with a particular description

of the kind, marks, brand, stature, colour, and age; which certificate shall by the justice be transmitted to the clerk of the county court within twenty days, and by such clerk entered in a book to be kept for that purpose, for which he may demand and take ten pounds of tobacco, to be paid down by the taker up.

II. The clerk shall moreover cause a copy of every such certificate to be publicly affixed at the door of his court-house, on two several court-days next after he receive the same, for which, and a certificate thereof, he shall receive the like fee as for entering the same in the book.

How adver

tised.

III. If the valuation shall be under twenty shillings, When pro and no owner shall appear until notice shall have been perty vested twice published, as aforesaid, the property shall then in taker up. be vested in the owner of the land, on which such estray was taken; and if the valuation shall exceed twenty shillings, such owner shall, within three months after the appraisement, send to the public printer a copy of the certificate, to be advertised three times in the Virginia Gazette, with notice of the place where such estray is, for which the printer may demand four shillings for each estray; and if no owner appears to claim such estray within a year and a day after the publication, the property shall from thenceforth be vested in the owner of the lands whereon it was taken. But the Valuation former owner, in either case, may at any time, within money, refive years afterwards, upon proving his property, de- served for mand and recover the valuation money, deducting therefrom the clerk and printer's fees, and five shillings for every horse or head of neat cattle, and one shilling for every other beast.

a

proprietor.

Boats and

vessels adrift, how proceed ed on.

IV. If any person shall take up a boat or other vessel adrift, he shall in like manner make application to justice of one of the adjacent counties, for his warrant to have the same valued and described by her kind, burthen and built, and shall proceed in all other respects, and have the same benefit as before directed in the case of estrays. Provided always, That if after notice published as aforesaid, any estray shall happen in case estray to die, or by any casualty get out of the possession of should die. the person who took the same up, without his or her default, such taker up shall not be answerable for the same, or for the valuation thereof; nor shall any taker

Voc. rn.

W

Provision in

Commencement of act.

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up be answerable for any boat or other vessel lost as aforesaid.

V. This act shall commence and be in force from and after the first day of January, one thousand seven hundred and eighty-seven.

CHAP. LXXI.

From Rev Bills of 1779 ch. XL.

Restitution

of stolen

goods, to be

ordered by

whom convic tion.

An act for the restitution of stolen goods.

I. Be it enacted by the General Assembly, That if any felon do rob or take away any money or goods, or chattels, from any of the citizens of this commonwealth or from any person travelling through or making a court, before temporary stay within the same, from their person or otherwise, within this commonwealth, and thereof the said felon be indicted, and after arraigned of the same felony, and found guilty thereof, or otherwise attainted by reason of evidence given by the party so robbed, or owner of the said money, goods, or chattels, or by any other by their procurement, that then the party so robbed, or owner, shall be restored to his said money, goods, and chattels: And that the justices before whom any such felon shall be found guilty, or otherwise attainted by reason of evidence given by the party so robbed, or owner, or by any other by their procurement, have power by this present act, to award from time to time, writs of restitution for the said monev, goods, and chattels.

Commence.

II. This act shall commence and be in force from and after the first day of January, one thousand seven hundred and eighty-seven.

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