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40 HISTORY OF MARYLAND
The law against the poor debtor was very severe. In the first place, if he
absconded, seemed to do so, or to intend to do so, he was deprived of all
benefits of the rule of limitation of action. He could be imprisoned at the
discretion of the court, until he satisfied the process against him. He could
not get away from the province, except upon a pass, nor could he get that
pass without giving security to the governor and council for the payment of
all his debts, or else by setting up notice for three months in advance, on the
court-house door of his county, of his intention to depart. Then, if nobody
underwrote the notice, by obtaining a certificate from the clerks of the provincial and county courts, a pass might be granted to him. Perjury was
punished with a fine of £40, or a year's imprisonment and standing one hour
in the pillory. Subornation had half this penalty annexed, and, if the
suborner had not the money, he was to be set in the pillory and have both
ears nailed. Forgeries or any sort of falsification in connection with the
inspection of tobacco, were punished with thirty-nine lashes and two hours in
the pillory. The penalty for Sabbath-breaking was a fine of two hundred
pounds tobacco, and where the offender kept an ordinary, a fine of two
thousand pounds. To counterfeit the great seal of the Province, or the sign
manual of the Lord Proprietary, or any other public seals, or fraudulently to
use them, in any way, involved forfeiture of goods, lands, etc., whipping, the
pillory, and perpetual banishment. Any justice of the peace might commit
any private person and detain him till he furnished proof of being a taxable
and free person. Thieving and stealing were punished by paying four-fold,
by restitution of the goods, by being whipped and pilloried. If the four-fold
could not be restored in kind, it must be made good in servitude.
This was a severe code, but not more so, perhaps, than those of contemporary England and New England. The severity of such laws is always
mitigated by the in frequency of conviction under them, except of certain
classes of offenders. In Maryland, these laws were enforced as against the
convict, indentured servant and redemptioner classes, but the gentry and
planter classes were usually above their operations. This was not always the
case, however, and in the earlier, more primitive days of the colony, the laws
were at once more severe and their enforcement more rigid. By the Act of
1638, chapter XVIIL," Treasons against the Province" were punishable with
burning for a woman, hanging, drawing, and quartering for a man, and
beheading for a lord of a manor. Among these "treasons" was counterfeiting the king's seal, or his coin, and conspiracy against the Lord
Proprietary or his deputy. If the next Act, against felonies could be
examined,1 the same amelioration of punishments in later times would
1 In an Act for the punishment of certain nose, cutting off one or both ear3, whipping,
offences against the peace and safety of the branding with a red hot iron in the hand or
province, the party offending was liable to pun- forehead—any one or more of these, as the Pro-
ishment with imprisonment during pleasure vincial court shall think fit. This was six years
not exceeding one whole year, fine, banish- later, in 1647.
ment, boring of the tongue, slitting of the
| Title | History of Maryland - 2 |
| Creator | Scharf, J. Thomas (John Thomas) |
| Publisher | J. B. Piet |
| Place of Publication | Baltimore |
| Date | 1879 |
| Language | eng |
| Type | Books/Pamphlets |
| Title | 00000065 |
| Type | Books/Pamphlets |
| Transcript | 40 HISTORY OF MARYLAND The law against the poor debtor was very severe. In the first place, if he absconded, seemed to do so, or to intend to do so, he was deprived of all benefits of the rule of limitation of action. He could be imprisoned at the discretion of the court, until he satisfied the process against him. He could not get away from the province, except upon a pass, nor could he get that pass without giving security to the governor and council for the payment of all his debts, or else by setting up notice for three months in advance, on the court-house door of his county, of his intention to depart. Then, if nobody underwrote the notice, by obtaining a certificate from the clerks of the provincial and county courts, a pass might be granted to him. Perjury was punished with a fine of £40, or a year's imprisonment and standing one hour in the pillory. Subornation had half this penalty annexed, and, if the suborner had not the money, he was to be set in the pillory and have both ears nailed. Forgeries or any sort of falsification in connection with the inspection of tobacco, were punished with thirty-nine lashes and two hours in the pillory. The penalty for Sabbath-breaking was a fine of two hundred pounds tobacco, and where the offender kept an ordinary, a fine of two thousand pounds. To counterfeit the great seal of the Province, or the sign manual of the Lord Proprietary, or any other public seals, or fraudulently to use them, in any way, involved forfeiture of goods, lands, etc., whipping, the pillory, and perpetual banishment. Any justice of the peace might commit any private person and detain him till he furnished proof of being a taxable and free person. Thieving and stealing were punished by paying four-fold, by restitution of the goods, by being whipped and pilloried. If the four-fold could not be restored in kind, it must be made good in servitude. This was a severe code, but not more so, perhaps, than those of contemporary England and New England. The severity of such laws is always mitigated by the in frequency of conviction under them, except of certain classes of offenders. In Maryland, these laws were enforced as against the convict, indentured servant and redemptioner classes, but the gentry and planter classes were usually above their operations. This was not always the case, however, and in the earlier, more primitive days of the colony, the laws were at once more severe and their enforcement more rigid. By the Act of 1638, chapter XVIIL," Treasons against the Province" were punishable with burning for a woman, hanging, drawing, and quartering for a man, and beheading for a lord of a manor. Among these "treasons" was counterfeiting the king's seal, or his coin, and conspiracy against the Lord Proprietary or his deputy. If the next Act, against felonies could be examined,1 the same amelioration of punishments in later times would 1 In an Act for the punishment of certain nose, cutting off one or both ear3, whipping, offences against the peace and safety of the branding with a red hot iron in the hand or province, the party offending was liable to pun- forehead—any one or more of these, as the Pro- ishment with imprisonment during pleasure vincial court shall think fit. This was six years not exceeding one whole year, fine, banish- later, in 1647. ment, boring of the tongue, slitting of the |
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