Colonial Massachusetts policy on handling pirate trials, Part Two

"28th HEN.VIII.c.15  AN ACTE for punysshement of Pyrotes and Robbers of the See" The Statutes of the Realm Printed by Command of His Majesty King George the Third in Pursuance of An Address of the House of Commons of Great Britain from Original Records and Authentic Manuscripts 3:671. London. 1963.

[pr.8]  And be it further enacted by the Authority aforesaid  That some Person being a Publick Notary shall be Register of the Court and in case of his Absence Death or Incapacity or for Want of a Person soe qualified the President of the Court shall and may appoint a Register giveing him an Oath which he is hereby impowered to administer duely faithfully and impartially to execute his Office which Register shall prepare all Warrants and Articles and take care to provide all Things requisite for any Tryall according to the substantiall and essentiall Parts of Proceedings in a Court of Admiralty in the most summary Way and shall take Minutes of the whole Proceedings and enter them duely in a Booke by him to be kept for that Purpose and shall from time to time as Oppportunity offers transmit the same with the Copies of all Articles and Judgments given in any such Cases in any Court whereof he shall be Register unto the High Court of Admiralty of England

[pr.9]  And be it further enacted by the Authority aforesaid  That if any of His Majesties naturall borne Subjects or Denizens [=inhabitants] of this Kingdome shall committ any Piracy or Robbery or any Act of Hostility against other His Majesties Subjects upon the Sea under Colour of any Commission from any Forreigne Prince or State or Pretence of Authority from any Person whatsoever [eg.James II] such Offender and Offenders and every of them shall be deemed adjudged and taken to be Pirates Felons and Robbers and they and every of them being duly convicted thereof according to this Act or the aforesaid Statute of King Henry the Eighth shall have and suffer such Pains of Death Losse of Lands Goods and Chattells as Pirates Felons and Robbers upon the Seas ought to have and suffer

[pr.10] And be it further enacted  That if any Commander or Master of any Shipp or any Seaman or Marriner shall in any Place where the Admirall hath Jurisdiction betray his Trust and turne Pirate Enemy or Rebell and piratically and feloniously run away with his or their Shipp or Shipps or any Barge Boate Ordnance Ammunition Goods or Merchandizes or yield them up voluntarily to any Pirate or shall bring any seducing Messages [eg."round-robin", 3.1] from any Pirate Enemy or Rebell or consult combine or confederate with or attempt or endeavour to corrupt any Commander Master Officer or Marriner to yield up or run away with any Shipp Goods or Merchandizes or turne Pirate or goe over to Pirates or if any Person shall lay violent Hands on his Commander whereby to hinder him from fighting in defence of his Shipp and Goods committed to his Trust or that shall confine his Master or make or endeavour to make a Revolt in the Shipp shall be adjudged deemed and taken to be a Pirate Felon and Robber and being convicted therof according to the Directions of this Act shall have and suffer Pains of Death Losses of Lands Goods and Chattells as Pirates Felons and Robbers upon the Seas ought to have and suffer

[pr.11] And whereas severall evill disposed Persons in the Plantations and elsewhere have contributed very much towards the Encrease and Encouragement of Pirates by setting them forth and by aiding abetting receiveing and concealeing them and their Goods and there being some Defects in the Laws for bringing such evill-disposed Persons to condign Punishment Be it enacted by the Authority aforesaid  That all and every Person and Persons whatsoever who after the Twenty ninth Day of September in the Yeare of our Lord One thousand seaven hundred shall either on the Land or upon the Seas wittingly or knowingly sett forth any Pirate or aid and assist or maintaine procure command counsell or advise any Person or Persons whatsoever to doe or committ any Piracies or Robberies upon the Seas and such Person [and? or?] Persons shall thereupon doe or committ any such Piracy or Robbery then all and every such Person or Persons whatsoever soe as aforesaid setting forth any Pirate or aiding assisting maintaining procuring commanding counselling or adviseing the same either on the Land or upon the Sea shall be and are hereby declared and shall be deemed and adjudged to be accessory to such Piracy and Robbery done and committed

[pr.12] And further  That after any Piracy or Robbery is or shall be committed by any Pirate or Robber whatsoever every Person and Persons who knowing that such Pirate or Robber has done or committed such Piracy and Robbery shall on the Land or upon the Sea receive entertaine or conceale any such Pirate or Robber or receive or take into his Custody any Shipp Vessell Goods or Chattells which have been by any such Pirate or Robber piratically and feloniously taken shall be and are hereby likewise declared deemed and adjudged to be accessory to such Piracy and Robbery  And that after the said Nine and twentieth Day of September all such Accessaries to such Piracies and Robberies shall and may be enquired of tried heard determined and adjudged after the common course of the Laws of this Land according to the said Statute made in the Twenty eighth Yeare of King Henry the Eighth as the Principalls of such Piracies and Robberies may and ought to be and no otherwise and being thereupon attainted shall suffer such Pains of Death Losses of Lands Goods and Chattells and in like Manner as the Principalls of such Piracies Robberies and Felonies ought to suffer according to the said Statute of King Henry the Eighth which is hereby declared to be and continue in full Force  Any thing in this present Act contained to the contrary notwithstanding

[pr.13] And forasmuch as it will alsoe conduce to the suppressing of Robberies on the Sea if due Encouragement is given and Rewards allowed to such Commanders Masters and other Officers Seamen and Mariners as shall either bravely defend their owne Shipps or take seize and destroy Pirates Sea-Rovers and Enemies Be it further enacted [p.593] by the Authority aforesaid  That when any English Shipp shall have been defended against any Pirates Enemies or Sea-Rovers by Fight and brought to her designed Port in which Fight any of the Officers or Seamen shall have been killed or wounded it shall and may be lawfull to and for the Judge of His Majesties High Court of Admiralty or his Surrogate in the Port of London or the Mayor Bailiffe or Chief Officer in the severall Out-ports of this Kingdome upon the Petition of the Master or Seamen of such Shipp soe defended as aforesaid to call unto him Four or more good and substantiall Merchants and such as are no Adventurers [=investors] or Owners of the Shipp or Goods soe defended and have no Manner of Interest therein and by Advice with them to raise and levy upon the respective Adventurers and Owners of the Shipp and Goods soe defended by Processe out of the said Court such Summe or Summs of Money as himselfe and the said Merchants by Plurality of Voices shall determine and judge reasonable not exceeding Two Pounds per Cent of the Freight and of the Shipp and Goods soe defended according to the first Costs of the Goods which Summe or Summs of Money soe raised shall be distributed among the Captaine Master Officers and Seamen of the said Shipp or Widows and Children of the slaine according to the Direction of the Judge of the said Court or his Surrogate in the Port of London or the Mayor Bayliffe or Chief Officer in the severall Out-ports of this Kingdom with the Approbation of the Merchants aforesaid who shall proportion the same according to their best Judgement unto the Shipps Company as aforesaid haveing speciall Regard unto the Widows and Children of such as shall have beene slaine in that Service and such as have beene wounded or maimed

[pr.14] And for the better and more effectuall Prevention of Combinations and Confederacies for the running away with or destroying of any Shipp Goods or Merchandizes Be it further enacted by the Authority aforesaid  That a Reward of Tenne Pounds for every Shipp or Vessell of One hundred Tons [3.1] or under and Fifteene Pounds for every Shipp or Vessell of a greater Burden [3.1] shall be paid by the Captaine Commander or Master of every Shipp or Vessell wherein any such Combination or Confederacy shall be sett on foot for the running away with or destroying any such Shipp or the Goods and Merchandizes therein laden to such Person as shall first make a Discovery thereof upon due proofs of such Combination or Confederacy the same to be paid att the Port where the Wages of the Seamen of the said Shipp are or ought to be paid after such Discovery and Proofe made.

[pr.15] Provided alsoe  That this Act shall be in force for Seaven Yeares and to the End of the next Session of Parliament after the Expiration of the said Seaven Yeares and no longer

[pr.16] And for the more effectuall Prosecution and Punishment of Piracies Felonies and Robberies upon the Sea and of all other Offences aforementioned Be it declared and enacted by the Authority aforesaid  That the Commissioners appointed or to be apointed by the aforementioned Statute of King Henry the Eighth or the Commissioners for Tryall of Pirates appointed by this Act shall from and after the said Nine and twentieth Day of September One thousand seaven hundred have the sole Power and Authority of trying hearing and determineing the said Crimes and Offences within all or any of the Colonies and Plantations in America governed by Proprietors or under Grants or Charters from the Crowne and of bringing the Offenders to condigne Punishment and shall and may issue forth their Warrant or Warrants for the seizing and apprehending of any Pirates Felons or Robbers upon the Sea or their Confederates or Accessaries being within any of the said Colonies and Plantations in order to their being brought to Tryall within the same or any other Plantation in America according to this Act or sent into England to be tryed there and that all and every Governour and Governours Person and Persons in Authority in the said Colonies and Plantations governed by Proprietors or under Charters as aforesaid shall assist the Commissioners and their subordinate Officers in doeing their Duty and alsoe in the Execution of such Warrants and otherwise and shall deliver up to such Commissioner or Commissioners Officer or Officers any Pirates Felons and Robbers upon the Sea and their Confederates and Accessaries in order to their being tryed or sent into England as aforesaid  Any Letters Patent Grants or Charters of Government in and about the said Plantations or other Usages heretofore had or made to the contrary notwithstanding

[pr.17] [Separate amendment annexed to the original Act]:

And be it hereby further declared and enacted  That if any of the Governours in the said Plantations or any Person or Persons in Authority there shall refuse to yield Obedience to this Act such Refusall is hereby declared to be a Forfeiture of all and every the Charters granted for the Government or Propriety of such Plantation]

[pr.18] Provided alwaies and be it enacted by the Authority aforesaid  That whensoever any Commission for the Tryall and Punishment of the Offences aforesaid or any of them shall be directed or sent to any Place within the Jurisdiction of the Cinque Ports [3.1] that then every such Commission shall be directed unto the Lord Warden of the Cinque-Ports for the time being or to his Lieutenant and unto such other Persons as the Lord High Chancellor or Keeper of the Great Seale of England for the time being or Commissioners for the Custody of the Great Seale shall name and appoint  And likewise that every Inquisition and Tryall to be had by vertue of such Commission so directed and sent to any Place in the said Cinque-Ports shall be made and had by the Inhabitants of the said Cinque-Ports or the Members of the same  Any thing in this Act to the contrary thereof notwithstanding

[pr.19] And for the Prevention of Seamen deserting of Merchant Shipps abroad in Parts beyond the Sea which is the chiefe Occasion of their turning Pirates and of great Detriment to Trade and Navigation in generall Be it enacted [p.594] by the Authority aforesaid  That all such Seamen Officers or Saylors who shall desert the Shipps or Vessells wherein they are hired to serve for that Voyage shall for such Offence forfeite all such Wages as shall be then due to him or them

[pr.20] And be it further enacted by the Authority aforesaid  That in case any Master of a Merchant Shipp or Vessell shall after the Nine and twentieth Day of September One thousand and seaven hundred during his being abroad force any Man on Shore or wilfully leave him behind in any of His Majesties Plantations or elsewhere or shall refuse to bring home with him againe all such of the Men which he carried out with him as are in a Condition to returne when he shall be ready to proceed in his Home-ward-bound Voyage every such Master shall being thereof legally convicted suffer Three Months Imprisonment without Baile or Mainprize [3.1].