The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1852-11-13

this !. an equal legal certainty that these Instruments
having their inception In fraud and being las they
tainy are In strict smitude valid notes they were
made to utter wherever they would work cheat aud az
mate existence under the laws Of Prussia (sec IT, r.
Of absolute fixed value (sec p. L. operating a.
currency Ihe sovernmen, and the people Of that
made to cheat The king and citizens of that country II
they were made In fraud they intended to operate
for fraud wherever fraud could be by them effected
The crime CT forgery Is an independent common law
offence misdemeanor indeed and the statutes, both OF
simply to declare 1t felony define it into degrces and
ax penalties save that few peculiar instruments
included which were not before embraced by the
law definition The fraudulent making or countereitipg
of any instrument whereby the rights OF the person
property Of another may be injured, in any
effected, Is stsndsid common law definition OF this
crime and which precisely the definition statute
declared by the thirty section the second
subdivision Of the thirty third section already rocited
and which intended in the language the rsvser
embrace every act Of forgery that has been
can be perpetrated-to Include every instrument and
every writing ever known to the common law egsa-
ted upon by the British Parliament The uiry stu IT,
these loan Office bs instruments, defined by the
language OF the legislature just repeated and within the
meaning Of the thirty seventh section, which declares
that every perfon who shall have in his possession any
forged or counterfeit Instruments knowing tina to
forged with intend to utter or cause the same to be
uttered as true, shall be guilty Of forgery &c9 1t is
not denied Creating the Prussian law evidence In the
premises that these bills not only issued under the
sanction but under the guarantee of the government
and under the supervision the highest depart
ments Of State (Minitry of Fjnsnce) for valuable
consideration, Qections 12; that they and
convey the obligations of the government to re.
lie authorities, ses.ion % and mora than ali
that they take the place Of specie pay ments ec %
with all the nominal If not the real value the precious
metal itse Is not then the liable in
temptation of law at least be injured by the fabrca-
ton OF these jnstruments (Which 10 respects
not unlike the treasury notes OF goyernmeub and
net any person any of the citizens of that coun-
try-for the term amy person in our statute means
not only any person Of this State and this country but
any Of State and any country any person
or all persons here and whcrobe in some manner
affected in their property BY the circulation of these
inquiry citizen OF New York Is indebted to
OF the public departments of the Prusan government,
(the department Of cusoms) in the cum OF ten thou
sand thaers and he in this city purchases Of these de-
fendaDts for genuine ten thousand of these forged
government guaranteed loan securities with which
discharge the Obligation and which he might do with the
same proprety would be the purchase United States
treasury notes, for the payment Of debt due this
Issue of corporation their circulation not prohibited
even though OF loss denomination than dollar
each would he not be defrauded here within the
State Of New York;
1t was conte that the simlitudes upon which this
complaint was brought not perfectDot such ftbr
cations as were calculated to deceive ia that they not
stamped as the true securities the Pru anlaW
requires them to be Ts ants the question: whether
where the Law provide. hal security Shall be- stamped
an mitatior genuine il, in fact, complete simii-
tudc With stamped in CORES pondence with the
paper i'm .a M word, Is the stamp any part of
instrum il il merely character impressed upon tho
paper for 7er ndepenocn purposes, and not as COM
ponent pt "a The writing? As for instance il not in
England purely commercial regulation for purposes of
revenue, and In Prussia requston strictly precau-
tionary TO guard against tho issue of notes to greater
amount than ten millions of thalers? (See. IT P.L)
1t Is the Law in England that bill Of exchange without
stamp cannot be pleaded given in evidence made
in any way available 10 aw or equity and yet in the
case Of Hardwood, East. p. O.. 10 49, page $50,
who was convicted OF forging bill OF exchange,
emitting to stamp it. the point that it was not,
therefore forgery saved for the twelve judges
unanimously decided that it perfect aud complies
instrument without stamp and the person Justly CON
vcted. In the Of II. Lee Leach 25S, tho
point was again raised upon urstamped bill OF K
change and the court held precisely in the last
$40, was convicted of forging promissory note upon
unttamped paper The twelve judges held the conviction
acter of these Prussan bills that it necessary
constitute forgery that tbs instrument should svaa
BILE such as the payment Of which could be enforced
In court OF justice, so long as patty might be de-
fauded by voluntary pay being lost to hin he
be deprived Of the OF the whiting for coateral pur-
pose. The came doctrine held In FeRgues case q
East, p O. S79 where the said that If the in
stTuent such its that IL true it would be
valid provided it had proper stamp, the offence was
complete The law declared in the case of
culiist Leach p. 1903 If the want of stamp false
Instruments under the English ststu where wrtiog
can be valid o. enforced in court justice without IL
ia bar to indictment for this felony it be argued
that these Prussian securities the Law creating which
requires that they shall be stamped, Ito prevent
than the allowed by law being issuedo can not
be couHereited without the fabrication bearing the
zion OF forged stamp a'so-cleArly stamp
no part of Instrument not ordinary Incident but
in this extraordinary requisite for purpose
tirsly foreign to the lawful composition OF the bill am
by no means certain that TO make false stamp to i'm
there bills would not Of itself ba offence aud 1t
would be strange indeed that it necessary perpe
trate second crime to make the t mplee; however
this may be without doubt that these false loan
Office bill, are as much forgery without the stamp as
The last point raised by the prisoners was that these
notes were not written but printed instruments and of
consequences not hect to be falsied. 1t urged
hat
ing: % Of art part Nv chap LIST, vol r s.. Sd
Ed is liable 70 be forged every instrument partly writ
tuTe thereto, every siguasuie Of Individual firm
corporate body of officer of such body and every
writing purpotrg to be such signature shall be deemed
Writing, and a written instrument within the meaning
OF the provisions OF this chapter This section does
give general definition Of what is necessary to constitute
such paper is liable to be fal iied, but ohly and
specially declares what sbn be regarded writing
written inst umep by reference to the proceed iug
(33 will be ses that the Of the ac Isl any n
sirument writing puportiDg to be the act OF
other, &c. and it is only the term writing aud not the
term instrument that is defined by this section 1t is
true indeed that Prnsian loan bill cannot he treated
writing for the that 1t is all printed well
what purports to be the and signatures of the
Presidents OF the branches OK the Piussan Bank and OF
the officers Of the general Administration Of the loan
oicesn the rest Of the bill plate
and pnted Tut while this Is so Is not the term instrument
efficiently to include these securites Its
curious to notice that the section 5 which, IL any de-
carts against these fictitious bills does not employ tho
word "wrtipgn Mt all but the language is any person
who shall have in his possession amy forged
feod instruments the forgery which herein before
declared" &c Herein before viz, 3ad section which
rays "any instrument, writing, purporting to be
the act OF another Sill this is perhaps ipor-
lance, as to my understanding ths term instrument,
embraces whiting even though the term writing
may not, (athough think 1t does ncrde the full sense
and extent OF the term Instrument. 1t undoubt
cdly the intention of Legislature in revising
statute OF the State against this offence to includs not
only all the instruments embraced by the provision of
the revised laws of New York and the inbred acts
Of the British Parliament also to declare upon all the
common law subjects for forgeyin fact to provide to
the greatest possible extent agans felony which, in
the language OF Justice Cowan lis more metaphysical
than any other in Its general compass It spreads
the whole region Of fraudulent device in the fabrication Of
forged Paper diversified almost TO infntude as 1t may
be by the studious adaptation of depravsd ingenuity
If in truth statutes embrace NIL fraudu ent writings
instruments and papers known to the law and
legated upon by the British Parliament and the Legisa
ture OF New York OF which there is doubt. then
printed If they be the immediate creatures OF lay as
well written Instruments the subjects forgery aud
the fraudulent making Of simtudes Of the we'll
a tho other Qf bir only difference is the being