Whenever there is reason to believe that any woman, or female child, has been inveigled or enticed to a house of ill-fame as aforesaid, upon complaint thereof being made, under oath, by any overseer of the poor, sheriff, deputy sheriff, town sergeant or constable, or by the parent, master or guardian of such woman or female child, to any justice or clerk of a district court authorized to issue such warrants, such justice or clerk may issue his warrant, to enter by day or night, such house or houses of ill-fame, and to search for such woman, or female child, and to bring her and the person in whose possession or keeping she may be found, before such district court, who may, on examination, order her to be delivered to such overseer, parent, master or guardian, or to be discharged, as law and justice may require.
Ch. 281, Sec. 7. Id.
Procedure.
If a violation is alleged to have occurred within the county in which you reside, present the matter to a justice or to any clerk of a district court of the state, and he will issue a warrant for the arrest of the defendant and proceed to prosecute the case.
SOUTH CAROLINA.
"Whoever, above the age of fourteen years, shall unlawfully take or convey, or cause to be taken or conveyed, any maid or woman-child unmarried, being within the age of sixteen years, out of or from the possession and against the will of the father or mother of such child, or out of or from the possession and against the will of such person or persons as then shall happen to have, by any lawful ways or means, the order, keeping, education, or governance of any such maiden or woman-child, shall, on conviction, suffer imprisonment for the space of two years or else shall pay such fine as shall be adjudged by the court."—Sec. 287, Crim. Code.
"Whoever shall so take away, or cause to be taken away, as aforesaid, and defiles any such maid or woman-child, as aforesaid, or shall, against the will or unknowing of or to the father of any such maid or woman-child, if the father be in life, or against the will or unknowing of the mother of any such maid or woman-child (having the custody or governance, of such child, if the father be dead), by secret letters, messages, or otherwise, contract matrimony with any such maid or woman-child, shall, on conviction, suffer imprisonment for five years, or shall pay such fine as shall be adjudged by the court; one moiety of which fine shall be for the State, and the other moiety to the parties grieved." Sec. 288, Criminal Code.
Procedure.
Present the facts within your knowledge of the alleged crime to the Prosecuting Attorney of the county in which the crime is alleged to have been committed.