INCEST (OF., Fr. incestc, from T.at. incest um, incest, neut. sg. of incestus, unchaste, from in-, not + castes, chaste). Sexual intereourse be tween persons who are legally prohibited from marrying because of their affinity or consan guinity (q.v.). It is not. a common-law offense. but in England is punishable in the ecclesiastical courts by excommunication and penance. It is said to be the only form of immorality which, in the case of the laity, is still punished by the ecclesiastical courts on the general ground of its sinfulness.
1n most of the American States it is a criminal offense by statute, punishable by imprisonment for a term of years, usually not exceeding ten. In some States the marriage of persons within the prohibited degrees, even when not followed by cohabitation or accompanied by sexual inter course. amounts to criminal incest. Consult: Stephen, History of the Criminal Law of Eng land ( London, 1883 ) ; Blackstone, ( 'um ni ta ries ; Bishop, 8 tat u tory eritliCN (Chicago, 1901).
INCHrBALD, ELiz.‘ BETH ( 1753 1821). An English novelist and playwright, born at Stnoningtiehd, near Bury Saint Edmund's. Suf folk. She educated herself. mostly by general reading. After vain attempts to engage' herself as actress, both in Norfolk and in London, she married, in 1772, the actor Joseph Inehbald.
Later in the same year she made her first ap pearance on the stage at Bristol in the ride of With her husband she performed in the provincial towns till his death (1779). and continued to appear for ten years more. As an she had the advantage of great personal charm, but an impediment in speech prevented the highest success. Beginning to write for the stage as early as 1782, she produced about twenty comedies and farces, which were well re ceived at the London theatres. But of her lit erary work, only her two novels have survived: .1 Simple Story (1791). which. though ill-con structed, was one of the best novels since tho death of Smollett ; and Nature and Art (17961, which was also very popular. Inchbald also edited three collections of plays: The British Theatre (25 vols., 1806-09) ; Modern. Theatre (10 vols., 1800) ; and Farces (7 vols., 1809). She wrote her memoirs, but destroyed them. Con sult : Scott's edition of her Norels with a memoir (London. 1880) ; deaden, lieooir (ib., 1833): Elwood, Memoirs of the Literary Ladies of Eng land (ib., 1842).