Chap. 0028 AN ACT IN ADDITION TO AN ACT INTITLED "AN ACT FOR FURTHER AUGMENTING CERTAIN FEES, ALLOWANCES AND PENALTIES, Established BY THE LAWS OF THIS STATE."
Whereas, in and by the said law, no provision is made to enlarge the jurisdiction of justices of the peace, who, by the law of this state, cannot take cognizance of any manner of debt, trespasses, or other matter, exceeding the value of forty shillings, whereby great inconvenience and unnecessary expeuce may arise to many persons in recovering small debts and damages, -
Be it therefore enacted by the Council and House nf Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same,
[Sect. 1.] That the justices of the peace .of this state be, and they hereby are, [i][e]mpowered to hear, try, adjudge and determine, any manner of debts, trespasses, or other matters, as heretofore by the law of this province, colony or state, to the amount of sixteen times the value of forty shillings.
And whereas the fines and penalties annexed to certain offences mentioned in an act or law of this state, made and passed March, one thousand seven hundred and seventy-eight, intitled "An Act in addition to an act intitled ' An Act for forming and regulating the militia within the colony of Massachusetts Bay, in New England, and for repealing all the laws heretofore made for that purpose,'" do not answer the purposes for which they were intended : and whereas the act to which this is in addition doth not extend to increasing the fines and penalties annexed to any offence; mentioned in any law <>f this state which hath been made and parsed since the last day oJ December, one thousand seven hundred and sev n'v-seven,-
[3d Sess.]        Province Laws. - 1779-80.
[revolutionary period - " state."]
1133
Be it therefore further enacted by the authority aforesaid, [Sect. 2.j That all such fines and penalties, annexed to any offences mentioned in the aforesaid additional militia act, shall be increased, and taken to be eight times as much as in said act they are called, and no more ; and all such courts as have now, or before the enacting of this law, might have had, jurisdiction, of any of the said offences, shall continue to have jurisdiction of the same, notwithstanding the augmentation of the lines and penalties : and they are hereby authorized to impose and inflict the same, and directed to give judgment accordingly.   [Passed January 10,