Chap. 370.—An ACT to incorporate the Northern Virginia Abattoir
company.

Approved March 2, 1888.

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia, That
Henry Fairfax, E. B. Harrison, Edgar F. Burch, J. B. Bev-
erly, W. J. Harrison, Henry Harrison, and John H. Alexan-
der, and their associates, successors, and assigns, be and are
hereby created a body politic and corporate by the name of
Northern Virginia Abattoir company, and by that name and
style sue and be sued, purchase, hold, sell, contract for, least
and release, grant and transfer real estate, rights of way tor
travel, water rights, and other easements for and appertain-
ing to its business, buy and sell personal property of any kind
for the: prosecution of and in the line of its business, and man-
ufacture the products, offal, and refuse of animals slaughtered
at its place of business into any legitimate merchantable com-
modities, and sell the same, and do all things necessary for
the purposes herein mentioned, and perform all other acts,
and exercise and enjoy all other privileges incident to corpo-
rations; adopt and use a common seal; make, publish, and
alter by-laws, rules, and regulations to govern the corpora-
tion and carry on its business; determine and appoint its of-
ficers and fix their duties, compensation, and term of office.

2. That said company may purchase, establish, and erect,
at its own costs and expense, at any point on the line of rail-
way between the city of Alexandria and the District of Co-
lumbia, or upon the Potomac river at any point within the
county of Alexandria, of proper access to the butchers of
Alexandria city and the District of Columbia (the location to
be approved by the county court of Alexandria county, upon
the petition of the said corporation, after thirty days’ notice
by publication of such application before said business shall
be begun), stables, sheds, yards, pens, scales, engines, other
necessary machinery, a building or buildings sufficient to ac-
commodate and shelter all animals which may be brought to
its place of business for inspection, sale, or slaughter, and such
other buildings as may be necessary; and may open road-
ways, and lay, build, and operate tramways or railroad tracks
over and from its premises to the said railroad or the Poto-
mac river, and erect and operate wharves upon said river;
and shall feed and care for all animals brought upon its
— in a proper manner, for which said company shall

e entitled to a fair compensation from the owner of said
animals.

3. The said company shall be allowed to detain and keep
all such animals until compensated or paid for charges afore-
said, and if such charges ere not paid within ten days from
the time said animals are left on the premises of said com-
pany, then the said company shall have power, without re-
sorting to judicial proceedings, to advertise and sell such ani-
mals at public sale, the advertisement to be inserted ina daily

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newspaper, either published in the city of Washington or the
city of Alexandria, at least three times; the proceeds of such
sale to pay first, said expenses, cost of advertising and sale,
as well as any other necessary expenses, and the residue, if
any, to be paid to the owner or owners of said animal or ani-
mals so sold.

4. The said company shall erect and establish slaughter-
house or houses on their premises, for the purpose of slaugh-
tering animals, the meat of which is intended for food, and
for the accommodation of butchers, where all butchers shall
be permitted to kill and slaughter their animals, the meat of
which is intended for sale in market, or to be consumed in
the city of Alexandria or the District of Columbia, and to

‘have the use of said slaughter-house or houses, the cooling
rooms or ice-closets, and conveniences generally necessary to
conduct their business, upon the terms as prescribed in sec-
tion eight of this act, subject to the sanitary laws of the state
of Virginia.

5. That butchers or others who may desire to have their
animals slaughtered, stored, or any other work, labor, or other
service done, or any products of their business manufactured,
this company be authorized to perform the same, upon such
terms, and for such compensation as may be agreed upon by
the party or parties desiring such service or services of the
company.

6. That the said company shall construct and keep plat-
form scale or scales for the weighing of live stock, where all
animals, bought or sold, shall be weighed; for which weighing
this company shall furnish both buyer and seller a proper

- voucher or’ certificate stating the number of animals, their
weight, certified by the company’s agent or weigher, keep a
record thereof for future reference, for which the owner or
owners, or seller of said animals, shall pay into the company
an amount not exceeding three cents per one hundred pounds
weight, whether sold by weight or per head, for all cattle;
ten cents per head, for all hogs; and five cents per head for all
sheep, lambs or calves, to be paid for and collected as all other
charges of the company; said scales to be subject to the in-
spection and approval of the inspector of weights and meas-
ures of the county of Alexandria.

7. That said company shall keep their yards, stables, pens
and slaughter-houses open every day, and at all hours for the
transaction of business; and on refusal to accommodate the
butchers and drovers desiring the use of the premises of this
company, then the said company shall be subject to a fine of
not less than fifty dollars nor more than one hundred dollars
for such offence.

8. The prices to be charged butchers by this company for
the use of their premises for slaughtering animals, shall not
exceed the following during the months of November,
December, January, February, and March, cattle, one dollar
per head; hogs, fifteen cents per head; sheep and lambs,
twenty cents per head; calves, twenty-five cents per head:

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during the months of April, May, June, July, August, Sep-
tember, and October, for the uso of ice closets, the charges
shall be, cattle, one dollar and twenty-five cents per head;
hogs, twenty-five cents per head; sheep and lambs, thirty
cents per head; calves, thirty-five cents per head. Said
charges to be paid for and collected as the other charges of
this company.

9. That the governor shall appoint a competent person as
inspector of all live stock and meats slaughtered by this com-
pany, which is intended for sale and consumption; said
inspector to be empowered to condemn all live stock or
slaughtered animals, the meat of which is unfit for food; said
inspector to be required to give bond in the sum of ten thou-
sand dollars for the faithful and impartial discharge of his
duties, and to be subject to the rules and regulations govern-
ing inspectors in the state of Virginia. All meats condemned
under this act shall become the property of the company, to
be by said company manufactured; the owners of all con-
demned meats to be compensated at the rate of a half cent
per pound. .

10. That the fees of said inspector shall be ten cents per
head for all cattle, and five cents per head for all other ani-
mals, to be paid by the owner or owners of said animal; that
said inspector may appoint as many deputies as may be
necessary; that for dereliction of duty on the part of said
inspector, or of his deputies, a fine of fifty dollars for each
neglect shall be imposed on said inspector, to be collected as
all other fines are, for the benefit of the state.

11. That the said company may build and erect a wharf
or wharves upon its land, and collect such wharfage as is
allowed by the laws of the state; and the said company may
build the necessary ewitches or turnouts, connecting its place
of business with any or all railroads, in the county of Alex-
andria, which may be necessary for the purpose of carrying
on its business.

12. That the capital stock of said company shall not be
less than fifty thousand dollars, nor more than three hundred
thousand dollars, and divided into shares of fifty dollars each ;
and when stock to the amount of the first sum named shall
have been subscribed, the stockholders shall be authorized to
meet and organize said company: provided that the laws of
the state regulating the formation of similar corporations
shall have been complied with.

13. That a majority of the stockholders shall have power
to issue mortgages, bonds, and contract such other indebted-
ness, and pledge the capital stock and all its property as
security for the same: provided that such indebtedness shall
not exceed the sum of three hundred thousand dollars.

14. That the work contemplated under the provisions of
this act shall be begun within two years, and ready for use
within three years after the date of the passage of this act.

15. This act shall take effect from the date of its passage,
and shall be subject to all provisions of the Code of Virginia,
edition of eighteen hundred and seventy-three, in relation to
incorporated companies, and shall pay all its taxes in lawful
money of the United States and not in coupons.