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28 Geo 3 c.13
(Irish Parliament, 20th February 1788)

An Act to explain and amend an Act passed in the Twenty-third and Twenty-fourth Years of His present Majesty's Reign, entitled, An Act for establishing a Post-Office within this Kingdom.
[20th February 1788]

WHEREAS by an act passed in the twenty third and twenty fourth years of his present Majesty's reign, entitled, An act for establishing a post-office within this kingdom, it is enacted, That no person or persons shall be capable of having, using, or exercising the office of post-master general, secretary, treasurer, receiver general, accountant general, resident surveyor or comptroller as therein is mentioned, or any other office relating to the post office, or any branch thereof, or be any wise concerned in receiving, stamping, sorting, charging, carrying, conveying, or delivering of letters or packets, unless such person shall have first taken the oath therein set forth in the words therein mentioned: and whereas in many instances justice might be eluded, if upon criminal prosecutions founded on the said recited act, or any other act relative to the post-office, proof should be required that such oath was duly taken by every or any of the persons aforesaid: be it therefore declared and enacted, That on any criminal prosecution or trial to be hereafter had for any offence against the said act, or against this act, or any other act relating to the post-office, it shall not be necessary or incumbent on any person or persons prosecuting on behalf of his Majesty, his heirs or successors, to prove or give in evidence on any such prosecution or trial, that the said oath was taken by any of the persons aforesaid, but that it shall be presumed on every such prosecution and trial, that the persons aforesaid, and every of them, was and were duly appointed to their several and respective offices and employments, and took the said oath severally and respectively, and severally and respectively performed all the requisites appointed by the said act, and by this act, and by every other act relating to the post-office to be done and performed, upon proof being first made that the person or persons charged with any offence against the said acts, or any of them, acted in the station, employment, or business relating to the post-office, which shall be charged, mentioned, or set forth in any indictment for such offence.

II. And in order to obviate doubts, and to prevent trouble and the expence in prosecutions and suits for offences against the post office laws: be it enacted, That in all and every criminal prosecution and trial for offences done or committed, or to be done or committed against the said act passed in this kingdom in the twenty third and twenty fourth years of his present Majesty's reign, entitled, An act for establishing a post-office within this kingdom, or any other act relating to the post-office, and in all proceedings at law or in equity founded upon the said acts, or any of them, the establishment of the said post-office shall not be questioned, but it shall be admitted and taken as proved that one general letter-office and post-office has been, and at the time of the offence committed, was duly established for the purposes in the said act mentioned, and that a sufficient person or persons has or have been appointed master of the said office by his Majesty, his heirs and successors, and duly made and constituted master of the said office by letters patent under the great seal of Ireland, by the name, stile, and title of his Majesty's post-master general of Ireland, and that a secretary, a treasurer, a receiver general, and accountant general, and a resident surveyor of the said general post office, and also a comptroller of the sorting office thereof have been respectively in like manner duly appointed, made, and constituted by letters patent under the great seal of Ireland, and that all and every of the subordinate officers, deputies, servants, and agents, required by the said act, have been duly appointed, and that due and regular posts and inferior post-offices have been settled and established for the purposes in the said act, and that it shall not be necessary in any such prosecution or trial or proceeding, to prove or produce or give in evidence the letters patent of the said master, or of any of the other officers aforesaid, or any deputation or appointment made, given, or granted by the master of the said office for the time being, to any of the subordinate officers, deputies, servants, or agents of such master of the said office, but that the said recited act of the twenty third and twenty fourth years of the reign of his present Majesty, shall in all such prosecutions, trials, and proceedings, be deemed, and taken to be, and shall be received as evidence of every such appointment and deputation as aforesaid.

III. And be it enacted, That if any officer or other person whatsoever, in any wise acting under or by virtue of the said recited act, of the twenty third and twenty-fourth years of his present Majesty's reign, or under or by virtue of this act, or under or by virtue of any other act passed in this kingdom, relative to the post-office, or any deputy, clerk, agent, letter carrier, post boy or rider, or any other officer or person whatsoever employed, or to be hereafter employed in receiving, stamping, sorting, charging, carrying, conveying, or delivering letters or packets, or in any other business relating to the post-office, shall wilfully secrete, embezzle, or destroy, or shall wilfully permit, or suffer any other person or persons wilfully to secrete, embezzle, or destroy, or if any other person or persons shall, with or without the consent of any such clerk, deputy, agent, letter-carrier, post-boy, or rider, or other officer or person whatsoever employed as aforesaid, wilfully secrete, embezzle, or destroy any letter or letters, packet or packets, bag or mail of letters, with which any such deputy, clerk, agent, letter-carrier, post-boy or rider, or other officer or person whatsoever, to be employed as aforesaid, shall, and may be respectively entrusted, or which shall have come to his, her, or their hands or possession, which shall contain any bank note, bank post bill, bill of exchange, treasury or exchequer bill, debenture, or acquittance, South-sea, East-India, or city of Dublin, bond, dividend, warrant of the bank of Ireland or England, South-sea, East India, or other company, society or corporation, navy or victualling or transport bill, ordnance, debenture, sea-man's ticket, Irish or British state lottery ticket, or share of any such ticket, bank, treasury, or other receipt for payment of any publick loan, note of assignment of stock in the Irish or British funds, letter of attorney for receiving annuities or dividends, or for selling stock in the funds of Ireland or Great Britain, or belonging to any company, society, or corporation, goldsmiths or bankers letter of credit or note for or relating to the payment of money, or bond, or warrant of attorney, draft, bill or promissory note, or other security or securities, or paper voucher or thing whatsoever for the payment of money; or whereby or whereon any sum of money may be had, gotten, received, or recovered, or which shall contain any part of the said several vouchers, securities, papers, matters or things herein before mentioned, or of any of them, or shall steal or feloniously take out of any letter or packet that shall come to his, her, or their hands or possession, any of the vouchers, securities, papers, matters or things herein before mentioned, or any part of them, or of any of them, or any other security or securities, or matter or paper, or thing whatsoever, or any part of them, or any of them for the payment of money whereby or whereon any sum of money may be had, gotten, received, or recovered, or shall steal, or feloniously take out of any letter or packet, that shall come to his, her, or their hands or possession, any part of any of the vouchers, securities, papers, matters or things herein before mentioned, or any part of any other security or securities, paper, matter or thing whatsoever, for the payment of money, whether money can be had, gotten, received, or recovered thereby or thereon, or not, every such offender or offenders, being thereof convicted by due course of law, shall be deemed guilty of felony, and shall suffer death as a felon, without benefit of clergy.

IV. And whereas doubts may arise, whether the wilfully stopping or detaining any person employed in carrying or conveying any express, or any letter or packet sent or conveyed, or to be sent or conveyed by express, or any letter or packet sent by express from any post-office, or other place in this kingdom, to any other post-office or place within the same, with intent to rob, open, search, or impede the progress of such express, letter, or packet, is made or constituted a felony by the said recited act: be it declared and enacted, That if any person or persons whatsoever, whether employed or not employed in any business of or relating to the post-office, shall rob, or shall wilfully stop or detain with intent to rob, open, search, or impede the progress of any express, letter, or packet, sent, or to be sent as aforesaid by express, or by any post-boy, post-rider, or express-rider, or shall steal or feloniously take from any such post-boy, post-rider, or express-rider, any letter, packet, article, matter or thing whatsoever, with which he shall be entrusted, although such robbing, stealing, or taking shall not appear, or be proved to be a taking from the person, or upon the King's high-way, or to be a robbery or felony committed in any dwelling-house, or any coach-house, stable, barn, or any out-house belonging to a dwelling-house, and although it should not appear, or be proved that any person or persons were put in fear by such robbing, stealing, or taking, or if any post-boy, post rider, or express-rider, shall wilfully rob or open, embezzle, secrete, or destroy any express, letter, or packet with which he shall be entrusted; or shall steal, or feloniously take thereout, or shall wilfully permit or suffer any other person or persons to steal or take thereout any letter, packet, article, matter or thing whatsoever; or if any other person or persons shall, with or without the knowledge or privity of such post-boy, post-rider, or express-rider, steal or feloniously take from such post-boy, post-rider, or express-rider, any letter or packet, article, matter or thing whatsoever; or if any person shall receive any such letter, packet, article, matter or thing which shall have been stolen, or feloniously taken as aforesaid, knowing the same to have been stolen, or feloniously taken as aforesaid, every such offender respectively, being thereof convicted by due course of law, shall be deemed guilty of felony, and shall suffer death as a felon, without benefit of clergy.

V. And be it enacted, That every person receiving any such letter, packet, article, matter or thing which shall have been so feloniously taken or stolen as aforesaid, knowing the same to have been stolen, or feloniously taken as aforesaid, shall be deemed and taken to be a principal felon, and shall be triable for such offence, and being convicted thereof by due course of law, shall suffer death as a felon, without benefit of clergy; although the person or persons who shall have actually committed such theft or robbery as aforesaid, shall not have been previously apprehended, tried, or convicted thereof.