or any servant, without taking due care for their maintenance and cure, he shall forfeit and pay ten pounds current money, to the churchwarden or churchwardens of the parish wherein such sailor, or sailors, or servants, shall be put on shore, to be recovered, with costs, by action of debt or informatton, in any county court, and applied towards lessening the parish levy; and he shall also be liable to the action of the churchwardens of that, or any other parish, wherein such sailor, or sailors, or servant, shall become chargeable, for all expences of maintenance and cure; in which action no statute or act of limitation shall be pleaded: And that every master, upon discharging a seaman from his service, shall give him a certificate Master dis- under his hand, that the person therein named hath charging a served on board his ship, or vessel, and is by him disseaman shall charged; which shall be sufficient to indemnify any give him a certificate. other person hiring or entertaining such seaman; And if any master shall refuse, upon request of the party discharged, to grant him such certificate, he shall forfeit and pay to such party, five pounds current money, recoverable, with costs, before any justice of peace, who is hereby authorized to hear and determine the same, and thereupon to give judgment and award execution.

ralty.

Saving to the VIII. Provided always, That nothing in this act jurisdiction contained shall be construed to limit or restrain the of the admi- authority and jurisdiction of the lord high-admiral of Great Britain, the vice-admiral of this dominion, or judge of the vice-admiral, for the time being, in any matter or thing properly cognizable in the admiralty court.

Repealing clause.

Commence

act.

IX. And be it further enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That all and every other acts and acts, clause and clauses, heretofore made, for or concerning any matter or thing within the purview of this act, shall be, and are hereby repealed.

X. And be it further enacted, by the authority aforement of this said, That this act shall commence and be in force, from and immediately after the tenth day of June, which shall be in the year of our Lord, one thousand seven hundred and fifty-one,

.

CHAP. XVIII.

An Act for the better securing the payment of Levies,

and Restraint of Vagrants, and for making provision for the poor.

I. WHEREAS divers idle and disorderly persons, Preamble. having no visible estates or employments, and who are able to work, frequently strole from one county to another, neglecting to labour, and either failing altogether to list themselves as tithables, or by their idle and disorderly life, rendering themselves incapable of paying their levies when listed: For remedy whereof,

shall be

11. Be it enacted by the Lieutenant Governor, Coun No wander; sil, and Burgesses of this present General Assembly, and ing person it is hereby enacted, by the authority of the same, That hired or enit shall not be lawful to and for any inhabitant of this tertained colony, to entertain, hire, or employ, in his or her without a house, above the space of forty-eight hours, any per- certificate, son or persons whatsoever, being tithable, and removing from the parish where he or she formerly resided, unless such person shall first produce a certificate, under the hand of the sheriff of the county, or the churchwardens, or other persons collecting the levy of the parish from whence he or she came, that such person paid levy there for the preceding year, or, that he or she came into this colony since, or was a servant at the time of taking the last list of tithables; and if any one shall entertain, hire, or employ, any person or persons whatsoever, being tithable, not having such certificate as aforesaid, he or she so offending, shall forfeit and pay two hundred pounds of tobacco, or twenty shillings current money, for every such offence, to the informer, recoverable before any justice of peace of the county where the offence shall be committed: And if any tithable person, not having such certificate, shall offer him or herself, or seek to be employed, he or she shall be liable to the like penalties and forfeitures, as persons not listing themselves as tithables are liable to.

III. And be it further enacted, by the authority afore- Vagabonds said, That all able bodied persons not having where- described withal to maintain themselves, who shall be found

of dealing with such.

loitering, and neglecting to labour for reasonable wa ges; all persons who run from their habitations, and leave wives or children, without suitable means for their subsistence, whereby they are like to become burdensome to the parish wherein they inhabit; and all other idle, vagrant, or dissolute persons, wandering abroad, without betaking themselves to some lawful employment, or honest labour, or going about begging, shall be deemed and adjudged rogues and vagabonds.

IV. And be it further enacted, by the authority aforeThe manner said, That if any such vagabond shall be found in any parish or place, wandering, begging, or misordering him or herself, it shall be lawful for any justice of peace of that county, and he is hereby impowered and required, by warrant under his hand, to cause such vagabond to be brought before him, and to examine and inform himself, as well by the oath and examination of the person apprehended, as of any other person or persons, which oath or oaths the justice is hereby impowered to administer, and by any other ways and means he shall think proper, of the condition and circumstances of the person or persons so apprehended; and if it shall appear, that he or she is under the description of vagabonds, within this act, the said justice shall, by his warrant, order and direct him or her to be conveyed and whipt, in the same manner as runaways are, from constable to constable, to the parish wherein his wife or children do inhabit, or where he or she did last reside, as the case shall be, and there delivered to a justice of the peace, who is hereby required to cause every such vagabond to give sufficient security for his or her good behaviour, and for betaking him or herself to some lawful calling, or honest labour; and if he or she shall fail so to do, then to commit him or her to the common goal of the county, there to remain until such security be given, or until the next court: Which court is hereby impowered, if no security be then offered, to bind such vagabond to service, on wages, for the term of one year; and such wages, after deducting the charges of the prosecution and necessary cloathing, shall be applied towards supporting the family of such servant, if any, or otherwise paid to the person so bound, after his or her time of service is expired, in full of all other recompence or reward: But if any

such vagabond be of such evil repute, that no person will receive him or her into service, in such case, the court shall order him or her to receive thirty nine lashes on his or her bare back, well laid on at the public whipping-post, and then to be discharged; and in both cases, every such vagabond shall be afterwards liable to the like prosecution and punishment, for every offence of vagrancy, whereof he or she shall be guilty as aforesaid: And when any such vagabond shall be brought before a justice of the peace, and it shall not appear to the said justice, that he or she has acquired a legal settlement in any parish, the said justice is hereby required to cause such vagabond to give security for his or her good behaviour, and for betaking him or herself to some honest calling or employment, and on failure thereof, shall commit him or her to the gaol of the county, there to remain, and be dealt with as is herein before directed.

What shall be a legal

V. And for determining all disputes concerning what shall be accounted a legal settlement, whereby settlement. any person may be entitled to be provided for at the parish charge: It is hereby enacted and declared, That no person shall be accounted an inhabitant, so as to have gained a legal settlement in any parish, until such person shall have been actually resident in such parish, one whole year.

VI. And be it further enacted by the authority afore- The method said, That upon complaint made by the churchwar- of sending dens of any parish, before a justice of peace, that any to their own poor people poor person or persons is or are come into their parish. parish, and likely to become chargeable thereto, it shall be lawful for such justice, by warrant under his hand, to cause such poor person to be removed to the parish where he or she was last legally settled; but if such poor person be sick or disabled, and cannot be removed without danger of life, the churchwardens shall provide for his or her maintenance and cure, at the charge of their parish, and after recovery shall cause him or her to be so removed; and the parish, wherein he or she was last legally settled, shall repay all charges occasioned by the sickness, maintenance and cure of such poor person, and also all charges and expences, if such person shall die before removal: And if the church warden or churchwardens of the parish to which such poor person belongs shall refuse to receive and provide for the person or per

Penalty on church war

dens refusing to receive the poor.

against Ves

tries not

sons removed by warrant, as aforesaid, every church. warden so refusing shall forfeit and pay twenty pounds current money, one half to our sovereign lord the king, for the use of the parish from whence the removal was, and the other moiety to the informer; to be recovered by action of debt or information, in any court of record of this dominion, with costs of suit: And if the vestry of the parish where such poor perRemedy son was last legally settled shall refuse to pay and satisfy all the charges and expences aforesaid, in such paying char- case, the vestry of the parish refusing shall be liable for the same to the churchwardens of the parish aggrieved, to be recovered with costs, in any court of record, as aforesaid: And if any house keeper shall entertain any such poor person, and shall not give Penalty for notice thereof to the churchwardens of the parish, or entertaining one of them, within one month, he or she so offending poor without shall forfeit and pay the sum of five pounds, or one giving nothousand pounds of tobacco, to be recovered with costs, by the churchwardens, for the use of the parish, by action of debt or information, in any county

ges.

tice.

court.

VII. And to prevent the evil consequences attendIn what cases ing the neglect or inability of poor people to bring up and by whom their children in an honest and orderly course of life, dren may be Be it further enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That

poor chil

bound ap

prentices.

Repealing clause.

Commence

where any person or persons shall be, by their county court, judged incapable of supporting and bringing up their child or children, in honest courses, or where it shall appear to the court, that he, she, or they, neglect to take due care of the education of his, her, or their child or children, and their instruction in the principles of christianity, in any such case it shall be lawful for the churchwardens of the parish, where such child or children inhabit, by order of their county court, to bind every such child or children apprentices, in the same manner, and under such covenants and conditions as the law directs for poor orphan children.

VIII. And be it further enacted by the authority afore scid, That all and every other act and acts, clause and clauses, heretofore made, for or concerning any matter or thing within the purview of this act, shall be, and are hereby repealed.

IX. And be it further enacted, by the authority aforement. said, That this act shall commence and be in force