Chap. 65.—An ACT to incorporate the Clinchport telephone company.

Approved February 11, 1901.

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia, That the Clinch-
port telephone company did, on the thirty-first day of January, cighteen
hundred and ninety-nine, obtain from the circuit court of Scott county
a charter for a joint stock company to do a telephone business, and the
said company now wants certain provisions of said charter ratified by
the gencral assembly of Virginia, and other provisions added to make
the said charter complete and to comply with the laws of Virginia.

2. The naine shall be the Clinchport telephone company, and the prin-
cipal office shall be at Clinchport, but the board of directors by giving
thirty days’ notice may change the principal oflice to such place as they
think best.

3. The purpose of this corporation is to own, equip, operate, and main-
tain telephone lines and exchanges, and said company shall have power
to erect and maintain all poles, wires, cables, conduits, and lines, and to
establish and maintain all offices and exchanges necessary and proper for
the conduct of its business.

+. The minimum capital stock shall be five hundred dollars, and may
be increased to five thousand dollars, but it shall not be necessary for the
board of directors to give notice of the opening and closing of the stock
book of said company, but they shall appoint one of the oflicers of the
company to sell the stock and keep a record of it till the stock is issued
by the company.

5. The company shall not acquire or hold more than one hundred acres
of real estate in fee simple.

6. The company shall have power to acquire, by lease, contract, or
purchase, the property of other companies, and may make any contract
with other companies not inconsistent with the laws of Virginia. ‘The
above shall be executed by the board of directors.

%. The board of directors shall have the power to borrow money and
give the company’s notes or bonds for the same; but thev shall not bor-
row more than one-third the face value of the stocks issued at one time.

8. The company shall have the right to acquire by purchase, lease, or
condemnation, in accordance with the general laws of Virginia, all real
estate or easements necessary for the convenient erection and mainte-
nance of its lines and exchanges and for the general conduct of its busi-
ness, The real estate held by said company, however, in fee simple
shall not exceed one hundred acres; and they shall have the right to
construct, maintain, and operate their lines along any of the state and
county roads or works, and over the waters of the state: provided, the
ordinary use of the same be not interfered with or obstructed, and along
and over the streets of anv city or town with the consent of the council
thereof, in accordance with the general laws of the state.

9. The board of directors shall have power to make rules and revula-
tions to govern the use of the lines, exchanges, telephones, and so forth,
and shall have the power to enforce the same by a fine not to exceed one
dollar for each violation, and shall have power to collect. the same
from stockholders, telephone and exchange keepers; and the board of
directors shall have authority to offer rewards for the arrest and convic-
tion of any person wilfully or maliciously disturbing or injuring the
property of said company.

10. Tn case the receipts from the business of said company shall be in-
sufficient to pay all necessary cost and expense of operating the lines and
the necessary improvement, the board of directors shall have power to
assess each stockholder an amount as they may think necessary to pay
such deticiency, so that the same does not exceed one dollar on each share
of stock for each year, and the said board of directors shall have
power to collect the same.

11. The present oflicers shall serve for one year or until their suc-
cessors are elected and qualified: T. M. Cherry, president; J. 8. Greever,
vice-president ; R. W. Jackson, secretary; O. Hl. Gobble, treasurer; W. A.
ITead, H. H. Reynolds, W. 8S. Gobble, Ben Bussel, and J. P. Cary, direc-
tors: but in case of removal, death, or absence from three regular meet-
ings, without good cause, the board of directors shall have power to fill
all the vacancics until the regular election takes place.

12. The company shall have the right to buy and cancel its stock when
the board of directors think best, and they may appoint one of the officers
of the company for that purpose.

13. No person, other company, or firm shall own or control more than
ten shares of the stock of this company at one time.

14. This act shall be in force from its passage.