KFLCC Kingdom Law 2nd Ed.

SEAWORTHINESS

1063

SEAL

SEALS. In Louisiana. Seals are placed upon the effects of a deceased person, in cer tain cases, by a public officer, as a method of taking official custody of the succession. See SEALING. SEAMEN. Sailors; mariners; persons whose business Is navigating ships. Com monly exclusive of the officers of a ship. SEANCE. In French law. A session; as of some public body. SEARCH. In international law. The right of search is the right on the part of ships of war to visit and search merchant vessels during war, in order to ascertain whether the ship or cargo is liable to seizure. Resistance to visitation and search by a neu tral vessel makes the vessel and cargo liable to confiscation. Numerous treaties regulate the manner in which the right of search must be exercised. Man. Int. Law, 433; Sweet. In criminal law. An examination of a man's house or other buildings or premises, or of his person, with a view to the discov ery of contraband or illicit or stolen prop erty, or some evidence of guilt to be used in the prosecution of a criminal action for som« crime or offense with which he is charged. In practice. An examination of the of ficial books and dockets, made in the pro cess of investigating a title to land, for the purpose of discovering if there are any mort gages, judgments, tax-liens, or other incum brances upon it. SEARCH-WARRANT. A search-war rant is an brder in writing, Issued by a jus tice or other magistrate, in the name of the state, directed to a sheriff, constable, or oth er officer, commanding him to search a speci fied house, shop, or other premises, for per sonal property alleged to have been stolen, or for unlawful goods, and to bring the same, when found, before the magistrate, and us ually also the body of the person occupying the premises, to be dealt with according to law. Pen. Code Cal. § 1523; Code Ala. 1886, § 4727; Rev. Code Iowa 1880, § 4629. SEARCHER. In English law. An of ficer of the customs, whose duty It is to ex amine and search all ships outward bound, to ascertain whether they have any prohibit ed or uncustomed goods on board. Wharton. Jacob. SEATED LAND. See LAND. SEAWAN. The name used toy the Al gonquin Indians for the shell beads (or wam pum) which passed among the Indians as money. Webster. SEAWORTHINESS. In marine Insur ance. A warranty of seaworthiness means that the vessel is competent to resist the

simply as "the seal of the United States," or "the seal of the state."—Private seal. The seal (however made) of a private person or cor poration, as distinguished from a seal employed by a state or government or any of its bureaus or departments.—Privy seal. In English law. A seal used in making out grants or letters patent, preparatory to their passing under the great seal. 2 Bl. Comm. 347.—Public seal. A seal belonging to and used by one of the bureaus or departments of government; for authenticating or attesting documents, process, or records. An impression made of some de vice, by means of a piece of metal or other hard substance, kept and used by public author ity. Kirksey v. Bates, 7 Port. (Ala.) 534, 31 Am. Dec. 722.—Quarter seal. In Scotch law. A seal kept by the director of the chancery; in shape and impression the fourth part of the great seal, and called in statutes the "testi monial" of the great seal. Bell.—Seal days. In English practice. Motion days in the court of chancery, so called because every motion had to be stamped with the seal, which did not lie in court in the ordinary sittings out of term. Wharton.—Seal office. In English practice. An office for the sealing of judicial writs.— Seal-paper. In English law. A document issued by the lord chancellor, previously to the commencement of the sittings, detailing the business to be done for each day in his court, and in the courts of the lords justices and vice chancellors. The master of the rolls in like manner issued a seal-paper in respect of the business to be heard before him. Smith, Ch. Pr. 9. SEALED. Authenticated by a seal; ex ecuted by the affixing of a seal. Also fas tened up in any manner so as to be closed against inspection of the contents. —Sealed and delivered. These words, fol lowed by the signatures of the witnesses, con stitute the usual formula for the attestation of conveyances.—Sealed instrument. An in strument of writing to which the party to be bound has affixed, not only his name, but also his seal, or (in those jurisdictions where it is allowed) a scroll, (q v.) —Sealed verdict. When the jury have agreed upon a verdict, if the court is not in session at the time, they are permitted (usually) to put their written finding in a sealed envelope, and then separate. This verdict they return when the court again con venes. The verdict thus returned has the same effect, and must be treated in the same manner, as if returned in open court before any separa tion of the jury had taken place. The process is called "sealing a verdict" Sutliff v. Gilbert, 8 Ohio, 408; Young v. Seymour, 4 Neb. 89. SEALING. By seals, In matters of suc cession, is understood the placing, by the proper officer, of seals on the effects of a succession for the purpose of preserving them, and for the interest of third persons. The seals are affixed by order of the judge having jurisdiction. Civ. Code La. art 1075. SEALING UP. Where a party to an ac tion has been ordered to produce a docu ment part of which Is either irrelevant to the matters In question or is privileged from production, he may, by leave of the court, seal up that part, if he makes an affidavit stating that it is irrelevant or privileged. Danlell, Ch. Pr. 1681. The sealing up is generally done by fastening pieces of paper over the part with gum or wafers. Sweet.