Vagrancy Act 1698

Reasons for passing this Act.

If any Person brought to Constable, &c., with any Pass, &c; Constable, &c. may take such Person before Justice of Peace, who is to examine, and if punishable by Law to send to the House of Correction, or if otherwise, then to order such Person to be passed; Justice to give Constable, &c. a Certificate of Number of such Persons without Fee, &c.

Whereas many Parts of this Kingdom are extremely oppressed by the usuall Method of conveying Vagabonds or Beggers from Parish to Parish in a dilatory Manner whereby such Vagabonds or Beggers in hopes of Releife from every Parish through which they are conducted are incouraged to spend their Lives in wandring from one Part of this Kingdom to another and to elude divers charitable and well disposed Persons very frequently forge or counterfeite Passes Testimonialls or Characters whereby the charitable Intentions of such Persons are often abused For Remedy whereof Bee it enacted by the Kings most Excellent Majesty by and with the Advice and Consent of the Lords Spirituall and Temporall and Commons in this present Parliament assembled That from and after the Four and twentieth Day of June One thousand seaven hundred if any Vagabond Begger or any other Person whatsoever shall be brought to any Constable Headborough Tythingman or other Officer thereof with any Passe Testimoniall Letter of Request or other Writing whatsoever pretending thereby either to be relieved or conveyed that all and every such Person and Persons shall by such Constable or other Officer or some other sufficient Person or Persons whom he shall order or depute be taken before some Justice of the Peace of every such County wherein they shall arrive who inhabites or resides nearest the Towne or Place where such Persons shall first come appear or be brought before the Constable or other Officer which said Justice of the Peace shall carefully and diligently examine them and if he finds them such Persons as ought by Law to be punished he is then required to send them to the House of Correction and take such further Course with them as the Law in such Case directs or if they are not such Persons then to order them immediately to be conveyed out of the said County to such Towne of the next County unto or through which such Person or Persons are to passe or be conveyed as such Justice shall think most proper And every Constable or other Officer is hereby required accordingly to convey them either to the House of Correction or to such Towne as aforesaid of the next County without Delay and the said Justice of Peace is hereby further required to give the said Constable a Certificate without Fee of the Number of such Persons whom he shall so order to be punished or conveyed as also the Manner how when and from whence such Persons are to be conveyed whether by Cart Horse or Foot and what Number of Persons any such Constable or Officer had Occasion to imploy to bring such Persons before him or for conveying any such Person or Persons to the House of Correction or next County as aforesaid