CHAP. 644.—An ACT for working and keeping in repair the roads
in Grayson county.

Approved March 38, 1892.

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia,
That it shall be the duty of the supervisors of the county
of Grayson to take charge of and have kept in order the
public roads in said county; and in order thereto they
shall,as soon as practicable after thigact shall take effect,
proceed to lay off all the public roads in said county in
road precincts, properly designating each precinct, and
apportion the hands thereon according to equity and the
convenience of the hands.

2. The said board of supervisors shall] annually levy a
tax not exceeding twenty cents on the hundred dollars, on
all the taxable value in said county upon which state
taxes are levied, for the purpose of keeping in order the
public roads in the county; and the fund arising from
said tax shall be set apart for that purpose, and no other,
and shall be collected as other county taxes are collected ;
and the funds of each magisterial district shall be kept
separate by the treasurer, and shall be appropriated and
paid out under the order of the said board of supervisors.

8. After first advertising the same for at least thirty
days, it shall be the duty of the said board of supervisors
to let to contract to the lowest bidder all the road precincts
in the county—separately or otherwise, as they may deem
best (said supervisors may, however, reject any bid which
-may to them appear unreasonable )—during the month of
May every two years, the contract year to be from first of
June. Each contractor shall be entitled to the labor of
all the hands assigned to work on the road which he may
contract to keep in order, in addition to the sum of money
specified in his contract, and all of said hands shall, upon
notification by the contractor, work on their road precincts
under his direction and management the number of days
provided for in this act, eight hours of labor taken and
held to be a day’s work.

4. All able-bodied male persons between the ages of six-
teen and sixty years, except ministers of the gospel and
those exempt by law, shall be required to work the road
two days in each year on old roads, and two days on new
roads, but no hand or company of hands shall be carried
more than a distance of four miles to work on any new
road.

5. If any person whose duty it is under the law to work
on the public roads shall fail to do so when required by
the contractor, either in person or by a satisfactory sub-
stitute, with proper tools, it shall be the duty, if of full
age—if not, then of his parents or guardian—within thirty
days after such failure, to pay to such contractor a fine of
seventy-five cents for each day’s failure; and if he or his
parents or guardian shall fail to do so within the time
prescribed, then the contractor may make out a ticket,
adding thereto twenty-five cents, and place the same in
the hands of a constable or sheriff of the county for col-
lection, who shall receive and collect the same by distress
or otherwise as taxes or county levies are collested, and pay
over to the contractor the amount of all so collected, reserv-
ing the twenty-five cents added to such fines as his fee for
collecting the same.

6. If such constable or sheriff shall fail to pay over the
amount of any such tickets for sixty days after they shall
have been placed in his hands, or return the same as in-
solvent to the contractor, he and his sureties shall be lia-
ble to euch contractor on his official bond for the amount
of such fines, to be recovered by motion before a justice
of the peace or the county court of the county. Nothing
herein shall be so construed as to prevent any contractor
from reissuing any ticket which may have been returned
insolvent, or from collecting the same at any time within
five years from such return.

7. The board of supervisors shall, after proper notice of
the time and place, proceed during the month of May to
let to contract, at the lowest bid, all the road precincts of
the county, to be kept in order according to law. Each
contractor shall execute bond with good security in double
the amount of his contract, payable to the board of super-
visors, for the use of the county, conditioned faithfully to
execute the same, which bond shall be returned and filed
in the county court clerk’s office for safe-keeping. It shall
be the duty of the supervisors each to see that the work is
done according to.contract in their respective districts.

8. It shall be the duty of the commissioners of the rev-
enue of each district in said county to extend the road
levy on their books without any additional compensation.

9. The opening of all new roads or changes in old roads
and the erection of all bridges shall be done by contract
made with the supervisors in the manner and under the
same regulations that contracts for working the roads in
said county are made, except that any one of said board
may let to contract any new road or bridge to be built in
his district, and the contract shall, after having been ap-
proved by the board of supervisors, be certified to the
county court for its approval, and shall not be binding on
the county until approved by said court.

10. The members of the board of supervisors shall each
receive the sum of fifteen dollars annually for the addi-
tional duties imposed upon them.

11. It shall be the duty of each supervisor to see that
the roads in their respective districts are kept in legal re-
pair, and to make out a list of all contractors who have
failed to perform faithfully their contracts for keeping the
roads in repair, at least twice a year, and deliver the same
to the commonwealth’s attorney for the county.

12. When the commonwealth’s attorney shal! have re-
ceived notice of the default of any contractor, as provided
in section eleven, he shall, at the next term of the county
court thereafter, submit a motion for a rule against the
contractor to show cause why his bond should not be for-
feited. Upon the return of the rule executed, and after
hearing any evidence introduced by either party, the court
may make such order as may seem just and right.

13. All acts and parts of acts in conflict with this act
are hereby repealed.

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