THE GENERAL LAWS

Enacted by the Legislatures of 1890-95,

UPON THE BASIS OF THE REPORTS OF THE COMMISSIONERS OF STATUTORY REVISION; THE FISHERIES, GAME AND FOREST LAW ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF 1892, UPON THE BASIS OF

THE REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONERS TO REVISE THE

GAME LAWS; THE UNIVERSITY LAW; THE CONSOLI
DATED SCHOOL LAW; THE EXCISE LAW; ALL

AS AMENDED TO THE COMMENCEMENT

OF THE SESSION OF 1896.

THE STATUTORY CONSTRUCTION LAW,

As amended to the commencement of the session of 1896.

L. 1892, Ch. 677 — An act relating to the construction of statutes constituting chapter one of the general laws.

Section

[Became a law May 18, 1892, taking effect immediately.]

CHAPTER I OF THE GENERAL LAWS.

THE STATUTORY CONSTRUCTION LAW.

1. Short title; extent of application.

2. Property.

3. Real property.

4. Personal property.

5. Person.

6. Judge.

7. Lunacy; idiocy.

8. Gender; number; tense.

9. Heretofore; hereafter; now.

10. Last: preceding; next; following.

11. Folio.

12. Writing; signature.

13. Seal.

30. Laws of England and of the colony of New York.

31. Limiting the effect of repealing statutes.

32. Effect of repeal and re-enactment.

33. Effect of revision upon laws passed at same session or before

revision takes effect.

34. Alterations of titles and head notes.

35. Laws repealed.

36. Time of taking effect.

[Thus am. by L. 1894, chs. 447-8. See § 34 hereof.]

SECTION 1. Short title; extent of application.—This chapter shall be known as the statutory construction law, and is applicable to every statute unless its general object, or the context of the language construed, or other provisions of law indicate that a different meaning or application was intended from that required to be given by this chapter.

[See note to § 31 hereof, and note in 29 Abb. N. C. 146.]

§ 2. Property.-The term property includes real and personal property.

§ 3. Real property. The term real property includes real estate, lands, tenements and hereditaments, corporeal and incorporeal.

§ 4. Personal property.— The term personal property includes chattels, money, things in action, and all written instruments themselves, as distinguished from the rights or interests to which they relate, by which any right, interest, lien or incumbrance in, to or upon property, or any debt or financial obligation is created, acknowledged, evidenced, transferred, dis

L. 1892, ch. 677.

Ch. 1, G. L.

§§ 5-9.

charged or defeated, wholly or in part, and everything, except real property, which may be the subject of ownership. The term chattels includes goods and chattels.

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[For definitions of “real property and personal property," as used in Civ. Code, ch. 18, relating to surrogates' courts, see § 2514 thereof; of · real property," as used in the Condemnation Law, see Civ. Code, § 3358; of ** real property," "real estate," land," personal property," "personal estate," as used in R. S., part 1, ch. 13, relating to taxation, see tit. 1, §§ 2-3 thereof; of real estate" and "lands," as used in R. S., part 2, ch. 1, relating to real property, see tit. 5, § 10 thereof; of real estate," as used in R. S., part 2, ch. 2, relating to descent, see § 27 thereof; as used in R. S., part 2, ch. 3 (Recording Act), see § 36 thereof; of "lands," as used in R. S., part 2, ch. 7 (Statute of Frauds), see tit. 3, § 6 thereof; of "real estate," as used in L. 1843, ch. 87, as to aliens. see 5 thereof; of "real property," real estate," "land," "personal property," personal estate," as used in L. 1885, ch. 411, relating to taxation, see § 8 thereof.]

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$ 5. Person.-The term person includes a corporation and a joint-stock association. When used to designate a party whose property may be the subject of any offense, the term person also includes the state, or any other state, government or country which may lawfully own property in the

state.

§ 6. Judge. The term judge includes every judicial officer authorized, alone or with others, to hold or preside over a court of record.

$ 7. Lunacy; idiocy. The terms lunatic and lunacy include every kind of unsoundness of mind except idiocy.

[For definition of these terms as used in L. 1874, ch. 446, relating to hospitals for the insane, see tit. 3, § 37 thereof. For definition of insanity as a defense to crime, see Pen. Code, §§ 20-3.]

8. Gender; number; tense.-Words of the masculine gender include the feminine and the neuter, and may refer to a corporation, or to a board or other body or assemblage of persons; and, when the sense so indicates, words of the neuter gender may refer to any gender. The term men includes boys and the term women includes girls.

Words in the singular number include the plural, and in the plural number include the singular.

Words in the present tense include the future.

$ 9. Heretofore; hereafter; now. Each of the terms, heretofore, and hereafter, in any provision of a statute, relates to the

10-14.

Ch. 1, G. L.

L. 1892, ch. 677 time such provision takes effect. The term now in any provision of a statute referring to other laws in force, or to persons in office, or to any facts or circumstances as existing, relates to the laws in force, or the person in office, or to the facts or circumstances existing, respectively, immediately before the taking effect of such provision.

§ 10. I ast; preceding; next; following.-A reference to the last or preceding section, or other provision of a statute, means the section or other division immediately preceding, and a reference to the next or following section or other division of a statute means the section or other division immediately following.

§ 11. Folio. A folio is one hundred words, counting as a word each figure necessarily used.

§ 12. Writing; signature. The terms writing and written include every legible representation of letters upon a material substance, except when applied to the signature of an instrument. The term signature includes any memorandum, mark or sign, written or placed upon any instrument or writing with intent to execute or authenticate such instrument or writing.

§ 13. Seal. The private seal of a person, other than a corporation, to any instrument or writing shall consist of a wafer, wax or other similar adhesive substance affixed thereto, or of paper or other similar substance affixed thereto, by mucilage or other adhesive substance, or of the word "seal," or the letters "L. S.," opposite the signature.

A seal of a court, public officer or corporation may be impressed directly upon the instrument or writing to be sealed, or upon wafer, wax or other adhesive substance affixed thereto, or upon paper or other similar substance affixed thereto by mucilage or other adhesive substance An instrument or writing duly executed, in the corporate name of a corporation, which shall not have adopted a corporate seal, by the proper officers of the corporation under their private seals, shall be deemed to have been executed under he* corporate seal.

[As to what constituted a seal at common law, and when equity before this statute would treat "L. S.," etc., as a seal, see Barnard v. Gantz, 140 N. Y. 249; Town of Solon v. Williamsburgh Bk., 114 N. Y. 122.]

§ 14. Qath; affidavit; swear.- The terms oath and affidavit include every mode authorized by law of attesting the truth of that which is stated.

*So in the original.