judgment in any real, personal or mixed action, nor any appeal from the register's court, shall be avoided or reversed for any defect or error therein, unless the writ of error be commenced, or the appeal be brought and prosecuted with effect, or the certiorari taken, as the case may be, within two years after such fines levied, common recovery suffered, judgment signed or entered of record, or decree be pronounced: Provided nevertheless, That if any person who is or shall be entitled to any such writ of error or appeal, or other writ aforesaid, shall at the time such title accrued be within the age of twenty-one years, covert, non compos mentis, in prison, or out of the limits of the United States of America, that then such person, his or her heirs, executors or administrators (notwithstanding the said two years be expired,) shall and may bring his, her or their writ of error, appeal, or other writ aforesaid for the reversing of such fine, recovery or judgment, so as the same be done within two years after his or her full age, discoverture, coming to sound mind, enlargement, out of prison, or return into some one of the United States of America, or the organized territories thereof, but not afterwards or otherwise. "Section 2. That the provisions of this act shall be held not to apply to any case in which recovery has been suffered, judgment entered, or decree pronounced, previous to its passage. "AN ACT "Fixing the time when the term of office of judges of the supreme court and other judges learned in the law shall commence." Approved April 30, 1874, Laws of Pennsylvania 1874, page 118. "Section 1. Be it enacted, &c., That the term of office of judges of the supreme court and other judges learned in the law, hereafter elected, shall commence on the first Monday of January next, succeeding their election, and they shall be commissioned accordingly." "AN ACT "To provide for review in the supreme court in criminal cases." "Section 1. Be it enacted, &c., That on the trial of all cases of felonious homicide, and in all such other criminal cases as are exclusively triable and punishable in the courts of oyer and terminer and general jail delivery, exception to any decision of the court may be made by the defendant, and a bill thereof shall be sealed, in the same manner as is provided and practiced in civil cases, and the accused, after conviction and sentence, may remove the indictment, record and all proceedings to the supreme court. In capital offences a writ of error or certiorari shall stay execution of sentence. In all other cases such writs shall not stay or delay execution of sentence or judgment, without the special order of the supreme court or a justice thereof for that purpose; and in case of such order, the said supreme court or justice may make such order as the case requires for the custody of the defendant or for admission to bail; in all other criminal cases exceptions, as aforesaid, may be taken, and in cases charging the offence of nuisance or forcible entry and detainer, or forcible detainer, exceptions to any decision or ruling of the court may also be taken by the commonwealth, and writs of error and certiorari, as hereinbefore provided, may be issued from the supreme court to all criminal courts, when specially allowed by the supreme court or any judge thereof." "AN ACT "Authorizing the judges of the Supreme Court to appoint officers of said court." Approved March 5, 1875, Laws of Pennsylvania 1875, page 5. "Section 1. Be it enacted, &c., That the judges of the Supreme Court be and they are hereby authorized to appoint one crier and so many tipstaves as said court may deem necessary in each and every city and county in which said court is or shall be held, whose compensation shall be fixed by the judges of said court, at a rate per diem for the whole year, not exceeding that now paid to similar officers of the courts of common pleas of said cities or counties; which compensation shall be paid by the proper city or county treasurer, on bills approved by said court or by the prothonotary thereof, in pursuance of a rule to be made for this purpose." "AN ACT "Authorizing the supreme court to change and transfer any of the counties of the commonwealth from any of the districts of said court." Approved May 5, 1876, Laws of Pennsylvania 1876, page 115. "Section 1. Be it enacted, &c., That the supreme court be and are hereby authorized from time to time, in their discretion, to change and transfer from one district to another, any county or counties of the commonwealth, and for the purpose of expediting the disposal of the business of the county or counties so transferred and changed, to change the return days of the term of the several districts in the commonwealth, to change, increase or diminish the number of weeks of the respective terms in any district, and to make all the orders, rules and decrees necessary to carry the provisions of this section into effect." "AN ACT "To authorize the prothonotary of the supreme court of the Northern district to administer oaths and take acknowledgments." Approved May 13, 1876, Laws of Pennsylvania 1876, page 158. "Section 1. Be it enacted, &c., That from and after the passage of this act, it shall be lawful for the prothonotary of the supreme court of the Northern district of said commonwealth to administer oaths, take depositions and take acknowledgments, or proof of deeds and other instruments of writing entitled by law to be recorded; and the said deeds, conveyances or other instruments of writing, when so certified to have been acknowledged by the said prothonotary of the said court, under the seal of the said court, shall be as valid to all intents and purposes, and shall have the like effect, and be in like manner entitled to be recorded, as if the same had been made, acknowledged or proved and certified in conformity with any law of this commonwealth." "AN ACT "To prevent delay in the review of capital offenses in the supreme court." Approved March 24, 1877, Laws of Pennsylvania 1877, page 40. "Section 1. Be it enacted, &c., That no writ of error or certiorari, in capital offenses, shall be issued from the supreme court to any court of oyer and terminer and general jail delivery to remove the indictment, record and proceedings to the supreme court for review, after twenty days from sentence, unless specially allowed by the supreme court or a judge thereof." "AN ACT "Providing for appeals from court of common pleas in case of applications for opening of judgments entered on warrants of attorney." Approved April 4, 1877, Laws of Pennsylvania 1877, page 53. "Section 1. Be it enacted, &c., That in all cases of application, made to any court of common pleas within this commonwealth, to have any judgment which has been entered by virtue of a warrant of attorney or on judgment note opened and defendant or defendants let into a defence, the party or parties aggrieved by the decision of the court thereon may have the same reviewed in the supreme court by appeal in like manner and proceedings as equity cases are now appealed: Provided, That no such appeal shall be a supersedeas, unless the party appealing shall be bound by recognizance with two sufficient sureties, conditioned for the payment of debt, interest and cost, in the event that the plaintiff shall recover in the trial of the issue directed upon the opening of the said judgment or the said judgment is not opened or set aside. "AN ACT "To provide for the publication of the decisions of the supreme court and the appointment of a state reporter." Approved June 12, 1878, Laws of Pennsylvania 1878, page 201. "Section 1. Be it enacted, &c., That the governor, within twenty days after this act goes into effect, shall nominate, and by and with the advice and consent of two-thirds of all the members of the senate, when in session, or if not in session at the time of such appointment, subject to such advice and consent of the senate at its next session, and on taking the security hereinafter required, shall commission for the period of five years, and every five years thereafter, a person of known integrity and learning in the law, to be reporter of the decisions of the supreme court of this state, who shall give bond to the commonwealth, with at least two sufficient sureties, to be approved by the governor, in the sum of five thousand dollars, for the correct and faithful performance of his official duties, and shall in addition to the oath prescribed by the constitution, further take and subscribe, before a judge of the supreme court or of Dauphin county, an oath or affirmation, to be filed with the secretary of the commonwealth, that he will perform the duties of his office with correctness, impartiality and fidelity. "Section 2. The governor may at any time remove said reporter for incompetency or a failure to discharge his official duties, on the address of the judges of said court made to him in writing, and shall have power to fill any vacancy which may occur by death or otherwise, by an appointment of a reporter to continue for the term of five years thereafter. "Section 3. The reporter shall, when required by the court, attend its sessions and consultations, and under its direction, report and prepare for publication such of its decisions as the court may designate, but before publication thereof he shall submit the syllabus of every case by him reported to the judge who delivered the opinion for correction or approval. "Section 4. The court shall cause to be reported such of its decisions, whether made in disposing of motions or otherwise, as determine any theretofore unsettled, or new and important, or modify any theretofore settled, question of law in this commonwealth, or that give construction to a statute of ambiguous or doubtful import, together with such other of its decisions as may be deemed by the court of public interest and importance. "Section 5. The said reports shall be printed on first class book paper, and bound in good full law sheep, in style not inferior to volume one of Harris' reports, and shall be in form and manner of execution similar thereto, and shall contain not less than seven hundred pages of printed matter in each volume, including an index and table of cases similar to those in said volume, which shall be prepared and furnished by said reporter; and there shall be printed on the back of each of said volumes the words 'Pennsylvania State Reports,' the number of the volume in the series of said state reports, the name of the reporter, and the number of the volume in his series, with the year when published. "Section 6. The reporter shall receive for his services under this act a salary of three thousand dollars for each year, payable out of the state treasury, in quarterly instalments, the last quarter not be paid however until the decisions for that year shall have been reported and prepared for publication. "Section 7. The reporter shall have no pecuniary interest in such reports, but the same shall be published under the supervision of the reporter, by contract to be entered into by the reporter, secretary of the commonwealth and auditor general, with the person or persons, who, in addition to furnishing the state librarian, for library and exchange, fifty copies of each volume, shall agree to publish and sell the said reports on terms the most advantageous to the public and at the lowest price; which contract shall be for a term of ten years, and shall provide that every volume printed under such contract shall be stereotyped, |