struct navigation, nor be washed into the channel, shall thereupon give such master or officer a certifieate that the ballast hath been duly unladen from on board such vessel; for which service he shall receive five shillings per day, to be paid by the master or chief officer to whom such certificate is granted.

Penalty for

Ill. Every ballast-master failing to do his duty, according to this act, shall forfeit twenty pounds for each neglect. default, in which case, or if there be no ballast-master, the naval-officer of the district, shall, under the like penalty, perform the same duty.

lade ballast.

IV. Every master or chief officer of a ship or ves- Notice of insel, having ballast to unlade, shall give notice in wri- tention to unting, of the time he purposes to land the same, to the ballast-master of the district: and shall produce to the naval-officer, at the time of his clearing out, a certifi- Certificate. cate of his having unladen his ballast, according to this act. And if any master or chief officer on board of any ship or vessel, shall presume to land or cast overboard any ballast therefrom, without giving such notice, or contrary to the orders he shall receive from the ballast-master of the district, or shall fail to produce a certificate of his having duly landed his ballast, to the naval-officer at the time of his clearing out, he shall forfeit fifty pounds for every offence or fail- Penalties. ure; and, in any suit to be brought for the said penalty, the clerk shall endorse on the writ that bail is to be required, and the court may rule the defendant to give special bail, if they see cause so to do.

V. When any person shall die on board of any ship or vessel, within this state, the master thereof shall cause the dead body to be brought on shore, and there buried, at least four feet deep above high-water mark, or be subject to the penalty of fifty pounds; in any suit for which, the defendant may be ruled to give special bail, and the clerk shall endorse on the writ that bail is required.

Dead bodies fit on board ships, how to be buried.

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

From Rev.

Bills of 1779, eh. Ll.

Who declared slaves.

CHAP. LXXVII.

An act concerning slaves.

1. BE it enacted by the General Assembly, That no person shall henceforth be slaves within this commonwealth, except such as were so on the first day of this Slaves here. present session of assembly, and the descendants of the after introdu. females of them. Slaves which shall hereafter be brought into this commonwealth, and kept therein one whole year together, or so long at different times as shall amount to one year, shall be free.

ced, to be

free.

Negroes and mulattoes,

how far wit

nesses.

Slaves not to

without a

pass.

11. No negro or mulatto shall be a witness, except in pleas of the commonwealth against negroes or mulattoes, or in civil pleas wherein negroes or mulattoes alone shall be parties.

III. No slave shall go from the tenements of his masgo from home ter or other person with whom he lives, without a pass, or some letter or token whereby it may appear that he is proceeding by authority from his master, employer, or overseer: If he does, it shall be lawful for Punishment. any person to apprehend and carry him before a justice of the peace, to be by his order punished with stripes or not, in his discretion,

Slaves not to keep arms.

IV. No slave shall keep any arms whatever, nor pass unless with written orders from his master or employer, or in his company with arms, from one place to another. Arms in possession of a slave contrary to this prohibition, shall be forfeited to him who will seize them. Riots, routs, unlawful assemblies, trespasses, and seditious speeches, by a slave or slaves, blies,&c. how shall be punished with stripes, at the discretion of a punishable. justice of the peace, and he who will may apprehend and carry him, her, or them, before such justice.

Riots, unlawful assem

Who may

V. Provided, That nothing in this act contained, bring slaves shall be construed to extend to those who may incline into this com- to remove from any of the United States and become monwealth. citizens of this; if within ten days after such removal he or she shall take the following oath before some justice of the peace of this commonwealth: "I A B. do swear that my removal into the state of Virginia, was with no intent of evading the laws for preventing the further importation of slaves, nor have I brought

with me any slaves with an intention of selling them, nor have any of the slaves which I have brought with me been imported from Africa, or any of the WestIndia islands, since the first day of November, 1778. So help me God." Nor to any persons claiming slaves by descent, marriage, or devise; or to any citizens of this commonwealth, being now the actual owners of slaves within any of the United States and removing such hither; nor to travellers and others making a transient stay, and bringing slaves for necessary attendance, and carrying them out again.

VI. And be it further enacted, That no person Penalty for whatsoever shall buy, sell, or receive of, to or from a dealing with slave, any commodity whatsoever without the leave or slaves. consent of the master, owner, or overseer of such slave. And if any person shall presume to deal with any slave without such leave or consent, he or she so offending, shall forfeit and pay to the master or owner of such slave four times the value of the thing so bought, sold, or received, to be recovered with costs, by action upon the case, in any court of record within this commonwealth; and shall also forfeit and pay the further sum of five pounds, to any person who will sue for the same, to be recovered with costs, by summons and petition, in the same manner as other debts not exceeding five pounds, nor under twenty-five shillings are, or receive on his or her bare back thirty-nine lashes well laid on at the public whipping-post, but shall nevertheless be liable to pay the costs of such summons and petition.

Commence

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

From Rev.

Bills of 1779, ch. LIV.

Who deemed mulattoes.

Commencement of act.

CHAP. LXXVIII.

An act declaring what persons shall be deemed mulattoes.

1. BE it enacted by the General Assembly, That every person of whose grandfathers or grandmothers any one is, or shall have been a negro, although all his other progenitors, except that descending from the negro, shall have been white persons, shall be deemed a mulatto; and so every person who shall have onefourth part or more of negro blood, shall, in like manner, be deemed a mulatto.

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

From Rev. Bills of 1779, ch. LVI.

In case of

their merchants and people shall be treated.

CHAP. LXXIX.

An act concerning aliens.

I. BE it enacted by the General Assembly, That war between in case that war arise betwixt the United States of the U. States, America and any foreign state, the merchants and peoand foreign powers, how ple of such state, their families, agents, and servants, found in this commonwealth at the beginning of the war, shall not be attached either in their body or goods because of such war, but shall be warned by proclamation from the governor, taking thereon the advice of the council of state, that they shall depart the commonwealth with their families, agents and servants aforesaid, and their goods, freely within forty days after the proclamation made and published. the mean time they shall not be impeached, nor let of their passage, or of making their profit of the same merchandizes, if they will sell them. And in case that for default of wind or of ship, or for sickness, or for other evident cause, they cannot depart the commonwealth within so short a time, then they shall have

In

other forty days, or so much more as the necessity of their affairs may require, and the governor and council may think it safe to allow, and in the mean time may sell their merebaudize as afore is said.

resorted to.

II. But if before their departure credible intelligence When retali shall be brought to the governor, that the merchants ation may be or people of any of the United States be evil treated in the land making war against us, then they shall be attached without harm of body or goods, until the truth of the matter be certainly known unto the governor and council of state: And if the merchants and people of the United States be well treated there, theirs shall be likewise with us: And if otherwise, theirs shall be treated or demeaned within the commonwealth, in the manner, form, and condition as the merchants or people of the United States be treated or demeaned in the land making war against us.

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

CHAP. LXXX.

From Rev. Bills of 1779.

An act directing what prisoners shall ch LVII. be let to bail.

I. FOR ascertaining in what cases persons appre- What prisone hended on suspicion of felony shall or shall not be ad- ers may be mitted to bail: Be it enacted by the General Assembly, admitted to That those shall be let to bail who are apprehended for bail, what not any crime not punishable in life or limb: And if the crime be so punishable, but only a light suspicion of guilt fall on the party, he shall in like manner be bailable: But if the crime be punishable in life or limb, or if it be manslaughter, and there be good cause to believe the party guilty thereof, he shall not be admitted to bail.

II. No person shall be bailed after conviction of any felony.

VOL. XII.

Y