ARSON-continued.

OFFENCE.

43. Setting fire to her Majesty's vessels of war, &c.

Class of Offence and Statute or Authority.

F. 12 Geo. 3, c. 24, s. 1.

44. Setting fire to the works or vessels lying in dock.
[See further "Gunpowder,' Malicious Injuries,'
"Accessories" and "Principals in Second Degree."]

ART, WORKS OF, Damaging. See tit. "Malicious Injuries."

ASSAULTS (Note 12).

F. 39 Geo. 3, c. 69, s. 1.

s. 17.

45. Acts causing or tending to cause Danger to Life or bodily F. 24 & 25 Vict. c. 100, Harm.] Whosoever shall unlawfully and maliciously prevent or impede any person, being on board of or having quitted any ship or vessel which shall be in distress, or wrecked, stranded or cast on shore, in his endeavour to save his life, or shall unlawfully and maliciously prevent or impede any person in his endeavour to save the life of any such person as in this section first aforesaid.

46. Whosoever shall unlawfully and maliciously by any means
whatsoever wound or cause any grievous bodily harm to
any person, or shoot at any person, or by drawing a
trigger or in any other manner attempt to discharge any
kind of loaded arms at any person,-with intent, in any
of the cases aforesaid, to maim, disfigure, or disable any
person, or to do some other grievous bodily harm to any
person, or with intent to resist or prevent the lawful
apprehension or detainer of any person.

[See Reg. v. Marsden, 37 L. J. (N. S.) M. C. 80, and
Note 13.]

47. Whosoever shall unlawfully and maliciously wound or in-
flict any grievous bodily harm upon any other person,
either with or without any weapon or instrument.
[See Note 14.]

F. Id. s. 18.

M. Id. s. 20.

24 & 25 Vict. c. 97, it has jurisdiction over these offences; but it is submitted that justices will do right in sending all cases of arson to the assizes as being within the spirit, though not the letter, of the 5 & 6 Vict. c. 38, s. 1, Division 9.

12 "ASSAULTS:" Apprehension of certain Offenders without Warrant-Costs of Prosecutor to be paid by Defendants for Assaults.] As to apprehension, see Note 1, ante, p. 1014. As to the costs, by 24 & 25 Vict. c. 100, s. 74, "Where any person shall be convicted on any indictment of any assault, whether with or without battery and wounding, or either of them, such person may, if the court think fit, in addition to any sentence which the court may deem proper for the offence, be adjudged to pay to the prosecutor his actual and necessary costs and expenses of the prosecution, and such moderate allowance for the loss of time as the court shall by affidavit or other inquiry and examination ascertain to be reasonable; and, unless the sum so awarded shall be sooner paid, the offender shall be imprisoned for any term the court shall award, not exceeding three months, in addition to the term of imprisonment (if any) to which the offender may be sentenced for the offence" (see Lowe v. Horwarth, 13 Law T., N. S. 297). By sect. 75, "The court may, by warrant under hand and seal, order such sum as shall be so awarded to be levied by distress and sale of the goods and chattels of the offender, and paid to the prosecutor, and that the surplus, if any, arising from such

sale, shall be paid to the owner; and in case such sum shall be so levied the imprisonment awarded until payment of such sum shall thereupon cease." If the complainant is under sixteen years of age, see ante, p. 965, as to directing the prosecution to be carried on.

13 Offenders charged with feloniously Stabbing, Cutting or Wounding, may be convicted of unlawfully Wounding.] By 14 & 15 Vict. c. 19, s. 5, "if upon the trial of any indictment for any felony, except murder or manslaughter, where the indictment shall allege that the defendant did stab, cut or wound any person, the jury shall be satisfied that the defendant is guilty of the cutting, stabbing or wounding charged in such indictment, but are not satisfied that the defendant is guilty of the felony charged in such indictment, then, and in every such case, the jury may acquit the defendant of such felony, and find him guilty of unlawful cutting, stabbing or wounding; and, thereupon, such defendant shall be liable to be punished in the same manner as if he had been convicted upon an indictment for the misdemeanor of cutting, stabbing or wounding." And see Reg. v. Cunningham, 1 Bell, C. C. 72; 28 L. J. (N. S.) M. C. 66. Shooting into a crowd and a person injured, see Reg. v. Fretwell, 1 Leigh & Cave, C. C. 443; 10 Law T., N. S. 428.

OFFENCE.

Class of Offence
and

Statute or Authority.

ASSAULTS-continued.

8. 21.

48. Whosoever shall, by any means whatsoever, attempt to F. 24 & 25 Vict. c. 100, choke, suffocate, or strangle any other person, or shall, by any means calculated to choke, suffocate, or strangle, attempt to render any other person insensible, unconscious, or incapable of resistance,-with intent in any of such cases thereby to enable himself or any other person to commit, or with intent in any of such cases thereby to assist any other person in committing, any indictable offence.

49. Whosoever shall unlawfully and maliciously, by the explosion of gunpowder or other explosive substance, burn, maim, disfigure, disable, or do any grievous bodily harm to any person.

50. Whosoever shall unlawfully and maliciously cause any gunpowder or other explosive substance to explode,-or send or deliver to or cause to be taken or received by any person any explosive substance or any other dangerous or noxious thing,-or put or lay at any place,-or cast or throw at or upon or otherwise apply to any person,-any corrosive fluid or any destructive or explosive substance, -with intent in any of the cases aforesaid to burn, maim, disfigure or disable any person, or to do some grievous bodily harm to any person, whether any bodily injury be effected or not.

51. Whosoever shall unlawfully and maliciously place or throw in, into, upon, against, or near any building, ship or vessel any gunpowder or other explosive substance, with intent to do any bodily injury to any person, whether or not any explosion take place, and whether or not any bodily injury be effected.

52. On Magistrates.] Whosoever shall assault and strike or wound any magistrate, officer, or other person whatsoever lawfully authorized, in or on account of the exercise of his duty in or concerning the preservation of any vessel in distress, or of any vessel, goods or effects wrecked, stranded, or cast on shore, or lying under

water.

53. With intent to commit Felony.] Whosoever shall assault any person with intent to commit felony [see Offence 59, and title "Sodomy "]-or

54. On Peace Officers.] Shall assault, resist, or wilfully obstruct any peace officer in the due execution of his duty, or any person acting in aid of such officer,-or

55. Shall assault any person with intent to resist or prevent the lawful apprehension or detainer of himself or of any other person for any offence.

F. Id. s. 28.

F. Id. s. 29.

F. Id. s. 30.

M. Id. s. 37.

M. Id. s. 38.

14 Decisions on 24 & 25 Vict. c. 100, s. 20.] A verdict for a common assault may be returned (Reg. v. Taylor, Reg. v. Canweil, 20 Law T., N. S. 302;-see also Reg. v.

Stopford, 11 Cox, C. C. 643; following Reg. v. Smith, 1 Cox, C. C. 51; and overruling

Reg. v. Hewlett, 1 F. & F. 91).

OFFENCE.

Class of Offence and Statute or Authority.

ASSAULTS-continued.

56. Whosoever shall be convicted upon an indictment of any assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

M. Common Law.

57. Whosoever shall be convicted upon an indictment for a common assault.

M. Common Law.

[MEM. The costs are allowed only when the parties are
bound by recognizance to prosecute or give evidence; see
14 & 15 Vict. c. 55, s. 3, p. 984.]

58. Whosoever shall be convicted of any indecent assault upon any female (Note 17).

M. Common Law.

[See Offence 104, tit. "Carnally knowing Females."]

59. Whosoever shall be guilty of any indecent assault upon M. 24 & 25 Vict. c. 100, any male person (Note 17).

[An assault must, in the absence of fear or fraud to pro-
cure consent, be an act done contrary to the consent of
the patient; but mere submission by the patient, in
ignorance of the moral nature of the act, to an act of
indecency done by the agent does not amount to such
consent: therefore, where two boys of eight years of
age submitted to indecent acts on the part of a grown up
man in ignorance of the nature of the acts to be done
and done, the man was held to be rightly convicted of
an indecent assault (R. v. Lock, 42 L. J., M. C. 5).]
[Sodomitical practices, and inciting to them, are also
misdemeanors at common law; see 1 Russ. by Greaves,
4th ed. p. 451. See also tit. "Sodomy."]

8. 62.

s. 16 (see Note 78,

60. Any offender entering any forest, chase or purlieu, with F. 24 & 25 Vict. c. 96, intent to hunt, &c. deer, unlawfully beating or wounding deerkeeper while in the execution of his powers in seizing gun, dog, &c. which is not delivered up on demand.

61. Whosoever shall assault any person with intent to rob (save
where a greater punishment is provided by this act;
for which see Offences 313-315, tit. "Larceny").

[See tits. " Attempts to Murder," " Carnally knowing
Females," "Clergymen," "Excise, "Gun-
powder, ""Servants," "Sodomy."]

post).

F. Id. s. 42.

15 Decision on Offence 56.] Upon an indictment for this offence, the defendant may be convicted of a common assault (Reg. v. Oliver, 30 L. J. (N. S.) M. C. 12; 1 Bell, C. C. 287; Reg. v. Yeadon, 31 L. J. (N. S.) M. C. 70; 5 L. T., N. S. 329; Reg. v. Guthrie, 39 L. J. (N. S.) M. C. 95; 22 L. T., N. S. 485; or of an aggravated assault (Reg. v. Sparrow, 30 L. J. (N. S.) M. C. 43; 1 Bell, C. C. 295; 3 L. T., N. S. 445).

16 Costs of Prosecution.] Although these offences (Nos. 56-58) for which the punishment is provided by sects. 47, 52 of 24 & 25 Vict. c. 100, are in fact "Misdemeanors,' they are not declared to be so in express terms [i.e. "shall be guilty of a misdemeanor "], as in sect. 62 and others; and therefore, it seems costs cannot be allowed under sect. 77, which has the words "misdemeanor indictable under the provisions of this act," which