marked with the workman's mark, and the Wardens of the mystery or craft of Goldsmiths as aforesaid, and with the figure of a Lion passant, and the figure of a Leopard's head. And that it shall not be lawful to make any vessel of silver Plate or manufactures of silver, of a coarser allay than what is herein specified, under the penalties and forfeitures prescribed by any of the Laws now in being concerning Wrought Plate; any thing in this act, or any other act or acts to the contrary notwithstanding. No plate to be of a coarser allay. § 5. The statute 12 G. 2. c. 26. recites the statutes 28 Ed. 1. st. 3. c. 20. 2 H. 6. c. 14. 18 Eliz. c. 15. and 12 W. 3. c. 4. regulating the Standard of Gold and Silver Plate; and that whereas his late Majesty King Charles the Socond, by his Letters Patent, under his Great Seal of England, bearing date 4 January, 18 Car. 2., reciting, that the Wardens of the said Company, in punishing defaults in the said trade, had been at great charges, and at the peril of their bodies, as well as the loss of their goods, so that the Wardens then late, on account of the menaces and assaults from the workers, could not put into execution the authorities given to them by former Charters, and many frauds had been committed; therefore his said Letters Patent empowered the Wardens of the said Company of Goldsmiths of London, and their successors, to commit offenders to prison, and to set fines upon them, and to seize and break deceitful wares: And then further recites, that " whereas the Standards of the Plate of this Kingdom are both for the honour and riches of the Realm, and so highly concern his Majesty's subjects, that the same ought to be most carefully observed, and all deceits therein to be prevented as much as possible; but notwithstanding the aforesaid several acts of Parliament and Charters, great frauds are daily committed in the manufacturing of gold and silver wares, for want of sufficient power effectually to prevent the same;" and then "for remedying such abuses for the future," enacts, that from and after the 28th May 1739, no Goldsmith, Fineness of gold Silversmith, or other person whatsoever making, trading, or and silver wares dealing in gold or silver wares, within that part of Great Britain called England, shall work or make, or cause or procure to be wrought or made, any Gold vessel, Plate, or manufacture of gold whatsoever, less in fineness than twenty-two carracts of fine gold in every pound weight Troy; nor work or make, or cause or procure to be wrought or made, any silver vessel, plate, or manufacture of Silver whatsoever, less in fineness than eleven ounces two pennyweight of fine silver in every pound weight Troy; limited. This act not to nor sell, exchange, or expose to sale, or export out of this Kingdom, any gold vessel, plate, or manufacture of gold whatsoever, made after the said 28th May 1739, less in fineness than twenty-two carracts of fine Gold in every pound weight Troy; nor sell, exchange, or expose to sale, or export out of this Kingdom, any Silver vessel, plate, or manufacture of silver whatsoever, made after the said 28th May 1739, less in fineness than eleven ounces two pennyweight of fine silver in every pound weight Troy; upon pain that every such Goldsmith, Silversmith, or other person, for every such offence, shall forfeit and pay the sum of ten pounds, to be recovered and disposed of as hereinafter is mentioned; and for default of payment, the offender shall be committed by the Court in which Judgment shall be given thereon, to the house of correction for the county, city, or liberty where convicted; there to remain, and be kept to hard labour, for any time not exceeding the space of six months, or until payment be made of the said forfeiture. s. 1. Provided always, and it is hereby declared, that nothing in extend to certain this act shall extend to any Jewellers' works, that is to say, any jewellers works, except mourning gold or silver wherein any jewels or other stones are or shall be set (other than mourning rings), nor to any jointed night-earrings of gold, or gold springs of lockets. s. 2. rings. How shopkeepers If any shopkeeper, or other person trading or dealing in Gold are to be exempt or Silver wares (not being the maker or worker thereof) shall haped from prosecutions. pen to export, sell, or expose to sale any gold or silver wares worse than the respective standards, and shall within fourteen days next after notice of the coarseness thereof to him or her given, discover and make known to the party aggrieved, or to the Master, Wardens, or Clerk of any of the Companies of Goldsmiths belonging to the place or district within which such shopkeeper or other person trading or dealing in gold or silver wares as aforesaid shall reside, the name and place of abode of the maker or worker thereof, or of the person or persons of whom such shopkeeper, or other person trading or dealing in gold or silver wares as aforesaid, really bought such coarse gold or silver wares; and shall produce him, her, or them, if living, so that he, she, or they may be sued or prosecuted for the same; and if such shopkeeper, or other person trading or dealing in gold or silver wares, who sold, exposed to sale, or exported the same, shall, at any trial to be had against such maker or worker, or such other person or persons of whom the same were bought as aforesaid, for such offence, give or produce material evidence against such maker or worker, or such other person of whom the same were bought as aforesaid; and the Judge before whom the cause shall be tried shall under his hand upon the Record certify the same, and also that there did not on such trial appear any ground to believe that such shopkeeper, or other person trading or dealing in gold or silver wares as aforesaid, was concerned in or privy to such fraud; or if such shopkeeper or dealer shall on the trial of any suit or prosecution against him, her, or themselves, concerning the premises, prove that he, she, or they delivered to such maker or worker a sufficient quantity of standard gold or silver to make the said wares, and paid a reasonable price for the fashion thereof, or paid such maker or worker, or other person or persons, a market price for standard gold or silver of that weight, besides a reasonable price for the fashion thereof; then, and in any or either of the said cases, such shopkeeper or dealer shall be and is hereby exempted and discharged from any penalty or forfeiture to be incurred by this act for exporting, selling, or exposing to sale such coarse gold or silver wares as aforesaid, and from any action, suit, or prosecution for the same; any thing herein contained to the contrary in anywise notwithstanding. s. 3. reasonable no Provided always, that it shall not be necessary for such Shop- Actions against shopkeepers shall keeper or other person trading or dealing in gold or silver be brought within wares, who sold, exposed to sale, or exported such coarse gold four terms, and or silver wares as aforesaid, to give or produce such material tice of trial shall evidence, or to procure such certificate as aforesaid, in order be given. to his indemnity or discharge from any penalty or forfeiture by virtue of this act, unless such trial against such maker or worker, or other person of whom the same were bought as aforesaid, shall be had within four Terms after such discovery made as aforesaid respectively; nor unless reasonable notice shall be given to such shopkeeper or other person trading or dealing in gold or silver wares as aforesaid, of the time of such trial. s. 4. From and after the said 28th May 1739, no Goldsmith, Silversmith, or other person whatsoever, making or selling, trading or dealing in Gold or Silver wares, shall sell, exchange, or expose to sale, within that part of Great Britain called England, any gold or silver vessel, plate, or manufacture of gold or silver marked. whatsoever, made after the said 28th May 1739, or export the same out of this Kingdom, until such time as such vessel, plate, or manufacture of gold (being of the standard of twenty-two carracts of fine gold per pound Troy), and such vessel, plate, or manufacture of silver (being of the standard of eleven ounces Penalty on sellsale, or exporting, exposing to ing, Gold or without being Silver Wares Wares excepted. two pennyweight of fine silver per pound Troy), shall be marked Provided also, that nothing in this act contained shall extend to oblige any of the following wares of gold or silver to be stamped or marked by the said respective Companies of Goldsmiths, or any of them; that is to say, rings, collets for rings, or other jewels, chains, necklace beads, lockets, hollow or raised buttons, sleeve buttons, thimbles, corral sockets and bells, ferrils, pipe lighters, cranes for bottles, very small book clasps, any stock or garter clasps jointed, very small nutmeg graters, rims of snuff boxes whereof tops or bottoms are made of shell or stone, sliding pencils, toothpick cases, tweezer cases, pencil cases, needle cases, any philligree work, any sorts of tippings or swages on stone or ivory cases, any mounts, screws, or stoppers to stone or glass bottles or phials, any small or slight ornaments put to amber or other eggs or urns, any wrought seals, or seals with cornelian or other stones set therein, or any gold or silver vessel, plate, or manufacture of gold or silver so richly engraved, carved, or chased, or set with jewels or other stones, as not to admit of an assay to be taken of, or a mark to be stuck thereon, without damaging, prejudicing, or defacing the same, or such other things as, by reason of the smallness or thinness thereof, are not capable of receiving the marks herein-before mentioned, or any of them, and not weighing ten pennyweight of gold or silver each. s. 6. The statute 30 G. 3. c. 31. s. 1. recites the last-mentioned section and enacts, that "the said recited proviso and declaration, so far as the same relates to the not obliging the wares of Silver therein specifically named or mentioned, and such other wares or things of silver as are therein generally named, mentioned, or referred to in any manner howsoever, to be stamped or marked to the said respective Companies of Goldsmiths, or any of them, shall from and after the 28th May 1790, cease and determine, any thing in the said act of parliament contained to the contrary notwithstanding." Plate. And whereas great frauds and abuses are daily committed by For preventing the private workthe private working and manufacturing of Silver Plate, without ing of Silver the notice or knowledge of the Commissioners or Officers appointed by his Majesty for managing the duty, notwithstanding the powers given for preventing the same by an act made in the sixth year of the reign of his late Majesty King George, [6 G. 1. c. 11.] for laying a duty on wrought plate: now, for the better preventing such frauds and abuses, and the discovery of such private workhouses or places for the future; be it enacted by the authority aforesaid, that from and after the said 28th May 1739, every Working Goldsmith and Silversmith, and other manufacturer of gold or silver whatsoever, who shall, at any time or times after the said 28th May 1739, work or make, or cause to be wrought or made, any gold or silver vessel, plate, or manufacture of gold or silver whatsoever, by this act required to be marked by the said Company of Goldsmiths, or by the said Wardens or Assayers, at the cities or places aforesaid respectively, shall from time to time send, with every parcel of such gold or silver, to the Assay Office of the said Company, or to the said Wardens or Assayers, a note or memorandum in writing, containing the day of the month and year, the christian and surnames of the worker or maker, and place of his abode, all the species in such parcel of plate, and the number of each species, with the total weight of such parcel; which note or memorandum shall be entered in like manner, by some officer or servant of the said Company, or by the said Wardens or Assayers, or their servants, in one or more of their book or books, and shall be |