509 i i i No. XXXVII. Justices of Peace. Acts respectively contained, be recovered for and adjudged to be paid to the receiver for the time being mentioned in the said Act of the third 10 Geo. IV. year of this reign, to be by him applied for the purposes of the said Act; c. 45. and the same shall not in any case be recovered by or adjudged to be paid former or the party aggrieved; and each of the justices at the said offices, to any other person than the said receiver, unless such person be the inand their clerks, and the said receiver, are hereby released and indemnified from all claims and demands, except those of his Majesty, in respect of any penalties or forfeitures, or shares of penalties or forfeitures, which before the passing of this Act shall have been received at any of the said offices, and claimed and retained for or on behalf of the said receiver. PART VI. CLASS XXIV. 1 Eliz. c. 2. Lord's Day. [No. I.] 1 Elizabeth, c. 2.-An Act for the Uniformity of Common Prayer and Service in the Church, and Administration of the Sacraments.* XIV. AND that from and after the said Feast of the Nativity of St. John Baptist next coming all and every person and persons inhabiting within this realm or any other the Queen's Majesty's dominions shall diligently and faithfully, having no lawful or reasonable excuse to be absent, endeavour themselves to resort to their parish church or chapel accustomed, or upon reasonable let thereof to some usual place where common prayer and service of God shall be used in such time of let upon every Sunday and other days ordained and used to be kept as holy days, and then and there to abide orderly and soberly during the time of the common prayer preaching or other service of God there to be used and ministered; (2) upon pain of punishment by the censurers of the church, and also upon pain that every person so offending shall forfeit for every such offence twelve pence, to be levied by the churchwardens of the parish where such offence shall be done, to the use of the poor of the same parish, of the goods lands and tenements of such offender by way of distress. * For the general Contents of this Statute, see Part V. Class I. No. 42. [No. II.] 3 James I. c. 4.—An Act for the better discovering and repressing of Popish Recusants.* 3 James 1. c. 4. XXVII. AND be it further enacted, That if any subject of this realm, at any time after one month next after the end of this present session of Parliament, shall not resort or repair every Sunday to some church chapel or some other usual place appointed for common prayer, and there hear divine service according to the statute made in that behalf in the first year of the reign of the late Queen Elizabeth, that then it shall and may be lawful to and for any one justice of peace of that limit division or liberty wherein the said party shall dwell, upon proof unto him made of such default by confession of the party or oath of witness, to call the said party before him; and if he or she shall not make a sufficient excuse and due proof thereof to the satisfaction of the said justice of peace, that it shall be lawful for the said justice of peace to give warrant to the churchwardens of the said parish wherein the said party shall dwell, under his hand and seal, to levy twelve pence for every such default by distress and sale of the goods of every such offender, rendering to the said offender the overplus of the money raised of the said goods so to be sold; and that in default of such distress it shall and may be lawful for the said justice of peace to commit every such offender to some prison within the Forfeiture for not repairing to Church weekly. * For other part see Part V. Class I. No. 54. No. II. said shire division limit or liberty wherein such offender shall be inhabiting until payment be made of the said sum or sums so to be forfeited; which forfeiture shall be employed to and for the use of the poor of that 3 James I. parish wherein the offender shall be resident or abiding at the time of such offence committed. XXVIII. Provided, That no man be impeached upon this clause except he be called in question for his said default within one month next after the said default made. [No. III. ] 1 Charles I. c. 1.-An Act for punishing divers Abuses committed on the Lord's Day, called Sunday. c. 4. FORASMUCH as there is nothing more acceptable to God than the 1 Car. I. c. 1. true and sincere service and worship of Him according to his holy will, and that the holy keeping of the Lord's day is a principal part of 'the true service of God, which in very many places of this realm hath times on the bidden. been and now is profaned and neglected by a disorderly sort of people in There shall be exercising and frequenting bear-baiting bull-baiting interludes common no Assemblies plays and other unlawful exercises and pastimes upon the Lord's day; for unlawful and for that many quarrels bloodsheds and other great inconveniences Pastimes upon have grown by the resort and concourse of people going out of their own the Lord's Day. parishes to such disordered and unlawful exercises and pastimes, neglecting divine service both in their own parishes and elsewhere;' (2) Be it enacted by the King's most excellent Majesty the Lords Spiritual and Temporal and the Commons in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, That from and after forty days next after the end of this session of Parliament there shall be no meetings Unlawful Meetassemblies or concourse of people out of their own parishes on the Lord's ings and Pasday within this realm of England or any the dominions thereof for any sports and pastimes whatsoever: (3) nor any bear-baiting bull-baiting Lord's Day forinterludes common plays or other unlawful exercises and pastimes used by any person or persons within their own parishes: (4) and that every person or persons offending in any the premises shall forfeit for every Every Person offence three shillings four pence, the same to be employed and converted using any unlawful Pastimes to the use of the poor of the parish where such offence shall be comon the Lord's mitted; (5) and that any one justice of the peace of the county, or the Day shall forchief officer or officers of any city borough or town corporate where such feit 3s. 4d. to offence shall be committed upon his or their view or confession of the the Poor of the party, or proof of any one or more witness by oath which the said justice Parish. or chief officer or officers shall by virtue of this Act have authority to minister shall find any person offending in the premises, the said justice or chief officer or officers shall give warrant under his or their hand and seal After Convicto the constables and churchwardens of the parish or parishes where such tion by Waroffence shall be committed to levy the said penalty so to be assessed by rant from a Jusway of distress and sale of the goods of every such offender, rendering to tice, &c. the the said offender the overplus of the money raised of the said goods so to Constables, &c. be sold; and in default of such distress that the party offending be set may levy the publickly in the stocks by the space of three hours; (6) and that if any Penalty, &c. man be sued or impeached for execution of this law he shall and may plead the general issue and give the said matter of justification in evi- General Issue. dence: (7) Provided, That no man be impeached by this Act except he Limitation of be called in question within one month next after the said offence com- Action. mitted: (8) Provided also, That the ecclesiastical jurisdiction within this The Ecclesiasrealm or any the dominions thereof by virtue of this Act or any thing tical Jurisdictherein contained shall not be abridged, but that the Ecclesiastical Court tion not abridgmay punish the said offences as if this Act had not been made. (9) This ed. Act to continue until the end of the first session of the next Parliament and no longer. [3 Car. 1. c. 4. continued until the end of the first session of the next Parliament, and farther continued by 16 Car. 1. c. 4. and enforced by 29 Car. 2. c. 7.] No. IV. 3 Charles I. c. 1. 3 Charles I. c. 1. A Carrier, &c. that travels on the Lord's Day shall forfeit 20s. Butchers that sell or kill Victual upon that Day shall forfeit 6s. 8d. After Conviction, and by Warrant from a Justice, &c. the Constables, &c. may levy the said Forfeitures to the Use of the Poor, or they may be recovered by Suit. [ No. IV. ] 3 Charles I. c. 1.-An Act for the further Reformation of sundry Abuses committed on the Lord's Day, commonly called Sunday. FORASMUCH as the Lord's day, commonly called Sunday, is much broken and profaned by carriers waggoners carters wain-men 'butchers and drovers of cattle, to the great dishonour of God and reproach of religion;' Be it therefore enacted by the King's most excellent Majesty, and Lords Spiritual and Temporal and by the Commons in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, That no carrier with any horse or horses, nor waggon-men with any waggon or waggons, nor carman with any cart or carts, nor wainman with any wain or wains, nor drovers with any cattle, shall after forty days next after the end of this. present session of Parliament, by themselves or any other travel upon the said day upon pain that every person and persons so offending shall lose and forfeit twenty shillings for every such offence: or if any butcher by himself or any other for him by his privity or consent shall after the end of the said forty days kill or sell any victual upon the said day, that then every such butcher shall forfeit and lose for every such offence the sum of six shillings and eight pence; (1.) the said offences and every of them being done in view of any justice of peace mayor or other head officer of any city or town corporate within their limits respectively, or being proved upon oath by two or more witnesses or by the confession of the party offending before any such justice mayor or head officer within their several limits respectively wherein such offence shall be committed: to which end every such justice mayor or head officer shall have power by this Act to minister an oath to such witness or witnesses: all which sums or penalties shall or may be levied by any constable or churchwarden by warrant from any such justice or justices of the peace mayor or other head officer as aforesaid within their several limits where such offence shall be committed or done, by distress and sale of the offender's goods, rendering to the party the overplus, or shall be recovered by any person or persons that will sue for the same by bill plaint or information in any of his Majesty's courts of record in any city or town corporate, before his Majesty's justices of the peace in their general sessions of the peace: all which forfeitures shall be employed to and for the use of the poor of the parishes where the said offence shall be committed or done, saving only that it shall be lawful to and for any such justice mayor or head officer out of the said forfeitures to reward any such person or persons that shall inform or otherwise prosecute any person or persons offending against this present Act according to their discretions, so that such reward exceed not the third part of the forfeiture: Provided that such bill plaint or information shall be commenced sued and prosecuted in the county city or town corporate where such offence shall be committed and done and not elsewhere; wherein no essoign protection or wager of law shall be allowed to the defendant: Provided always, That it shall be lawful for any constable or churchwarden that shall have any suit or action brought against them for any distress by them or any of them to be taken by force of this present Act to plead the general issue and to give the special matter in evidence: Provided likewise, That no person or persons whatsoever shall be impeached by this Act, unless he be thereof questioned within six months after the offence committed: Provided further, That this Act shall not in any sort abridge or take away the authority of the Courts Ecclesiastical. This Act to continue to the end of the first session of the next Parliament. [Enforced by 29 Car. 2. c. 7. and see farther 108 11 W. 3. c. 24. sect. 14.] (1.) An Indictment against a Butcher for selling Meat on a Sunday, must conclude contra Formam Statuti: Rex v. Brotherton, 1 Str. 702. |