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religious corporation, presented a bond, drawn up in blank, to the president for signature, it was the duty of the president to sign the bond if authorized thereto by a vote of the consistory of the corporation, and the bond embodied a recital stating such vote, the president signed the bond in reliance on this recital, it was held not a case of defrauding by color of a false writing. The false writing intended is some instrument in writing purporting to be signed by some person. The offence is complete when the signature is obtained by false pretences with fraudulent intent. It is not essential that actual loss or injury should be sustained.2 An endorsement to a negotiable promissory note is a signature to a written instrument within the meaning of the Revised Statutes relative to the obtaining of such signatures by false pretences.3

(h) As to the general character of the pretences, the rule may be broadly stated that any designed misrepresentation of the defendant's means, by which he obtains goods of another, is within the statute.4

So, also, it is clear that a false representation of the defendant's character and personality brings him within the statute.5

A false representation tending merely to induce one to pay a debt previously due from him, is not within the statute against obtaining money by false pretences, though payment be thereby obtained.

But it has also been held to be no defence to a charge of obtaining money by false pretences that the person from whom the money was obtained by the prisoner was, at the time, indebted to the prisoner to an amount equal to the sum obtained by the false representation, and that it was the intention of the prisoner to apply such money on such debt."

The false pretences may be made where a sale of goods is had by sample. Thus, where A bought cheese of B at a fair and paid for it, but before he bought it B was offering cheese for sale there, and had bored two of the cheeses with an iron scoop, and

Peo. v. Gates, 13 Wend., 311.

' Peo. v. Genung, 11 Wend., 18, Peo. v. Gates, 13 id., 311.

Peo. v. Chapman, 4 Park., 56.

5th ed., Whar. Cr. L., 2085-6, et seq., and cases cited.

Id., 2092, et seq.

• Peo. v. Thomas, 3 Hill, 169.

Peo. v. Smith, 5 Park., 490.

produced a piece of cheese called a "taster" at the end of the scoop, for A to taste; he did so, believing it to have been taken from the cheese, but it had not, and was of a superior kind of cheese, and fraudulently put by B into the scoop; the cheese bought by A being inferior to it. It was held that B was indictable for obtaining the price of the cheese from A by false pretences.1

() In commenting upon the English statute, CHITTY says that some difficulty has arisen as to what shall be considered as a token. It is clearly not a mere affirmation or promise, but must be something real and visible, as a ring, a key or a writing, and even a writing would not suffice except it was in the name of another, or so formed as to afford more credit than the mere assertion of the party defrauding, and that letters declaring a falsehood are not privy tokens within the statute.2

It will be observed, however, that the language of our statute is that of "false tokens," while the English act above referred to uses the words "privy tokens and counterfeit letters in other men's names."

XXII. FORGERY.

Forgery at common law has been defined to be "the fraudulent making or alteration of a writing to the prejudice of another man's rights," or more recently as "a false making, a making malo animo of any written instrument for the purpose of fraud and deceit." The word "making," in this last definition, being considered as including every alteration of or addition to a true instrument.3

The statutes of this state include as felonies not only the fraudu lent making and alteration of writings, but the counterfeiting of coin, and the statutory offence of forgery is by law divided into four degrees. The enumeration of these offences when they amount to felonies will be found stated below, and besides those here mentioned there are several other instances of counterfeiting which are by our statute misdemeanors simply, and will be found mentioned in the subsequent chapter enumerating the misdemeanors which are created by statute.

1 R. v. Abbott, 2 C. & K., 629.

3 Chit. Cr. L., 997; 2 East. P. C., 689; 2 Burr., 1128.

4 Black. Com, 247; 2 East. P. C., ch. 19, § 1, p. 852; Id., § 49, p. 965; 2 Russ. on Cr., 318.

Forgery in the First Degree.-By our statutes it is provided that every person who shall be convicted of having forged, counterfeited, or falsely altered:

1. Any will of real or personal property, or any deed or other instrument, being or purporting to be the act of another, by which any right or interest in real property shall be, or purport to be, transferred, conveyed, or in any way charged or affected.

2. Any certificate or indorsement of the acknowledgment by any person, of any deed or other instrument, which, by law, may be recorded, made or purporting to have been made, by any officer duly authorized to make such certificate or indorsement; or,

3. Any certificate of the proof of any deed, will or other instrument, which, by law, may be recorded, made or purporting to have been made by any court or officer duly authorized to make such certificate with intent to defraud, shall be adjudged guilty of forgery in the first degree.1

Also,

1. Any certificate or other public security, issued or purporting to have been issued under the authority of this State, by virtue of any law thereof, or any bill of credit heretofore issued by, or , under the authority of this State, or purporting to have been so issued, by which certificate, bill or other public security, the payment of any money, absolutely or upon any contingency, shall be promised, or the receipt of any, money, goods or valuable thing shall be acknowledged; or,

2. Any certificate of any share, right or interest in any public stock, created by virtue of any law of this State, issued or purporting to have been issued by any public officer, or any other evidence of any debt or liability of the people of this State, either absolute or contingent, issued or purporting to have been issued by any public officer; or,

3. Any indorsement or other instrument, transferring or purporting to transfer the right or interest of any such holder of any such certificate, public security, bill of credit, certificate of stock, evidence of debt or liability, or of any person entitled to such right or interest, with the intent to defraud the people of this State, or any public officer thereof, or any other person, shall also be adjudged guilty of forgery in the first degree.2

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Forging Seals.-Every person who shall forge or counterfeit the great or privy seal of this State, the seal of any public officer authorized by law, the seal of any court of record, including surrogates' seals, or the seal of any body corporate duly incorporated by or under the laws of this State, or who shall falsely make or forge, or counterfeit any impression, purporting to be the impression of any such seal, shall, upon conviction, be adjudged guilty of forgery in the second degree.1

Altering Records.-Every person who, with intent to defraud, shall falsely alter, destroy, corrupt or falsify: 1st. Any record of any will, conveyance or other instrument, the record of which shall, by law, be evidence; or, 2d. Any record of any judgment in a court of record, or any enrollment of a decree in a court of equity; or, 3d. The return of any officer, court or tribunal, to any process of any court, shall, upon conviction, be adjudged guilty of forgery in the second degree.2

False Entries in Records.-Every officer who shall falsely make, forge or altes, any entry in any book of records, or any instrument purporting to be any record or return specified in the last section, with intent to defraud, shall, upon conviction, be adjudged guilty of forgery in the second degree.3

False Certificates.—If any officer authorized to take the proof or acknowledgment of any conveyance of real estate or of any other instrument, which by law may be recorded, shall willfully and falsely certify that any such conveyance or instrument was acknowledged by any party thereto, when, in truth, no such acknowledgment was made, or that any such conveyance or instrument was proved, when, in truth, no such proof was made, he shall, upon conviction, be adjudged guilty of forgery in the second degree.*

Forging the name of a magistrate to a certificate of acknowledgment which such a magistrate is not authorized to take, is not within the statute. And a writing indorsed upon a conveyance of land and purporting to be the certificate of a commissioner of deeds, but not stating that the grantor acknowledged the execu

12 R. S., 671, § 24.

• Id., § 25.

• Id., § 26.

2 R. S., 671, § 27.

Faulkner's Case, 3 City H. Rec., 65.

tion of the conveyance, would be invalid if genuine, and is not a criminal forgery.1

Counterfeiting Coin.-Every person who shall be convicted of having counterfeited any of the gold or silver coins, which shall be at the time current, by custom or usage, within this State, shall be adjudged guilty of forgery in the second degree.2

Every person who shall be convicted of having counterfeited any gold or silver coin of any foreign government or country, with the intent of exporting the same to injure or defraud any foreign government, or the subjects thereof, shall be deemed guilty of forgery in the third degree.3

The moneys charged to be counterfeited must resemble the true and lawful coin;4 but this resemblance is a matter of fact of which the jury are to judge upon the evidence before them; the rule being, that the resemblance need not be perfect, but such as may in circulation ordinarily impose upon the world. Thus, a counterfeiting with some small variation in the inscription, effigies, or arms, done probably with intent to evade the law, is yet within it; and so is the counterfeiting in a different metal if, in appearance, it be made to resemble the true coin.

In a prosecution for passing counterfeiting money, the jury should be satisfied that the resemblance of the forged to the genuine piece is such as might deceive a person using ordinary caution; and if this be not the case, it cannot be inferred that the counterfeit money was designed for fraudulent use.

8

It is not usual in the courts of this State to try persons for the crime of counterfeiting the United States coin. Although our statutes as above stated provide for the punishment of this offence, the trial of such offenders is generally left to the United States courts. The question as to whether the State courts have jurisdiction of counterfeiting the coins of the United States, has been a good deal discussed. It has been repeatedly before the State courts, and different decisions have been made. A collection of

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