Frauds by Workmen Act 1748
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
| Citation | 1748 c. 27 |
| Year | 1748 |
(22 Geo. 2) C A P. XXVII.
'WHEREAS by an Act made in the thirteenth Year of his present Majesty's Reign, intituled,An Act to explain and amend an Act made in the first Year of the Reign of her late Majesty QueenAnne , intituled, An Act for the more effectual preventing the Abuses and Frauds of Persons employed in the working up the Woollen, Linnen, Fustain, Cotton and Iron Manufactures of this Kingdom, and for extending the said Act to the Manufactures of Leather , it is amongst other Things enacted, That if any Person or Persons hired or employed in the working up of any Woollen, Linnen, Fustain, Cotton or Iron Manufactures, shall purloin, imbezil, secrete, sell, pawn, exchange or otherwise illegally dispose of any the Materials with which he, she or they shall be respectively entrusted to work up such Woollen, Linnen, Fustain, Cotton or Iron Manufactures, whether the same be or be not first made up or manufactured, or shall reel false or short Yarn, the Person or Persons so offending, and being thereof convicted in Manner prescribed by the said Act of the first Year of her said late Majesty's Reign, shall forfeit Double the Value of the Damages which the Owner or Owners of such Materials shall respectively sustain thereby, together with full Costs of Prosecution for every such Offence: And in case immediate Payment of the respective Forfeitures, together with such Costs of Prosecution as aforesaid, shall be neglected or refused to be made, that then it shall and may be lawful to and for the same Justice of the Peace, before whom such Conviction shall be made, to cause the Offender or Offenders to be committed to the House of Correction, to be there whipped and kept to hard Labour for any Time not exceeding fourteen Days: And in case of a further Conviction for a second or other subsequent Offence for imbeziling or purloining any of the Materials in the said Act of the first Year of her said late Majesty's Reign mentioned, that the Person or Persons so offending shall, for every second or other subsequent Offence, forfeit four times the Value of the Damages which the Owner or Owners of such Materials (whether the same be or be not made up or manufactured) shall sustain thereby, together with such Costs of Prosecution, as shall be adjudged reasonable by the Justice before whom such Offender or Offenders shall be respectively convicted: And in case immediate Payment of the respective Forfeitures, together with such Costs of Prosecution as aforesaid, shall be neglected or refused to be made, that then such Justice, or any other Justice of the Peace for the County, Riding, Division, City, Town or Place where such Offences shall be committed, shall cause the said Offenders to be committed to the House of Correction, to be there kept to hard Labour for any Time not exceeding three Months, nor less than one Month, as to such Justice shall seem reasonable, and also during the Time of such Commitment shall cause the said Offender or Offenders to be publickly whipped in the Market Town where such Offender or Offenders shall be respectively committed, at the Market Place or Cross of such Town, once or oftener, as to such Justice shall seem reasonable: And it is by the said Act of the thirteenth Year of his present Majesty's Reign also further enacted, That every Person or Persons who shall buy or receive, accept or take, by way of Gift, Pawn, Pledge or Sale of or from any of the Persons in the said Act of the first Year of her said late Majesty's Reign mentioned, any Woollen, Linnen, Fustain, Cotton or Iron Manufactures, either before or after the same shall be manufactured or converted into merchantable Wares, knowing the same to be so purloined or imbezilled, and being thereof lawfully convicted, shall severally suffer the like Forfeitures and Penalties as are by the said Acts respectively inflicted on Persons purloining or imbezilling such of the Materials or Manufactures enumerated in the said Acts respectively; all which Forfeitures, when recovered, are by the said Act of the thirteenth Year of his present Majesty's Reign directed to be applied in Manner following; that is to say, one Moiety thereof to the Use of the Party or Parties injured, and the other Moiety to the Use of the Poor of the Parish only where the Offence shall be committed, with the like Liberty and Benefit of Appealing to all Parties, as is given in and by the said Act of the first Year of her said late Majesty: And it is by the said Act of the thirteenth Year of his present Majesty's Reign also further enacted, That if any Person or Persons hired or employed in cutting, paring, washing, dressing, sewing, making up, or otherwise manufacturing of Gloves, Breeches, Leather, Skins, Boots, Shoes, Slippers, Wares or other Goods or Merchandizes, to be made Use of in any of the Trades or Employments, or in Manner last-mentioned, or in any Branch or Particular thereof, shall fraudulently purloin, imbezil, secrete, sell, pawn or exchange all or any Part of the Gloves, Breeches, Leather, Skins, Parings or Shreads of Gloves or Leather, or other Materials with which he, she or they shall be entrusted to work up or manufacture, or shall purloin, imbezil, secrete, sell, pawn or exchange any Gloves, Breeches, Boots, Shoes, Slippers or Wares, when made, wrought up or manufactured, or do or wilfully permit any other Act, to lessen the Value of such, or any Part of such Gloves, Breeches, Leather, Skins, Parings or Shreads of Gloves or Leather, Boots, Shoes, Slippers or other Wares last particularized, either before or after the same shall be respectively so made into Wares, and be thereof lawfully convicted in Manner prescribed by the said last mentioned Act, before one or more Justice or Justices of the Peace for the County, Riding, Division, City, Town or Place where such Offence shall be committed, or where the Party or Parties so charged shall reside or inhabit; such Justice or Justices shall and may award the Person or Persons so offending, to make a reasonable and suitable Recompence and Satisfaction for every Offence to the Parties respectively injured, for the Damage by them sustained, so as the same do not exceed double the Value of the Gloves, Breeches, Leather, Boots, Shoes, Slippers, Wares, Goods or Materials, by such Offender or Offenders so purloined or imbeziled, secreted, sold, pawned or exchanged; one half thereof to go to the Party or Parties grieved, and the other half to the Use of the Poor of the Parish or Place where such Offence shall be committed; together with the full Charges attending such Conviction; to be levied by Warrant under the Hand and Seal, or Hands and Seals of such Justice or Justices by Distress and Sale of the Offenders Goods; but if such Offender or Offenders shall not have Goods sufficient to answer the Forfeitures and the Expences attending the Premisses, and shall also neglect or refuse immediately to pay the same, that then the said Offender or Offenders shall, by like Warrant of such Justice or Justices last described, be for every distinct Offence committed to the House of Correction, or other publick Prison of such County, Riding, City, Town or Place, and there kept to hard Labour for the Space of fourteen Days, and shall be there likewise whipped in such Manner, as the said Justice or Justices shall order and direct; and in case also of a subsequent Conviction for a second or any other such like Offence, that the Person or Persons so offending, for every second or other subsequent Offence, shall forfeit four Times the Value of the Damages which the Owner or Owners of such Materials, either before or after the same shall be respectively made up into Wares, shall sustain thereby, together with such Costs of Prosecution as shall be adjudged reasonable by the Justice, before whom such Offender or Offenders shall be respectively convicted; and in case immediate Payment of the respective Forfeitures, together with such Costs of Prosecution as aforesaid, shall be neglected or refused to be made, that then it shall and may be lawful to and for such Justice to commit the Offender or Offenders last described to the House of Correction, or other publick Prison, to be there kept to hard Labour, for any Time not exceeding three Months, nor less than one Month, as to such Justice shall seem reasonable; and also during the Time of such Commitment, shall cause the said Offender or Offenders to be publickly whipped in the Market Town where such Offender or Offenders shall be respectively committed, at the Market Place or Cross of such Town, once or oftener, as to such Justice shall seem reasonable: And it is by the said Act of the thirteenth Year of his present Majesty's Reign also further enacted, That every Person and Persons who shall knowingly or willingly buy or receive, accept or take, by way of Pawn, Pledge, Sale, or in any other Manner, of or from any of the Persons offending in either of the Particulars last-mentioned, or of or from any other Person or Persons whatsoever (except of or from the Person or Persons in whom the Property of such Gloves, Breeches, Leather, Boots, Shoes, Slippers, Wares, Goods or other Materials, shall be at the Time of such Sale, Pawn or Exchange) or offer so to do, such Person or Persons offending therein respectively, shall, for every Offence, being convicted thereof in Manner before prescribed by the said last mentioned Act, make such suitable and reasonable Recompence and Satisfaction, within two Days next after the Matter...
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