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SPORTULA

woman leaving her husband of her own accord, and committing adultery, lose her dow- er. unless taken back by her husband of his own accord.

SPORTULA. Lat. In Roman law. A lnrgess, dole, or present; a pecuniary donation; an officlal perquisite; something over and above the ordinary fee allowed by law. last. 4, 6, 2-1

SPOUSALS. In old English law. promises to marry.

SPOUSZE-BREACH. Adultery. Cowell.

Mutual In old English law.

SPRING. A fountain of water; an issue of water from the earth, or the basin of water at the place of its issue. Webster. A natural ch.-ism in which water has collected, and from which it either is lost by percolation or rises in a defined channel. Furner v. Seabury. 135 N. Y. 50, 31 N. E. 1004; Blood- good v. Ayers. 108 N. Y. 405, 15 N. E. -133, 2 Am. St. Rep. 4-13; Proprietors of Mills V. Braintree Water Supply Co., 149 Mass. 478. 21 N. E. 76]. 4 L. R. A. 272. —Spring-branch. In American land law. A lu-inch of a stream, flowing from a spring. “cotton v. Redd's Ex'r, 12 Grat. (WL) 196.

SPEINGING USE. See USE.

SPUILZII-J. In Scotch law. The taking away ur meddling with movabies in another‘: possession, without the consent of the owner or authority of law. Bell.

SPUEIOUS. Not proceeding from the true source; not genuine; counterfeited. “A spurious bank-bill may be a legitimate impression from the genuine plate, but it must have the signatures of pel sons not the officers of the bank whence it purports to have issued, or else the names of flctitious persons. A spurious bill, also, may be an illegilimnte impression from a genuine plate, or an impression from a counterfeit plate, but it must have such signatures or names as we have just indicated. A bill, therefore, may he both counlerfeit and forged, or both counterfeit and spurious, lint it cannot be both forized and spurious." Llrby v. State, 1 Obio St. 187.

SPURIUS. Lat. In the civil law. A bastard; the offspring of promiscuous cohabitation.

SPY. A person sent into an enemy's camp to inspect their works, ascertain their strength and their intentions, watch their movements, and secretly communicate tuteliigence to the proper officer. By the laws of war among all civilized nations, a spy is pun- ished with death. Webster. See Vattel, 3, 179.

SQUARE. As used to designate a certain portion of land within the limits of a city or

1103

STACHIA

town, this term may be synonymous with "block," that is, the smallest subdivision which is bounded on all sides by principal streets, or It may denote a space (more or less rectangular) not built upon, and set apart for public passage, use, recreation, or orna- mentation, ln the nature of a "park" but smaller. See Caldwell v. Rupert. 10 Bush (Ky.) 179; State v. Natal. 42 La. Ann. 612, 7 South. 781; Rowzee v. Pierce. 75 Miss. 846. 23 South. 307, 40 L. R. A. 402, 65 Am. St Rep. 625; Methodist Episcopal Church v. Hoboken, 33 N. J. Law. 13. 97 Am. Dec. 696; Rev. Laws Mass. 1902, p. 531, c. 52, § 12.

SQUATTER. In American law. One who settles on another‘s land, particularly on public lands, without a title. See O'Donnell v. Mclntyre, 16 Abb. N. C. (N. Y.) 84: Park- ersburg Industrial Co. v. Schultz, 43 W. Va. 470. 27 S. E. 255.

SQUIRE. A contraction of "esquire."

SS. An abbreviation used in that part of a record, pleading, or ufiidavit, called the “statement of the venue." Commonly translated or read, "to-wit." and supposed to be a contraction of “acilicet."

Also in ecclesiastical documents, particular- ly records of early councils. "ss" is used as an abbreviation for subscripsi. Occasionally, in Law French, it stands for sans, "without," a. 11., “fa/ire feoflment as son baron." Bend- loe, p. 180.

STAB. A wound lnflicted by a thrust with a pointed weapon. State v. Cody. 18 Or. 506, 23 Pac. 891; Ward v. State, 56 Ga 410; Ruby v. State, 7 M0. 208.

STABILIA. A writ called by that name. founded on a custom in Normandy, that where a man in power claimed lands in the possession of an inferior. he petitioned the prince that it might be put into his hands till the right was decided, whereupon he had this writ. Wharton.

Stabit prmsnmptio flonec px-nbetur in contrnflum. A presumption will stand good

till the contrary is proved. Hob. 297: Broom, Max. 949. STABLE-STAND. In forest law. One

of the four e\ idences or presumptions where- by a man was con\ icted of an intent to steal the king's deer in the forest. This was when a man was found at his stari-ding in the forest with a cross-bow or long-bow bent. ready to shoot at any deer, or else standing close by a tree with grey-hounds in a leash, ready to slip. Oowell: Manwood.

STABULARIUS. Lat. In the Civil law. A stable-keeper. Dig. 4. 9. 4. 1.

STACHIA. head made to stop a water-course.

In old records. A dam or Cowell.