LAWS OF MARYLAND.— 1825.

865

articles, shall be inspected and stamped or branded by the said
standard-keeper for the county, under a penalty, not exceeding
twenty dollars, to be paid by the person or persons owning or
using the same; and when adjusted, shall be by the standard-
keepers branded, marked or stamped with the letters M. S.
meaning thereby, Maryland Standard, in such manner, and on
such parts of the said weights and measures as in their judg-
ment shall be most lasting and effectual in preventing and de-
tecting fraudulent practices or impositions in the use of such
weights or measures, and the like inspection shall be repeated
once in every year, and the branding or stamping renewed when
necessary, and such weights and measures so examined and
branded or stamped as aforesaid, and no other, shall be used
within this state in the vending of such articles as are directed
by law to be, or are usually sold by weight or measure, under a
penalty, not exceeding twenty dollars ; and all articles sold
within this state, and usually sold by weight or measure, or by
law directed so to be, shall be sold by weight or measure afore-
said, as the case may be, under a penalty, not exceeding twenty
dollars.

All weights
and mea-
sures to be
annually in-
spected and
branded.

SEC. 4. And be it enacted, That if any weight or measure
which shall have been branded or stamped agreeably to the pro-
visions of this act, shall be broken, injured, altered or changed,
or condemned by the standard-keeper, and found thereafter in
the use of any person within this state, every such person shall

Penalty for
altering.

forfeit and pay twenty dollars for each and ever* such offence.
SEC. 5. And be it enacted, That all scale-beams used in the
vending of articles in this state, shall be inspected and stamped
by the keeper of the standards of weights, as weights are
directed to be stamped, and any person using scale-beams in
this state, not stamped as herein directed, shall forfeit and pay
a sum not exceeding twenty dollars for each and every offence.

(*every)

Scale-
beams.

SEC. 6. And be it enacted, That the keepers of the standards
of weights and measures, shall attend at the different markets,
towns and villages, in the county for which they may be respec-
tively appointed, at least once in each and every year, and at
the different public inspecting warehouses in each and every
county, for which they may be respectively appointed, at least
twice in each and every year, on some certain days to be
appointed by the respective levy courts, of which days, public
notice shall be given by advertisements inserted in some one or
more newspapers in the county in which there may be such
paper or papers printed, and also by advertisements set up at
some conspicuous place in the said markets, warehouses, vil-
lages and towns, and shall inspect and adjust all beams and
scales, weights and measures, used or intended to be used in
109

Keeper to
attend — ad-
vertisement
required —
register.