the question raised in the sequestration was one of heritable right to which the Sheriff was not competent. This plea was repelled. Observed by the Court :- "There are many causes before the Sheriff Court which involve a question of heritable right in the sense that the Sheriff has incidentally to deal with it. But in this case there was really no question of heritable right or competition of heritable rights. The title produced was admittedly that of an heritable creditor, and under the statute the heritable creditor was quite entitled to apply for sequestration provided he was in possession. The question whether he was in possession was not a question of heritable right. If pleas of this kind were good, no sequestration or removing under the Act could go on." Lords Justice-Clerk and Deas, Dundee Circuit, Philip v. Trustees of Forfar Building Investment Co., September 16, 1868, 41 Jurist 1, 1 Couper 87. (See also this case under sections 4 and 31.)

2 By section 28 of the Sheriff Court Act, 1853, the provisions of the Small Debt Act for the summary trial and determination of sequestrations for rent are declared to extend to all sequestrations applied for currente termino or in security.

of Goods of

6. And be it enacted, That the Pursuer of any Civil Arrestment Cause, including Maritime Civil Causes and Proceedings, Defender. may use Arrestment on the Dependence of the Action of any Money, Goods, or Effects, to an Amount or extent not exceeding the Value of Eight Pounds Six Shillings and Eightpence Sterling [Twelve Pounds], owing or belonging to such Defender, in the Hands of any Third Party, either within the County in which such Warrant shall have been issued or in any other County or Counties: Provided always, that before using such Warrant in any other County it shall be presented to and indorsed by the Sheriff-Clerk of such other County, who is hereby required to make such Indorsement on Payment of the Fee hereinafter mentioned: Provided also, that any Arrestment laid on under the Authority of this Act shall, on the Expiry of Three Months1 from the Date thereof, cease and Arrestment determine, without the necessity of a Decree or Warrant shall cease of loosing the same, unless such Arrestment shall be Months. renewed by a special Warrant or Order, duly intimated to the Arrestee, in which Case it shall subsist and be in

Furthcom

Unless re- force for the like Time and under the like Conditions newed, or Action of as under the original Warrant, or unless an Action of ing Raised. Forthcoming or Multiplepoinding, in manner hereinafter provided, shall have been raised before the Expiry of the said period of Three Months, in which Case the Arrestment shall subsist and be in force until the Termination of such Action of Forthcoming or Multiplepoinding.

Wages not liable to

Arrestment.

The above section is incorporated by section 5 of the Debts Recovery Act, except in so far as inconsistent with the provisions of that Act. It is thereby expressly provided that notwithstanding the terms of the section referred to, arrestments laid on under the authority of that Act shall not prescribe till the expiry of three years, according to the provisions of the 22d section of the Personal Diligence Act, 1838.

1 Extended to three years as regards arrestments under the Debts Recovery Act. See note supra.

7. And be it enacted and declared, That Wages of Labourers and Manufacturers shall, so far as necessary for their Subsistence, be deemed alimentary, and, in like manner as Servants' Fees, and other alimentary Funds, not liable to Arrestment.

By 8 and 9 Vict. c. 39, it has been rendered incompetent to arrest wages upon the dependence of an action raised under this Act. The provisions of the Act referred to are as follows:-"Be it therefore enacted . . . that from and after the passing of this Act it shall not be lawful or competent to arrest wages upon the dependence of any action raised by virtue of the said recited Acts, anything therein contained to the contrary notwithstanding." The Small Debt Act, 1837, is one of these recited Acts.

By "The Wages Arrestment Limitation (Scotland) Act," 1870, it is provided that wages shall not be liable to arrestment, except in so far as regards any surplus earned over twenty shillings per week. It is further provided that this limitation shall not affect arrestments in virtue of decrees for alimentary allowances or payments, or for rates and taxes imposed by law. See the Act at length in the Appendix.

viding how Arrest

be loosed.

8. And be it enacted, That when any Arrestment For proshall have been used on the Dependence of Action, any it shall be competent to the Defender to have such ments may Arrestment loosed, on lodging with the Sheriff Clerk of the County in which such Arrestment shall have been used a Bond or Enactment of Caution, by One or more good and sufficient Cautioners to the Satisfaction of such Sheriff-Clerk, agreeably to the Form in Schedule (C) annexed to this Act, or on consigning in the Hands of such Sheriff-Clerk the Amount of the Debt or Demand, with Five Shillings for Expenses in Cases of Actions for Sums below Five Pounds, and Ten Shillings in Cases of higher Amount, or on producing to such Sheriff-Clerk Evidence of the Defender having obtained Decree of Absolvitor in the Action, or of his having paid the Sums decerned for, or of his having consigned in the hands of the Clerk of the Court in which the Action depended the Sums decerned for or the Amount of the Debt or Demand, and Expenses as aforesaid, when no Decree has yet been pronounced; and a Certificate in the Form in the said Schedule given by the Certificate Sheriff-Clerk of the County in which such Arrestment clerk. by Sheriff shall have been used of a Bond or Enactment of Caution to the Extent of the Debt or Demand and Expenses having been lodged with him, or of Consignation, as above provided, having been made in his Hands, shall operate as a Warrant for loosing any Arrestment used either in that or in any other County on the Dependence of the same Action, without any other Caution being found or any other Consignation being made by the Defender.

The above section is incorporated by section 5 of the Debts Recovery Act, except in so far as inconsistent with the provisions of that Act.

Arrest

9. And be it enacted, That any Person entitled Rendering to pursue an Action of Forthcoming where the Sum ments efor Demand sought to be recovered under the Forth- fectual.

Summons

of Furth

coming in

county where Arrestee resides.

1

coming shall not exceed the Value of Eight Pounds Six Shillings and Eightpence [Twelve Pounds] Sterling, exclusive of Expenses and Fees of Extract, who shall choose to have the same heard and determined according to the summary Mode provided by this Act, shall proceed by Summons or Complaint agreeably to the Form in Schedule (D) annexed to this Act, concluding for Payment of the Sum for which Arrestment has been used, or for Delivery of the Goods and Effects arrested, which Summons or Complaint, being signed by the Sheriff-Clerk of the County in which the Arrestee resides, shall be a sufficient Warrant and Authority to any Sheriff's-Officer for summoning the Arrestee and the Common Debtor to appear and answer at a Sheriff Court of the County in which the Arrestee resides, the same not being sooner than the Sixth Day after the Date of Citation, and also for summoning Witnesses and Havers for all Parties; and in the event of the common Debtor not residing and not being found within the County in which such Action of Forthcoming shall be brought, he may be cited by any Sheriff's-Officer in any other Debtor in County on the said Warrant, the same being first presented to and indorsed by the Sheriff-Clerk of such other County, who is hereby required to indorse the same on Payment of the Fee hereinafter mentioned, to appear at a Sheriff Court in the County in which the Arrestee resides, the same not being sooner in such Case than on the Twelfth Day after the Date of Citation: Provided always, that the Arrestee and the common Debtor shall be cited to appear on the same Court Day, and that a Copy of the said Summons or Complaint, with the Citation annexed thereto, shall be duly served by the Officer, all in the same Manner as hereinbefore provided in other Causes and Prosecutions under Authority of this Act, but always allowing to a Party cited to appear in the Sheriff Court of a different County from that in which the Citation shall be given Double the Time required by this Act to be allowed to a Party cited to appear in the Sheriff Court of the County

Where

common

different

County.

Debt no

within which the Citation shall be given: Provided Amount of also, that the Pursuer of such Action of Forthcoming restricted. shall not by such Action be held to have restricted the Amount of the Debt due by the common Debtor.

The above section is incorporated by section 5 of the Debts Recovery Act, except in so far as inconsistent therewith.

1 An action of Forthcoming in the Small Debt Court, Lanark, was raised by Melvin against Alexander, as Dunlop's Trustee, and Dunlop as common debtor, for £12, for which sum Melvin had obtained decree against Dunlop, and had used arrestments in the hands of Alexander. Dunlop had executed a trust-deed for behoof of his creditors in favour of Alexander, which was unstamped, and to which Melvin was not a party. The Sheriff gave decree for Melvin. Alexander appealed and pleaded (1st) that the refusal by the Sheriff to continue the case to allow the trust-deed to be stamped was illegal and oppressive; and (2d) that the refusal of the Sheriff to allow the appellant to prove that though the respondent Alexander did not sign the trust-deed, yet he acceeded to it, or at least to a verbal trust, was incompetent, or at least oppressive and illegal. These pleas were repelled, and the appeal dismissed with £5, 5s. expenses. From the report it does not appear whether or not the trust-deed was in proper form. Observed by the Court: -The proper means of knowing whether the respondent had acceded to the trust was the trust-deed itself, and as the respondent did not sign it, he must be held not to have acceded to it, and therefore entitled to enforce payment of the debt. Besides, it appeared that the alleged meeting of creditors must have been irregular, because the minutes of meeting did not bear to be signed by any preses, or even that any preses had been appointed. Lord Deas, Glasgow Circuit, Alexander v. Melvin, Sept. 28, 1866, 5 Irv. 322.

10. And be it enacted, that where any Person shall Actions of Multiplehold a Fund or Subject which shall not exceed the Value poinding. of Eight Pounds Six Shillings and Eightpence, [Twelve Pounds] which shall be claimed by more than One Party, under Arrestments or otherwise, it shall be competent to raise a Summons of Multiplepoinding in the Small Debt Court, established or to be established under this Act, To be to the Jurisdiction of which the Holder of the Fund or brought Subject shall be amenable, which Summons and Pro- Jurisdic

within