ARSON, or, as it is called in Scotland, willful fire-raising, is, according to the laws of all civilized countries, a crime of the deepest atrocity; for it involves in its consequences not only destruction of property, but also the destruction of, or at least an indifference to, the life or lives of others, which can only be imputed to the most wicked and malig nant spirit. In the criminal law of England, it is a felony, and has been described as the malicious and willful burning of the house or building of another man. It is essen tial to the offense that the house or building burned should be that of another; for although it is a misdemeanor to destroy one's own house by fire, especially in a town, or where other buildings are contiguous, which are thereby put in danger, such an offense does not amount to a felony, strictly so called. To constitute such felony, there must be an actual burning; for no intent, however clear, would suffice at common law to sup port a charge of A. This crime is the subject of express statute (the consolidation act, 24 and 25 Viet. c. 97), the provisions of which considerably modify and enlarge tha doctrines of the common law on the subject. The chief of the enactments of tins, the malicious injuries to property act, enacts that whoever shall unlawfully and maliciously set tire to any dwelling-house, any person being therein, shall be guilty of felony, and liable to penal servitude. Also that whoever shall unlawfully and maliciously set fire to any church or chapel; or to any chapel for the religious worship of persons dissenting from the United church of England and Ireland; or to any house, stable, coach-house, out-house, warehouse, office, shop, mill, malt-house, hop-oast, barn, or granary; or to any erection used in carrying any trade or manufacture, or any branch thereof, whether in possession of the offender or any other person—with intent, in the latter cases, to injure or defraud any person, shall be guilty of felony; and he is liable to penal servitude for life, or not less than three years, or to imprisonment not exceeding two years. Doubts having arisen on a former act, whether its provisions extended to the setting tire to a hovel or shed not appendant to any house, it was expressly provided, by the above act, that whoever should unlawfully and maliciously set fire to any hovel, shed, or fold; or to any farm-building; or any building or erection used in farming land—whether the same, or any of them respectively, shall then be in the possession of the offender, or the possession of any other person—with• intent thereby to defraud any person, shall be i guilty of felony, and he is liable to a like punishment. Moreover, that whoever shall unlawfully and maliciously set fire to any hay, straw, wood, or other vegetable produce, being in any farm-house or farm-building; or to any implement of hpsbaudry, being in any farm-house or farm-building; with intent to set fire to such farmhouse or farm-building, and to injure or defraud any person—shall be liable to the same punishment as for ting fire to the farm-house or farm-building itself; and every male so offending, under sixteen, shall be also liable, at the discretion of the court, in addition to any other sen tence, to be whipped. Again, unlawfully and maliciously, by any overt act, to attempt
to set fire to any building, stack, or steer, or vegetable produce. of such kind and with such intent that if the offense were complete, the offender would be guilty of felony, and liable to penal servitude for life (though such building, stack, steer, or vegetable produce be not actually set on fire), is deemed felony; and is punishable with penal servitude above three years; or imprisonment for two years, with the same addition in respect to whipping, if the offender be a male under sixteen. And lastly, if any person shall maliciously set fire to any station or other building belonging to any railway, dock, canal, or other navigation, he is guilty of felony; and he is liable'to penal servitude for life, or any term not less than three years; or to be imprisoned, with or without hard labor, for any term not exceeding two years; and if any person maliciously set fire to any goods or chattels being in any building, the setting fire to which is made felony by act of parlia ment, he is guilty of felony; and he is liable to penal servitude for any term not exceeding fourteen years, nor less than three years, or to be imprisoned, with or without hard labor, for tiny term not exceeding two years.
Servants convicted of negligently setting fire to houses and buildings, shall, by 14 Geo. III. c. 78, s. 84, forfeit k100, to be distributed among the sufferers, by the church wardens, in such proportions as to such church-wardens shall seem just; and in case of default, shall be committed to jail or the house of correction for 18 months, to be kept to hard labor.
It has been laid 'down in Scotland, that if the fire has been willfully kindled, it mat ters not how circuitous may have been the mode of operation selected, although the injury intended to have been done was not the actual burning of the house, but some inferior mischief. And it is the law of both countries, that if the proprietor of a hcuse set fire to it while in possession of a tenant holding under a lease, the crime of A. is completed; and in Scotland, the same has been ruled where the house was occupied by a party having a life-interest in it.
By the 29 Geo. III. c. 46, an act which applies to Scotland as England, it is enacted, that if any person shall maliciously and unlawfully set fire to, or in any wise destroy, any ship or vessel, whether the same be complete a iu an unfinished state, or shall maliciously and unlawfully set fire to, cast away, or in any wise destroy any ship or vessel, with intent thereby to prejudice any owner or part owner of such ship or vessel, or of any goods on board the same, or any person that hath underw'ritten, or shall underwrite any policy of insurance upon such ship or vessel, or on the freight thereof, or upon any goods on board the same; every such offender shall suffer death as a felon.* Both in England and Scotland, it is a considerable aggravation of the offense where the burning is to defraud insurers.