Chap. 71.—An ACT to protect the owners of bottles, boxes,
syphons, and kegs used in the sale of soda water, mineral, or
aerated waters, porter, ale, cider, ginger ale, milk, cream, small
beer, weigs beer, lager beer, white beer, or other beverages,
medicine, and perfumery ; and to repeal chapter 85 of the code
of Virginia of 1887. ,

Approved February 17. 1890. ‘

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia,
That any and all persons and corporations engaged in
manufacturing, bottling, or selling soda waters, mineral,
or aerated waters, small beer, lager beer, weiss beer, white
beer, or other beverages or medicines, medical prepara-
tions, perfumery, compounds; ox, mixturce in -bottles,
syphons, tins, or kegs, with his, her, iis, or their nemes o7
other marks and devices bratided, stamiped, ” engraved,
etched, blown, impressed, or otnérw ise produced t tipo: 1 such
bottles, syphons, tins, or kegs, ot the boxes used ‘Dy him,
her, it, or them, may file in the office of the clerk of the
county in which his, her, its, or their principal place of
business is situated, and also in the office of the secretary
of the commonwealth a description of the name or names,
marks or devices so used by him, her, it, or them, respect-
ively, and cause such description to be printed once in each
week for three weeks successively in a newspaper pub-
lished in the county in which said notice may have been
filed as aforesaid, and if there be no newspaper published
in the county in which said notice may have been filed,
then in the newspaper published nearest to that county.

2. It shall be unlawful for any person or persons, cor-
poration or corporations to fill with soda waters, mineral,
or aerated waters, porter, ale, cider, ginger ale, milk, cream,
beer, small beer, lager beer, weiss beer, white beer, or other
beverages, or with medicine, medical preparations, per-
fumery, compounds, or mixtures, any bottle, box, syphon,
tin, or kegs so marked or distinguished ag aforesaid, with
or by any name, mark, or device of which a description
shall have been filed and published as provided in section
one of this act, or to deface, erase, obliterate, cover up, or
otherwise remove or conceal any such name, mark, or
device thereon, or to sell, buy, give, take, or otherwise dis-
pose of or traffic in the same without the written consent
of, or unless the same shall have been purchased from
the person or persons, corporation or corporations, whose
mark or device shall be or shall have been in or upon the
bottle, box, syphon, tin, or keg so filled, trafficked in,
used, or handled as aforesaid. Any person or persons,
corporation or corporations offending against the provis-
ions of this section shall be deemed guilty of a misde-
meanor, and shall be punished for the first offense by
imprisonment not less than ten days nor more than one
year, or by a fine of fifty cents for each and every hottle,
box, syphon, tin, or keg so filled, sold, used, disposed of,
bought, or trafficked in, or by both such fine and imprison-
ment, and for each subsequent offense by imprisonment
not less than twenty days nor more than one year, or by a
fine of not less than one dollar nor‘more than five dollars
for each and every bottle, box, syphon, tin, and keg so
filled, sold, used, disposed of, bought, or trafficked in, or by
both such fine and imprisonment, in the discretion of the
justice or the jury by whom the offense shall be tried.

3. The use by any person other than the person or per-
sons, corporation or corporations, whose device, name, or
mark shall be or shall have been upon the same, without
such, written. consent.or purchase as aforesaid, of any such
marked-or distinguished bottle, box, syphon, 'tin or keg, a
description: of- the srame,- mark, or device, when or shall
here: been fird.and published as herein provided, for the
wale, thergin ot «soda Waters, mineral, or aerated waters,
porter; afe, ‘cidér, ginger ale, milk, cream, beer, small beer,
lager beer, weiss beer, white beer or beverages, or of any
articles of merchandise, medicines, medical preparations,
perfumery, compounds, mixtures, or preparations, or for
the furnishing of such or similar beverages to consumers,
or the buying, selling, using, disposing of or trafficking in
any such bottles, boxes, syphons, tins, or kegs by any per-
son other than said persons or corporations having a
name, mark, or device thereon, or such owner without
such written consent, or the having by any junk-dealer or
dealer in second-hand articles, possession of any such
bottles, boxes, syphons, tins or kegs, a description of the
names, marks or devices whereon shal] have been so filed
and published as aforesaid, without such written consent,
shall, and is hereby, declared to be presumptive evidence
of the said unlawful use, purchase, and traffic in of such
bottles, boxes, syphons, tins or kegs.

4. Whenever any person, persons, or corporation men-
tioned in section one of this act, or his, her, its or their
agent, shall make oath before any police justice or justice
of the peace that he, she, or it has reason to believe and
does believe that within the city or town of such police
justice, or within the county of such justice of the peace,
that any of his, her, its, or their bottles, boxes, syphons,
tins, or kegs, a description of the names, marks, or
devices whereon has been so filed and published as afore-
said, are being unlawfully used or filled, or had by any
person or corporation manufacturing or selling soda,
mineral, or aerated waters, porter, ale, cider, ginger ale,
milk, cream, small beer, lager beer, weiss beer, white beer,
or other beverages or medicine, medicinal preparations,
perfumery, compounds or mixtures, or that any junk
dealer, or dealers in second-hand articles, vendor of bot-
tlea, or any other person or corporation has any such bot-
ties, boxes, syphons, tins, or kegs in his, her, or its pos-
session or secreted in any place, the said police justice or
said justice of the peace before whom such oath may be
made must thereupon issue a search warrant to discover
and obtain the same, and may also issue his warrant
stating the offense charged, and cause to be brought be-
fore him the person in whose possession said bottles,
boxes, syphons, tins, or kegs may be found, and shall then
inquire into the circumstances of such possession; and
if said police justice or justice of the peace finds that
such person has been guilty of a violation of section two
of this act he must impose the punishment therein pre-
scribed, and he shall award possession of the property
taken upon such warrant to the owner thereof.

5. Any person convicted under the provisions of the
preceding section shall have the right to appeal to the
county, corporation, or hustings court, and shall, unless
let to bail, be committed to jail by the justice until the
next term of such court, and the witnesses recognized to
appear at the same time. The justice shall return and
file the papers with the clerk of the court, whether the
appeal be applied for or not.
6. The appeal shall be tried without formal pleading:
in writing, and the accused shall be entitled to trial by =
jury in the same manner as if he had been indicted fo:
the offense in said court.

7. In every case of acquittal by a police justice or «
justice of the peace, if he believes the charge was made
maliciously and without probable cause, he may rende:
judgment for the costs against the prosecutor.

8. Chapter eighty-five of the code of Virginia of eigh-
teen hundred and eighty-seven is hereby repealed.

9. This act shall be in force from its passage.