United States Statutes at Large/Volume 2/7th Congress/2nd Session/Chapter 6
Chap. VI.—An Act for the relief of the sufferers by fire, in the town of Portsmouth.
Sufferers by fire at Portsmouth to have the indulgence of further time for discharging their customhouse bonds.Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That all persons who, being indebted to the United States, for duties on merchandise, have given bond therefor, with one or more sureties, payable to the collector for the district of Portsmouth, and who have suffered a loss of property by the late conflagration at that place, shall be, and they hereby are allowed to wake up, or have cancelled, all bonds heretofore given for duties as aforesaid, upon giving to the said collector new bonds, with one or more sureties, to the satisfaction of said collector, for the sums of their former bonds respectively, payable in twelve months from and after the day of payment specified in the bonds to be taken up or cancelled as aforesaid; and the said collector is hereby authorized and directed, to give up or cancel, all such bonds upon the receipt of others as described in this act; which last mentioned bonds shall be proceeded with, in all respects, like other bonds which areProviso that this act shall not extend to bonds due before the 26th December, 1802. taken by collectors for duties due to the United States: Provided however, that nothing in this act contained shall extend to bonds which had fallen due before the twenty-sixth day of December last.
Approved, February 19, 1803.