Allowance To A Prisoner

Ob. By the laws of, it is believed, all the states, when a poor debtor is in arrest in a civil suit, the plaintiff is compelled to pay an allowance regulated by law, for his maintenance and support, and in default of such payment at the time required, the prisoner is discharged. Notice must be given to the plaintiff before the defendant can be discharged.
   

This entry contains material from Bouvier's Legal Dictionary, a work published in the 1850's.