BEGGARS, TILE LAW OF ENGLAND RELATING TO, is regulated by the 5 Geo. IV. C. 83 (amended in regard to other points by the 1 and 2 Viet. c. 38). By the third section of the 5 Geo. IV. It is enacted that every person wandering abroad, or placing him or her self in any public place, street. highway, court, or ,passage, to beg or gather alms, or causing or procuring, or encouraging any child or children so to do, shall be deemed an idle and disorderly person; and it shall be lawful for any justice of the peace to commit such offender to the house of correction, there to be kept for any time not exceeding one calendar month. And by section 4, it is further provided that any person so convicted, and offending in die same way again, shall be deemed a rogue and a vagabond, and may be punished by being committed tothe house of correction for three months, with hard labor; and by the same section, every person wandering abroad and endeavoring, by the exposure of wounds or deformities, to obtain or gather alins,.and every person going about as a gatherer or collector of alms, or endeavoring to procure charitable contribu tions of any nature or kind under any false or fraudulent pretense, shall be deemed a rogue and vagabond, and be punishable as before mentioned. By section 15, however, of the same act, the visiting justices of any county jail, house of correction, or other prison, may grant certificates to persons discharged, to receive alnis on their route to their plaices of settlement; but if such persons shall act in a manner contrary to the directions or provisions of their certificates, or shall loiter upon their route, or shall deviate therefrom, they shall be deemed rogues and vagabonds, and punished accord ingly. Other later statute, however, enable justices to give aid to all prisoners on being discharged from prison, and supersede this doubtful license to beg on their way home. Many prisoners' aid societies arc established in different parts of the country, and if their rules are good, they receive a certificate from the visiting justices of jails. When the
time arrives for the discharge of a prisoner, the justices have power, out of the moneys under their control, to order a payment of £2, either to the prisoner, or the treasurer of the aid society, for his benefit; and they may also pay his railway fare, so that by this means he can always reach his home without begging.
The attempt or purpose to obtain money or arms by means of shows or entertain ments on the streets of London, is also an offense under the metropolitan police act, 2 and 3 Viet. c. 47, s. (No. 14), and punishable by fine of 40 shillings.
Iu the Scotch law, there are many severe statutes of the Scotch parliament against beggars and vagabonds, all of which, along with the proclamations of the Scotch privy council on the same subject, are renewed and ratified by the act 1698, c. 21, which forms the existing Scotch law in regard to beggars. The Scotch poor-law amendment act, 8 and 9 Vict. c. 83, contains no provision on the subject. Anciently, in Scotland, legal permission to beg was given to certain sick and infirm poor persons, and in the reign of dames V., a system of tokens for the same purpose was established.—Sec Burns' Justice of €.4e Peace, vol. vi.; Charnock's Police Guide, Dunlop's Parochial Law of Scotland, Lorimer's Hand-book of the Scotch Law, and the works and authorities referred to in these publications.
a game at cards usually played by two persons, between whom the cards are divided. Bolding their cards with the backs upwards, the players lay down a card alternately, until an honor is played, which is paid for by the adversary —four cards for an ace, three for a king, two for a queen, and one for a knave; such payment being made, the winner lifts the trick. If, however, nn honor should be laid down during the payment, then the opposite party must pay for that in the same way; and so on, till a payment is made without ,an .honor. The game is played by children.