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JJim aekoowledge his rubrel iptioo; olherwire they are de·

clared punifhable as accelfory

forge,y. Deeds, de–

-crees, aod other Cecurities, confifliog of more than one

Jbeet, may be written by way of book, io place of the

former cuUom of paOing together the feveral fheets, aod

(lgniog the joioings

toe margin; provided each page

he figned .by toe gr,nter. and omked by its oumber ; aDd

tbe tefliog claufe exprers the oumbe, of pages.

. 6. IoUrumeots of reifio are v¡¡lid, ir rublúibed by ooe

notary, before a reafooable oumber of witoelfes; woico

H exteoded by praélice tO ioflrumeots of refigoatioo.

.Two witnelfes are deemed a reafooable' oumber to every

<leed tha! can be executed by one ootary.

is oot oe–

<e(fArr, toat the witnelfts tO a ootorial ioflrumeor, or

.executioo, Cee the notaryor me(fenger figo; for th. yare

. .called as witDe(fes to toe traofaélioo which is atteUed,

~od

Mt to the CubCcriptioo of the perCoD atteHing.

. 7. A new requifite has been added to certaiD deeds

fiDce tbe union, for the beoefit of the revcoue: They

mufl be executed

flamped paper, or parchment, pay'

ing a certain duty to the crown. Charters, ioHrumeors

'of refigoatioo, Ceifios, and retour! of lands holdeDof a

fubjcél, are chargcd wito

of duty: Boods, ucks,

.contraéls, aod othe, pelCODal obligations, paid at 6"1 6

to whico a fanher dury of

I l .

has been Goce added.

13~1

bonds, bilis, teflameou, difcharges, or acquittances

.of reot or of interefl aDd judicial deeds, as notorial io–

ftrumeDu, bODds of cautionty iD fufpeoGoDs, r/:¡r. are

.cxeepted.

8. The graote,'s name aod dcfignatioo are e(feotial,

'not properly as Colemnities, but becauCe no writiog can

.have effeél without toem. Boads were, by our ancient

.praélice, f,equently executed without 611ing up toe cre–

di~or's

name; and they pa(fed from hand to hand, like

.DOtes payable to the bearer: But as there was DO method

for the creditor of a perCon po(fe(fed of thefe to Cecure

lhem for h,is paymeot, illI writiogs takeo blank io toe

creditOr's name are declared oull, as covers to fraud ;

lVith lhe exeeption of indorfatioos of bilis of excbaoge,

9. .cenain privileged writings do not require toe

(lf–

.dinar.y Colcmnities. l. Holograph deeds (written by the

granter himfelf) are effeélu.1 without witne(fes. The date

no holograph writiog, except a bill of excoange, (fre

llext paragr.) can be proved by the graoterls own a(fmion,

ih prejudice eitoer of his heir or his creditors, but mull

.be fupported by other admioicle!.

Teflaments, if ex–

ecoted where men of Ikill in bufineCs cannot be had, are

valid toougb tbey fhould not be quite formal : and let

toe fubjeél of a tcilameot be ever fo valuable, one notary

ligning for toe teflator, before two witne(fes, i, in prac–

Jice Cufficient. Clergymen were frequently notaries be–

fore the reformation; and, thougo toey were arterwa. ds

prohibited to aél'as nataries, the cafe of teflaments is ex–

cepted ; fo that toeCe are Cupponed by the attrnation of

.one minifler, with two witne(fes. 3. Difeoargcs to te–

naots are fuflained without witnelfes, flom their preCumed

Jufiicity, or igoorance in bufinefs. 4. Minive letrers

il/

r~ m~rcat.,ifl,

comminioos, and fitted accounu in the

courfe of tradc, and bilis of excoange, though they are

Mt oolograph, are, from toe

f~vour

of eomOlerce, fuf–

uÍned without the ordiDary folemnities.

10.

A bil! of exchange is an ob!igatíon in

t~e

form of

a mandate, wbe.eby toe drawer or mandant dcfires him

tu whom it is direéled, to paya cenain Cum, at toe dar

and place toereÍll meotioned, tO a third party. Bilis of

exchange are dralVn by a perfon iD one couotry to hiJ

correfpoodent in aoother; and tbey have that IUmc,

be–

cauCe it is toe ex.hange, or toe value of maney in one

plate compared with its nlue in another, that geoerallr

determines toe precife extent of the Cum contained io the

duught. Tbe creditor in the bil! is Cometimel ealJed the

loe polfélfor, or

porteur.

As parties to bilis are of dif–

ferent countries, queflíons eoncerning them ougOt tO be

determined by the rrceived cuflom of tradir.g o.tidos,

unlcCs woere (pecial flatute ioterpofes. For toi! reafoo,

bilis of excoange, though toeir form admits not of wit–

ne(fes , yrt prove thrir own dates, in queflions either with

toe heir, or creditors of the debtOf ; but tois doél,ioc

is not extended to inland bilis payable to tbe drawer him-

Celf.

A·bill is .alid, without the defignatioo, eitber of

the dr.wer, or of toe perfoo to woom it is

m.de

payable:

is eoougo. that the drawer's fubCcription .ppe••s to be

truly his; .nd ooe's beiog po(felfor of a bill marks him

out tO be the creditor, if he bears the name giveo in the

bill to tite creditor: Na)', thougo the perfoo drawn

fhould not be defigDed, his aecepunee prefumes that it

was he whom toe draller had in o,s eye. Bilis drawD

blank, in the creditor's name, fal! under the fl.tutory

'nulJity; for toough iodorfations of bilis are excepted from

it, bilis themfd .es are oot. Not only the perron drawo

upon mull figD his amptance, but the drawer mull figo

his draught, before any obligatioo can be formed agaiiJlI

tbe accepter: Yet it is fuflicient in

pra~ice,

th.t tbe

drawer figns, before the biUbe produced in judgment;

toougo it fhould be .fter the deato boto of the crcditor

and ucepter. A creditor io a bill mal' mnrmit it tO a·

nother by indorCation, tbougo toe bill fhould DOt bear

bis

ord~r;

by toe

f.me

rule that other rigb!! are tranf.

miflible byaJligoation, thougo tbey do oot.bear lo

jign'}s.

12.

Tbe drawer, by figoiog his drangbl, becomes li;

able for the value to tbe creditor io toe bill, in cafe tbe

perfon drawr. upon eitoer does no! accept, orafter accep·

tanee does not pay; for he is preCumed to bave received

. alue from the

~reditor

at giviog him the draugbt, tbougb

it fhould not bear

l0'

!Ja/ut

rtcriv~d:

But, if toe dralller

was debtor to the creditor in the bill before tbe draughl,

toe bill is prefumed to be given towards payment of toe

debr, uolefs it exprefsly bears

lo'

va/a~.

The perron

dra..n upon, ir he refufe to accept, while he has tbe

dralVer's money in ois oaods, is liable tO bim in damagcl.

As a bill prefumes value from toe creditor, indorfatioo

prefumes value from toe indorfee; woo tberefore, if he

cannot obtain payment from the accepter, has recourCe

againfl the indorfcr, unlers the bjll be indorfed io there

words,

'lJ)ithoul

,,,our/~.

13.

Payment of a bill, by tbe accepter, acquíts both

the d..wer and- him at the hands of the credilor; bu!

it inritles the .ccepter, ir he was not tocdrawer's debtor.

to ao aélion of recourCe agaiDn him; ilOd, if be w,s,