Chap. 332.—An ACT to —v i boundaries of the city of Nor-
olk.

Approved Februnry 22, 1890.

1. Beit enacted by the general assembly of Virginia,
That the territory hereinafter mentioned shall constitute
a portion of the city of Norfolk, in addition to its present
territory—to wit: Beginning at the point at which the
present western boundary line of the city of Norfolk in-
tersects the port-warden’s line between the city of Norfolk
and the village of Atlantic City, and running northeast-
wardly along the present line of the city and the middle
of Smith’s creek to Armistead bridge, on James street,
Norfolk; thence northeastwardly up the north fork of the
same creek, which is on the western side of the Norfolk
colored cemetery, to the head of that fork ; thence continu-
ing in a straight line northeastwardly to the southern line
of the right of way of the Norfolk terminal railroad com-
pany; thence in a westerly course along the south side of
said right of way to Clarke street, as Jaid down on the plat
of the land of the Norfolk terminal company at Lambert’s
Point; thence along the middle of said street to Kimball
street; thence along the middle of Kimball street to Hous-
ton street; thence along the middle of the last mentioned
street to low water mark of the Elizabeth river; thence
along said low water mark tothe mouth of Tarrant’s creek ;
thence to the port-warden’s line on the Elizabeth river;
thence along port-warden’s line to place of beginning.

2. The annexed territory shall be known as the sixth or
Atlantic City ward, and shall be divided into two districts
by a line beginning at the point of the port-warden’s line
nearest the mouth of Tarrant’s creek, and running thence
northeasterly along the channel of said creek to the Arm-
istead’s bridge road; thence easterly along the middle of
said road to Colley or Fort Norfolk road; thence northerly
along middle of said last mentioned road to the northern
boundary of said annexed territory; and the part thereof
lying east of said division line shall be known as district
number one, and that part thereof lying west of said line
as district number two. Said ward shall be entitled to
three representatives in the city council, two of whom shall
be residents of district number one, and one of district
number two; but all of said councilmen shall be elected
by the votes of the whole ward just as if the same had not
been divided into districts. This ward and the remaining
wards of the city shall remain as at present bounded until
a reapportionment of the city of Norfolk shall be made by
the legislature.

3. The council of the city of Norfolk shall designate
one or more voting precincts in the above, ward, and the
registration of the qualified voters thereof shall take place
at the same time and in like manner as at present provided
by law in said city.

4. The three councilmen hereinbefore provided for shall
be as follows: W. H. Face, W. T. Capps, and S. D. Hope,
for term commencing upon the passage of this act and
expiring June thirtieth, eighteen hundred and ninety, and
their successors shal] be elected biennially thereafter in
like manner as other councilmen of the city are elected.

5. The inbabitants of the territory hereby annexed, and
the owners of Jands lying therein, shall not be liable on
their real and personal property within the said ward for
the period of fifteen years, from the passage of this act for
any part of the present debt of the city of Norfolk, nor for
the interest thereon; nor shall any tax be levied therefor,
nor shall they have to pay an ad valorem tax to the city
exceeding the rate levied by the county of Norfolk for gen-
eral purposes for the year eighteen hundred and eighty-
six, nameiy, seventy cents on the one hundred dollars,
unless the city shall, upon petition of a majority of the
property owners on any street in the newly acquired terri-
tory, approved by the local improvement board thereof,
open, lay off, grade, gutter, curb or pave, sewer, drain or
otherwise improve such streets or make any other improve-
ment of a permanent character not applicable to the entire
ward, in which case the cost thereof shall be assessed
against the owners of real property which is benefited by
such improvements as is at present provided by Jaw in
said city, and any part of the cost of same that the city
may agree to pay shall be paid as is hereinafter provided for
by section twelve of this act. The city shall, upon a peti-
tion of a majority of the property owners on any street in
the newly-acquired ¢erritory, extend a water main and
supply water to the citizens along its line; then in addi-
tion to the ad valorem tax for general purposes, payable
to the city of Norfolk as aforesaid, the same rate of special
water tax shall be assessed on the real and personal pro-
perty along the lineof such street as may be assessed upon
property within the present limits of the city of Norfolk
during the year for which such assessment shal! be levied ;
and the same charges shall be made upon those property
owners who shall connect their property with the said
water main as shall be made upon other property owners
in the city of Norfolk; and the cost of laying such water
main may he paid by the city, as may be ordered by the
councils on the recommendation of the local board of
improvement of the ward in which such water main may
be laid, in whole or in part, out of the tax collected for
ge neral purposes from such ward; and any balance not so
paid shall be paid from the proceeds of bonds to be issued
by the city, in accordance with section twelve of this act,
and except further, that the city shal] assess the same
licenses for doing business of all kinds within the newly
acquired territory as shall be assessed within the present
limitsof the city, nothing in this act contained shall be
construed as allowing any portion of the cost of any im-
provement of a permanent character not applicable to the
entire ward in one of said districts to be paid out of the
taxes collected from it, to be assessed against any of the
persons or property in the other district.

6. All taxes levied and collected upon personal property
within the limits hereby added to the city of Norfolk,
excepting water tax and licenses, shall! be collected by the
city collector, who shall, after deducting his fees, pay the
same into the treasury of the.city, to be set apart as a
special fund for the improvement, protection of schools,
police, and every other expenditure of the said ward from
which it is collected, to be appropriated by the councils on
the recommendation of a local board of improvement in
the ward, which shall be composed of five residents of
said ward, to be elected by the legally qualified voters of
said ward on the fourth Thursday in May, eighteen hun-
dred and ninety, to hold office for the term of two years
from and after the first day of July succeeding their elec-
tion and until their successors are elected and qualified,
and biennially thereafter, except that the first board after
the passage of this act shall be elected by the councils,
upon the nomination of the members thereof from said
ward, as soon as convenient after. the passage of this act,
to hold office until the first day of July, eighteen hundred
and ninety, or until their successors are elected and quali-
fied, and all bills for money spent within said ward shall
be certified by the said local board of improvement before
being ordered to be paid by the councils. All works of
internal improvement within the newly annexed territory
shall be under the supervision of the board of street,
sewer, and drain commissioners, as provided by law with-
in the present limits of the city. It shall not be lawful
for the councils during the beforementioned period of fif-
teen years, to expend more money in the ward hereby
added to the city of Norfulk than shall be collected during
the year for general purposes, as hereinbefore provided
from said ward, unless the same be an unexpended bal-
ance collected during some previous year, except as pro-
vided by section fifth for special local improvement.

7. The water tax collected, as hereinbefore provided,
shall be paid into the treasury of the water department
and the licenses collected skall be covered into the city
treasury towards the payment of salaries of the general
officers of the city.

8. For the period of fifteen years from the date of this
act the ordinance entitled ‘“ wooden houses,” chapter nine-
teen, page seventy-three, city ordinances of eighteen hun-
dred and eighty-five, and sections five, eleven, twenty-
three, and twenty-five of the ordinances entitled “nui-
sances” shall not be operative within the newly acquired
territory, and the ordinance entitled ‘ paving,” page one
hundred and twelve, shall not be operative on any street
within said territory already opened and having houses
erected along the line thereof, unless so ordered by a ma-
jority of the votes cast in any election in said ward; but
any of the said ordinances, or parts thereof, may be sub-
mitted to the votes of the people at any regular election
by the councils upon the recommendation of the local
board of improvement, thirty days’ notice thereof being
published prior to such election.

9. It shall be lawful for the sheriff and other collectors
of the county of Norfolk to collect and make distress for
any public dues or officers’ fees which shall remain unpaid
by the inhabitants embraced within the limits of the ex-
tension of the city of Norfolk at the time when this act
shall commence and be in force, and they shall be account-
able for the same in Jike manner as if this act had never
passed. The taxes for the year eighteen hundred and
eighty-nine shall be considered due and payable to Nor-
folk county.

10. The three councilmen above named from the an-
nexed territory shall be divided by the councils in joint
session at their first meeting after the passage of this act,
and one of them shall be appointed to the select council,
making a total of thirteen members in that body; and
the other two members shall be apportioned to the com-
mon council, making a total of twenty-three members in
that body.

11. The councils shall, at their first meeting after this
act. goes into effect, elect two magistrates and two school
trustees from said ward, who shal] serve for a term ending
June thirtieth, eighteen hundred and ninety, or until their
successors are duly elected and qualified; and the coun-
cils shall thereafter elect two magistrates from said ward
at the same time and in the same manner as from other
wards of the city. Said magistrates shall be residents of
and have their offices in said ward. Two school trustees
shall be elected by the duly qualified voters of said ward
at the election held on the fourth Thursday in May, eigh-
teen hundred and ninety, to hold office for two years from
and after July first, eighteen hundred and njnety, and
until their successors are elected and qualified; and there-
after there shall he elected by the duly qualified voters of
said ward two school trustees at the times and for the
terms now provided by the charter of the city as to the
ward thereof.

12. It shall not be lawful for the city of Norfolk to
issue bonds predicated upon or taking into account the
assessed value of real and personal property embraced
within the newly acquired territory until the expiration
of fifteen years from the passage of this act, unless the
same shall be issued by the said city to pay for any local
improvements of a permanent character made in accord-
ance with section five of this act, in which case bonds
may be issued by the councils of the said city for the city
of Norfolk, for the amount necessary to pay for such im-
provement, and the proceeds of said bonds shall be ex-
pended in the manner provided by section six of this ac-
for the expenditure of the taxes collected for general pur-
poses. An account of bonds issued under this section
shall be kept by the board of sinking fund commissioners
of said city, and also by the city treasurer. The amount
necessary to pay the interest.on such bonds shall be an-—
nually reserved by the city treasurer out of the taxes col-
lected by the said city for general purposes from the one of
said districts in which such improvements shall be made,
to pay the interest on said bonds as it becomes due and
payable.

13. The city of Norfolk shall have power to construct
and maintain such free bridges across Smith creek as it
may deem expedient, except that said city shall not con-
struct or maintain a free'bridge from the end of York street
to Atlantic City, unless the bridge of the Atlantic bridge
company is purchased by the city at a price fixed by a
board of three appraisers, one of whom shal! be selected by
the Atlantic bridge company, one by the councils of the
city of Norfolk, and the third by the two thus chosen,
or unless the Atlantic bridge company shall fail or refuse
to selectan appraiser upon the application of the council of
city of Norfolk,or shall fail or refuse to sell the said bridge to
the city at the price fixed by the said board,in either of which
events the city shall have authority to condemn the said
bridge of the Atlantic bridge company by proper proceed-
ings for that purpose; and the cost of purchasing or con-
demning the same, as the case may be, as well as the cost
of maintaining the same after it is purchased or con-
demned, and the cost of constructing and maintaining
such free bridges as said city may construct and maintain
under this section, shall be paid in equal proportions by
said Atlantic City ward and the city of Norfolk.

14. That all money collected by the treasurer of the
county of Norfolk from said annexed territory for the
year eighteen hundred and eighty-nine for public
school purposes shall be applied to the public schools
of said annexed district until the thirty-first day of
July, eighteen hundred and ninety, just as if this act
had not been passed; and all school and other public
buildings within said annexed territory, and the lots of
land on which they stand, shall become and be the
property of the city of Norfolk, for the use of said
Atlantic City ward, except that before the present
school-house for colored children within said territory
and the lot whereon it stands shall become the property
of the city of Norfolk, the said city shall pay to Nor-
folk county, out of the taxes collected from said an-
nexed territory, one-half of the value of said school-
house and lot, to be ascertained by three appraisers,
one to be appointed by the school board of Tanner’s
creek district of said county, one by the local board of
improvement of Atlantic City ward, and the third by
the two thus appointed; and such payments therefo
shall be made within two years from and after the pas
sage of this act.

15. That none of the councilmen from the proposed
annexed territory shall, until the expiration of fifteen
years from the passage of this act, have the privilege
of voting on any question in either branch of the coun-
cils or in joint session of the same which relates to the
raising of revenue, nor vote on any proposition for the
expenditure of money for any purpose except such as
may have been received from taxes collected from said
annexed territory.

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

CHAP. 333 —An ACT to amend and re-enact an act entitled an
act to incorporate the town of Banister, inthe county of Halifax,
approved May 16, 1887, and to change the name of said town to

ouston.

Approved February 22, 1890.

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia,
That an act to incorporate the town of Banister, in the
county of Halifax, approved May sixteenth, eighteen hun-
dred and eighty-seven, be amended and re-enacted so as to
read as follows: |

2. That the name of the town of Banister, in the
county of Halifax, incorporated by an act of the general
assembly, approved May sixteenth, eighteen hundred and
eighty-seven, be, and the same is hereby, changed to Hous-
ton, and shall by that name continue, and the mayor and
councilmen now in office, and their successors in office,
shall continue to be a body politic and corporate by the
name and style of the town of Houston; and by that name
and style shall have perpetual succession, with the power
to sue and be sued, plead and be impleaded, in any of the
courts of the commonwealth, and with authority to pur-
chase, receive and hold lands, tenements, goods and chat-
tels, either in fee simple or any less estate therein, and
the same to lease, give, grant, and assign or sell; and shall
have and exercise, in addition to the rights and powers
that belonged to the town of Banister as well as those
granted by this act, all the rights, powers and privileges
conferred upon towns by chapter forty-four of the code of
Virginia, of eighteen hundred and eighty-seven, and be
subject to and governed by the provisions of said chapter
applicable to towns, and al] laws which may be hereafter
enacted by the general assembly for towns, so far as the
same are not in conflict with this act.
3. The boundaries of the said town shall be as follows:

Beginning at.a pine in the stable lot on the lands of R.
H. Edmondson’s estate; thence north twenty-six and one-
eighth degrees, east twenty-seven poles to a red oak in the
Banister Hill colored Baptist church lot; thence north
thirty-two and one-eighth degrees, east seventy-two poles
to a pine; thence north thirty-seven and three-fourths
degrees, east fifty-three poles to a cedar at the corner;
thence across the bridge road north seventy-one and three-
fourths degrees, west twenty-six poles to a pear tree;
thence south sixty-six and one-fourth degrees, west fifty-
eight poles to a cherry tree; thence north seventy-three
and one-fourth degrees, west forty-two poles to a white
oak; thence south twenty-three degrees, west twenty-eight
poles to a rock; thence north seventy-three and three-
fourths degrees, west seventy-one poles to the northwest
corner of Wi!lingham’s lot; thence south forty-seven and
three-fourths degrees, west thirty-six and one-half poles
to a pine in the woods; thence south fifty-one and one-
fourth degrees, west forty-eight poles to pointers; thence
south sixty-three and three-fourths degrees, west twenty-
four poles to N, T. Green’s &table; thence south ten and
one-half degrees, west thirteen poles to a cedar; thence
south sixty-four degrees, east one hundred and seventy-
two poles to a bunch of locusts on Academy branch;
thence down the branch as it meanders south thirty-seven
degrees, east thirty-three and one-fourth poles, south forty-
two and one-half degrees, east twenty-six poles, south
fifty-one degrees, east eight and three-fourths poles to the
lower line of the right of way of the Lynchburg and Dur-
ham railroad where it crosses the branch; thence along
the lower line of the right of way of the said railroad to
its crossing of the branch opposite the lower or second
culvert pipe running into the ice-pond on the lands of R.
H. Edmondson’s estate one hundred and fifty-three poles;
thence from the lower line of said right of way opposite
said culvert pipe, north thirteen and three-fourths degrees,
west one hundred and six and one-half poles to the begin-
ning.
4. There shall be elected on the fourth Thursday in May,
eighteen hundred and ninety, and every two years there-
after, one elector of the said town, who shall be denomi-
nated the mayor, and six electors, who shall be denomi-
nated the councilmen of said town, who shall qualify by
taking the oaths prescribed by law before, and enter upon
the duties of their offices on the first day of July next
succeeding their election, and shall hold said offices for
the term of two years and thereafter until their successors
are elected and qualified, unless sooner removed.

5. The mayor and said councilmen shall together con-

70 .
stitute the council of said town; and in the:council so
composed (four of whom shall constitute a quorum for the
transaction of business) shall be vested the’ corporate
powers of the said town.

6. The council shall, at its regular meeting in July,
eighteen hundred and ninety, and every two years there-
after, appoint a sergeant, clerk, assessor, and treasurer,
and may appoint policemen and such other officers and
agents for the proper conduct and business of the town as
they may deem necessary, prescribe their duties, fix their
compensation, and require and take from them such bonds,
with good security, and in such penalty as they may deem
proper, with condition for the faithful discharge of the
duties of their offices: provided, that if such appoint-
ments are not made at the regular meeting in July, then
the same may be made at any subsequent‘ meeting. The
officers so appointed shall hold their respective offices for
the term of two years, unless sooner removed, and there-
after until their successors are appointed and qualified.
The same person may, in the discretion of the council,
be appointed to, and hold at the same time, more than
one of said offices. The sergeant of said town shall, in
addition to the duties that may be prescribed by the coun-
cil, have the same powers and discharge the same duties
as constables, within the corporate limits thereof, and to
the distance of one mile beyond the same.

7. The council shall have, subject to the provisions of
this act and of chapter forty-four of the code of Virginia
of eighteen hundred and eighty-seven, applicable to towns,
the control and management of the fiscal and municipal
affairs of the town, and of all property, real and personal,
belonging to it, and may make such ordinances, orders,
and by-laws, and regulations, as they may deem necessary
to enforce and carry out the powers vested in said coun-
cil; and in addition thereto, the following powers, which
are hereby vested in them:

First. To secure the inhabitants from contagious, infec-
tious or other dangerous diseases.

Second. To regulate the building of stables, privies and
hog pens; to require and compel the abatement and removal
of all nuisances or anything which, in the opinion of a ma-
jority of the council, or in the opinion of the mayor under
an ordinance vesting in him such discretion, is a nuisance
within the said town, at the expense of the person causing
the same, or the owner or owners of the ground whereon
the same may be, the collection of which said expense may
be enforced in the same manner as fines due said town;
to provide for the drainage of lots by proper drains or
ditches; to prevent or regulate slaughter-houses and soap-
factories within the said town, or the exercise of any dan-
gerous, offensive or unhealthy business, trade or employ-
ment therein.
Third. To prevent hogs, dogs, cows or other animals
from running at large in the town, and may subject the
same and the owners thereof to such levies, taxes and reg-
ulations as they may think proper.

Fourth. To establish and maintain a fire department i in
the said town, and provide for the regulation of the same,
and to compel the residents of the town to aid and assist
the fire department when necessary. They shall have
power to establish fire limits in the said town, within
which no building shall be erected without the consent of
the council, unless the outer walls thereof be of brick, stone
or some other incombustible material.

Fifth. To prevent the riding or driving of horses or other
animals af an improper speed; to prevent the throwing of
stones, playing marbles or the engaging in any employ-
ment or sports on the streets, sidewalks or public alleys
and grounds; to prohibit and punish the abuse or cruel
treatment of horses or other animals in: the said town;
and to prohibit and punish the tying of horses or other
animals to any fence, pailings or other objects on or along
the streets and public ways in‘said town.

Sixth. To restrain and punish drunkards, vagrants, and
street beggars; to prevent vice and immorality; to pre-
serve public peace and good order; to ‘prevent and quell
riots, disturbances, and disorderly "assemblages ; to sup-
press houses of il]-fame and gambling-houses; to prevent
and punish lewd, indecent, and disorderly conduct or ex-
hibitions in the said town, and expel therefrom persons
guilty of such conduct who have not resided therein as
much as one year.

Seventh. To prevent any cow, horse, hog, or other
animal from injuring or trespassing upon any public
square or grounds within the corporate limits of the said
town, or grazing thereon, whether the same belong to the
state, town, or county, and from injuring or destroying
any tree growing in such square or grounds.

8. Where, by the provisions of law, the council have
authorify to pass ordinances on any subject, they may
prescribe punishment by fine or imprisonment, or both,
for all violations thereof: provided, that in no case shall
the fine exceed fifty dollars or the imprisonment sixty
days. Fines may be recovered, with costs, upon warrants
issued in the name of the town of Houston, before the
mayor or any councilman of said town. Whenever judg-
ment is rendeted against any person for a fine, the officer
trying the offender may require immediate payment
thereof, and in default of such payment may commit the
party so in default to jail until such fine and costs be paid,
or may compel him to work‘out such fine and costs on the
public streets or ways or other improvements of said town,
upon such terms as the council may by ordinance pre-
scribe. All fines for the violation of the ordinances of
said town shall be paid into the treasury thereof and be
appropriated as the council may determine.

9. Until a jail or prison-house is provided for said town
by the council] thereof they shall have the use of the jail
of Halifax county for the safe-keeping and confinement of
all persons sentenced to imprisonment under the ordi-
nances or by-laws of the said town.

10. Any person applying to the county court of Halifax
county for license to sell spirituous liquors, wines, beer,
ale or porter, or any mixture thereof, within the corporate
limits of the town of Houston, or within one mile of the
corporate limits of said town, shall produce before the
court of the said county a certificate of the council of said
town to the éffect that the applicant is a suitable person,
and that no good reason is known to the council why the
license should not be granted. And the said court shall
not grant any license to sell liquors within thesaid limits
until and unless such certificate be given.

11. To meet the expenditures that may be lawfully
chargeable to the said town, the council may annually levy
a town levy of so much as in its opinion may be necessary
upon all taxable persons and property, resident or situate
within the said town not exempted from taxation by the
laws of the state: provided, that a capitation tax not
greater than fifty cents per head on the male inhabitants
of the said town over the age of twenty-one years shall not
be levied in any one year: and provided, further, that the
tax so to be levied on the real and personal property within
the said town do not exceed fifty cents on the one hundred
dollars of the assessed value thereof for any one year. _

12. The council of said town may impose, levy, and
collect a license tax on all persons doing business in said
town, and upon any person or employment therein which
it may deem proper, whether any tax he imposed thereon
by the state or not. As to all such persons or employment
the council may lay a direct tax, or may require a license
therefor under such regulations as it may prescribe and
levy a tax thereon.

13. The council may, in the name of and for the use of
the said town, contract loans and issue bonds therefor,
bearing interest at the rate of six per centum per annum,
payable semi-annually and redeemable in thirty-four
years or less, which bonds shall not be sold at less than
their par value, and the said bonds shall be exempt from
taxation by the said town: provided, the council shall not
contract any loan or issue bonds therefor unless the same
be authorized by a vote of the resident freeholders of said
town and a majority of the vote be in favor thereof; and
provided, further, that in no case shall the aggregate debt
of the said town at any one time exceed seven and a half
per centum of the assessed value of the property, real and
personal, within the corporate limits of the said town;
and in any election held under this section the order
therefor shall state the object for which the money is to
be used. .

14. The council of said town may pass all by-laws,
rules, and ordinances, not repugnant to the constitution
and laws of the state, which it may deem necessary for
the good order and government of the town, the manage-
ment of its property, the conduct of its affairs, the peace,
comfort, convenience, order, morals, health, and protection
of its citizens or their property; and to do such other
things, and pass such other by-laws and ordinances, as
may be necessary or proper to carry into full effect any
power, authority, capacity, or jurisdiction which is, or
shall be, granted to, or vested in, said town, or in the coun-
cil or officers thereof, or which may be necessarily inci-
dent to a municipal corporation. >

15. All acts and parts of acts in conflict or inconsistent
with this act are hereby repealed, so far as they may apply
to the town of Houston.

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

CuHaP. 334.—An ACT to provide for the opening, altering, chang-
ing, and working the public roads of Madison county.

Approved February 22, 1890.

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia,
That hereafter the supervisors of the several magisterial
districts of Madison county shall be ex-officio road com-
missioners of their respective districts, with duties and
powers, and subject to the provisions hereinafter con-
tained.

2. That said commissioners shall have exclusive charge
and control of the public roads and bridges within their
respective districts, except as hereinafter provided.

3. That all taxes levied and collected for road purposes,
and for building and repairing bridges, shall be expended
on the roads and bridges in the district from which the
same may be collected. |

4. That the commissioner of roads for the respective
districts of the county of Madison shall be known as the
commissioner of roads for magisterial district, and
by such name shall have the power to contract and be con-
tracted with, sue and be sued, but no judgment against
such commissioner shall bind him personally. It shall
be paid by the treasurer out of the district road fund.

5. That the term of office of said commissioner shal
be the same as that of supervisor. He shall qualif
at the same time and in the same manner as the supervi
sors qualify, and shall give bond, with security, in a pen
alty of not less than five hundred, nor more than tw
thousand dollars, for the faithful performance of hi
duties as commissioner of roads. This qualification ans
bond shall be independent of, and in addition to, hi:
qualification and bond given as supervisor: provided, tha
the supervisors now in office in said county shall qualify
and give bond as road commissioners at the April term
eighteen hundred and ninety, of the county court of Madi.
son county.

6. That it shall be the duty of said commissioner to see
that all roads in his district are of lawful width and clea,
of obstructions, and in all cases of obstruction to notify
the party offending by written notice, and if the obstruc-
tion caused by sucb party be not removed after ten days’
notice, such commissioner shall cause the obstruction to
be removed, and may recover the expense, with costs,
from the offender, upon a warrant, before a justice of the
peace, and the said justice may ‘also, in his discretion,
impose a fine upon the offender not exceeding ten dollars,
which fine shal! go into the road fund. ~

7. That it shall be the duty of the commissioner of
roads, not less than thirty days preceding the day of the
first letting, as directed by a succeeding section of this
act, to lay out and divide the public roads of his district
into sections of not less than one nor more than five
miles in length, and numbered from one up, and appor-
tion the hands to each of said sections. Each section
definitely defined, with a brief description of the charac-
ter of the same, shall be entered in a bound book, which
book shall be kept by the commissioner open to the in-
spection of any citizen of the county. He shall also make
an estimate of the probable amount necessary to put and
keep each section in good repair; this estimate shall not
be entered into his section book, but kept for the guidance
of himself and the board of supervisors.

8. That the several commissioners shall provide for
opening and keeping in good repair all public roads in
their respective districts, and to this end shall, between
the fifteenth and twentieth day of June, eighteen hundred
and ninety, let to contract each section of.road within his
district, at public letting, to the lowest bidder, for the
term of one year, reserving the right to the board of super-
visors as hereinafter provided, to reject any and all bids.
Between the fifteenth and twentieth of June, eighteen hun-
dred and ninety-one, and every three years thereafter,
there shall he another letting of said roads, in same man-
ner as above, except that the letting shall be for a term of
three years. At every regular letting of roads the com-
missioner may employ aclerk to assist him for a period
not exceeding five days, at a cost not exceeding two dol-
lars per day, the same to be paid out of the road fund, on
the order of the commissioner.

9. That of the time and place of letting each commis-
sioner shall give ten days notice by printed hand bills,
posted in at least three public places in each magisterial
district. ,

10. That the specifications of work to be done upon each
section with number of hands allotted to said section and
shall be written out and made known at the time of let-
ting. . |

11. That among the specifications it shall he provided
that where practicable the bed of the road shall be raised
in the middle and slope gradually each way to the sides,
where ditches sufficient to carry off the water shall be
made and kept open, and that the road-bed shall not be
less than twelve feet in width.

12. The commissioners shall report to the board of su-
pervisors, at a meeting to be held by them between the
twentieth and twenty-fifth of June succeeding any public
letting under this act and as soon as may be after any
private letting, the sections let, the number of each section,
to whom let and at what price. and if no reason appear to
the contrary said board shal! confirm said letting and
said commissioner shall enter into a written contract with
the person to whom the road is let, which contract shall
be in accordance with the terms of letting, and in the
penalty of not less than twenty-five dollars nor more than
double the contract price, and with security to be approved
by the board of supervisors.

13. The board of supervisors shall provide for each road
district a road contract book, containing blank bonds or
contracts in proper form, with printed specifications of a
general nature, and such written special specifications
and stipulations as may be agreed upon at the time of
letting of said roads. One of these bonds or contracts
shall be executed by the road commissioner and the con-
tractor, with his security, before the board of supervisors,
at the time of the approval by the said board of the let-
ting of any section of road to such contractor. Said bond
or contract shall be kept in said book, and said book shall
be preserved in the county clerk’s office, except at such
times as it may be needed by the commissioner in any
proceeding against a contractor. )

14. Between the tenth and fifteenth of May and Octo-
ber of each year the commissioner shall pass over and
inspect every section of road in his district, and if
any road or section is not in good order, or has not
been worked according to contract, said commissioner
shall at once notify the contractor of the fact, and if he
does not within twenty days from the notice put the sec-
tion in such repair as his contract calls for, then the com-
missioner shall have said road worked according to the
terms of the contract, and the cost of such work, including
two dollars per day for said commissioner while attend-
ing to same, together with the costs of recovery, and an
additional sum of ten dollars per mile, or portion thereof,
shall be recoverable of the delinquent contractor on his
bond by the commissioner before a justice of the peace of
the district, without limit as to the amount, with the right
of appeal to the county court if the amount recovered
exceed twenty dollars. The amount recovered shall, ex-
cept costs, be paid to the treasurer of the county, to be by
him credited to the road fund of the district.

15. But if upon examination the commissioner shall
find that such contractor has executed his contract and
performed his duty, he shall, upon each viewing in May
and October, give him a warrant on the treasurer of the
county for one half of the whole amount called for in his
contract, and the treasurer shall pay said warrant out of the
fund in his hands hereafter provided for.

16. That at any time three taxpayers from any district
may petition their road commissioner to view one or more
sections of road in their district, upon the ground that
the same is not worked according to contract. If said
commissioner fail or refuse to view the section complained
of, or if his view be adverse to petitioners, upon motion
the county court shall appoint three disinterested viewers,
who shall, after being duly sworn, view the sections and
make a report at the next term of the court. If their
report be against the road, the court shall order the com-
missioner to proceed as directed by section fourteen of
this act. But if the report of the viewers be favorable to
the road, the petitioners shall pay costs of the commis-
sioner and viewers which shall not be more than one dol-
lar each per day.

17. If any section remain unlet by reason of there
being no bid, orthe amount offered be deemed excessive,
or for any other reason, the commissioner may let the
same privately and report to board of supervisors, as pro-
vided in section twelve of this act. And in case there be
no letting, the commissioner shall take charge of said
road or section and make or keep it in repair, and to this
end may employ hands, teams, and so forth, paying for
same the customary price of the neighborhood. He shal]
keep an accurate and itemized account of such work, ex-
penseg, and so forth, and make oath to the same, and lay
it before the board of supervisors, which board shall in-
spect the same; and if it is found correct, the board shall
give said commissioner of roads a warrant on the treasurer
of the county for the amount thereof, to be paid out of the
road fund of the district.

18. That, in case of a road dividing two magisterial dis-
tricts, the commissioners of roads of the districts so
divided shall apportion said road between said districts
in such a way as will equitably divide the expense. If
they cannot agree, the county court shall apportion the
same, and shall direct what part of said road shall be
be opened and kept in repair by each magisterial district.

19. That the commissioners of roade for each district
shall lay before the board of supervisors, at the meeting of
said board when the county levy is made, his book of
road sections hereinbefore provided for, and shall also re-
port to the board how much, in his judgment, will be re-
quired to work and keep in repair the roads in his district
for the ensuing year: provided, that when the costs of
altering or changing a road, or opening a new one, be, in
the judgment of the supervisors, too burdensome to be
paid in one year, they may, in their discretion, cause the
same to be levjed and paid in not exceeding three equal
annual instalments.

20. That the said board of supervisors shall then cause
to be levied a road tax for each district, not exceeding
twenty cents on the one hundred dollars’ worth of real,
personal, and mixed property within the district, taking
the state assessment as a basis. .

21. That the treasurer of the county shall collect the
road tax herein directed to be levied as he collects state and
county taxes, and shall keep a separate account of taxes
collected from each district, giving each road district
credit for the amount collected from the same, and shall
pay the same out as hereinbefore provided.

22. That every petition for a new road, or to lay out,
open, alter or change a public road, must first be presented
to the commissioner of roads in the district in which the
road is, who shall endorse thereon his approval or disap-
proval of the same, and his reasons therefor, which peti-
tion, with the commissioner’s endorsement, shall be laid
before the county court at its next term in open court, and
the court shall appoint three discreet freeholders to view
the ground of any new road or proposed change. The road
commissioner, the county surveyor, or other competent
surveyor, shall accompany the viewers, and, if necessary,
survey and map the road. The whole number of viewers
must view, but a majority may decide for or against, and
they may view and make report of and estimate for any
modification of the route.

23. That notice of the time and place of the meeting of
the viewers shall be given by the viewers in some public
manner in the vicinity of the proposed road, and personal
notice shall be given, if practicable, to the owners over
whose land the road may pass, at least five days before the
time of meeting. The viewers, before they proceed to dis-
charge their duties, shall be severally sworn by the com-
missioner of roads, or some other person authorized to
administer oaths, to perform the duties impartially and
to the best of their judgment. If they decide there is
necessity for the road or change, they shall lay out the
same, having respect for the shortest distance and the best
ground, and so as todo the least injury to private property,
and also, as far as practicable, to be agreeable to the peti-
tioners. They shall assess the damages done to the land
through which the road passes, taking into consideration
the advantage to be derived from the road passing through
the land; and shall report in writing to the next term of
‘the court the probable amount of damage, cost of construc-
tion, and such facts as will enable the court to determine,
the propriety of opening said road. Although it may
appear that no more than a few, or even one person, will
be benefited by the opening of any road, yet fhe court may,
in its discretion, cause said road to be opened, requiring
such beneficiary and the district in which the road may
be, respectively, to pay such part of the damages, expense of
construction, cost and repair from time to time as to the
court may seem right. .

24. That upon the return of the report of the viewers,
the owner, his guardian, or committee, if within the
county, if not, fhe occupier of the land upon which the
said road will be, if established, shall be summoned to
show cause against said report; and any proprietor or
tenant of lands on which said road will be, if established,
or the commissioner of roads, may enter himself a party
defendant to said petition, after which the same proceed-
ings shall be had as under the general road law of the
state. The court may, at its discretion, grant a second or
third view.

25. The court shall examine the amount of damages
assessed, and the probable expense of opening the road,
and if satisfied that the public interest will be subserved
by opening the road, or the proposed change, shall approve
the report and order the damages to be paid by the road
district through which the road may pass, in such propor-
tion as the damages may have been assessed in the said
district, respectively, and shall cause the clerk to deliver
a copy of the order establishing, changing, or altering the
road to the commissioners of roads in whose district or
districts the road may be. The commissioner shall em-
brace the amount of damages, costs, and expense of open-
ing or changing the road and keeping it in repair, in his
estimates of necessary road tax to be laid before the board
of supervisors.
26. That if the court decides against the application to
alter, change, or open a road, it may require the costs to
be paid by the petitioners, or by the district or districts,
as to the court shall seem just. .

27. The viewers shall be paid two dollars per diem for
their services, and the surveyor two dollars and fifty cents
per diem.

28. That the county court shall, at the time when any
new road is established, direct what width the road shall
be made, and shall have power to regulate the width of all
roads: provided, that the land condemned for any new
road shall not be less in width than thirty feet.

29. It shall be the duty of the attorney for the common-
wealth to represent the several road commissioners in all
matters affecting the public roads in the courts of record
of the county.

30. The county treasurer shall annually, at the July
meeting of the board of supervisors, settle and adjust
before said board his accounts with the road fund of the
several districts. The said board shall charge him with
the full amount of the road tax levied in the district and
all sums collected from delinquent contractors, and shall
credit him by his commissions, delinquents, and all pay-
ments made by him for which he has the proper vouchers.
He shall receive the same per centum for collecting and
disbursing road taxes as for collecting state revenue.

31. The commissioner shall receive as compensation
two dollars per diem for the time actually employed in
the discharge of his duties: provided, that in no case
shall he receive over fifty dollars in any one year. He
shall at the December and July terms file before the
county court of the county a sworn statement of the time
of his actual employment upon the road matters of his
district, giving the number of days, dates, and how em-
ployed; and if the account is approved, the court shall
certify the fact to the board of supervisors, who shal] issue a
warrant on the county treasurer for the amount to the par-
ties thereto entitled payable out of the district road fund.

32. The property in any incorporated town in the county
which keeps its own streets in order shall be exempt from
the road tax hereinbefore provided for.

33. That the residents of the county of Madison shall
work the roads of said county, as provided in the general
law of the state, and subject to the orders of the road com-
missioners of the several districts, and any resident of the
county of road age failing to perform the work on the

road required of him by law shall pay a fine of one dollar
and fifty cents to the contractor of the section to which
he may be allotted by the commissioner, to be recovered
in the mode prescribed by the general road law.
34. The general road law of the state, except so far as
the same is in conflict with this act, shall be in force in
Madison county.

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