Digest of the Laws of Pennsylvania, at 270, Hunting (1818)

1. Sect. II. The constable of each respective township, in every county of this province, having any knowledge of any offences against this act, shall and he is hereby required, under the penalty of five pounds, to present, on oath or affirmation, every such offence to some one justice of the peace of their respective counties, or before the justices of the general quarter sessions of the peace for the same county, together with the name or names of all such offenders, that they may be tried, agreeable to the directions of this act. 2. Sect. III. If any person or persons shall hunt, chase or follow with a design to kill, or shall kill or destroy any buck, doe, or fawn, within the lands already or hereafter to be purchased of the Indians, at any other time or season, excepting only between the first day of the month of August, and the first day of the month of January, and shall be lawfully convicted thereof by the oaths or affirmations of one or more credible witnesses, or the confession of the party, before one or more justices of the peace for the respective county, where such offence shall be committed, he or they shall forfeit and pay the sum of three pounds for every such offence, to the uses aforesaid; Provided, Such conviction be made within six months after such offence committed. 3. Sect. IV. Every person in whose custody shall be found, or who shall expose to sale any green deer skins, fresh venison, or deer's flesh, at any other time of the year, than what is before excepted, such green deer skins, fresh venison, or deer's flesh, shall be deemed and taken as evidence of the guilt of the person, in whose custody the same shall be found. 4. Sect. V. Provided, That nothing contained in this act shall be deemed or construed to extend to any free native Indians, carrying guns, hunting, killing and having in their custody any skins or deer's flesh for their own use. 5. Sect. VI. If any person or persons shall presume to carry any gun, or hunt on any inclosed or improved lands of any of the inhabitants of this province, other than his own, unless he shall have license or permission from the owner of such lands, or shall presume to fire a gun on or near any of the king's highways, and shall be thereof convicted, either upon view of any justice of the peace within this province, or by the oath or affirmation of any one or more witnesses, before any justice of the peace, he shall, for every such offence, forfeit the sum of forty shillings. 6. Sect. VII. No person whatsoever shall presume to shoot at, or kill with a fire arm, any pigeon, dove, partridge or other fowl, in the open streets of the city of Philadelphia, or in the gardens, orchards and inclosures adjoining upon, and belonging to any of the dwelling houses within the limits of the said city, or suburbs thereof, or any of the boroughs or towns within this province, upon the forfeiture of forty shillings for every such offence, to be convicted in manner aforesaid. 7. Sect. VIII. If any person or persons shall hunt or kill any kind of game on the sabbath day, and shall be convicted thereof in manner last aforesaid, every such offender shall forfeit and pay the sum of forty shillings, for every such offence. 8. Sect. IX. All which penalties and forfeitures, not herein before appropriated, shall be paid, one moiety thereof to the informer, and the other to the overseers of the poor of the township where such offence is committed, for the use of the poor of the said township; but if convicted upon view of a justice of the peace, the whole forfeiture shall be paid to the overseers of the poor of the said township, for the use of the poor of said township; and if the offender refuse to pay, the same shall be levied by distress and sale of the offender's goods, by warrant, under the hand and seal of the justice before whom such offender shall be convicted, returning the overplus, if any, to the owner, the charge of distraining being first deducted; and for want of such distress, he shall be committed to prison, where the forfeiture is three pounds, for the space of thirty days; and where the forfeiture is forty shillings, for the space of twenty days, without bail or mainprise.