68465
110
HONGKONG.
ANNO DECIMO QUINTO VICTORIÆ REGINÆ.
No. 2 of 1852.
BY His Excellency WILLIAM JERVOIS, Knight of the Royal Hanoverian Guelphie Order, Major General Commanding Her Ma- jesty's Forces in China, Acting Governor and Commander-in-Chief of the Colony of Hongkong and its Dependencies, and Vice-Admiral of the same, with the Advice of the Legislative Council of Hongkong. AN ORDINANCE TO INCREASE IN CERTAIN CASES THE POWERS OF MAGISTRATES AS REGARDS PUBLICANS, BOARDING-HOUSE KEEPERS, AND OTHERS, WITH THE VIEW OF SUPPRESSING DESERTION IN HER MAJESTY'S FORCES, NAVAL AND MILITARY, WITHIN THE COLONY OF HONGKONG.
WHEREAS the Offence of Desertion in Her Majesty's Forces, Naval
[18th May, 1852.] and Military, serving in this Colony, has of late considerably increased, and whereas such Offence has heretofore had Inception in, and Facility of Commission from, Public and Boarding-houses, and other places: Be it therefore enacted and ordained by His Excellency the Acting Governor of Hongkong, with the Advice of the Legislative Council thereof, That,
Title.
Preamble.
Publicans,
Q-
I. Any Publican or Keeper of a Boarding-house, or any other Person whatsoever, who shall by Words or by any other Means what- Boarding-house soever, directly or indirectly, procure any Soldier, Sailor, or Marine, to Keepers, or desert, or shall by Words or by any other Means whatsoever attempt Soldiers, Sailors, thers, inducing to procure or persuade any Soldier, Sailor, or Marine to desert, and or Marines to any Publican or Keeper of a Boarding-house, or any other Person desert, liable to whatsoever who, knowing that any Soldier, Sailor, or Marine is about be fined to the to desert, shall aid or assist him in deserting, or, knowing any Soldier, extent of £100. Sailor, or Marine to be a Desertor, shall conceal such Deserter, or aid
or assist such Deserter in concealing himself, shall be deemed guilty of
a Misdemeanour, and shall, on Conviction thereof, in a Summary Man-
ner,
How Penalty
before the Person for the Time being filling the Office of Chief or Assistant Magistrate of Police, and any Two other Magistrates, be liable for every such Offence to a Fine not exceeding One Hundred Pounds Sterling; and in default of Payment of such Fine, the same shall be levied by Distress and Sale (with the Costs and Charges consequent to be levied. thereon) of the Goods and Chattels of the Offender, the Overplus, if any, after deducting the Charges of such Distress and Sale, to be rendered to the said Offender: Provided, that if upon the Return of the Officer charged with the Execution of the said Distress, it shall appear that no sufficient Distress can be found, or the Party adjudged to pay any Money shall at the Time of the said Adjudication or Couviction declare, or it shall otherwise appear, that he has no Goods or Chattels on whichi the said Distress can be levied, then the Convicting Magistrates, or any of them, may by Warrant commit such Offender to one of Iler Majesty's Gaols, with or without hard Labour, there to remain for a Time in pro- portion to the Amount of tho Penalty inflicted, and not exceeding Six Months in the whole, unless the said Sum to be levied, together with the Costs, shall be sooner paid.
II. And a Portion not exceeding One-half of every such Fine so Apportionment inflicted and levied, shall be payable to such Person or Persons by of Fine. whose Information or Evidence the Conviction of such Offender shall be made.
III. And Any Publican or Keeper of a Boarding-house who shall Additional Pe- have been convicted of any one or more of the above mentioned Offences, nalty on Publi- shall, in addition to the Penalty above provided, forthwith forfeit any cans, and Board- License or Licenses then held by him as a Publican or Boarding-house ing-house Keep- Keeper in this Colony, and he shall be and is hereby declared inca- pable of holding thereafter any License as such Publican or Boarding- house Keeper within the said Colony,
era,
Interpretation the Term
IV. And for the Purposes of this Ordinance, the Word "Sailor" shall be held to extend to every Person serving for the Time being in of any Ship then under the Orders of the Commander-in-Chief of Her" Sailor." Majesty's Naval Forces in the East Indies and China Seas.
V. And nothing herein contained shall prevent the Magistrates Nothing to acting under this Ordinance from sending any Case arising out of any prevent Magis- of the said Offences for Trial at the Supreme Court, which in the trates from send- exercise of their Discretion they may consider should be investigated in Cases for
there.
Passed the Legislative Council of Hongkong, this 18th Day of May, 1852.
L. D'ALMADA E CASTRO,
Clerk of Councils.
WM. JERVOIS.
Trial' at the Su- preme Court.
Lidi Ahmada e bakt
Clerk of Councils.