coin, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to three years, and shall also be liable to fine.

253. Whoever fraudulently, or with intent that fraud may be committed, is in possession of coin with respect to which the offence defined in either of the Sections 247 or 249 has been committed,

Possession of Queen's coin by a person who knew it to be altered when he became possessed thereof.

having known at the time of becoming possessed thereof that such offence had been committed with the respect to such coin, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to five years, and shall also be liable to fine.

Delivery to another of coin as genuine, which, when first possessed, the deliverer did not know to be altered.

254. Whoever delivers to any other person as genuine, or as a coin of a different description from what it is, or atwhich tempts to induce any person to receive as genuine or as a different coin from what it is, any coin in respect of which he knows that any such operation as that mentioned in Sections 246, 247, 248, or 249, has been performed, but in respect of which he did not, at the time when he took it into his possession, know that such operation had been performed, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to two years, or with fine to an amount which may extend to ten times the value of the coin for which the altered coin is passed or attempted to be passed.

a

Counterfeiting

255. Whoever counterfeits, or knowingly performs any part of the process of Government counterfeiting any stamp issued by Government for the purpose of revenue, shall be punished with transportation for life,

Stamp.

or with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to ten years, and shall also be liable to fine.

Explanation.-A person commits this offence who counterfeits by causing a genuine stamp of one denomination to appear like a genuine stamp of a different denomination.

256.

Having posses

ment or material

for the purpose of

Whoever has in his possession any instrument or material for the purpose of sion of an instru- being used, or knowing or having reason to believe that it is intended counterfeitingaGo- to be used, for the purpose of counterfeiting any stamp issued by Government for the purpose of revenue, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years, and shall also be liable to fine.

vernment Stamp.

Making or selling instrument the purpose counterfeiting

for

of

a

Stamp.

257. Whoever makes, or performs any part of the process of making, or buys, or sells, or disposes of, any instrument for the purpose of being used, or Government knowing or having reason to believe that it is intended to be used, for the purpose of counterfeiting any stamp issued by Government for the purpose of revenue, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years, and shall also be liable to fine.

Sale of counterfeit Government stamp.

258. Whoever sells, or offers for sale, any stamp which he knows or has reason to believe to be a counterfeit of any stamp issued by Government for the purpose of revenue, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend tɔ seven years, and shall also be liable to fine.

Having possession of a counterfeit Government stamp.

259. Whoever has in his possession any stamp which he knows to be a counterfeit of any stamp issued by Government for the purpose of revenue, intending to use or dispose of the same as a genuine stamp, or in order that it may be used as a genuine stamp, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years, and shall also be liable to fine.

Using as genu

stamp known to

260. Whoever uses as genuine any stamp knowing it to be a counterfeit of any ine a Government stamp issued by Government for the purpose of revenue, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years, or with fine, or with both.

be counterfeit.

261. Whoever, fraudulently or with intent to cause loss to the Government, removes or effaces from any substance

Effacing any writing from

a

a

Government

stamp, or remov

ing from a docu

ment stamp used

tent to cause loss to Government.

substance bearing bearing any stamp issued by Government for the purpose of revenue any writing or document for which such for it, with in- stamp has been used, or removes from any writing or document a stamp which has been used for such writing or document, in order that such stamp may be used for a different writing or document, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to three years, or with fine, or with both.

The intention with which the acts named in the above Section are done may be either fraudulent generally, or with a special view to cause loss to Government. And, therefore, a conviction would be good where the intention of the act was merely to efface a document with a view injuriously to effect the rights of another person. No intention to cause loss to Government can be assumed unless it is shown, or may be inferred, that the intention of the party was to use the stamp as a stamp a second time. And, therefore, no conviction could be sup

ported, if the object of removing writing from a stamped paper was merely to write upon the blank space something which required no stamp.

Using a Governstamp

ment

known to have

262. Whoever, fraudulently or with intent to cause loss to the Government, uses for any purpose a stamp issued by Government for the purpose of revenue, which he knows to have been before used, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to two years, or with fine, or with both.

been before used.

Erasure of mark

that

denoting
stamp has been
used.

263. Whoever, fraudulently or with intent to cause loss to Government, erases or removes from a stamp issued by Government for the purpose of revenue any mark put or impressed upon such stamp for the purpose of denoting that the same has been used, or knowingly has in his possession, or sells or disposes of, any such stamp from which such mark has been erased or removed, or sells or disposes of any such stamp which he knows to have been used, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to three years, or with fine, or with both.

CHAPTER XIII.

OF OFFENCES RELATING TO WEIGHTS AND MEASURES.

Fraudulent use

264. Whoever fraudulently uses any instrument for weighing which he knows to be false, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to one year, or

of false

ment for weighing.

with fine, or with both.

The instrument used must not only be known to be false, but must also be fraudulently so used; that is, it must be used for the purpose of passing off short weight upon persons who are entitled to full weight.

In general the mere possession of a false balance, which is used as a true one, will be sufficient evidence of a fraudulent intention. "The intention, however, must be alleged in laying the charge, though it may be a matter of inference only, from the fact of the possession, and the attending circumstances as manifesting the purpose, and the inference may of course be rebutted. But where the incorrectness of the scale is visible, and there is no attempt to cover or conceal it, there can be no ground for imputing fraud from the defect alone; the circumstances negative the intention of fraud, and no charge would lie against the party using such a balance." (2nd Report 1847. ss. 220 & 221.) See as to the summary jurisdiction of the Magistrate of the District over offences defined by this Section, and ss. 265 & 266, Crim. P. C. s. 222.

Fraudulent use of false weight or

measure.

265. Whoever fraudulently uses any false weight or false measure of length or capacity, or fraudulently uses any weight or any measure of length or capacity as a different weight or measure from what it is, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to one year, or with fine, or with both.

266.

Whoever is in possession of any instrument

Being in possession of false weights or mea

sures.

for weighing, or of any weight, or of any measure of length or capacity, which he knows to be false, and intending that the same may be fraudulently used, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to one year, or with fine, or with both.

Making or sell

or measures.

267. Whoever makes, sells, or disposes of, any instrument for weighing, or any ing false weights Weight, or any measure of length or capacity, which he knows to be false, in order that the same may be used as true, or knowing that the same is likely to be used as true, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to one year, or with fine, or with both.