Cousins v. Cowing
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
This was a petition for a certiorari to David Holbrook, a justice of the peace, by whom the petitioner had been fined for neglecting to appear at a meeting of a company of militia in the town of Cohasset, on the first Tuesday of May, 1838, for inspection of arms.
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This was a petition for a certiorari to David Holbrook, a justice of the peace, by whom the petitioner had been fined for neglecting to appear at a meeting of a company of militia in the town of Cohasset, on the first Tuesday of May, 1838, for inspection of arms. The petitioner produced a copy of the record, by which it appeared, that at the trial before the justice, the complainant, Cowing, in order to prove the petitioner duly enrolled, offered in evidence an order, dated June 12th, 1837, from F. A. Kingsbury, the colonel of the regiment, directing the selectmen of Cohasset to cause to be…
1Opinion of the Court
Morton J.
afterward drew up the opinion of the Court. Several exceptions have been taken to the proceedings of the magistrate ; one only of which goes to the merits of the case ; the rest relating to matters of form. We will examine them, in the order in which the petitioner has arranged them.
1. The petitioner contends that he is not liable to perform military duty. Being “ an able bodied white male citizen ” of the age of eighteen and under the age of forty-five,” the burden is upon him to show exemption. The only ground upon which he founds his claim to be exempt, is, that he was employed as…
2Cases cited1 opinion
- Commonwealth v. NewcombMassachusetts Supreme Judicial Court · 1817