The Short Title of this Act shall be “The Offences against the Person Act Amendment Act 1868.”

The forty-ninth section of “The Offences against the Person Act 1867” whereby it is enacted that whosoever shall be convicted of any indecent assault upon any female or of any attempt to have carnal knowledge of any girl under twelve years of age shall be liable at the discretion of the Court to be imprisoned for any term not exceeding two years with or without hard labour is hereby repealed and in lieu thereof it is enacted as follows—Whosoever shall be convicted of any indecent assault upon any female or of any attempt to have carnal knowledge of any girl under twelve years of age shall be liable at the discretion of the Court to be kept in penal servitude for any term not exceeding seven years and not less than three years or to be imprisoned for any term not exceeding two years with or without hard labour and with or without solitary confinement.

Where any person is convicted of a crime under the foregoing section of this Act the Court before whom he is convicted may in addition to the punishment awarded direct that the offender be once twice or thrice privately whipped Provided the number of strokes do not exceed fifty at each such whipping and that the Court in its sentence shall specify the number of strokes to be inflicted and the instrument to be used Provided also that in no case shall such whipping take place after the expiration of six months from the passing of the sentence Provided also that in all cases where the punishment of whipping shall be inflicted under the authority of this Act the surgeon or medical officer of the gaol in which the offender is confined shall be present when the said punishment is inflicted and such surgeon or medical officer if he be of opinion that the prisoner is not at any time able to bear the whole or any part of the said punishment so awarded may from time to time order the infliction of the whole or any part of the said punishment to be postponed and shall within seven days after the making of any such order send a report in writing stating his reasons for making such order to the Colonial Secretary.

Every offence committed before the coming into operation of this Act against the provisions of the said section of the said Act hereby repealed shall be dealt with and punished as if the said section had not been repealed and every Act duly done before the coming into operation of this Act shall continue and be of the same force as if the said section of the said Act hereby repealed had not been repealed.

This Act shall be construed and read as part of “The Offences against the Person Act 1867.”