OWLING  , in

English law, the offence of transporting wool or sheep out of the kingdom,,to the detriment of the staple manufacture of wool . The name is said to owe its origin to the fact that the offence was usually carried on at night-time, when the owls were abroad . The offence was stringently regulated by a statute of Edward III . (1336-7), while many subsequent statutes also dealt with it . In 1566 the offence was made punish-able by the cutting off of the left hand and nailing it in a public place . By a statute of r66o the ship and cargo were to be forfeited . In the reign of George I . (1717–1718) the penalty was altered to transportation for seven years . The offence was abolished in 1824 .