The Pioche weekly record. [volume] (Pioche, Nev.) 1877-1900, 1878-01-05
LAW A HUNDRED YEARS AGO.

The Albany Law Journal finds in
Halls history of Eastern Vermont some
account of the laws which were in force
q hundred year ago.
Burglary was punished by branding
with b on the forehead and mailing
one Of the offenders ears to post and
cutting it off. and whipping; for the sec.
ond offence there was the like branding
and mailing. and cutting off of the other
ear; for the third offence the punishment
was death, the offender being deemed
'incorrigible. Counterfeiting was pun
ished by cutting off the right ear, brand
ing with G, and perpetual imprison-
ment. Perjury was punished by fine
OF ESQ and Imprisonment for six months,
but if the offender could not pay the fine
he was let off by sitting in the pillory
two bours, and having both ears nailed
and cut off. Willful lying. to public
prejudice or private injury, or deceiving
or abusing the people with false news or
reports, was punished by fine, sitting in
the stocks and whipping, the punish
ment being increased with each repeti-
ton Of the offence, except that in no
case was the number of stripes to exceed
the number Of thirty-nine. Theft was
punished by compelling threefod resti-
tuition. by fine and by q sort of tempor-
ary slavery, the prosecutor being en-
powered to dispose of any offender in
service to any subject Of the State for
such time az he should be assigned to
the prosecutor by the court. Unreason-
able nj ght walking, that is to say after
nine O'Clock, was prohibited, as was also
a tnp IF
ernment OF parents. guardians or mas
ters after that untimely hour. Tavern
haunters were published by posting their
names at the door of every tavern pro-
hibiting the tavern-keeper from supply
ing them with anything in the way of
strong drink. No clamorous discourse,
shouting, hallooing, screaming, running,
riding, dancing, jumping, swimming or
blowing OF horns was tolerated on the
Lords day. Listening outside of meet
ing-houso during the time of public
worship was not permitted. Secular
meetings of any number of persons in
the street or elsewhere on Saturday or
Monday evenings were forbidden under
penalty of fine or the stocks.
Mr.. Hall gives several notable in
stances OF popular legal errors prevailing
in Vermont. One notion was that if the
friends of one dying in prison carried
bis remains beyond the boundaries of
the Jail yard, they were accomplices of
an escape and liable to satisfy the
Judgment by virtue of which he had
been confined. Another notion was that
if one should bury the body of an unim-
prisoned debtor he thereby became ad-
ministrator in his own wrong, and liable
to discharge the debtors obligations. In
the case of Judge Chandler, who died
while confined in Jail for debt, his inter-
ment became a serious problem. In this
predicament the jailer discovered that by
stretching the chain he could include
within the Jail liberties small portion
of the adjoining burying- A grave
was dug, commencing just outside the
graveyard fence and just within the jail
yard, sloping under the fence, until q
sufficient depth and obliquity was OBJ
tanned. So Judge Chandler was buried
after a Christian fashion, and yet no
escape was suffered"