fied,

Admiralty

United States, or before any chancellor, juftice or judge of a fupreme or fuperior court, mayor or chief magiftrate of a city, or judge of a county court or Court of common pleas of any of the United States, not being of counfel or attorney to either of the parties, or interested in the event of the caufe, provided Adverse that a notification from the magiftrate before party noti whom the depofition is to be taken to the adverse party, to be present at the taking of the fame, and to put interrogatories, if he think fit, be first made out and ferved on the adverse party or his attorney as either may be neareft, if either is within one hundred miles of the place of fuch caption, allowing time for their attendance after notified, not less than at the rate of one day, Sundays exclusive, for every twenty miles travel. And in caufes of admiralty and maritime jurifdiction, or other cafes of feizure and mariwhen a libel fhall be filed, in which an adverfe time caufes. party is not named, and depofitions of perfons circumftanced as aforefaid fhall be taken before a claim be put in, the like notification as aforefaid fhall be given to the perfon having the agency or poffeffion of the property libelled at the time of the capture or feizure of the fame, if known to the libellant. And every perfon depofing as aforefaid fhall be carefully examined and cautioned, and fworn or affirmed to Agent noti teftify the whole truth, and thall fubfcribe the testimony by him or her given after the fame fhall be reduced to writing, which shall be done only by the magiftrate taking the depofition, or by the deponent in his prefence. And the Depofitions depofitions fo taken fhall be retained by fuch retained. magistrate until he deliver the fame with his own hand into the court for which they are taken, or fhall, together with a certificate of

fied.

lowed.

the reafons as aforefaid of their being taken, and of the notice if any given to the adverse party, be by him the faid magiftrate fealed up and directed to fuch court, and remain under his feal until opened in court. And any perfon may be compelled to appear and depofe as aforefaid in the fame manner as to appear and teftify in court. And in the trial of any Appeal al- caufe of admiralty or maritime jurifdiction in a diftrict court, the decree in which may be appealed from, if either party shall suggest to and fatisfy the court that probably it will not be in his power to produce the witnesses there teftifying before the circuit court should an appeal be had, and fhall move that their testimony be taken down in writing, it fhall be fo done by the clerk of the court. And if an appeal be had, fuch teftimony may be used on the trial of the fame, if it fhall appear to the fatisfaction of the court which fhall try the appeal, that the witneffes are then dead or gone out of the United States, or to a greater diftance than as aforefaid from the place where the court is fitting, or that by reafon of age, ficknefs, bodily infirmity or imprisonment, they are unable to travel and appear at court, repofitions but not otherwife. And unlefs the fame fhall ufel in cafe be made to appear on the trial of any caufe, death, &c. with refpect to witneffes whofe depofitions may have been taken therein, fuch depofitions fhall not be admitted or used in the caufe. Provided, That nothing herein shall be conftrued to prevent any court of the United States from Dedimus granting a dedimus poteftatem to take depofitions poteftatim according to common ufage, when it may be neceffary to prevent a failure or delay of jus tice; which power they fhall feverally poffefs, nor to extend to depofitions taken in perpetuam

of fickness,

as ufual.

adminiftra

and defend.

rei memoriam, which if they relate to matters that may be cognizable in any court of the United States, a circuit court on application thereto made, as a court of equity may, according to the ufages in chancery direct to be taken." Sec. 31. And be it enacted, That where any fuit fhall be depending in any court of the United States, and either of the parties fhall die before final judgment, the executor or adminiftrator of fuch deceafed party who was plain- Executor or tiff, petitioner, or defendant, in cafe the caufe tor may of action doth by law furvive, fhall have full profeente power to profecute or defend any fuch fuit or action until final judgment; and the defendant or defendants are hereby obliged to anfwer thereto accordingly; and the court before whom fuch caufe may be depending, is hereby empowered and directed to hear and determine the fame, and to render judgment for or against the executor or administrator, as the cafe may require. And if fuch executor or administrator having been duly ferved with a fcire facias from the office of the clerk of the court where fuch fuit is depending, twenty days beforehand, fhall neglect or refufe to become a party to the fuit, the court may render judgment against the estate of the deceafed party, in the fame manner as if the executor or administrator had voluntarily made himself a party to the fuit: And the executor or adminiftrator who fhall become a party as aforefaid, fhall, upon motion to the court where the fuit is depending, be have conentitled to a continuance of the fame until the next term of the faid court. And if there be two or more plaintiffs or defendants, and one or more of them fhall die, if the cause of action fhall furvive to the furviving plaintiff or plaintiffs, or against the furviving defendant or

Executor & adminiftrator may

tinuance.

Two plain

tiffs.

may conti. nue fuit,

Surviving defendants, the writ or action shall not be thereplaintiff by abated; but fuch death being suggested upon the record, the action fhall proceed at the fuit of the furviving plaintiff or plaintiffs against the furviving defendant or defendants.

Sec. 32. And be it further enacted, That no fummons, writ, declaration, return, procefs, Writs fhall judgment, or other proceedings in civil causes for defect in any of the courts of the United States, fhall

not abate

of form.

be abated, arrested, quashed or reversed, for any defect or want of form, but the faid courts respectively fhall proceed and give judgment according as the right of the cause and matter in law fhall appear unto them, without regarding any imperfections, defects, or want of form in fuch writ, declaration or other pleading, return, procefs, judgment or courfe of proceeding whatsoever, except thofe only in cafes of demurrer, which the party demurring fhall specially fit down and exprefs together with his demurrer as the cause thereof. And the faid courts refpectively shall and may, by virtue Courts may of this act, from time to time, amend all and perfections. every fuch imperfections, defects and wants of

amend im

form, other than thofe only which the party demurring fhall exprefs as aforefaid, and may at any time permit either of the parties to amend any defect in the process or pleadings, upon fuch conditions as the faid courts refpectively fhall in their difcretion, and by their rules prefcribe.

Sec. 33. And be it further enacted, That for Criminals any crime or offence against the United States, against the the offender may, by any juftice or judge of United the United States, or by any juftice of the refted by peace, or other magiftrate of any of the Uniany juftice ted States where he may be found agreeably to

States ar

of the

peace.

the ufual mode of process against offenders in

zance re

office.

Offender

warrant.

fach state, and at the expence of the United States, be arrested, and imprisoned or bailed, as the cafe may be, for trial before fuch court of the United States as by this act has cognizance of the offence: And copies of the pro- Recognicefs fhall be returned as speedily as may be in- turned to to the clerk's office of fuch court, together with the clerk's the recognizances of the witnesses for their appearance to testify in the cafe; which recognizances the magiftrate before whom the examination shall be, may require on pain of imprisonment. And if fuch commitment of the offender, or the witneffes fhall be in a dif- may be retrict other than that in which the offence is to moved by be tried, it fhall be the duty of the judge of that district where the delinquent is imprisoned, seasonably to iffue, and of the marshal of the fame district to execute, a warrant for the removal of the offender, and the witnesses or either of them, as the cafe may be, to the diftrict in which the trial is to be had. And upon Bail admitall arrests in criminal cafes, bail fhall be admit- ted. ted, except where the punishment may be death, in which cafes it fhall not be admitted but by the fupreme or a circuit court, or by a juftice of the fupreme court, or a judge of a district court, who fhall exercife their difcretion therein, regarding the nature and circumftances of the offence, and of the evidence, and the ufages of law. And if a perfon committed by a juftice of the fupreme or a judge of a diftrict Bail, how court for an offence not punishable with death, cafe. fhall afterwards procure bail, and there be no judge of the United States, in the diftrict to take the fame, it may be taken by any judge of the fupreme, or fuperior court of law of fuch state.

taken in