LAW 



343 



LAW 



{Buckland v. Butterfield, 2 Brod. and 

 Bing. 540 A tenant is liable to pay for 

 the waste if he cuts down any fruit 

 trees in the garden or orchard he holds, 

 but not if they are not growing within 

 the garden or orchard. (Coke's Litt. 

 53, a.) But he may take away a wood- 

 en shed which he had built on brick- 

 work, and posts and rails he had put 

 up. {Fitzherbert v. Shaw, 1 H. Black- 

 stone, 259.) 



Law Protecting Gardens. — Gardens 

 were not sufficiently protected by law 

 until the year 1828, when the statute 

 7 & 8 Geo. IV. c. 29 was passed. 



Section 38 of this statute enacts that 

 to steal or cut, brake, root up, or other- 

 wise destroy, or damage, with intent to 

 8teal, the whole or any part of any tree, 

 sapling, or shrub, or any underwood, 

 above the value of 1/. respectively 

 growing in any park, pleasure-ground, 

 garden, orchard or avenue, or in any 

 ground adjoining or belonging to any 

 dwelling-house, or above the value of 

 5/. in any other situation, is felony, and 

 punishable as simple larceny. 



By section 39, if the injury to the 

 trees, shrubs, &c., amounts to less than 

 1/., but to Is. at the least, then sum- 

 mary punishment may be inflicted by a 

 justice of the peace. A fine may be 

 imposed not exceeding 5Z. above the 

 injury done, upon the first conviction; 

 by imprisonment with hard labour, not 

 exceeding twelve months, upon a se- 

 cond conviction, and, if the conviction 

 take place before two justices of the 

 peace, by public or private whipping ; 

 and the third offence, after two previous 

 convictions, is felony, punishable as 

 simple larceny 



growing in any land, open or inclosed, 

 not being a garden, orchard, or nursery- 

 ground, is punishable upon summary 

 conviction by fine, imprisonment with 

 or without hard labour, and by public 

 or private whipping, according to the 

 nature of the offence. 



So, by section 42, to steal or destroy, 

 or damage with intent to steal, any 

 plant, root, fruit, or vegetable produc- 

 tion, growing in any garden, orchard, 

 nursery-ground, hot-house, or conser- 

 vatory, is, for the first offence, punish- 

 able, upon summary conviction, by im- 

 prisonment with or without hard labour, 

 not exceeding six months, or by fine, 

 not exceeding 20/. ; but the second of- 

 fence is felony, punishable as simple 

 larceny. 



Lastly, by section 44, to steal, or rip, 

 cut, or break with intent to steal, any 

 glass or wood-work belonging to any 

 building whatsoever, or any lead, iron, 

 copper, brass, or other metal, or any 

 utensil or fixture, whether made of me- 

 tal or other material, respectively fixed 

 to any building, or anything made of 

 metal fixed in any land, being private 

 property, or for a fence to any dwelling- 

 house, garden, or area, or in any square, 

 street, or other place dedicated to pub- 

 lic use or ornament, is felony, punish- 

 able as simple larceny. 



Spring Guns and Man Traps. — These 

 were formerly permitted by law to be 

 set in woods, gardens, &c., without any 

 restriction. Injuries the most severe, 

 and even death, were inflicted by them, 

 and the legislature, wisely considering 

 that these punishments were visitations 

 far too excessive for stealing, or intend- 

 to steal fruit or game, passed the 



By sections 40, 41, and 43, to steal, ! statute 7 & S Geo. IV. c. 18. This en- 

 or to cut, break, or throw down, with , acts that any person who sets or places, 

 intent to steal, any part of any live or or causes to be set or placed, any spring- 



dead fence, or any wooden post, pale, 

 or rail, set up or used as a fence, or any 

 stile or gate, or any part thereof; or to 

 have possession of the whole or any 

 part of any sapling or shrub, or any 

 underwood, or any part of any live or 



gun, man-trap, or other engine calcu- 

 lated to destroy human life, or inflict 

 grievous bodily harm, with the intent 

 or whereby the same may destroy or 

 inflict grievous bodily harm upon a 

 trespasser or other person coming 



dead fence, or any post, pale, rail, stile contact therewith, shall be guilty of a 



or gate, or any part thereof respective' 

 ly, of the value of 2.S., without satisfac- 

 torily accounting for that possession ; 

 and to steal , or destroy, or damage with 

 intent to steal, any cultivated root or 



misdemeanor and punishable by fine or 

 imprisonment, or both, at the discretion 

 of the court. 



The act further provides that persons 

 i allowing such guns, traps, or engines 



plant used for the food of man or beast, { already set to continue sot, shall be 



or for medicine or distilling, or dyeinf 

 or for or in the course of manufacture. 



deemed to have set them. 



But the Act does not extend to any gin 



