“Sec. 1. It is ordered by this Court and authority thereof, that if any person within this jurisdiction shall swear rashly or vainly by the holy name of God, or other oath, he shall forfeit to the common treasury for every such offence ten shillings; and it shall be in the power of any Magistrate by warrant to the constable, to call such person before him, and upon sufficient proof to sentence such offender, and to give order to levy the fine; and if such person be not able or shall refuse to pay the said fine, he shall be committed to the stocks, there to continue not exceeding three hours nor less than one hour.
Sec. 2. And if any person shall swear more oaths than one at a time before he remove out of the room or company where he so swears, he shall then pay 20 shillings. The like penalty shall be inflicted for profane and wicked cursing of any person or creature, and for the multiplying the same as is appointed for profane swearing, and in case any person so offending by multiplying oaths or cursing, shall not pay his or their fines forthwith, they shall be whipt or committed to prison till they shall pay the same at the discretion of the Court or Magistrate that shall have cognyance thereof.”
The wife of Henry Gregory, one of the early settlers here, transgressed this law, and her case came before Mr. William Pynehon as a Magistrate. His record of it is as follows under date of February 15, 1640:
“Goody Gregory being accused by oath of John Woodcoke & Richard Williams for swearing before God I could break thy head: She did acknowledge it was her great sin & fault & saith she hath bin much humbled for it.
She is fined 12d (12 pence) to the poore to be paid to Henry Smyth within a month; or if she doe not she is to sit 3 hours in the stocks.”
Common Scold.
By the English common law in force here in the early times a common scold was liable to a peculiar form of punishment. Blackstone (4 Black. Com. 168) says:
“A common scold—communis rixatrix—(for our law confines it to the feminine gender) is a public nuisance to her neighborhood for which offence she may be indicted, and if convicted shall be sentenced to be placed in a certain engine of correction called the trebucket, castigatory or cucking stool, which in the Saxon language is said to signify the scolding stool, though now it is frequently corrupted into ducking stool, because the residue of the judgment is that when she is placed therein she shall be plunged in the water for her punishment.”
Oct. 24, 1673—“John Petty complaines agt Goodwife Hunter for offering to mischiefe his wife & giving her ill language; calling her as ye testimonys speake:
Railing, scolding & other exorbitancys of ye Young appearing as by ye Testimonys of Mary Brookes & Mercy Johns on file & also ye neighbors, declaring her continual trade upon every occasion to be exorbitant in her Toung as particularly Sam Marshfull & John Bagg so declared. I sentenced her to be gaged or else set on a ducking stool & dipped in water as law provides. Shee to choose wh of ym shee pleases within this half houre; or else I do determine & order either as I see cause. Shee not choosing either, I order her to be gagged & so to stand half an hour in ye open street wh was done accordingly; & for her reproaching Goodie Petty shoe did openly cleare her of all shee spake agt her & asked forgiveness wch G. Petty accepting of shee was released as to yt.”