People ex rel. Livergood v. Greer

Citations

• 43 Ill. 213

Syllabus

<p>1. Statute—amendment of—how construed. In construing a statute, it is a well settled rule, that the old law must he considered; the mischiefs, inconveniences or hardships produced hy it, and then, the remedy proposed by the amendatory law.</p> <p>2. Same—construction of—act of 1845 not applicable to actions for torts. The act of 1845, relating to insolvent debtors, was only applicable to that class of debtors, becoming so by contracts into which they may have entered, and not to arrests on mesne, or final process for torts.</p> <p>S. Same—under amended act, 1845—imprisonment —-how effected. Under the amendatory act of 1845, tort feasors could be imprisoned, if the plaintiff in the action was willing to, and did advance, weekly, the jail charges.</p> <p>4. Same — right of insolvent debtor—extended to what class of tort feasgrs by the act of 1861. By the act of 1861, the right to be dealt with as an insolvent debtor, was extended to all tort feasors, except those whose torts originated in malice, or where malice was the gist of the action,</p>