1803: 43 George 3 c.139: An Act for preventing the forging and counterfeiting of foreign Bills of Exchange, and of foreign Promissory Notes and Orders for the Payment of Money; and for preventing the counterfeiting of foreign Copper Money.
[11th August 1803.]
WHEREAS the Practice of forging and counterfeiting foreign Bills of Exchange, foreign Promissory Notes and foreign Orders for Payment of Money, hath of late greatly increased, and Plates of such Bills, Notes and Orders have been in some Instances engraven within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, whereby such Forgeries have been more easily committed; and it is expedient that effectual Provision should be made for the preventing of the same: May it therefore please Your Majesty that it may be enacted, and be it enacted by the King’s most Excellent Majesty, by and with the Advice and Consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the Authority of the same,
[Persons forging, &c. foreign Bills of Exchange, &c. or uttering the same, guilty of Felony, punished by Fourteen Years Transportation.]
That if any Person from and after the passing of this Act shall, within any Part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, falsely make, forge or counterfeit, or cause or procure to be falsely made, forged or counterfeited, or knowingly aid or assist in the false making, forging or counterfeiting any Bill of Exchange, or any Promissory Note, Undertaking or Order for the Payment of Money, purporting to be the Bill of Exchange, Promissory Note, Undertaking or Order for the Payment of Money, of any foreign Prince, State or Country whatsoever, or of any Minister or Officer entrusted by or employed in the Service of any foreign Prince, State or Country, or of any Person or Company of Persons resident in any foreign State or Country, or of any Body Corporate and Politic, and Body in the Nature of a Body Corporate and Politic, created or constituted by any foreign Prince or State, with Intent to deceive or defraud His Majesty, His Heirs and Successors, or any such foreign Prince, State or Country, or with Intent to deceive or defraud any Person or Company of Persons whomsoever, or any Body Corporate and Politic, or Body in the Nature of a Body Corporate and Politic whatsoever, whether the same be respectively resident, carrying on Business, constituted or being in any Part of the United Kingdom or in any foreign State or Country; and whether such Bill of Exchange, Promissory Note or Order be in the English Language, or in any foreign Language or Languages, or partly in one and partly in the other; or if any Person from and after the passing of this Act shall, within any Part of the said United Kingdom, tender in Payment or in Exchange, or otherwise utter or publish as true, any such false, forged or counterfeited Bill of Exchange, Promissory Note, Undertaking or Order, knowing the same to be false, forged or counterfeited, with Intent to deceive or defraud His Majesty, His Heirs and Successors, or any foreign Prince, State or Country, or any Person or Company of Persons, or any Body Corporate and Politic, or Body in the Nature of a Body Politic and Corporate as aforesaid, then every Person so offending shall be deemed and taken to be guilty of Felony, and being thereof lawfully convicted, shall be transported for any Term of Years not exceeding Fourteen Years.
[No Persons to engrave Plates for foreign Bills of Exchange, &c. nor print them, &c. without written Authority.]
II. And be it further enacted, That no Person, from and after the passing of this Act, shall, within any Part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, engrave, cut, etch, scrape, or by any other Means or Device make, or knowingly aid or assist in the engraving, cutting, etching, scraping, or by any other Means or Device making, in or upon any Plate whatsoever, any Bill of Exchange, or any Promissory Note or Undertaking, or Order for the Payment of Money, purporting to be the Bill of Exchange, Promissory Note, Undertaking or Order of any foreign Prince, State or Country, or of any Minister or Officer entrusted by or employed in the Service of any foreign Prince, State or Country, or of any Person or Company of Persons, resident or being in any foreign State or Country, or of any Body Corporate and Politic, or Body in the Nature of a Body Corporate and Politic, or constituted by any foreign Prince or State, or any Part of any such Bill of Exchange, Promissory Note, Undertaking or Order, without an Authority in Writing for that Purpose from such foreign Prince, State or Country, Minister or Officer, Person, Company of Persons, or Body Corporate and Politic, or Body in the Nature of a Body Corporate and Politic, or from some Person duly authorized to give such Authority; or shall within any Part of the said United Kingdom, without such Authority as aforesaid, by Means of any such Plate, or by any other Device or Means, make or print any such foreign Bill of Exchange, Promissory Note, Undertaking or Order for the Payment of Money, or any Part thereof; or knowingly, wilfully, and without lawful Excuse, (the Proof whereof shall lie upon the Party accused) , have in his or her Custody any such Plate or Device, or any Impression taken from the same;
[First Offence, Misdemeanor, Imprisonment, Fine, &c.]
and if any Person shall offend in any of the Cases aforesaid, he shall be deemed and taken to be guilty of a Misdemeanor and Breach of the Peace, and being thereof convicted according to Law, shall be liable for the First Offence to be imprisoned for any Time not exceeding Six Months, or to be fined, or to be publicly or privately whipped, or to suffer one or more of the said Punishments,
[Second Offence, Fourteen Years’ Transportation.]
and for the Second Offence to be transported to any of His Majesty’s Colonies or Plantations for the Term of Fourteen Years:
[Proviso for Laws in Force against Forgery.]
Provided always, that nothing in this Act contained shall extend or be construed to extend in any manner whatsoever to repeal or alter any Law or Statute now in Force for the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Forgery in any respect whatsoever within any Part of the said United Kingdom.
[Counterfeiting foreign Copper Coin, &c. Misdemeanor.]
III. And be it further enacted, That if any Person, from and after the passing of this Act, shall, within any Part of the said United Kingdom, make, coin or counterfeit any kind of Coin not the proper Coin of this Realm, nor ordered by the Royal Proclamation of His Majesty, His Heirs or Successors, to be deemed and taken as current Money of this Realm or any Part thereof, but resembling or made with Intent to resemble any Copper Coin, or any other Coin made of any Metal or mixed Metals of less Value than the Silver Coin of such foreign Prince, State or Country respectively, or to pass as such foreign Coin,
[First Offence, Imprisonment.]
then every Person so offending, shall be deemed and taken to be guilty of a Misdemeanor and Breach of the Peace, and being thereof convicted according to Law, shall for the First Offence be imprisoned for any Time not exceeding One Year,
[Second Offence, Seven Years’ Transportation.]
and for the Second Offence be transported to any of His Majesty’s Colonies or Plantations for the Term of Seven Years.
[Persons indicted not allowed to traverse to a subsequent Assizes, &c.]
IV. And be it further enacted, That no Person against whom any Bill of Indictment shall be found at any Assizes or Sessions of the Peace for any Offence against this Act, shall be entitled to traverse the same to any subsequent Assizes or Sessions, but the Court at which such Bill of Indictment shall be found, shall forthwith proceed to try the Person or Persons against whom the same shall be found, unless he or they shall shew good Cause, to be allowed by the Court, why his, her or their Trial should be postponed.
[Certificates of former Convictions, Evidence on Trial for Second Offences.]
V. And be it further enacted, That if any Person shall be convicted of any Offence against this Act, and shall afterwards be guilty of the like Offence in any other County, City, Town or Place, the Clerk of the Assize, Clerk of the Peace or Town Clerk, for the County, City, Town or Place where such former Conviction shall have been had, shall, at the Request of the Prosecutor, or any other on His Majesty’s Behalf, certify the same by a Transcript in few Words, containing the Effect and Tenor of such Conviction,
[Fee for Certificate.]
for which Certificate Two Shillings and Six Pence, and no more, shall be paid; and such Certificate being produced in Court, and the Handwriting of such Clerk of Assize, Clerk of the Peace, or Town Clerk thereto being proved, shall be sufficient Evidence of such former Conviction.
[Having more than Five Pieces of such counterfeit foreign Coin in their Possession.]
VI. And be it further enacted, That if any Person or Persons shall have in his, her or their Custody, without lawful Excuse, any greater Number of Pieces than Five Pieces of false or counterfeit Coin of any Kind or Kinds resembling or made with Intent to resemble any such Copper or other Coin as aforesaid, every such Person, being thereof convicted upon the Oath of One or more credible Witness or Witnesses before One of His Majesty’s Justices of the Peace, shall forfeit and lose all such false and counterfeit Coin, which shall be cut in Pieces and destroyed by Order of such Justice,
[Penalty.]
and shall for every such Offence forfeit and pay any Sum of Money not exceeding Forty Shillings, nor less than Ten Shillings, for every such Piece of false or counterfeit Coin which shall be found in the Custody of such Person; One Moiety to the Informer or Informers, and the other Moiety to the Poor of the Parish where such Offence shall be committed;
[Imprisonment.]
and in case any such Penalty shall not be forthwith paid, it shall be lawful for any such Justice to commit the Person who shall have been adjudged to pay the same to the Common Gaol or House of Correction, there to be kept to hard Labour for the Space of Three Calendar Months, or until such Penalty shall be paid.
[Houses of suspected Persons maybe searched, and counterfeit Coin seized, &c.]
VII. And be it further enacted, That it shall and may be lawful to and for any One Justice of the Peace, on Complaint made before him upon the Oath of One credible Person, that there is just Cause to suspect that any One or more Person or Persons is or are, or hath or have been concerned in making or counterfeiting any such false or counterfeited foreign Coin as aforesaid, by Warrant under the Hand of such Justice, to cause the Dwelling House, Room, Workshop, Outhouse or other Building, Yard, Garden, or other Place belonging to such suspected Person or Persons, or where any such Person or Persons shall be suspected to carry on any such making or counterfeiting, to be searched for any such false or counterfeit Coin, or for Tools or Implements for coining such false or counterfeit Coins, or for Materials for making or coining the same; and if any such false or counterfeit Coin, or any such Tools or Implements, or any such Materials for making any such false or counterfeit Coin, shall be found in any Place so searched, or if any such Tools, Implements or Materials shall be found in the Custody or Possession of any Person or Persons whomsoever, not having the same by some lawful Authority, it shall and may be lawful to and for any Person or Persons whatsoever discovering the same to seize, and he and they are hereby authorized and required to seize such false or counterfeit Coin, Tools, Implements and Materials, and to carry the same forthwith to a Justice of the Peace of the County, City, Town or Place where the same shall be seized, who shall cause the same to be Secured, and produced in Evidence against any Person or Persons who shall or may be prosecuted for any of the Offences aforesaid, in some Court of Justice proper for the Determination thereof; and after such Time as any such false or counterfeit Coin, or any such Tools, Implements or Materials shall have been produced in Evidence as aforesaid, as well so much and such Parts thereof as shall have been so produced, as every other Part thereof so seized and not made use of in Evidence, shall forthwith, by Order of the Court where such Offender or Offenders shall be tried, or by Order of some Justice of the Peace, in case there shall be no such Trial, be defaced or destroyed, or otherwise disposed of as such Court or such Justice shall direct.
[Proceedings not quashed for want of Form, &c.]
VIII. And be it further enacted, That no Proceedings to be had touching the Conviction of any Offender against this Act before any Justice of the Peace shall be quashed for Want of Form, or be removed by Writ of Certiorari, or any other Writ or Process whatsoever, into any of His Majesty’s Courts of Record at Westminster or Dublin.
[Limitation of Actions.]
IX. And be it further enacted, That if any Action or Suit shall be brought or commenced against any Person or Persons for any Thing done in pursuance of this Act, then and in every such Case the said Action or Suit shall commence within Three Calendar Months after the Fact committed, and not afterwards, and shall be brought in the County, City, Town or Place where the Cause of Action shall arise, and not elsewhere;
[General Issue.]
and the Defendant or Defendants in such Action or Suit so to be brought may plead the General Issue, and give this Act and the Special Matter in Evidence at any Trial to be had thereupon, and that the same was done in pursuance and by the Authority of this Act; and if it shall appear to be so done, or if any such Action or Suit shall be brought after the Time before limited for bringing the same, or shall be brought in any other County, City, Town or Place, then and in every such Case the Jury shall find for the Defendant or Defendants; and if upon the Trial a Verdict shall pass for the Defendant or Defendants, or if the Plaintiff or Plaintiffs shall become nonsuit, or discontinue his, her or their Action, or if upon Demurrer Judgment shall be given against the Plaintiff or Plaintiffs,
[Treble Costs.]
the Defendant or Defendants shall and may recover Treble Costs, and have the like Remedy for the same, as any Defendant or Defendants hath or have for Costs of Suit in other Cases by Law.
Source: Raithby, Statutes of the United Kingdom, volume 2.
Further reading: Wikipedia.