FORTY-SEVENTH CONGRESS. Sess. I. Ch. 47. 1882. 31 by such marriage shall have been absent for five successive years, and is not known to such person to be living, and is believed by such person to be dead, nor to any person by reason of any former marriage which shall have been dissolved by a valid decree of :1. competent court, nor to ‘ any ])(3l`S01l by reason of any former marriage which shall have been pronomxccd void by a valid decree of a competent; court, cm the ground of nullity of the marriage c0ntract." Sec. 2. That tha foregoing provisions shall not aifcct the prosecution Action incffonses or punishment of any offense already committed against the section almzdhy ¤<>¤¤¤¤i¤<>d amended by the first section of this act. “°" °°*°d· Sec. 3. That if any male person, in a Territory or other place ovcr which the United States have exclusive jurisdiction, hereafter cohabits with more than one woman, he shall be deemed guilty of 2. misdmuezmor, Misdcmcauor. and on conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine of not more than three hundred dollars, or by imprisonment for not more than six months, or by both said punishments, in the discre tion of the court. Sec. 4. That counts for any or all of the offenses named in sections Indictment: one and three of this act may be joined in the same information or indictment. Srsc. 5. That in any prosecution for bigamy, polygamy, or unlawful Jqrics. cohabitation, under any statute of tho United States, it shall be sufii- f D*¤'l“,"lm°****°¤ ` cient cause of challenge to any person drawn or summoned as a. j1u·y- °" “°"‘°°‘ man or talcsman, first, that he is or has bccn living in the practice of ` bigamy, polygamy, or unlawful cohabitation with more than one woman, or that be is or has been guilty of an offcnso punishable by either of the foregoing sections, or by section fifty-tln·ce hundred and fifty-two of the R. S. 5352, 1030. Revised Statutes of the United States, or the act of July first, eighteen hundred and sixty-two, entitled “An act to punish and prevent the 12 Stat., 501. practice of polygamy in the Territories of the United States and other places, and disapproviug and annulling certain acts of the legislative assembly of the Territory of Utah ”, or, second, that ho believes it right for a man to have more than one living and undivorocd wife at the same time, or to live in the practice of cohabiting with more than one woman; and any person appearing or oliorcd as a juror or talesma.11, and challonged on either of the foregoing grounds, may be questioned on his oath as to the existence of any such cause of challenge, and other evidenco may be introduced bearing upon the question raised by such challenge; and this question shall be tried by tho court. But as to the iirst giound of challenge before mentioned, the person challenged shall not be bound to answer if ho shall say upon his oath that he declines on the ground that his answer mayftend to crimixxato himself; and if ho shall answer as to said iirst ground, his answer shall not be given in oyidcucc in any criminal prosecution against him for any offense named in sections one or three of this act; but if he declines to answer on any ground, he shall be rejected as incompetent. Sec. 6. That tha President is hereby authorized to grant amnesty to Amumy. such classes of offenders guilty of bigamy, polygamy or unlawful oo- t habitation, bcfom tho passage of this act, on such conelitions and under such limitations as ha shall think proper; but no such amnesty shall have efcct unless the conditions thereof shall be complied with. SEc. 7. That the issue of bigamous or polygamous marriages, known Isspe in Monnon as Mormon marriages, in cases in which such marriages have been s0l· m¤;i8°¤ ]°S‘**· cmnizcd according to the ceremonies of tho Mormon sect, in any Terri- m tory of the United States, and such issue shall have been born before the tirstday of January, anno Domini eighteen hundred and eighty- three, are hereby lcgitimatad. Sec. 8. That no poiygamist, bigamist, or any person cohabiting with Disqualinod as mom than one woman and no woman cohabiting with any of tha persons m :3* *1}* rg: _ described as aforesaid in this section, in any Territory or other place fj., °°,°‘pu{;m{ over which the United States have exclusive jurisdiction, shall be anti- ppppgptmtpt, tlod to vote at any election held in any such Tcuitory or other place, or be cligibla for election or appointment to or be entitled to hold any
Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 22.djvu/58
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