All notaries, Supreme Court justices, judges of the Court of First Instance, municipal judges, prosecutors, justices of the peace, the Secretary of State, the heads of the departments and the municipal treasurers shall authorize affidavits or declarations; but only notaries may authorize such affidavits and declarations when they have reference to facts, acts or contracts of a purely private nature; Provided, however, That municipal treasurers shall be authorized only and exclusively to administer oaths in those cases where required under Act No. 26 of March 28, 1914, with reference to certificates for industrial and commercial license taxes; Provided, further, That in towns where there is no notary with an open office, the district judges and justices of the peace may take affidavits, in which this fact shall appear, on recognition of signatures on instruments of credit and contracts of a private nature, the amount of which does not exceed two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500).
The foregoing provisions shall not be so construed as to leave without effect any law in force under which authority is granted to other public officials, not mentioned in §§ 887—895 of this title, to take affidavits, oaths and affirmations, which authorizations shall remain in full force.
History —Mar. 12, 1908, p. 39, § 4; May 22, 1919, No. 13, p. 122, § 1; July 30, 1923, No. 72, p. 546; June 5, 1956, No. 26, p. 76, § 1; July 6, 1985, No. 77, p. 256, § 1.