Ordinance, issued by the government of the Kingdom of Bohemia [Present-day Czech Republic]: “Even though it has been ordered several times, most recently on December 15, 1766, that in the course of certifying the applications of Jewish supplicants for wedding licenses, greatest care must be exercised with respect to firstbornship, as well as regarding the maximum permitted number of Jewish families and the avoidance of exceeding the same; given the many evaluations of Jewish wedding license applications, it must nevertheless be suspected, not without good cause, that one or the other city magistrate and county officer is disregarding the above-mentioned, very highest ordinance, issuing these irregular attestations according to personal whim, or even following a conflicting, punishable self-interest. The chief royal county officers are hereby instructed to make known to everyone the applicable [ordinance], with the addendum that in the event of a contravention, the issuer of such an untrue attestation will be subjected to the most palpable punishment, in addition to the fact that officers and magistrates are liable for this with all of their assets and property, the penalty of which shall be made available to pay the customary third to the denouncer.“ [Researcher’s note: The “denouncer’s third” was a common practice since the middle ages for all kinds of punishable offenses; one third of the fine payable by the offender was to be diverted to the informant or denouncer, while the remainder was often split between the state and some restitutionary purpose, such as churches, schools, or poorhouses.]
Jaksch, Peter Karl (Ed.). Gesetzeslexikon im Geistlichen, Religions- und Toleranzfache, wie auch in Güter- Stiftungs- Studien- und Zensurssachen für das Königreich Böhmen von 1601 bis Ende 1800. Zweiter Band von E – H (Encyclopedia of Spiritual, Religious and Tolerance Laws, as well as Matters of Goods, Foundations, Education and Censorship, for the Kingdom of Bohemia, from 1601 until the End of 1800. Volume II from E – H). Government Printing Office: Prague, 1828. Page 64. Researched by Dominik Jacobs 3/1/2020