The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1882-12-02
TrespaSsing,

ylnce the time Wneh the right to owl
and hold property was recognized Their
have been laws enacted to aid the prom
erty holder in maintaining that right
A mans house is his castle, and even tn,
officers of the law, unless they are armed
with a warrant of arrest for crime
dare not enter but by permission. If
man enters your house or comes upor
your premises without your permission
and declines to leave on your request
you may legally use the force necessary
to put him off. but no more. You canno
pound or beat him without rendering
Yourself liable for assault and battery,
The law allows you to eXpel the intruder
but in the gentlest manner possible. Il
he does not resist, you may only Law
your hand on him and direct his move
ments; but this may only be done after
you have requested him to leave. In
case, however, of forcible entry, such
request is not necessary. In case of re.
sistance, you may use just enough force
to overcome that resistance, but no more.
While the law recognizes the right OF
the owner to the possession and control
of his own premises, no action for tres
pass may be brought unless it be alleged
that damage has been done. may walk
in your grounds or fields without being
guilty of criminal offence, but if it dis
pleases you, must leave, upon request.
In some States the law allows you to put
up a notice forbidding persons from
crossing your lands in certain seasons.
If they do it in spite of the notice, al
though they do no damage, you can col
lect the fine the law imposes.
The word trespass comes from the
Norman French, tres, beyond, and paSser,
to 60. Its literal meaning is the same as
that of transgressor. 1t is defined in law
to mean wrongful act, committed with
some kind of violence, and injurious to
the personal rights or property of an
other. In some States the law as
to trespass provides that unless the
damage exceeds seven dollars the
plaintiff shall pay all costs exceed
ing the amount of damage. This
is to prevent vexatiouS suits. Trespass
takes on the form of crime sometimes,
and is punished as such when only q
crime has been meditated or intended,
as when one comes on your farm for the
purpose of theft, and is discovered before
the theft was committed.
Trespasses committed by animals are
usually chargeable to their owners, and
damages done are collectable from the
latter. If no damage is done, itremains
for the owner of the premises to take such
action in the matter as his inclinations
prompt and the law allows, for it must
be admitted that inclination and law do
not always point in the same direction in
such cases. In some States it is left for
him either to drive the trespassers home,
with modest request that the owner
will keep them there; to confne them on
his own premises, sending notice to the
owner to pay charges and take them
away" to impound them in the town
pound, or to turn them into the street to
90 their own way.
But how about dogs, cats, turkeys,
chickens and similar trespassers? In
many States dogs and cats are not CON
sidered property, and may be shot, but
not poisoned, at will. In few States
the fence of the law has been put about
dogs, and protects them from indiscrimi-
nate slaughter; but we are not aware
that any penalty attaches to the shooting
of cats. Turkeys may not be shut up un-
less you choose to risk a prosecution for
theft; nor may they beimpounded, at least
in Connecticut, case having been tried
there. A. finding BIS turkeys on his
premises sent them to the pound. B.
sued out a writ of replevin. There was
no question about the facts, but the law
yers talked long and earnestly about the
law. She Judge decided that the tur-
keys were not mentioned in the statute
in question regarding pounds with cat
tie, horses, sheep, goats, and even geese.
A. had acted without authority, and
must pay fine of one dollar and costs
of suit. And your neighbor may look
coolly on and see his hens scratch your
flower beds, peck every apple, peach, or
pear that falls from your trees, fiy at
your grapes, and commit such other
damage and annoyance as in their
power and nature lies, with the salts
faction of knowing that you have no rem.
edy. You may kill and eat them if YOU
like, but you would be liable for theirfull
''NANt' dil't pei maps " u sui lOE mall
cious destruction of property, as in a
case we once knew in this State, where a
man shot his neighbours hens and threw
them over the fence as the easiest way
of getting them home. This case never
came to trial. The lawyer to whom il
was intrusted pocketed the fee from both
neighbors and quashed the whole pro-
ceedings. The plaintiff was satisfied to
know that he had made the defendant
sweat for his impudence, while the de-
PENDANT was glad to get off without hav-
ing heavy bill Of court costs to settle.
We believe there is a law in Massa-
chusetts providing that, if after YOU have
given your neighbor written notice for
bidding it he willfully permits his ami
mails or fowls to trespass on your prem
ises, he is liable to pay a fine of ten dol
lars. A man may seem to be easily
annoyed who gets into passion when his
neighbor' chickens comes to his prem
ises, but if we sought to test the equan-
unity of an ordinary mortal we would
subject him to the same experience that
some parties we know undergo every
day when snow is not on the ground. -
~ y SIM