Volume 1
The universal dictionary of trade and commerce : with large additions and improvements, adapting the same to the present state of British affairs in America, since the last treaty of peace made in the year 1763. With great variety of new remarks and illustrations incorporated throughout the whole: together with everything essential that is contained in Savary's dictionary: also, all the material laws of trade and navigation relating to these kingdoms, and the customs and usages to which all traders are subject / By Malachy Postlethwayt, esq.
- Jacques Savary des Brûlons
- Date:
- 1766
Licence: Public Domain Mark
Credit: The universal dictionary of trade and commerce : with large additions and improvements, adapting the same to the present state of British affairs in America, since the last treaty of peace made in the year 1763. With great variety of new remarks and illustrations incorporated throughout the whole: together with everything essential that is contained in Savary's dictionary: also, all the material laws of trade and navigation relating to these kingdoms, and the customs and usages to which all traders are subject / By Malachy Postlethwayt, esq. Source: Wellcome Collection.
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![ACQ^ or fentence, after an acquiefcence, or agreement thereunto. See Arbitration. ACQUITTANCE, in France, a kind of difcliarge upon ftamped paper, which is made out and delivered to traders, factors, or carriers, by the officers, receivers, and comp¬ trollers of the two grand farms, eftabliftied for the imports and exports in the kingdom of France, and the provinces reputed foreign. There are four forts of acquittances thofe of payment; thofe of caution, or precaution ; thofe for fecurity of paffing, or thofe of perfonal fecurity, or bail; and thofe of certificates of franchife. The Acquittance of payment mentions the quantity, qua¬ lity, weight, or value of the merchandize ; the number of chefts, bales, and packs, in which they are contained; their marks and numbers ; the leaden-marks or tickets affixed to them ; the fum paid for duties of import or export; the merchant’s name for whofe account they are fent; the place where they are to be unladen; and the road the carriers are to go. This acquittance, or certificate of payment, muft go with the merchandize, and remain at the laft office of the cuftoms, to be revifed and examined by the clerks of the farms, in order to know whether the duties have been fully received or not; and, in cafe they were not fully received, to caufe the deficiency to be paid by the merchant to whom the merchandizes belong. Befides all thefe particulars being enumerated in fuch acquittance of payment, the time in which the merchandize is to arrive at the laft cuftoin-houfe, is alfo mentioned ; after which they remain void, and cannot be re¬ ceived by the officers, except there has been fome lawful hindrance, which muft be proved by a verbal procefs, in due form. The carriers are alfo forbidden to pafs by any other cuftom-houfe, except thofe mentioned in the acquits, and are.obliged to carry the goods diredly to all the offices of the cuftoms upon their route, and prefent their acquits, in order to their being indorfed, viz. feen ; and, finally, to leave them at the laft office, where, after the chefts, packs, or bales, have been opened and infpeded, the officers de¬ liver to them a warrant, called brevet de controlle, without any charge. The carriers are alfo obliged to produce their acquits on the firft demand of the officers of the cuftoms, whom they meet upon their route, at whofe diferetion it is’ to keep them, on delivering, in the like manner, a brevet de controlle ; though the opening can be done no where but in the cuftom-houfes, and of fuch goods only as have not been vifited before, it being prohibited, with regard to thofe that have already been examined, to open them any where but at the laft office of the cuftoms. All this is direded by the Ordonnance of the five great farms, of February 1687 Tit. 2. Aft. 16, 17, 18, 19, 20. The Acquittance of caution, or precaution, or of fecurity, or bail, is delivered by the officers of the cuftoms to a private perfon, who binds himfelf as fecurity, that a bale of mer chandize fhall be infpefted by the officers of the cuftom- houfe at the place to which it is configned, and that the cuftoms, if there are any due, fhall be paid there ; in con- fequence of which, the bale is packed, corded, and loaded, at the office, where the acquittance is delivered, that it may not be opened, nor the goods changed, upon the route they are to go. And, when the bale arrives at the place of its deftination, and the merchandizes, and other things con¬ tained in it, have been examined and vifited by the infpeftor the receiver and comptroller, on the infpeftor’s certificate’ caufe the duties to be paid, if any are due, and endorfe the receipt upon the back of the acquittance, which is after¬ wards fent back to the perfon who bound himfelf, to be returned by him to the officers from whom he had it, in order to his being difeharged from his bond. The Acquittance for fecurity of tranfit, or palTage, relates to certain merchandizes, or materials, for working and manufacturing ; fuch as are exempt from the duties of im¬ port and export in the kingdom of France, and alfo from tolls, grants, and other impofts ; as are thofe which relate to the manufaftures eftabhfhed in the towns and diftrifts of Lifle, Doway, Orchies, 1 ournay, and other cities in the Low Sided1?’ C°nq? by th£ KbS °fFranCe in Anders, or yielded to h,m by treaties of peace, or truce, and which B?vom ?edS C Cared \Vhe cuftom houfes of Calais, Bayonne, Seftome, near Marfeilles, Pont de Beauvoifin to be fent int°the indies’ %■*. tTS ?qrUinttal 'S ufu fy de,ivered by the officers of the cuf- toms at Lifle, according to the certificate of the magiftrate of the town, and mentions the name of the perfon for whofe account the merchandizes are, their quantity, quality andwe.ght; the number of the bales, packs, orchefts fn hich they are contained ; how corded, packed and leaded • the7a?e?SmernUmdber|; the ^m-houfes through which anv wher. deLar: tHat they are to be lodged thev are to eXfCCpt in the cuftom-houfes through which theyfromier>P;trTht0v'';e I’ocrCPt at.thQft vifited bv ,-ffi c , r° c ear’ and to be viewed and the merchant t u V3™' For °f which. Vo' I ’ ° C°nr‘Sn‘ ,bcm‘ enters i“o “ bored ACT to bring in, within four months from the delivery of the ac¬ quittance, a certificate in due form, [hat; the fail] merchan¬ dizes have been found, in number, weight, quantity, and quality, with the bales, package, and lead, of the houfe, whole and entire, conformably to the acquittance This cemfieate, being endo,fed „p0n the back of the ac- T? 1C in:' 11 d'fcharged without any diffi.uliy. The Acquittance, or certificate of franchifes, concern, the exemption from the duties of export on me chandize m,ended to be lent out of the kingdom, which are bough and fent away during the franchife,, or freedom of fairs S They are particuiatly ufed at Lyons, during the four free fairs which ate thofe of Twelfth-day, E,nf„ Auguft, a„d Alhfatnts, each of which continue a fortnight free and begin as follows : 1 hat of Twelfth-day, [he firft Monday after that feftival ; that of Eafler, the firft Monday after Lowfunday ; that of Auguft the 4th of that month ; and that of All-faints, the 3d of November. This acquittance, or certificate of franchifes, is at firft deli vered by the receivers and comptrollers deputed, or appoint¬ ed, by the provoft of the merchants, and by the aldermen of the city; it mentions the perfon' for whofe account the mer- ehamhzes are, their quantity, quality, weight, the number ofba.es, packs or chefts ; that they have paid none of the ulual duties of ihe citv, and that the faid bales, packs or chefts, were taken away, and loaded, during the time of the franchife, or freedom of the fair, and have been maiked by them, with a particular mark, of which there is a ftamn in the margin of the certificate ; and that they contain no prohibited or contraband goods. On the back of this ac quittance, or certificate, muft be fee down the warrant“of the clerk, of the general office of the cuftom-houfe, to the clerk of the gates of the city, commanding him to certifv the going out of the bales, packs, or chefts, mentioned in the acquittance, or certificate of the magiftrate.s of the citv and that the duties are allowed to have been paid aurin? the fair; and that declaration has been made, that they fhall be exported out of the kingdom, through fuch a province Jr muft be obferved, that, in order to have the benefit of'the franchife for exemption from duties, the merchandizes muft be carried out of the town, towards the end of each fair and out of the kingdom before the firft day of the fair next following; except, however, in cafes of juft and Wal hindrances. The acquittance, or certificate, or permit, as we term it in f I ’ m“ft g°/lo,’B with ,hs “''chandize, to the laft office of export, and remain there. Acquittance, among the French merchants, fignifies alfo a receipt. Paid fuch a one, by acquittance, of fuch a day - that is to fay, upon receipt, or acquittance. When a banker* or any other perfon, gives to a fervant, or porter, a bill of exchange that is due, in order to go and receive the payment of it, he generallyendorfes.it in blank; that is, leaving a void fpace above bis name, that the receipt may be wrote there. But a man muft always take care, with regard to thole blank endowments, to put the words, “ pour acquit ” for receipt, or acquittance, under his name, that the void fpace may not be filled up with an order payable to another which might be attended with very bad confequences. To Acquit, fignifies alfo in French, to pay the duties of import or export for merchandizes, as they are imported into, or exported out of, cities, and at the cuftom-houfes I hus they fay, ‘ that merchant drives a vaft trade, he has ‘ acquitted (that is, he has paid) this year, above 100,000 ‘ livres duty to the king.’ It fignifies alfo to p iy one’s debts : ‘ this merchant has at laft acquitted himfelf towards * h‘s creditors ; that is, he has paid them entirely. They alfo fay, to acquit bills of exchange, pronufTory notes, bonds, &c. that is, to pay them. Acquittance, a releal'e, or dilcharge, in writing of a payment, debt, or any other thing we are obliged to’pay or perform. Some acquittances are made before a notary- public, and others only under a perfon’s private manual ; they are both equally good, but not equally fafe with regard to what may happen afterwards, the latter being fometinies liable to very great inconveniencies. The receipt wrote on the back of a bill of exchange that is paid, is properly a true acquittance. ACT ION, a right which a perfon has to fue for any demand or pretenfion, at law. It is alfo faid of adions entered again!! a perfon, and of the proceedings carried on foraftert- ing and proving one’s right. Action, in French commerce, fignifies fometimes the move- able effeds: thus thev fay, that a merchants creditors have feized upon all his adions; which is as much as 10 fay that they have taken poft'effion of all his adive debts, that is the debts owed to him. Action Redhibitorv, is an adion at law bv which the buyer may oblige the feller to take back damaged goods or fuch as do not prove according to the agreement. Actki n of a Company is an equal part, or portion of flock, of which feveral, joined together, make the capital fund or flock, of a trading company. Thus a company which has 700 actionSj of a ] oco 1. eat, h* has a fund of 300*0 _ o L U whica](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b30459436_0001_0093.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
