8 «z A P P R £ 
denture will he void, the majler or nijhefs forfeit $ot. and ano¬ 
ther penalty, and the apprentice he dfabled to follow his trade, 
or to be made fee. And if any printer, ftaticuer, or other 
perfon, fhall fell or cattle to he fold any fitch indenture, 
without fuch memorandum being printed under the lame, 
die fit all forfeit i<?h in like manner, f. 19. 
It feems clearly agreed, that by the common-law infants, 
or perfons under the age of twenty-one years, cannot bind 
themfelve's apprentices} in fuch a manner as to in-title their 
inafters toe an action- of covenant, or other action, for de¬ 
parting the fervice, or other breaches of their indentures: 
which makes it necellary, according to-the ufual practice, 
to get 1'oine of their friends to be bound for the faithful 
difeharge of their offices, according to the terms agreed on. 
j Sac, Abr. Mailer and lervant. But by the ftatute of 5 Eliz. 
c.4. Porafntuch as there hath been fome' doubt, whether 
any perfon tinder twenty-one years of age, and bound to- 
Live as an apprentice, irrany other place than the city of 
London, lhall be bound, accepted, and taken, as an? appren¬ 
tice ; it is enadled, that every fetch perfon who fhall be 
bound by indenture, to ferve as an apprentice, in any art, 
Lienee, occupation, or labour, according to this ftatute, 
albeit he be within- the age of twentv-one years, fhall be 
bound as amply to every intent, as if he were of full age 
a-t the time of making the indentures, f. 4*, 43. But this 
is to be underftood of a compulfiorv by the means pre- 
feri-bed by the ftatute ; for although an infant may volun¬ 
tarily bind himfelf apprentice', and if be continue appren¬ 
tice for feven years, he may have the benefit to ufe his 
trade ; yet neither at the common law, nor by any words 
of this ftatute, a covenant or obligation of an infant for his 
apprenticefhip llialf bind him, but, if be rwifbehave him- 
felf, the mailer may correct him in Ms ferviCe, or com¬ 
plain to a juftice to have hint pimifhed, according to the 
ftatute. But no remedy lieth again!! an infant upon fuch 
covenant. Cu>. Car. lfy. 
T. 17 Geo. III. A', and Evered. Two jtiftices committed 
Robert Collehall for running away from his mafter; the 
cafe was, he had been bound an apprentice when an infant 
for lix years by indenture, and being now of age ran away, 
alleging afterwards that he did lo with an intent to avoid 
the apprenticefhip made when he was an infant, and to his 
prejudice: he had run away twice before. Two objec¬ 
tions were taken; firlf, that the binding was only for fx 
years, and the 5 Kliz. requires it to be for feven-, the other 
was, that an infant could make no contract but fuch as was 
voidable, though for his benefit; and li. v. St. Nicholas in 
Ipfzvich was cited, where it was adjudged, that Inch an in¬ 
denture was voidable by the parties ; that in the prelent 
cafe, the apprentice had done every thing in his power to 
avoid the indenture, having left his mafter, and faid he 
would live with him no longer. In anfwer thereto, it was 
infilled, that the apprentice who had fubmitted to the in¬ 
denture as long as he had benefit from it, and till he had 
learned his trade, fhould not be permitted to deleft his fet- 
vice as loon as he became ufeful in it ; but that the con¬ 
tract at the time of its commencement, which was during 
infancy, (the time when almoft all apprenticelhips are en¬ 
tered info,) was beneficial to the infant, and might legally 
he made, and therefore could not be abandoned. L. Mans¬ 
field : it has been adjudged that an infant may bind him- 
fclf for his own benefit, and it is fettled in the cafe in 
2 Str. 1066. S. C. that a binding for four years gives a fet- 
tlement.—Alton J. Suppoling the indentures voidable, 1 
cannot conceive that the apprentice’s running away can 
avoid them ; had he ferved regularly, and during fuch 
fervice declared his intention to depart, it might have 
been different ; here lie would make ufe of his offence in 
order to avoid tire ■punifhment that attends it: but it is 
too late to do it before a julticc w hen charged with a crime.' 
Will-es and Aftfh-urlt J. agreed. Cdl.Caf. -6. 
But if his father, or other perfon, doth covenant for 
him; fuch covenant fhall bind the father, or fuch other 
perfon: as in the cafe of Whitley and Laftus, M-. ioGeo. 11 . 
In the indenture of apprentkeJhi'p, the father covenants 
N T I C £. 
to pay the apprenticefhip money; the fort covenants to- 
account for his maftdr’s goods ; and, in the conclufion, the 
father and fon each bind themfei'ves for fhe true perfor¬ 
mance of all 1 covenants and agreements therein. By the 
court: The end' of binding the father was to anfwer wrongs- 
done by the fon, and lie muft anfwer for any ; and the co¬ 
venant that each 1 did bind him (elf muft be fo, where the 
fon is bound to perform the thing for which the covenant 
was made ; and this claufe is ufually inferted, that the co¬ 
venants may be taken diftributively, to wit, that each of 
the covenantors ftiould perform his part ; and this makes 
the covenant of the fon bind the father, who covenanted 
for him as well as for himfelf. 8 Mod. rgo. 
So in the cafe of Branch and Ewing ton, M. 21 Geo. III. 
On an' action of covenant by the mafter again ft the father 
oi the apprentice, the indenture was in the common form 
of the ftatute, the mailer covenanting to find the appren¬ 
tice meat and lodging, the father to find him clothes and 
walhing, and the apprentice that lie would ferve faithfully ; 
a'nd for the true performance of all and every the faid co¬ 
venants, each of the faid parties bound himfelf to the other. 
The breach aligned was, that the apprentice had abfented 
li'iinfelf from the fervice. For the father it was contended, 
that the parties w ere only bound for the exprefs covenants 
which they had feverally entered into. That it would be 
abfurd to conftrue tiic general words fo as to render the 
lather liable for breaches of fuch of the' covenants as were' 
to be performed only by the foil. The lame conftruc'tion 
would render the father liable to the fon, or the Ion to the 
father, for thofe which the mafter was to perform. In all 
covenants the intention is to govern. The mafter has other 
remedies befkles an action of covenant againll the appren¬ 
tice if he abl'ent himfelf: lie may, by application to the 
jtiftices, have hint punilhed under the ftatute of Elizabeth ; 
or, if he wants Compenfation for the 10Ik of fervice, lie 
may compel him to make it up by fubfequent fervice un¬ 
der 6 Geo. ULc. zy. Lord Mansfield Hopped the counfef 
who was to have argued on the other fide, and faid, nothing 
was clearer than that the father was bound for the perfor¬ 
mance of the covenants by the fon. Douglas, 500. 
And as an infant may be bound by indenture, fo the 
apprenticefhip may be determined by confent of all the par¬ 
ties concerned; which, in the cafe of pari Hi poor children,, 
includes the parifb officers; in other cafes, the father, (or 
guardian,) mafter, and infant. Burr. Sett/. Caf. 562, 766: 
A. v. Jijlices of Devon/hire. Where a mafter receives monev 
of an apprentice of full age to vacate his indentures, the 
relation is dilfolved, though the indentures remain uncan- 
ccrlled. 1 . 17 Geo. III. A. v. Juftices of Devon/hire, Cal. 
Caf. 32. But a covenant between the mafter and a third 
perfon, the infant not being party, maketh not an appren- 
ticefliip. 2 Salk. 479. If an apprentice is bound, it is not 
necellary to the validity of his indenture, that the mafter 
ftiould lign a counterpart, T. 17 Geo. III. Cal. Caf. 31. 
This was the cafe of a poor apprentice. 
Of binding Poor Apprentices. —The churchwardens and 
overfeers, or the greater part of them, by the afient of 
two juftices, (one of the quorum,) may bind any fuch chil¬ 
dren, vvhofe parents they lhall judge not able to maintain 
them, to be apprentices where they lhall fee convenient, 
till fuch man child lhall come to the age of twenty-one, 
(18 Geo. III. c. 47.) and fuch woman child to the age of 
twenty-one or marriage; the fame to be as effectual to all 
pm poles, as if fuch child w ere of full age, and by indenture 
of covenant bound him or her felf. 43 Eliz. c. 2. f. 5. 
By the ajjent of two jijlices. T. 29 Geo. III. A", v. Hamjfall 
Ridware. Anne Cradock was bound by indenture by the 
parilh officers of Rudgley apprentice to Sufannah Cotton 
of the fame place, who afligned her by deed to S. Walker 
of Hamftall Ridware, with whom fhe relided there under 
the indenture for more than forty days and until his death, 
when Ihe was removed by two juftices from Hainftall Rid¬ 
ware to Rudgley. The indenture was J'epaiately alTented 
to by two juftices, by figning the fame, but the two juf¬ 
tices did not ajjent to or fign the fame at the fame time, or in 
