of Five Pounds; and Five Pounds shall be levied by warrant, under the hands of the said Justice or Justices of the Peace, by distress and sale of the Goods and Chattels of the offenders, one moiety of the said first mentioned penalty of Five Pounds to be paid to the Informer, by whose means such Deserter shall be apprehended, and one moiety of the said last mentioned penalty of Five Pounds to be paid to the Informer, and the residue of the said respective penalties to be paid to the Officer to whom any such Deserter or Soldier did belong; and in case any such offenders, who shall be convicted as aforesaid of harbouring or assisting any such Deserter or Deserters, or having, knowingly, received any Arms, Clothes, Caps, or other Furniture belonging to the King, or having caused the colours of such Clothes to be changed, contrary to the intent of this Act, shall not have sufficient Goods and Chattels whereon distress; may be made to the value of the penalties recovered against him for such offence, or shall not pay such penalties within four days after such conviction, then, and in such case, such Justice of the Peace shall and may, by warrant under his hand and seal, commit such offender to the common Jail, there to remain, without bail or mainprize, for the space of three months, or cause such offender to be publickly whipped, at the discretion of such Justice.

XXVI. And, whereas, evil disposed persons frequently endeavour to delude his Majesty's good subjects who have engaged themselves as Soldiers in the service of his Majesty and their country, and to prevail with them to Desert the same, for remedy whereof, and for the more effectual and exemplary punishment of offenders in that behalf, within his Majesty's Colonies and Plantations in America, Be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That if any person or persons whatsoever, (other than such as are or shall be enlisted as Soldiers, against whom sufficient remedy is already provided by law,) shall, by words, or other means whatsoever, directly or indirectly, persuade or procure any Soldier or Soldiers in the service of his Majesty, his heirs or successors, within any of the said Colonies or Plantations, to desert or leave such service, or shall go about and endeavour, in manner aforesaid, to persuade, prevail, or procure such Soldier or Soldiers to desert or leave such service as aforesaid, and being thereof lawfully convicted, shall, for every such offence, forfeit to his Majesty, his heirs and successors, or any other person or persons who shall sue for the same, the sum of Forty Pounds, to be recovered by bill, plaint, or information, in any of his Majesty's Courts of Record within the Province or place where the offence shall be committed, wherein no essoin, protection, or wager of law shall be allowed; and if it shall, happen that such offender, so convicted as aforesaid, shall not have Goods or Chattels, Lands or Tenements, to the amount or value of the said sum of Forty Pounds, to pay and satisfy the said penalty, or that from the circumstances or heinousness of the crime it shall be thought proper and convenient, the Court before which the said conviction shall be made as aforesaid, shall award the said offender to Prison, there to remain for any time not exceeding six months, without bail or mainprize, and also to stand in the Pillory for the space of one hour, in some Market Town next adjoining to the place where the offence was committed, In open Market there, or in the Market Town itself, where the fact was committed.

XXVII. Provided always, That no such action shall be brought, or prosecution carried on by virtue of this Act, unless the same be commenced within six months after the offence committed.

XXVIII. And be it further enacted, That no Commission Officer shall break open any House within his Majesty's Dominions in America, to search for Deserters, without warrant from a Justice of the Peace, and in the daytime; and that every Commission Officer who shall, in the night, or without warrant from one or more of his Majesty's Justices of the Peace, (which said warrants the said Justice or Justices are hereby empowered to grant,) forcibly enter into, or break open, the Dwelling House or; Out-Houses or any person whatsoever, under pretence of searching for Deserters, shall, upon due proof thereof, forfeit the sum of Twenty Pounds.

XXIX. And, whereas, several crimes and offences have been and may be, committed by several persons not being Soldiers, at several Forts or Garrisons, and several other places within his Majesty's Dominions in America, which are not within the limits or jurisdiction of any Civil Government there hitherto established, and which Crimes and offences are not properly cognizable or triable and punishable by a Court Martial, but by the Civil Magistrate, by means whereof several great crimes and offences may go unpunished, to the great scandal of Government: for remedy whereof, Be it enacted by the authority aforesaid, That from and after the twenty-fourth day of March, in the year one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five, and for so long afterwards as this Act shall continue in force, if any person or persons, not being a Soldier or Soldiers, do or shall commit any crime or crimes, or offence or offences, in any of the said Forts, Garrisons, or places within his Majesty's Dominions in America, which are not within the limits or jurisdiction of any Civil Government hitherto established, it shall and may be lawful for any person or persons to apprehend such offender or offenders, and to carry him, her, or them before the Commanding Officer for the time being of his Majesty's Forces there; and such offender being charged upon oath, in writing, before the said Commanding Officer, and which oath the said Commanding Officer is hereby empowered to administer; that then, and in every such case, the said Commanding Officer shall receive and take into his custody and safely keep every such offender, and shall convey and deliver, or cause to be conveyed and delivered, with all convenient speed, every such offender to the Civil Magistrate of the next adjoining Province, together with the cause of his or her detainer, to be committed and dealt with by such Civil Magistrates or Magistrate, according to law; and every such Civil Magistrate is hereby commanded and required to commit every such offender, that he or she may be dealt with acccording to law; and in every such case, it shall and may be lawful to prosecute and try every such offender in the Court of such Province or Colony where crimes and offences of the like nature are usually tried, and where the same would be properly tried, in case such crime or offence had been commited within the jurisdiction of such Court; and such crime shall and may be alleged to be committed within the jurisdiction of such Court; and such Court shall and may proceed therein to trial, judgement, and execution, in the same manner as if such crime or offence had been really committed within the jurisdiction of such Court, any law, usage, custom, matter, or thing whatsoever, to the contrary notwithstanding.

XXX. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That every Bill, Plaint, Action, or Suit against any person or persons, for any act, matter, or thing to be acted or done in pursuance of this Act, or the said other in part recited Act, in any of his Majesty's Dominions in America, shall be brought and prosecuted in and before some principal Court of Record in the Colony where such matter or thing shall be done or committed; and in case the same shall not be done or committed within the jurisdiction of any such Court, then in the Court of the Colony next to the place where the same shall be done and committed, and in no other Court whatsoever.

XXXI. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That where any Troops or Parties upon command have occasion, in their march, in any of his Majesty's Dominions in America, to pass regular Ferries, it shall and may be lawful for the Commanding Officer either to pass over with his party as passengers, or to hire the Ferry Boat entire to himself and his party, debarring others for that time in his option; and in case he shall choose to take passage for himself and party as passengers, he shall only pay for himself, and for each person, Officer or Soldier under his command, half of the ordinary rate payable by single persons at any such Ferry; and in case he shall hire the Ferry Boat for himself and party, he shall pay half of the ordinary rate for such Boat or Boats; and in such places where there are no regular Ferries, but that all passengers hire Boats at the rate they can agree for, Officers, with or without parties, are to agree for Boats at the rates that other persons do in the like cases.

XXXII. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That all sum and sums of Money mentioned in this Act, and all penalties and forfeitures whatsoever to be incurred or forfeited for any offence, cause, matter or thing whatsoever, to be done, committed, or omitted to be done