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making any motion towards it. A rout is where three or more meet to do an unlawful act upon a common quarrel, as forcibly breaking down fences upon a right claimed of common, or of way; and make some advances towards it. A riot is where three or more actually do an unlawful act of violence, either with or without a common cause or quarrel as if they beat a man; or hunt and kill game in another's park, chase, warren, or liberty; or do any other unlawful act, with force and violence; or even do a lawful act, as removing a nuisance, in a violent and tumultuous manner. The punishment of unlawful assemblies, if to the number of twelve, we have just now seen, may be capital, according to the circumstances that attend it; but, from the number of three to eleven, is by fine and imprisonment only. The same is the case in riots and routs by the common law; to which the pillory in very enormous cases has been sometimes superadded.

7. Nearly related to this head of riots is the offence of tumultuous petitioning. By statute 13 Car. II. st. 1. c. 5. it is enacted, that not more than twenty names shall be signed to any petition to the king or either house of parliament, for any alteration of matters established by law in church or state; unless the contents thereof be previously approved, in the country, by three justices, or the majority of the grand jury at the assizes or quarter sessions; and, in London, by the lord mayor, aldermen, and common council: and that no petition shall be delivered by a company of more than ten

persons on pain in either case of incurring a penalty not exceeding L.100. and three months imprisonment.

8. A forcible entry or detainer, which is committed by violently taking or keeping possession of lands and tenements, with menaces, force, and arms, and without the authority of law.

9. The offence of riding or going armed, with dangerous or unusual weapons, is a crime against the public peace, by terrifying the good people of the land, and is particularly prohibited by the statute of Northampton, 2 Edw. III. c. 3. upon pain of forfeiture of the arms, and imprisonment during the king's pleasure.

10. Spreading false news, to make discord between the king and nobility, or concerning any great man of the realm, is punishable by common law with fine and imprisonment.

11. False and pretended prophecies, with intent to disturb the peace, are equally unlawful, and more penal, as they raise enthusiastic jealousies in the people, and terrify them with imaginary fears. And by the statute 5 Eliz. c. 15. the penalty for the first offence is a fine of ten pounds and one year's imprisonment; for the second, forfeiture of all goods and chattels, and imprisonment during life.

12. Besides actual breaches of the peace, any thing that tends to provoke or excite others to break it, is an offence of the same denomination. Therefore challenges to fight, either by word or letter, or to be the bearer of such challenge, are

punishable by fine and imprisonment, according to the circumstances of the offence. If this challenge arises on account of any money won at gaming, or if any assault or affray happen upon such account, the offender by statute 9 Ann. c. 14. shall forfeit all his goods to the crown, and suffer two years imprisonment.

13. Of a nature very similar to challenges are libels, libelli famosi, which, taken after their largest and most extensive sense, signify any writings, pictures, or the like, of an immoral or illegal tendency; but, in the sense under which we are now to consider them, are malicious defamations of any person, and especially a magistrate, made public by either printing, writing, signs, or pictures, in order to provoke him to wrath, or expose him to public hatred, contempt, and ridicule. The direct tendency of these libels is the breach of the public peace, by stirring up the objects of them to revenge, and perhaps to bloodshed. The communication of a libel to any one person is a publication in the eye of the law, and therefore the sending an abusive private letter to a man is as much a libel as if it were openly printed, for it equally tends to a breach of the peace. For the same reason it is immaterial with respect to the essence of a libel, whether the matter of it be true or false, since the provocation, and not the falsity is the thing to be punished criminally: though, doubtless, the falsehood of it may aggravate its guilt, and enhance its punishment. In a civil action, we may remember, a libel must

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appear to be false, as well as scandalous. The punishment of such libellers, for either making, repeating, printing, or publishing the libel, is fine and such corporal punishment as the court in its discretion shall inflict; regarding the quantity of the offence, and the quality of the offender.

CHAPTER XII.

OF OFFFENCES AGAINST PUBLIC TRADE.

OFFENCES against public trade, like those of the preceding classes, are either felonious, or not felonious. Of the first sort are,

1. Owling, so called from its being usually carried on the night, which is the offence of transporting wool or sheep out of this kingdom, to the detriment of its staple manufacture.

2. Smuggling, or the offence of importing goods without paying the duties imposed thereon by the laws of the customs and excise, is an offence gerally connected and carried on hand in hand with the former. This is restrained by a great variety of statutes, which inflict pecuniary penalties and seizure of the goods for clandestine smuggling; and affix the guilt of felony, with transportation for seven years, upon more open, daring, and avowed practices.

3. Another offence against public trade is fraudulent bankruptcy, which was sufficiently spoken

of in a former book; I shall therefore here barely mention the several species of fraud, taken notice of by the statute law: viz. the bankrupt's neglect of surrendering himself to his creditors; his nonconformity to the directions of the several statutes; his concealing or embezzling his effects to the value of L. 20. and his withholding any books or writings with intent to defraud his creditors: all which the policy of our commercial country has made felony without benefit of clergy. And, even without actual fraud, if the bankrupt cannot make it appear that he is disabled from paying his debts by some casual loss, he shall, by the statute 21 Jac. I. c. 19. be set on the pillory for two hours, with one of his ears nailed to the same, and cut off. To this head we may also subjoin, that, by statute 32 Geo. II. c. 28. as altered by 33 Geo. III. c. 5. it is felony punishable by transportation for seven years, if a prisoner, charged in execution for any debt under 1.300. neglects or refuses, on demand, to discover and deliver up his effects for the benefit of his creditors. And these are the only felonious offences against public trade; the residue being mere misdemeanors:

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4. Usury, which is an unlawful contract upon the loan of money, to receive the same again with exorbitant increase. Wherefore not only all contracts for taking more are in themselves totally void, but also the lender shall forfeit treble the money borrowed.

5. Cheating is another offence, more imme

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