before the first day of September, or the solicitor may recover the same with costs, by motion in the district court, on ten days previous notice given in writing of such motion: And the clerks of the district courts shall deliver copies of all lists so sent to the sheriffs to the solicitor, to enable him to call such sheriffs to account.

CXIII. Replevin bouds may be given by a respon sible person, and a security in the clerk's office, or to the sheriff before seizure; in the former of which cases the clerk shall take a fee of five shillings only, in the latter the sheriff shall take a fee of five shillings only.

CXIV. The causes depending in the general court on the first day of January, in the year one thousand seven hundred and eighty-nine, shall be arranged, by the clerk thereof, according to the districts herein described, taking for his rule the county in which the original or other writ may have been executed, or from which judgment shall have been removed, and with the papers therein delivered by him to the clerks of the different districts hereby established, together with a state of the casts which may have accrued in each suit to the time of such delivery. And the counsel then retained in such suits shall be answerable for the prosecution and defence of the same, as the case may be.

CXV. All laws whatsoever contrary to the purview hereof, and especially those vesting the general court with powers similar to those now given to the district courts, shall be, and the same are hereby repealed.

CXVI. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after the first day of July, in the year of our lord one thousand seven hundred and eighty-eight, and not before.

CHAP. XL.

An act for the more speedy recovery of debts due to this commonwealth.

[Passed January the 7th, 1788.].

Land of she- 1. BE it enacted by the General Assembly, That riffs and pnb lands and tenements shall and may by virtue of writs may be taken of fieri facias be taken and sold in satisfaction of all

lic collectors

ments of come

Judgments to be hereafter obtained on behalf of the on a fieri fa commonwealth against any sheriff, coroner, or other cias on judg public collector, or against his or their security or se monwealth. curities, Provided, That the same shall not extend to any such security or securities who shall have become so before the passing of this act.

II. Every judgment obtained against any sheriff, Judgments coroner, or other public collector shall bind the pro- to bind the perty of the lands and tenements of such public debtor lands, from from the date thereof.

their date,

III. When the goods and chattels taken in execu Rules, as to tion to satisfy a judgment of the commonwealth by levying exevirtue of a fieri facias, shall not in the opinion of the cutions on officer levying the same be sufficient to satisfy the debt lands. with damages and costs, the sheriff or other officer shall at the same time give public notice at the churches, and meeting-houses, if any there be, and court-house of his county on the next court-day, and shall moreover give notice to the owner if he be in the county, or otherwise to his agent, if any such be known, at some time appointed in the notice, not less than ninety nor more than ninety six days from the time of levying the execution, that the said lands and tenements will be exposed to sale by auction on the premises, or at such other place in the county as the owner shall by writing under his hand delivered to the officer direct.

sold.

IV. If the public debtor against whom a judgment Debtor may shall be entered have several parcels of land which lie specify the in one and the same county, he or his agent may by lands to be writing under his hand at any time before the day of sale, require the sheriff or officer to whom a writ of fieri facias upon the judgment shall be directed to make the debt or damages and costs of such of the said parcels of land as the owner or his agent shall think proper; and if the parcels lie in different counties, the clerk shall and may at the like request in writing direct the fieri facias to the sheriff or officer of any county which the party or his agent, making oath or solemn affirmation that he hath lands there, shall particularly mention at any time before the writ shall be delivered to the officer. And if the debt, damages and costs be made of any other parcel of land, or of land lying in any other county than that mentioned in such written requisition, the sale of such other parcel of the tand in such other county shall be void. If the owner

sold.

Lands how of the land before or at the day of sale shall not make payment of the debt due to the public, the sheriff or officer shall proceed to sell the said lands and tenements, or such estate and interest as the party convict shall have therein, or so much thereof as will be sufficient, laid off in one intire parcel if it may be done, in such place and manner as he or his agent if he think proper shall direct, for ready money or other property as the demand may be, and the costs; but if the estate cannot be sold for three fourths of its value in the opinion of the valuers of the county, he shall sell the same upon three months credit, taking bond of the purchasers with sufficient surety or sureties for payment to the chief magistrate of this commonwealth for the time being. Every bond thus taken shall mention on what occasion the same was taken, and shall by the sheriff or officer be immediately returned to the clerk's office from whence it issued, there safely to be kept, and when due, execution thereon may be awarded in the same manner, and on the same conditions that executions are now awarded on replevy bonds, and shall in like manner be indorsed by the clerk that no security is to be taken.

How convey. ed.

V. In all sales of lands by virtue of an execution the sheriff or other officer shall convey the same to the purchaser at his costs by deed in writing, indented, sealed, and recorded as the laws direct for other conveyances of land, which deeds shall recite the execution, purchase, and consideration, and shall be effectual for passing to the purchaser all the estate and interest which the debtor had and might lawfully part with in the lands.

VI. If the lands and tenements, goods and chattels if lands &c.of of any sheriff, coroner, or other public collector, are sheriff are in insufficient to satisfy the debt, damages and costs due sufficient, to the public, judgment shall be obtained against his judgment may be ob security or securities in the same summary way that tained a- judgment may by law be obtained against his or their gainst secu. principal, and the lands and tenements, goods and chattels of such security or securities, except as before excepted, shall be taken in execution to satisfy the balance of such debt, damages, and costs, in the same manner as the lands and tenements, goods and chattels of his or their principal may be taken and sold agreeable to this act.

rities.

cutions a

gainst she.

VII. In every writ of fieri facias upon judgments Form of exe, hereafter to be obtained by the commonwealth against any sheriff, coroner, or other public collector after the riffs, &c. words "We command you that of the" the clerk from whose office such writ shall issue shall insert the words "Lands and tenements" and conform the subsequent part of such writ thereto.

to another

county.

Vill. And whereas large sums of money are re- Power of extained in the hands of sheriffs and other public collec- ecutive to ditors to the great injury of the commonwealth: For re- rect removal medy whereof, Be it enacted, that where the property of property of any sheriff, coroner, or other public collector, or their securities have been taken in execution to satisfy a judgment obtained by the commonwealth, and the same were not sold for want of buyers, and return thereon hath been made to that effect, or where the property of any sheriff, coroner, or other public collector, or their securities, have been exposed to sale by virtue of any writ of venditioni exponas to satisfy a judgment obtained by the commonwealth, and could not be sold for want of buyers, aud return bath been made to that effect, in either of the above cases it shall and may be lawful for the executive, and they are here. by authorised and required, to direct the officer to whom any subsequent process in either of the above cases ought to issue, provided such property cannot be sold agreeable to the directions of such subsequent process, to cause such property to be removed to such place in any adjacent county as the executive may direct, and there to be sold for money or government se curities on such terms and in such proportions as they shall judge expedient, provided that if such property will not sell for three fourths of its value in the judg ment of the valuers of the county where the sale shall be made, the sheriff or other officer shall sell the same on three months credit, and shall take bonds in the same manner, and the like proceedings shall be had thereon, as is herein before directed in cases of bonds taken on the sale of lands and tenements sold by virtue of this act,

IX. In every case where any writ of fieri facias or Executions in venditioni exponas issued against the estate of a sheriff behalf of on behalf of the commonwealth. if by law the same commonwealth, to ought to be directed to a sheriff, such writ or writs whom to be shall be executed by the high sheriff. In like manner directed,

VOL. XI.

V 3

Duty of soli citor to inform executive.

Fraudulent practices

how detect.

ed.

Remedy against sher. iffs, collect

rity.

where any writ of fieri facias or venditioni exponaš shall hereafter issue at the instance of the commonwealth against the estate of any sheriff, coroner, or other public collector, or their securities, and the goods and chattels of such debtor cannot be sold for want of buyers, the executive shall direct the property to be removed and sold as above directed in the cases of such sheriffs, coroners, public collectors, and securities, whose property has not been sold for want of buyers. X. It shall be the duty of the solicitor general forthwith to acquaint the executive when their interposition is, or hereafter may become, necessary to the carrying this act into effect.

XI. And whereas there is reason to suspect fraudulent practices have prevailed in the sale of estates of public debtors, to prevent such practices in future, Be it enacted, That the solicitor general, immediately on the return of any process which he shall suspect was fraudulently executed, shall give notice thereof to the executive, whose duty it shall be to direct the attorney of the commonwealth for such county to file an information thereupon, in which like proceedings shall be had as in other cases of information, and if it shall appear that such sale was fraudulently made, the property of any thing thus fraudulently sold shall not be changed, but remain subject to the demand of the commonwealth; and the officer who executed such process, if he be concerned in such fraud, shall ever after be rendered incapable of being appointed to any office of honor or profit.

XII. And whereas sheriffs and other public collectors in some instances have proceeded to collect the public revenue without having entered into bond with ing revenue, security for the faithful performance of that duty, which without secu- cannot be recovered from such collectors except by the tedious process of law: For remedy whereof, Be it enacted, That every sheriff or other public collector who may have attempted the collection of any of the different species of taxes in any county or corporation in this state, shall be liable to a judgment and execution for the same sum, and in the same summary way as if such sheriff or other public collector had actually given security agreeable to law.

Expences of removing property

XII. In all executions founded upon judgments heretofore obtained, where it may be necessary to re