CHAP. 297.—An ACT to amend and re-enact the charter of the
town of Salem, in Roanoke county.

Approved February 18, 1890.

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia,
That an act passed March twenty-first, eighteen hundred
and thirty-six, entitled an act to incorporate the town of
Salem, in the county of Botetourt, and all acts amenda-
tory thereof and amendatory of any acts amendatory
thereof, be amended and re-enacted so as to read as fol-
lows:

§1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia,
That the town of Salem, in the county of Roanoke, as
chartered by act of assembly of March twenty-first, eigh-
teen hundred and thirty-six, entitled “an act to incorpo-
rate the town of Salem, in the county of Botetourt,” and
all acts amendatory thereof and amendatory of any acts
amendatory thereof, as heretofore laid off and as may be
hereafter extended, shall continue to be a body politic in
the. name of the council of the town of Salem, and as
such shall have, exercise, and enjoy all the rights, immu-
nities, and powers, and be subject to all the duties now
incumbent upon the said town as a body politic; shall
have and exercise all the powers and be subject to all the
provisions of the code of Virginia, except so far as may
be herein otherwise provided.

§2. The municipal authorities of said town shall consist
of seven aldermen, who shall be elected every two years
by the qualified voters of the said town as hereinafter pro-
vided.

§3. The mayor and aldermen shall constitute the coun-
cil of said town, and all the corporate powers of said town
shall be exercised by said council, or under its authority,
except when otherwise ordered.

84. There shall be an election held on the fourth Thurs-
day in May, eighteen hundred and ninety, and every two
years thereafter, the voting-place in each ward to be fixed
by the aldermen, of which election and location of voting-
places the aldermen shall give at least ten days’ notice
prior to such election. The election in each ward shall

60
be held by three of the qualified voters of the said town,
selected by the judge of the county court of said county,
and conducted in the manner prescribed by the election
laws of this state, at which election the first ward shall
elect two aldermen, the second ward shall elect two alder-
men, and the third ward shall elect three aldermen, all of
whom shall be qualified voters of said town. The alder-
men so elected shall constitute the council of said town.
At their first meeting after their qualification the aldermen
so elected shall choose one of their number as mayor, who
shall exercise the powers and perform the duties given
and required by this act and the general laws of this
state for the government of towns of less than five thou-
sand inhabitants.

§5. Be it further enacted, that the said council shall be
the judge of the election of its own members. Whenever
from any cause a vacancy shall occur in the office of
mayor or aldermen, the same shall be filled by the council
at its next regular meeting.

§6. Be it further enacted, that the said council shall be
vested with and exercise, individually or collectively, all
the powers and authority which can be exercised by jus-
tices of the peace under the charter, by-laws, and ordi-
nances of said town, and under the laws of the state, for
prosecuting and suppressing unlawful assemblies, dis-
turbances, and violent and disorderly conduct within the
corporate limits of the said town. They shall have power
to enforce fines, not exceeding fifty dollars in amount. for
violation of the peace, as may be regulated by ordinance
of said council, and may commit to the jail of said county
of Roanoke until said fines are paid, or compel such per-
son or persons so committed to work on the streets and
public buildings for a term not exceeding sixty days, and
to have exclusive jurisdiction in all cases arising under
the by-laws and ordinances of the said town, and to issue
any and all proper process, whether mesne or final, which
may be necessary to enforce their authority.

§7. Be it further enacted, that for the purpose of carry-
ing into effect the police regulations of said town, the
said town shall be allowed the use of the county jail of
Roanoke county for the safekeeping and confinement of
all persons who shall be sentenced to imprisonment under
the ordinances of the said town.

§8. The said council shall have power to elect a sergeant
for the said town, and to appoint all necesgary police offi-
cers, and also a treasurer and secretary, and prescribe their
compensation; the said treasurer, before he enters upon
the duties of his office, shall execute a bond, with sure-
ties approved by said council, in a penalty double the
amount of the revenue of said town, conditioned for the
faithful performance of his duties. The sergeant, before
entering upon the performance of his office, shall execute
his bond, with security approved by said council, in a pen-
alty double the amount of the revenue of the said town in
the preceding year, conditioned for the faithful perfor-
mance of the duties of his office. During his continuance
in office as sergeant of said town, he shall have within the
corporate limits of said town, and within one mile around
same, the same powers, and perform the same duties,
and receive the same fees, and be liable to the same penal-
ties as aconstable. In collecting the town taxes, the said
sergeant may distrain and sell therefor in like manner as
a treasurer may distrain and sell for state taxes, and shall
have in other respects like powers to enforce the collection
thereof. Should the office of sergeant become vacant by
his removal from the limits of said town, resignation or
otherwise, the said council shall have power to appoint a
sergeant to serve as such for the unexpired term. The
council shall have power to remove any officer enumerated
in this act for malfeasance or misfeasance in office.

§9. Be it further enacted, that the mayor or any two of
said aldermen shall have power to summon a meeting of
said council, which meeting shall be composed of not less
than four members, including the mayor, or in his absence
a mayor pro tempore elected by said aldermen, who may be
present for the transaction of business, each having one
vote, except the mayor, who shall have no vote at any meet-
ing except in case of a tie. The said aldermen, more-
over, shal] keep a complete record of all their proceedings
and accounts in suitable books, and deliver such to their
successors in office; the same shall at all times be open to
the inspection of persons qualified to vote.

§10. Be it further enacted, that the said council shall
also have power and authority to make all necessary pro-
visions to prevent accidents by fire, and to supply the
town with water for all necessary purposes, and to pur-
chase engines, hose, fire-hooks, ladders, and other fixtures
useful for preventing accidents by fire, and to organize fire
companies. The aldermen of said town shall also have
power and authority to negotiate any loan or loans for the
purpose of buying necessary real estate, and for the erect-
ing of public buildings, and for the general improvement
of the said town, so that the amount borrowed shall not
exceed that allowed by law; and shall also have the
authority to issue registered or coupon bonds for said loan
or loans, payable at.not more than thirty years after date
of said bonds, bearing interest at a rate not greater than
six per centum per annum, payable semi-annually. They
shall also have power and authority to establish markete
and regulate the same, to graduate and pave, or in any
other manner improve the streets, walks, and alleys of
said town; to make and maintain sewers; to change,
direct, and protect the water courses in said town; to
prevent and punish by reasonable fines the practice of
firing guns, or in any manner setting fire to powder, of
running horses, and of all else detrimental to the peace
and quiet of said town; to license and regulate shows
and other public exhibitions, and the same to tax to such
extent as they may deem reasonable and expedient; to
prescribe rules for the orderly and regular building of
houses and chimneys; to regulate blacksmiths’ shops and
all other shops considered likely to occasion accidents by
fire, and the erection of stoves and stove-pipes; to regu-
late the erection of privies, stables, and cow-sheds, and
prescribe their location; to regulate butchers’ stalls and
slaughter-houses; to remove and abate nuisances within
the said town at the expense of those who may occasion
them; to prohibit hogs, dogs, and cows from running at
large within the limits of said town; to prevent the exhi-
bition of stud-horses and jackasses in said town, and
generally to pass all by-laws and ordinances not contrary
to the constitution and laws of this state or of the United
States, which the said council may think necessary and
proper for carrying into effect the foregoing powers, or
that may hereafter be vested in them, and for regulating
the police, preserving the peace and good order and govern-
ment of the said town, and to amend or repeal the same
at their pleasure, and to enforce the observance of such
by-laws and ordinances under penalties not exceeding fifty
dollars for one offense, to be recovered, with cost, in the
name of said corporation, before any justice of the peace
of said town, and applied in aid of the taxes imposed upon
said town.

§11. Be it further enacted, that the council of said town
shall appoint annually an assessor, who shall be a quali-
fied voter of said town, and who shall assess the value of
all real and personal property in the corporate limits of
said town, except the public lots, lands, and buildings be-
longing to the county of Roanoke, located in said town of
Salem, which said assessment shall not be higher than the
assessments made on said property for state taxation, and
the same shall form the basis of taxation for said town.
And said council shall have power and authority to levy
and collect annually a tax on the real and personal property
in the corporate limits of said town, except the public lots,
lands, and buildings belonging to the county of Roanoke,
and on such other subjects within the said town as are or
may be taxed by the revenue laws of this state, and on
dogs belonging to persons residing in said town, and for
the privilege of carrying on any regular business, trade or
profession by persons residing without the corporate limits
thereof: provided, that the tax on real estate and personal
property shall not exceed in any one year one dollar on
every hundred dollars value thereof, and that the poll tax
shall not exceed fifty cents on every male person over
twenty-one years of age in any one year; and for the pur-
pose of carrying on any regular trade, business, occupation,
or profession within said town by persons residing with-
out the corporate limits shall not exceed in any one year
the tax imposed by the said council on persons residing
within the corporate limits for carrying on like business,
trade, profession or occupation ; and provided, further, that
the tax to be imposed for any one year on all subjects
other than real estate and personal property shall not ex-
ceed the tax imposed by the state on like subjects.

§12. Be it further enacted, that in order the better to
determine who shall be liable to taxation in the said town
under this act, it is hereby declared that all persons liable
to taxation as hereinbefore provided, and residing in or
in pursuit of any business, trade.or occupation, calling or
profession in said town, as aforesaid, on the first day of
February annually, shall be subject to taxation the cur-
rent year: provided, however, that whenever satisfactory
evidence shall be presented to said council that any per-
son or persons or corporation has invested within the cor-
porate limits of said town the sum of five thousand dollars
or more, for the purpose of employing the said capital
strictly in the business of manufacturing, within the said
corporate limits, any article or articles, the said council
shall, if the manufactories be in actual operation, issue to
said person or persons or corporation who, for the purpose
of this section may be deemed a manufacturer, a license
as such manufacturer, and no corporation or town taxes
shall be assessed on or required to be paid on such license
or on said capital whilst so invested and so employed
within the corporate limits, except as provided in section
fourteenth of this act, during the period of ten years from
the passage of this act.

§13. Be it further enacted, that the said council shall
have power and authority to have the sidewalks, curbing
and footways along any street or alley within said town
of such width_as they may prescribe, properly paved or
otherwise suitably improved and repaired and altered
whenever they may think fit, at the proper cost and ex-
pense of the owners or occupants of the lands or lots along
the front or side of which such footways, sidewalks or other
improvements extend, and to levy and collect for that pur-
pose a special tax on each of such lots or pieces of land
proportioned to the number of feet of the same fronting
on such pavement or other improvements, and to levy and
collect for that purpose a special tax on each of such lots or
pieces of land proportioned to the number of feet of the same
fronting on such pavement or other improvement, which
special tax shall be collected by the sergeant of said town
as other taxes on real estate within the said town are
herein directed to be collected. In all cases where a lessee
or tenant shall pay the expense of any such pavement
along the side or sides of the land or lot by him occupied,
for which land or lot, by contract with his lessor or land-
Jord, he shall be bound to pay rent, the amount of any
such expense paid by him or collected from him, or made
out of his property, shall be a good and valid set-off
against so much of the rent due or accruing to his lessor
or landlord.

§14. Be it further enacted, that all taxes, whether gen-
eral or special, assessed upon any land or lot in said town
under this act, are hereby declared to constitute a lien
upon such land or lot, and if the town sergeant shall not
have been able with due diligence to collect the said taxes
by the first day of November of the year when the same
were assessed, he shall, at the first meeting of the council
thereafter make return upon oath of the taxes so uncol-
lected, and the lands or lots whereon such uncollected
taxes were levied; and thereupon the said council shall
have the same remedy against the said delinquent lots or
lands as this commonwealth now has in similar cases.

815. Be it further enacted, that the said council shall
also have power to lay off and open new streets, cross streets
and alleys of such width and extent as said council may
think fit and convenient, and alter those already laid off
and opened, or such as may hereafter be laid off and
opened, whether within the original or extended limits of
said town.

816. Be it further enacted, that the said town and the
taxable persons and property therein shall be exempt and
free from any poor rates or road taxes, and from contrib-
uting to any county expenses, and the said town shall, at
its own expense, provide for its own poor and keep its
streets in order: provided, however, that the said town of
Salem shall pay to the county of Roanoke, in nine equal
annual payments (the first of which payments shall be
made August first, eighteen hundred and ninety), that
proportion of nine thousand dollars which the value of
the real estate taken in by reason of the extension of the
corporate limits of said town under this act bears to the
value of the whole of the real estate so taken in, and that
of Roanoke county, as ascertained by the assessment of
eighteen hundred and ninety.

§17. Be it further enacted, that for the purpose of main-
taining the police regulations of said town under the
authority of this act, and for no other purpose, the juris-
diction of the corporate authorities thereof shall be, and
the same is hereby, made to extend one mile beyond the
limits of said town.

§18. Be it further enacted, that the by-laws heretofore
passed by the trustees of said town of Salem, and which
have not been repealed, shall be and continue in force
until altered or repealed by the council of said town.

§19. Be it further enacted, that the corporate limits of
the said.town shall be as follows: Beginning at the point
where the corporate line now crosses the Cove road, north
of Salem, thence with the Cove road six hundred feet north-
ward, thence west five degrees south, to a point due north
of a point two hundred feet west of Langhorne’s mill,
thence due south to the river, thence with said river east.
ward to a point due south of the line between the lands of
the Salem improvement company and C. W. Burwell, thence
northward with said line to the Big Lick turnpike, thence
with the said turnpike northwest to the present corporate
line, thence with same to beginning.

§20. Be it further enacted, that the said town shall be
laid off into three wards, which shall be as follows: The
first ward shall begin at a point where the western boun-
dary of the said town crosses Main street, thence with
Main street to Water street, thence with Water street to
the river, thence with the river to the western line of said
town, thence with the same to the beginning. The second
ward shall begin at the point where the western boundary
of said town crosses Main street, thence with Main street
to College street, thence with College street to Clay street,
thence with Clay street to High street, thence with High
street to the northern boundary of said town, thence with
the northern boundary of the said town to the western
boundary of the said town, thence with the western boun-
dary of the said town to the beginning. The third ward
shal] be as follows: Beginning at the intersection of Main
and Water streets, thence with water street to the river,
thence with the river to the eastern boundary of the town
to the Big Lick turnpike, thence with the corporate line to
High street, thence with High street to Clay street, thence
with Clay street. to College street, thence with College
street to Main street, thence with Main street to the be-
ginning. There shall be elected in the firat ward two
councilmen, in the second ward two councilmen, and in
the third ward three councilmen.

§21. Beit further enacted, that the said town shall have
the right to establish, or cause to be established, gas and
electric works for the use of the said town.

§22. Be it further enacted, that all registration of voters
and elections held in the said town shall be as provided
by the constitution and laws of this state.

§23. Be it further enacted, that the extension of the cor-
porate limits of the town of Salem shall not exempt the
property taken into the town by such extension from its
liability to taxation for the payment of a subscription of
two hundred thousand dollars, or any part thereof, made
by the county of Roanoke to the Valley railroad company,
which lands were outside the corporate limits of said town,
and were liable to such taxation at the time said subscrip-
tion was made.

§24. Be it further enacted, that the electors residing in
the corporate limits of the town of Salem, shall not at any
election to be held hereafter for supervisors of Salem
magisterial district, in Roanoke county, have the right to
vote for such supervisor.

§25. Be it further enacted, that the electors residing in
the corporate limits of the town Sf Salem shall not vote
in any election that may hereafter be held to ascertain
whether or not the said county of Roanoke shall make a
subscription to the capital stock of any railroad company
or other corporation, or in any other matter affecting the
revenues of the said county. ,

§26. Be it further enacted, that upon the additional
property taken into the corporate limits of Salem by this
act, taxes for the year eighteen hundred and ninety shall
be assessed and collected by the town of Salem, and not
by the county of Roanoke.

§27. Be it further enacted, that all acts and parts of
acts concerning the town of Salem, in the county of Roa-
noke, or the lands and lots therein, which are in conflict
with or contrary to the provisions of this act, shall be and
the same are hereby repealed.

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