GAME. 



and shall be in force till the first of July 

 following, and no longer ; andif any clerk 

 of the peace, his deputy, or steward, 

 clerk, &c. issue certificates otherwise 

 than directed, to forfeit 20J. 25 Geo. III. 

 sess. 2. No person to destroy game, 

 until he has delivered an account of his 

 name and place of abode to the clerk of 

 the peace, or his deputy, or to the 

 sheriff, or steward, clerk of the coun- 

 ty, riding, shire, stewartry, or place 

 where such person shall reside, and an- 

 nually take out a certificate thereof, 

 which must have a stamp duty of 31. 3s. 

 25 Geo. III. sess. 2. Any person coun- 

 terfeiting or forging any seal or stamp di- 

 rected to be wsed by this act, with intent 

 to defraud the revenue, or shall utter or 

 sell such counterfeit, on conviction there- 

 of, shall be adjudged a felon, and shall 

 suffer death without benefit of clergy; 

 and all provisions of former acts relative 

 to stamp duties to be in force in execut- 

 ing this act. 25 Geo. yi. sess. 2. Every 

 qualified person, shooting at, killing, tak- 

 ing, or shooting, any pheasant, partridge, 

 heath-fowl, or black-game, or any grouse 

 or red game, or any other game, or kill- 

 ing, taking, or destroying any hare, with 

 any greyhound, hound, pointer, spaniel, 

 setting-dog, or other dog, without having 

 obtained such certificate, shall forfeit the 

 sum of 20Z. Id. Clerks of the peace, or 

 their deputies, or the sheriff, or steward- 

 clerks, in their respective counties, rid- 

 ings, shires, stewartries, or places, shall, 

 on or before November 1, 1785, or soon- 

 er, if required by the commissioners of 

 his 4 Majesty's stamp duties, transmit to the 

 head office of stamps in London, a cor- 

 rect list, in alphabetical order, of the cer- 

 tificates by them issued between the 25th 

 day of March in the year 1785, and the 

 first of October in the same year; and 

 shall also in every subsequent year, on or 

 before the first of August in each year, 

 make out and transmit to the stamp office 

 in London,correct alphabetical lists of the 

 certificates so granted by them, distin- 

 guishing the duties paid on each respec- 

 tive certificate so isused ; and on delivery 

 thereof, the receiver-general of the stamp 

 duties shall pay to the clerk of the peace, 

 &,c. for the same, one halfpenny a name ; 

 and in case of neglect, or refusal, or not 

 inserting a full, true and perfect account, 

 he shall forfeit 20Z. Id. Lists may be in- 

 spected at the stamp office for Is. each 

 search ; (id.) which list shall once, or of- 

 tener, in every year, be inserted in the 

 newspapers in each respective county. If 

 any qualified person, or one having a de- 

 putation, shall be found in pursuit of 



game, with gun, dog, or net, or other en- 

 gine for the destruction of game, or tak- 

 ing or killing thereof,|and shall be requir- 

 ed to show his certificate, by the lord or 

 lady of the manor, or proprietor of the 

 land whereon such person shall be using 

 such gun, &c. or by any duly appointed 

 gamekeeper, or by any qualified or certi- 

 fied person, or by any officer of the 

 stamps, properly authorised by the com- 

 missioners, he shall produce his certifi- 

 cate : and if such person shall refuse, up- 

 on the production of the certificate of the 

 person requiring the same, to show the 

 certificate granted to him for the like 

 purpose ; or in case of not having such 

 certificate to produce, shall refuse to tell 

 his Christian and surname, and his place 

 of residence, and the name of the coun- 

 ty where his certificate was issued, or 

 shall give in any false or fictitious name, 

 he shall forfeit 50/. Id. Certificates do 

 not authorize any person to shoot at, kill, 

 take, or destroy, any game, at any time 

 that is prohibited by law, nor give any 

 person a right to shoot at, &c. unless he 

 be duly qualified by law. Id. No certifi- 

 cate obtained under any deputation shall 

 be pleaded or given' in evidence, where 

 any person shall shoot at, &c. any game 

 out of the manors or lands for which it 

 was given. The royal family are exempt- 

 ed from taking out certificates for them- 

 selves or their deputies. Id. The duty 

 on these certificates are now, by an act 

 which is at present passing the house, to 

 be had through the collectors of the as-. 

 sessed taxes. The above is the law now 

 in force. Besides having a certificate, 

 each person to kill game must be quali- 

 fied by having a certain estate. The last 

 general qualification (to use the words of 

 Dr. Burn, though in fact it is the first of 

 the acts relative to the game ever now 

 put in force,) by estate or degree, to kill 

 game, is 22, 23 Charles II. c. 25. This 

 enacts, that every person not having lands 

 or tenements of the clear yearly value of 

 lOO/.or on leases for 99 years,or upwards, 

 of the clear yearly value of 150/. or ex- 

 cept the eldest son and heir of an esquire 

 or person of higher degree, or owners of 

 forests, parks, &c. in respect of such fo- 

 rest, park,&c. is not qualified for himself, 

 oraity other person, to keep guns, bows, 

 greyhounds, &c. s. 3. This merely states 

 the qualification; the penalties and modes 

 of proceeding are entirely changed by 

 subsequent acts : and first, by 5 Anne, c. 

 14, which directs that all former acts not 

 thereby repealed and altered continue in 

 force. With respect to offences against 

 the game laws, we shall here enumerate 



