Gold and Silver Thread Act 1788
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
| Citation | 1788 c. 7 |
(28 Geo. 3) C A P. VII.
'WHEREAS by an Act made in the fifteenth Year of the Reign of his late Majesty KingGeorge the Second (intituled, ), it is (amongst other Things) enacted, That, from and after the first Day ofJuly one thousand seven hundred and forty-two, all Copper, Brass, and every other Metal inferior to Silver, shall be spun upon Thread, Yarn, or Inkle only, and not spun, mixed, wove, wrought, or set upon Silk, upon Pain that each and every Person offending therein shall forfeit and pay the Sum of five Shillings for each and every Ounce so spun, mixed, wove, wrought, or set upon Silk: And whereas, notwithstanding the said recited Act, great Frauds have been committed by Copper or other base Metal being woven or mixed with Silk, and worked up in Imitation of Gold Lace; and it hath also been a Practice for Persons to gild and silver Copper, Brass, or other base Metal, and to spin or weave the same upon Silk, Thread, Yarn, or Inkle, and to work up the same in Imitation of, and to mix the same with Gold and Sliver Lace, Fringe, Cord, Embroidery, Tambour Work, and Buttons, which have been so exactly counterfeited that the Publick have been greatly imposed upon thereby, which tends to the Discouragement as well of the Manufacture as of the Exportation thereof, and to the Use and Wear thereof at Home, to the great Diminution of the Bullion of this Kingdom, inasmuch as whatever is used in gilding or silvering Copper is never recovered, and also in Diminution of his Majesty's Revenue;' For Remedy whereof, be it enacted by the King's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the Advice and Consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the Authority of the same, Thatfrom and after the passing of this Act, all Copper, Brass, and every other Metal inferior to Silver, shall be spun upon Thread, Yarn, or Inkle only, and not spun, mixed, woven, wrought, or set upon Silk; and that no Person or Persons whomsoever shall sell, or offer or expose to Sale, or export, any Copper, Brass, or other Metal inferior to Silver, which shall be spun, mixed, woven, wrought, or set upon Silk, upon Painthat each and every Person offending therein shall forfeit and pay the Sum of five Pounds for one Ounce, or any Quantity less than one Ounce, and the further Sum of five Poundsper Ounce for each and every Quantity exceeding one Ounce, which shall be so spun, mixed, woven, wrought, or set upon Silk, or sold, or offered or exposed to Sale, or exported as aforesaid, to be recovered and disposed of as herein after is mentioned; and, for Default of paying down the Penalty upon Conviction, shall be committed, by the Court in which Judgment shall be given thereon, to the House of Correction for the County, City, Liberty, or Place, there such Person or Persons shall be so convicted, there to remain, and to be kept to hard Labour, for any Time not exceeding the Space of six Months, nor less than three Months, or until Payment be made of the said Penalty; and also upon Pain that all such Copper, Brass, or other Metalinferior to Silver, which shall be so spun, mixed, woven, wrought, or set upon Silk, or sold, or offered or exposed to Sale, or exported as aforesaid, shall be forfeited, one Moiety thereof to the King's Majesty, his Heirs and Successors, and the other Moiety thereof to such Person or Persons as shall sue for the same.
II No gilt base Metal to be drawn or flatted for making Lace,
II. And be it further enacted by the Authority aforesaid, That, from and after the...
To continue reading
Request your trial