Chap. 88.—An ACT to amend and re-enact the Sth section of the act
to incorporate the Medical College of Virginia, passed February 25,
1854,

Approved January 22, 1879.

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia, That
the fifth section of the act to incorporate the Medical College
of Virginia, passed February twenty-fifth, eighteen hundred
and fifty-four, be amended and re-enacted so as to read as
follows:

§ 5. The faculty shall, once a year or oftener, examine can.
didates for degrees. and may confer the degree of “doctor of
medicine” upon such candidates as, having attended two full
courses of medical lectures, one of them at least at their col-
lege, and having been thoronghly examined hy them, and com-
plied with such other regulations as may be adopted by the facul-
ty, shall be deemed by them worthy of that distinction. And also
may con'er the degree of “graduate in pharmacy” upon such
candidates as. having atfended two fufl courses of lectures on
inateria inedica. therapeutics, and on chemistry and pharmacy,
and having been thoroughly examined by them and comphed
with such other regulations as may be adopted by the faculty,
shall be deemed worthy of that distinction.

This act shail be in foree from its passage,

CHAP. 88.—An ACF for the protection of sheep in the county of
~ Spotsylvania.

Approved February 8, 1879.

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia, That
it shal] be the duty of the commissioner of the revenue for the
county of Spotsylvania to take annually, at the time of listing
the taxablé property therein, a list of all dogs over three
months old, showing whether male or female, with the name of
the owner or person tin whose possession the same are found.
The commisstoner shall require the owner or householder or
head of the family with whom, or on whose lot or plantation
any dog or dogs may be found, to make oath or affirmation as
to the number of dogs such person may own or haye, or as may
be kept on his or her lot, plantation, or premises, whether
owned by him or her or not, and an accurate list of dogs, with
the tax imposed thereon, as hereinafter provided, shall be
returned to thd clerk’s office, and a copy of said list to the
county treasurer, at the time when said commissioners return
their lists of taxable property. Any commissioner failing
herein shall be subject to the same fines, penalties, and for-
feitures which he would incur under existing laws for neglect
of any of his duties in listing and returning lists of taxable
property.

2. Every dog kept or staying about any house ghall be
deemed sufficient evidence of ownership to authorize the com-
missioner to return the person occupying said house as the
owner of such dog; and every dog not returned, or if returned
and the tax herein authorized be not paid, he shall be deemed
to have no owner, and may be lawfully killed by any person
seeing him run at large.

3. On complaint of any person to a justice of the peace that
there is a dog kept or staying about the premises of any person
that is not listed, but which onght to have been listed, the jus-
tice shall summon such person and the commissioner of the
revenue to appear before him, and shall hear and decide the
case, and if the complaint be found to be true, the commis-
sioner shajl thereupon list said dog; and if the owner shall
fail to pay the tax imposed under the provisions of this act,
and the costs of such complaint, within ten days thereafter, he
or she shall be fined one dollar and costs.

4, In any case where the owner of a dog is delinquent in the
payment of the tax on the same, or any fine arising from a
non-compliance with this act, it shali be the duty of the con
stable of the district to kill said dog, for which he shall receive
a fee of fifty cents out of the fund hereinafter provided. And
to that end the constable shall obtain a list of all delinquents
in his district from the county treasurer, and shall in thirty
days discharge Ins duty in this behalf; and on failure so to
do when practicable, he shall be fined by any justice of the
peace in his district fifty cents for each dog he so fails to kill,
and be responsible for any damage such dog may do in conse-
quence of his neglect. .

5. ‘The supervisors of said county shall annually impose and
assess «a tax, in the nature of a license tax, of not less than
twenty-five cents nor more than one dollar on every such dog
in said county; and they are empowered to classify said dogs,
according to sex, for tie purposcs of taxation.

6. The county treasurer shail collect and account for said
taxes, sO lmposed and assessed, as county fevies are by law
directed to be collected and accounted for: and he shall keep
a separate account for the fund arising from the said tax and
the fines and penalties resulting from the execution of this act.
The said fund shall be appropriated, first, to the paymént of
the fees, charges, and expenses incurred in enforcing this aet ;
second, for compensating the own urs of sheep in the said county
for any loss they may sustain b¥ the killing or crippling their
sheep by dogs; thirdly, for paying such premiums as are here-
inafter provided for, and the residue, if any, to be placed to
the credit of the fund for the next ensuing year.

7. It shall be the duty of any justice of the peace of said
county, wlen any owner of sheep, or his agent, shail make a
declaration before him that his sheep have been killed or se-
verely wounded by dogs—not lus own—to hear evidence as to
the damages thereby sustained, the said damages not to exceed
the amount at which said sheep so killed er wounded were as-
sessed for taxation, and on proof of said damages, deliver a
certificate of the number of sheep killed and wounded, and
amount of damages thereby caused to the said owner or his
agent, who may present the same to the board of supervisors
at their next meeting.

&. The board of subervisors may allow out of the fund
created by this act a premiuin of not more than one dollar for
the scalp of a grey fox; not more than one dollar and fifty
cents for the scalp of a red fox; and not more than two dollars
for the scalp of a wild cat; upon satisfactory evidence to the
said board that the same were caught and killed within the
limits of said county. They shall order the payment in whole
or part of the claims to damages for sheep according to the
amount of funds collected under this act, and the equitable
right of each application; and they shall order the payment of
all fees, charges and expenses in enforcing this act, and all
such payments shall be on the warrant of said board, signed
by the chairman and certified by the clerk thereof.

9. When the owner of any dog has done all that is required
of him by this act, he shall have a right of action in trespass
before a justice or in the circuit court of the county, as the
amount of damages claimed may determine the jurisdiction,
against any person who shall kill or injure said dog; but any
such person may show in defence of such suit, that such dog,
when killed or injured, was a sheep-killing dog, or was in the
act of committing serious injury to person or property without
«cause. But nothing in this act shall be constrned as repealing
sections five and six, chapter one hundred and two of the Code
of eighteen hundred and seventy-three.

10. The fees of officers employed in the execution of this
act shall be similar to those received for like services in other
cases ; and where none are provided by law, the board of su-
pervisors shall make such compensation as may be right, all of
which shall be paid out of the aforesaid fund.

11. The treasurer shall annually make a settlement with the
board of supervisors of his management of this fund, which
settlement shall be recorded by the clerk.

12. In order that the question of the adoption or rejection of
this law be submitted to the people of the county, it shall be
the duty of the several officers conducting the election to be
held in the month of May next in said county for officers to be
elected at that time, to prepare a separate box for each voting
precinct, in which shall be deposited the ballots of the then
qualified voters who shall desfre to vote on the question. The
said ballots shall be, respectively, “ For the law for the protec-
tion of sheep in the county of Spotsylvania;” “Against the
law for the protection of sheep in the county of Spotsy Ivania.”
The manner of receiving and canvassing the ballots cast at
said election for the law, and the making 1 returns and abstracts
of the result thereof, shall conform in all respects to the regu-
lations prescribed by the general election laws of the state.
‘The persons conducting the election at the various places of
voting, shall certify the number of votes cast for the law and
the number of votes cast against it, to the clerk of the county
court of said county, who shall lay the same before the county
court at its first term thercafter; and if it shall appear from
the returns and abstracts of votes so returned that a majority
of the qualified voters voting are in favor of the law, it shall
be the duty of the judge of the county court to declare the
said law in force.

13. The town of Fredericksburg is excepted from the pro-
visions of this act.

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