State v. . Wilkie

85 N.C. 513

• Court: Supreme Court of North Carolina
• Decided: October 5, 1881
• Status: Published

Opinion

Rueein, J.

Proceedings in bastardy are mere police regulations, and so far as the)7 constitute any action at all, it is a civil action. This has been so«often decided and seemed to be so well understood by the profession and the country, that we had not supposed it would ever again be called in question.

Being a civil action, an appeal lies, as a matter of course, at the will of either party ; and that the state has such right is shown by the case of State v. Pate, Busb., 244, in which two juries, the one in the county court and the other in the superior court, had found the issue in favor of the defendant.

The return of the justice states that the appeal was in fact taken at the trial, and we cannot see the propriety of permitting his statement in this regard to be controlled by the date of the defendant’s recognizance. But if we should, it could not change the result in this ease; for, as in all other civil cases, the party appealing has ten days to serve notice of and perfect the appeal; and there is no pretence that it was not done within that time.

Several other exceptions were argued by counsel in this court, but as they do not appear by the record to have been taken in the court below, we have not felt at liberty to consider them. There is no error. Let this be certified to the superior court of Chatham to the end that the cause may be proceeded with according to law.

No error. Affirmed.