other thing, directly or indirectly, of any person or persons, great or small, for any matter done or to be done by virtue of your office, except such fees or salary as shall be by law appointed. You shall not maintain by yourself, or by any other, privily or openly, any plea or quarrel depending in the said court. You shall not delay any person of right for the letters or request of any one, nor for any other cause; and if any letter or request come to you contrary to the law, you shall nothing do for such letter or request, but you shall proceed to do the law; any such letter or request notwithstanding. And finally in all things belonging to your said office, during your continuance therein, you shall faithfully, justly, and truly, according to the best of your skill and judgment, do equal and impartial justice, without fraud, favour, affection, or partiality." The taking of which oath, or the certificate thereof, shall be registered in the said court. Any judge executing his office before he shall have taken acting with Penalty for the said oath, or given assurance of fidelity to the com- out oath. monwealth, shall forfeit five hundred pounds of current money, to the use of the commonwealth. This Register, adcourt or any two judges thereof, when it is not sitting, shall appoint a register, an advocate, and a marshal, marshal. when those offices shall become vacant, who shall take the oath of office, and of whom the register and marshal shall moreover give bonds, the former in one thousand pounds, and the other in ten thousand pounds, payable to the governour or his successours, with sureties, to be approved by the court or two judges, with condition that they will faithfully and impartially perform their respective offices, and account for and pay all money which may come to their hands by virtue thereof; upon which bonds, suits may be severally brought for the benefit and at the costs of any persons grieved by breach of the conditions until the damages to be recovered shall be equal to the penalties. The judges, register, advocate, and marshal, shall continue office. in office so long as they respectively demean themselves well therein. The court shall sit so often as there shall be occasion, at the capitol in Williamsburg, until the to-sit. general assembly shall appoint another place, or at, or in such house or place as the governour, with advice of the council, shall by writ of adjournment direct, in case an accident by fire or tempest, or a pestilential

vocate, and

Tenure of

Court, where

disease, or an enemy, shall make it necessary.

This

Sale of per. court shall have power to order sale of perishable

ishable

goods.

Libel.

Citation.

goods to be made at any time, taking sufficient caution for securing the proceeds of the sale to him who shall be entitled to them by the final sentence. Every commander of a ship of war or other vessel belonging to the commonwealth, or to any citizen thereof, when he shall be required, shall assist the marshal of the said court acting by virtue of the process thereof, to seize and secure any vessel or goods subject to such process, so as not to violate the right of any other of the United States, or of any state, or prince in amity Rules of with them. When a citation shall have been served practice. upon the owner or master of a vessel therein mentioned, if no person appear at the return day, or at such further time as the court for peculiar reasons shall appoint, and enter into the litigation, the libel shall be taken for confessed; and if return be made that the mas ter or owner was not found, and no person appear and claim, the court shall make an order, to be published three times in the Virginia Gazette, that the libel be taken for confessed, unless the party interested shall appear and shew cause to the contrary at a certain day to be limited in the order, not being less than three nor more than six weeks after the making thereof; and Publication. the said order being so published, if there be no such appearance before expiration of the time limited, the libel shall be taken for confessed accordingly, caution being given to secure the effects so that they may be subject to the future order of the court; and the sen. tence given thereupon shall be published in manner aforesaid; and if the master, owner, or other person interested at any time within one year after such last mentioned publication, or that being omitted within seven years after sentence, by petition desire that thre cause be reheard, and give security for payment of such costs as may be awarded against him, the court shall admit such party to make his defence or claim, in the same manner as if he had appeared at the return of the citation and give such sentence as they think just and agreeable with the laws prescribed for Depositions. the rules of their decisions. Commissions for taking the examinations of witnesses may be awarded, and such examinations may be read in like cases as they

Defence.

may be in an action at common law. In a case where

The

Security for

Sales of goods condemned.

both parties are citizens of the commonwealth, every Trial by ju matter of fact affirmed by the one and denied by the ry, when. other, shall be stated as a formal issue and tried by the same court by a jury in like manner as such issue ought to be tried in an action at common law. court may at any time after, but not before an interlocutory sentence, if they see good cause, require a per- costs, when. son pretending a claim to any vessel or goods mentioned in the libel to give security for the costs which may be occasioned by discussion of the claim, and may refuse to admit him until such security be given, and may award any party to pay costs when they judge it reasonable, unless he be the master or owner appearing and making a defence or a claim at the return of a citation; and the like execution for such costs may issue, and there shall be like proceedings thereupon as for costs recovered by judgment in an action of common law, otherwise than that the execution shall bear teste the day of emanation, and may be made returnable to any day not less than one month thereaf ter. In case of a capture from an enemy, if there be a condemnation and neither of the United States in general, nor the commonwealth in particular be interested therein, the court shall order the sales to be made, and accounts thereof to be returned by the libellant or his agent, if it be his desire. A party thinking himself aggrieved may appeal from the final sentence of the court, to such court and in such manner as is or right of, and shall be appointed by congress, except in cases be- bunal. tween the citizens of this commonwealth; which shall be to the court of appeals, giving bond with surety, in the latter to prosecute the appeal and perform the sentence, if it be affirmed. If the seizure of any vessel has been or hereafter shall be made by an officer of this commonwealth, and a prosecution instituted thereon, in which the respondent or respondents shall have prevailed or hereafter may prevail, one moiety of the costs of such prosecution after having been audited by the auditors of publick accounts, shall be paid by the treasurer, provided the court have certified or shall certify that there was probable cause for such seizure. The judges of the present court of admiralty, to wit: Present jud Benjamin Waller, Richard Cary, and William Ros- ed in office

Appeal,

to what tri

ges confirm

cow Wilson Curle, esquires, are hereby confirmed in their office, and shall take precedence as they are here named.

Certain lots

CHAP. XXVII.

An act to sever certain lots from the town of Dumfries, held by William Grayson, gentleman.

WHEREAS it has been represented to this present of William general assembly, that William Grayson, gentleman, Grayton, se- is seized of twelve lots in the town of Dumfries and vered from the town of county of Prince William, which from their mountainDumfries.

ous situation are no way beneficial to the said town; and it would be to the advantage of the said William Grayson, were the said lots severed therefrom: Be it therefore enacted by the General Assembly, That the said twelve lots of land, numbered from ninety two to one hundred and three inclusive, together with such parts of Oroonoko, Hedgman, and back streets, as run through or on the back of the same, shall be se vered from and not taken as part of the said town of Dumfries, but the said lots and parts of streets above described, shall from henceforth be absolutely vested in the said William Gray'son, and his heirs for ever. And that so much of an act entitled "An act for enlarging the towns of Fredericksburg and Winchester, the city of Williamsburg, and town of Dumfries," as comes within the perview of this act, is hereby re pealed.

CHAP. XXVIII.

An act to authorise certain trustees

to pay to William Todd, gentleman, the money arising from the sale of lands, and for other purposes.

the sale of

WHEREAS by an act of assembly passed in the Certain trus tees authoyear of our Lord, one thousand seven hundred and rised to pay seventy two, entitled "An act to dock the intail of to William certain lands whereof William Todd, gentleman, is Todd, the seized, and for other purposes therein mentioned," the proceeds of said lands were vested in George Brooke, Gregory his entailed Baylor, William Lyne, John Tayloe Corbin, and lauds. Richard Tunstall, junior, gentlemen, or any three of then in trust, that they or the major part of them should fairly sell and dispose of the said lands and convey the same to the purchaser in fee, and that the money arising from such sale should be by the said trustrees laid out in the purchase of slaves to be vested in the said William Todd, and to descend and go as the said lands would have descended and gone. And it being represented to this assembly by the said William Todd, that the said trustees have sold and conveyed the said lands, but have failed to lay out the purchase money according to the directions of the said recited act, which cannot now be done consistent with the laws of this commonwealth. Be it therefore enacted, That the said trustees shall account for and pay the said money to the said William Todd, his executors, administrators, or assigns; and that so much of the said recited act as directs the said trustees to lay out the said money in the purchase of slaves, shall be, and the same is hereby repealed.