Breach of contract in

volving injury to persons or property.

Penalty for neglect by

master to

provide food, clothing, &c.,

for servant or apprentice.

Penalty for intimidation

or annoyance by violence

or otherwise.

place, or part, wholly or to a great extent of their supply of gas or water, he shall, on conviction thereof by a court of summary jurisdiction or on indictment as hereinafter mentioned, be liable either to pay a penalty not exceeding twenty pounds or to be imprisoned for a term not exceeding three months, with or without hard labour.

Every such municipal authority, company, or contractor as is mentioned in this section shall cause to be posted up, at the gasworks or waterworks, as the case may be, belonging to such authority or company or contractor, a printed copy of this section in some conspicuous place where the same may be conveniently read by the persons employed, and as often as such copy becomes defaced, obliterated, or destroyed, shall cause it to be renewed with all reasonable despatch.

If any municipal authority or company or contractor make default in complying with the provisions of this section in relation to such notice as aforesaid, they or he shall incur on summary conviction a penalty not exceeding five pounds for every day during which such default continues, and every person who unlawfully injures, defaces, or covers up any notice so posted up as aforesaid in pursuance of this Act, shall be liable on summary conviction to a penalty not exceeding forty shillings.

Sec. 5. Where any person wilfully and maliciously (a) breaks a contract of service or of hiring, knowing or having reasonable cause to believe that the probable consequences of his so doing, either alone or in combination with others, will be to endanger human life, or cause serious bodily injury, or to expose valuable property whether real or personal to destruction or serious injury, he shall, on conviction thereof by a court of summary jurisdiction or on indictment as hereinafter mentioned, be liable either to pay a penalty not exceeding twenty pounds, or to be imprisoned for a term not exceeding three months, with or without hard labour.

Sec. 6. Where a master, being legally liable to provide for his servant or apprentice necessary food, clothing, medical aid, or lodging, wilfully and without lawful excuse refuses or neglects to provide the same, whereby the health of the servant or apprentice is or is likely to be seriously or permanently injured, he shall on summary conviction be liable either to pay a penalty not exceeding twenty pounds, or to be imprisoned for a term not exceeding six months, with or without hard labour. (b)

Sec. 7. Every person who, with a view to compel (c) any other person to abstain from doing or to do any act which such other person has a legal right to do or abstain from doing, wrongfully and without legal authority,

1. Uses violence to or intimidates (d) such other person or his wife or children, or injures his property; or,

2. Persistently follows such other person about from place to place; or,

(a) See sec. 15, post, p. 165.

(b) As to liability of a master to provide

food, &c., for servant or apprentice, see
vol. 1, pp. 653, 947.

(c) See R. v. Hibbert, 13 Cox, C. C. 82.

(d) As to the meaning of this word, see post, p. 167, et seq.

3. Hides any tools, clothes, or other property owned or used by such other person, or deprives him of or hinders him in the use thereof; or,

4. Watches or besets the house or other place where such other person resides, or works, or carries on business, or happens to be, or the approach to such house or place (e); or, 5. Follows such other person with two or more other persons in a disorderly manner in or through any street or road, shall, on conviction thereof by a court of summary jurisdiction or on indictment as hereinafter mentioned, be liable either to pay a penalty not exceeding twenty pounds, or to be imprisoned for a term not exceeding three months, with or without hard labour. Attending at or near the house or place where a person resides, or works, or carries on business, or happens to be, or the approach to such house or place, in order merely to obtain or communicate information, shall not be deemed a watching or besetting within the meaning of this section. (ƒ)

Sec. 8. Where in any Act relating to employers or workmen a Reduction of pecuniary penalty is imposed in respect of any offence under such penalties. Act, and no power is given to reduce such penalty, the justices or

court having jurisdiction in respect of such offence may, if they think it just so to do, impose by way of penalty in respect of such offence any sum not less than one fourth of the penalty imposed by such Act.

Sec. 9. Where a person is accused before a court of summary jurisdiction of any offence made punishable by this Act, and for which a penalty amounting to twenty pounds, or imprisonment, is imposed, the accused may, on appearing before the court of summary jurisdiction, declare that he objects to being tried for such offence by a court of summary jurisdiction, and thereupon the court of summary jurisdiction may deal with the case in all respects as if the accused were charged with an indictable offence and not an offence punishable on summary conviction, and the offence may be prosecuted on indictment accordingly.

Power for offender under tried on indictment and not by court

this Act to be

of summary jurisdiction.

before court of summary jurisdiction.

Sec. 10. Every offence under this Act which is made punishable Proceedings on conviction by a court of summary jurisdiction or on summary conviction, and every penalty under this Act recoverable on summary conviction, may be prosecuted and recovered in manner provided by the Summary Jurisdiction Act.

Sec. 11. Provided, that upon the hearing and determining of Regulations as any indictment or information under sections four, five, and six of to evidence. this Act, the respective parties to the contract of service, their husbands or wives, shall be deemed and considered as competent witnesses. (g)

Husbands and

wives.

By sec. 12. In England or Ireland, if any party feels aggrieved Appeal to by any conviction made by a court of summary jurisdiction on determining any information under this Act, the party so aggrieved

(e) See R. v. Druitt, 10 Cox, C. C. 593; R. v. Hibbert, supra.

(f) See R. v. Bunn, 12 Cox, C. C. 316; R. v. Shepherd, 11 Cox, C. C. 325. It is lawful for workmen, peaceably and in a reasonable and proper manner, to endeavour to persuade other workmen

who have not acted with them, to do so.
They must not infringe the provisions of
this enactment, see R. v. Druitt, 10 Cox,
C. C. 593, per Bramwell, B.

(g) As to a husband or wife being
incompetent as a witness for or against
each other, see post, Evidence.

quarter
sessions.

General defini-
tions: The
Summary
Jurisdiction
Act.'

'Court of summary

jurisdiction.'

Definitions of 'municipal authority' and 'public company.'

may appeal therefrom, subject to certain conditions and regula

tions.

Sec. 13. In this Act,

The expression "the Summary Jurisdiction Act" means the 11 & 12 Vict. c. 43, intituled "An Act to facilitate the performance of the duties of justices of the peace out of sessions within England and Wales with respect to summary convictions and orders," inclusive of any Acts amending the same; and

The expression "court of summary jurisdiction" means-
(1.) As respects the city of London, the Lord Mayor or any
alderman of the said city sitting at the Mansion House
or Guildhall justice room; and

(2.) As respects any police court division in the Metropolitan
police district, any Metropolitan police magistrate
sitting at the police court for that division; and
(3.) As respects any city, town, liberty, borough, place, or
district for which a stipendiary magistrate is for the
time being acting, such stipendiary magistrate sitting
at a police court or other place appointed in that
behalf; and

(4.) Elsewhere, any justice or justices of the peace to whom
jurisdiction is given by the Summary Jurisdiction Act:
Provided that, as respects any case within the cogni-
zance of such justice or justices as last aforesaid, an
information under this Act shall be heard and deter-
mined by two or more justices of the peace in petty
sessions sitting at some place appointed for holding
petty sessions.

Nothing in this section contained shall restrict the jurisdiction of the Lord Mayor or any alderman of the city of London, or of any metropolitan police or stipendiary magistrate, in respect of any act or jurisdiction which may now be done or exercised by him out

of court.

Sec. 14. The expression "municipal authority" in this Act means any of the following authorities, that is to say, the Metropolitan Board of Works, the Common Council of the city of London, the Commissioners of Sewers of the city of London, the town council of any borough for the time being subject to the 5 & 6 W. 4, c. 76, intituled" An Act to provide for the Regulation of Municipal Corporations in England and Wales," and any Act amending the same, any commissioners, trustees, or other persons invested by any local Act of Parliament with powers of improving, cleansing, lighting, or paving any town, and any local board.

Any municipal authority or company or contractor who has obtained authority by or in pursuance of any general or local Act of Parliament to supply the streets of any city, borough, town, or place, or of any part thereof, with gas, or which is required by or in pursuance of any general or local Act of Parliament to supply water on demand to the inhabitants of any city, borough, town, or place, or any part thereof, shall for the purposes of this Act be deemed to be a municipal authority or company or contractor upon whom is imposed by Act of Parliament the duty of supplying such city, borough, town, or place, or part thereof, with gas or water.

Sec. 15. The word "maliciously" used in reference to any offence under this Act shall be construed in the same manner as it is required by the 24 & 25 Vict. c. 97, s. 58 (h), to be construed in reference to any offence committed under such last-mentioned Act.

Sec. 16. Nothing in this Act shall apply to seamen or to apprentices to the sea service.

'Maliciously' in this Act

construed as in Malicious In

juries to Property Act.

Saving as to

sea service.

Sec. 17. On and after the commencement of this Act, there shall Repeal of be repealed:

I. The Act of 34 & 35 Vict. c. 32, intituled "An Act to amend the Criminal Law relating to violence, threats, and molestation;" and

II. "The Master and Servant Act, 1867," and the enactments specified in the First Schedule to that Act, with certain exceptions.

III. Also there shall be repealed the following enactments
making breaches of contract criminal, and relating to the
recovery of wages by summary procedure; (that is to say,)
(a.) An Act 5 Eliz. c. 4, intituled "An Act touching
dyvers orders for artificers, labourers, servantes of
husbandrye, and apprentices;" and

(b.) So much of section two of 12 Geo. 1, c. 34, intituled
"An Act to prevent unlawful combination of
workmen employed in the woollen manufactures,
and for better payment of their wages," as relates
to departing from service and quitting or returning
work before it is finished; and

(c.) Section twenty of 5 Geo. 3, c. 51, the title of which
begins with the words "An Act for repealing
several Laws relating to the manufacture of woollen
cloth in the county of York," and ends with the
words "for preserving the credit of the said manu-
facture at the foreign market;" and

(d.) An Act, 19 Geo. 3, c. 49, intituled "An Act to pre-
vent abuses in the payment of wages to persons
employed in the bone and thread lace manufac-
tory;" and

(e.) Sections 18 & 23 of 3 & 4 Vict. c. 91, intituled
"An Act for the more effectual prevention of
frauds and abuses committed by weavers, sewers,
and other persons employed in the linen, hempen,
union, cotton, silk, and woollen manufactures in
Ireland, and for the better payment of their wages,
for one year, and from thence to the end of the
next session of Parliament;" and

(f) Section 17 of 6 & 7 Vict. c. 40, the title of which
begins with the words "An Act to amend the
Laws," and ends with the words "workmen en-
gaged therein;" and

(g.) Section 7 of 8 & 9 Vict. c. 128, intituled "An Act to
make further regulations respecting the tickets

(h) See this section, vol. 2, p. 892. The Act relates to malicious injuries to property.

Acts.

Application to
Scotland.
Application to
Ireland.

If workmen

are dissatisfied

with their

wages they may lawfully

meet to determine the rate of wages

they will require, and

may agree to fix that rate; but they cannot lawfully interfere with

of work to be delivered to silk weavers in certain cases."

Provided that,

(1.) Any order for wages or further sum of compensation in
addition to wages made in pursuance of section sixteen
of "The Summary Jurisdiction (Ireland) Act, 1851,"
may be enforced in like manner as if it were an order
made by a court of summary jurisdiction in pursuance
of the " Employers and Workmen Act, 1875," and not
otherwise; and

(2.) The repeal enacted by this section shall not affect-
(a.) Anything duly done or suffered, or any right or lia-
bility acquired or incurred under any enactment
hereby repealed; or

(b.) Any penalty, forfeiture, or punishment incurred in
respect of any offence committed against any
enactment hereby repealed; or

(c.) Any investigation, legal proceeding, or remedy in respect of any such right, liability, penalty, forfeiture, or punishment as aforesaid; and any such investigation, legal proceeding, and remedy may be carried on as if this Act had not passed.

Sec. 18. This Act extends to Scotland, with certain modifications; and see sections 19 and 20.

Sec. 21. This Act extends to Ireland, with certain modifications.

Cases under Repealed Acts.

It may be useful to refer to the following cases decided under the repealed acts.

A

In his charge to the grand jury at the Stafford Special Commission, 1843, Tindal, C. J., said, The first observation that arises. is that if the workmen of the several collieries and manufactories, who complained that the wages which they received were inadequate to the value of their services, had assembled themselves peaceably together for the purpose of consulting upon and determining the rate of wages or prices which the persons present at the meeting should require for their work, and had entered into an agreement amongst themselves for the purpose of fixing such rate, they would have done no more than the law allowed. combination for that purpose and to that extent (if indeed it can other workmen be called by that name) is no more than is recognized as legal by in the exercise the 6 Geo. 4, c. 129; by which statute also exactly the same right of combination, to the same extent and no further, is given to the masters when met together, if they are of opinion the rate of wages is too high. In the case supposed-that is, a dispute between the masters and the workmen as to the proper amount of wages to be given,--it was probably thought by the legislature that if the workmen on the one part refused to work, or the masters on the other refused to employ, as such a state of things could not continue long, it might fairly be expected that the party must ultimately give way, whose pretensions were not founded in

of the same

right.