Chap. 121.—An ACT,to work and keepin repair the roads in the
county of Lancaster.

Approved February 16, 1886.

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia, That
for the magisterial districts there is hereby created a board on
public roads, which shall consist of the supervisor, a justice of
the peace, and a commissioner of roads, who shall have exclu-
sive control of said roads, and all bridges, ferries, and so forth,
and all taxes levied for working and keeping said roads,
bridges, ferries, and so forth, and of all expenditures, as here-
inafter provided.

2. That at the May election, eighteen hundred and eighty-
six, and every two years thereafter, there shall be elected in
each magisterial district, one commissioner of roads, whose
office shall be for two years, beginning on the first day of July
next succeeding his election. Each commissioner of roads so
elected shall qualify at the time and in the manner prescribed
by law for qualification of magisterial district officers, and
shall, at the time of his qualification, or before he enters upon
the discharge of his duties, give bond, with good security, in
the sum of three hundred dollars.

3. The justice of the peace in said magisterial district shall
constitute one of: said board.
4. The supervisor of said district shall constitute one of said
board. :

5. That the commissioner of roads shall have charge of all
the roads in his magisterial district; he shall see that the roads
are kept in order, bridges repaired, trees removed, ditches dug,
and he shall frequently—not less than four times a year, Janu-
ary, April, July and November,—examine said roads, and see
that they are kept in good repair by the overseer in said dis-
trict. He shall keep accurate accounts of all moneys received
and expended by him in his jurisdiction, and shall exhibit the
books and accounts and vouchers to the board of commission-
ers at their meeting,in June and December, during which
months the board must meet.

6. The board of commissioners, before the twentieth of July,
eighteen hundred and eighty-six, must appoint an overseer of
roads for each sub-district, whose term of office shall be for
two years. He shall reside in said sub-district; he shall re-
ceive two dollars per day for each day so employed; he shall
keep an accurate account of all money expended and all labor
performed. The commissioner of roads shall receive two dol-
lars a day for all days in which he was actually employed in
the discharge of his duties, to be paid by the treasurer as
hereinafter prescribed for payment of both commissioner and
overseer: provided, that the time so employed shall not ex-
ceed twenty-five days in any one year.

7. Any Person who has served as overseer may, at the expi-
ration of his term for which he was appointed, give up his
office, on producing a certificate to the said board from the
commissioner of the roads, that his roads are in good order,
and on paying over to said board any funds in his hands, and
he shall not within four years be appointed overseer.

8. That the boards of commissioners for the several districts
shall let to contract, at public letting, to the lowest and best
qualified bidder, for a term of three years, all roads in said
county. The time and place of said letting of roads shall: be
posted at the door of the court-house, and at the post-offices
of said districts by hand-bills, thirty days previous to said let-
ting. The terms of said contracts shall be such as will open
new roads, keep in repair and clear of obstructions and mak-
ing safe all travel on all public roads; keeping bridges, ravines,
and so forth, in first-class order; placing rails on all bridges.
All roadways shall be thirty feet in width, and in all cases the
roadbed shall be raised in centre and slope off to ditches om
each side of sufficient depth to carry off water, the said ditches
at all time to be kept open: provided, that in no case shall the
contract price exceed the estimate of the commissioner and
overseer of the road. | ,

9. That the clerk of the county shall keep a road docket, in
which all proceedings in regard to roads in the county court
shall be kept of record.

10. That suitable sign-posts shall be erected, stating dis-
tances, and so forth, to nearest prominent places; and that the
commissioner and overseer shall see that the posts are placed
at all places where roads meet or cross.

11. That the boards of commissioners of roads for their re-
spective districts shall, annually, in the month of July, levy a
road-tax, not less than five nor more than fifteen cents on every
hundred dollars worth of property, real and personal, within
their districts, and shall immediately certify the same to the
commissioner of revenue, who shall extend the taxes on the
copies of his books, to be delivered to the clerk of the county
court, and to the treasurer of the county: provided, however,
that all bridges, and so forth, shall be provided for out of the
county levy by the supervisors, if they exceed fifty dollars.

12. That the treasurer of said county shall receive the road-
taxes at the same place and times as he receives the state and
county taxes, prior to the first day of December of each year.
Any person failing to pay his road-taxes to the treasurer by
the first day of December, shall incur a penalty of five per
centum, to be collected in the same manner as county and state
taxes. The county treasurer shall be entitled to same compen-
sation for collection of road-taxes as that provided for other
taxes. He shall settle his account with the commissioners of
the roads for road-taxes collected by him, on or before the fif-
teenth of June. He shall pay all warrants from said road com-
missioners as far as said road-taxes cover said warrants. Cer-
tified accounts (signed by overseer and commissioner) for work
done or teams used, shall be received by the treasurer in lieu
of money on road taxes, said treasurer to be allowed his regu-
lar compensation on same.

13. That magisterial boards shall elect a clerk, who shall be
allowed two dollars for each meeting of the board.

14. That all commissioners and overseers and contractors
who wilfully fail to carry out in full the obligations of said
offices and contracts, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor,
and upon conviction thereof be fined not less than five, nor
more than one hundred dollars.

15. That all previous and existing laws for working the
roads in Lancaster county are hereby repealed.

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