Chap. 377.—An ACT to amend and re-enact an act entitled an act to provide
for the working and keeping in repair the public roads of Botetourt, as
amended by an act entitled an act to amend sections 2, 11 and 13 of an act
to provide for working and keeping in repair the public roads of Botetourt,
approved January 23, 1894.

Approved February 23, 18%.

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia, That the act
entitled an act for working and keeping in repair the public roads of
Botetourt, approved February twentieth, eighteen hundred and
ninety-two, and the act entitled an act toamend sections two, eleven
and thirteen of the above named act, approved January twenty-
third, eighteen hundred and ninety-four, be amended and re-enacted
so as to read as follows:

§ 2. That in the county of Botetourt the public roads and bridges
shall be established, changed, repaired and kept in order as follows:
The judge of the county court of Botetourt county, upon the recom-
mendation of the board of supervisors of his county, shall, at the
May term of his court, in the year eighteen hundred and ninety-
four, and every two years thereafter, appoint a board of six com-
missioners of roads, two for each magisterial district, who shall hold
office for the term of two years, and first term shall commence July
first, eighteen hundred and ninety-four: provided that such judge
may, if he think proper, reject the recommendations made in either
or all of the districts in said county, and unless the board of super-
visors recommend other persons suitable, in his opinion, for said
office, within thirty days after the first recommendation has been
rejected, he shall fill the said office by his own appointment, in term
time or.in vacation. No recommendation, however, made by the
board of supervisors shall be rejected by the judge, except for rea-
sons entered of record. The said board shall be, and is hereby, de-
clared a body politic and corporate, under the name and style of the
board of road commissioners of the county of Botetourt, and by
such name may sue and be sued.

§ 3. The said board shall have control of all public roads and
bridges within the county, the disbursing of taxes, and the directing
of all labor imposed for repairing the roads and bridges and keep-
ing the same in order.

§ 4. Each of the said commissioners shall qualify before the county
court of Botetourt, or the judge thereof in vacation, by giving
bond, with approved security, in the penalty of five hundred dol-
lars, conditioned for the faithful performance of their duty, and
by taking the oath of office, which shall be recorded by the clerk of
said county as the qualifications and bonds of other county officers
are recorded. °

§ 5. The board shall, immediately upon their qualification, organ-
ize by the election of one of their number as chairman and another
as secretary.

§ 6. Immediately upon their organization under this act the said
board shall divide each magisterial district of the county into two
sub-districts, and assign one of their number to each subdivision;
they shall carefully examine all the public roads of the county, but
in making said examination it shall not be necessary that more than
two of them shall go together; provided that the commissioner of
each sub-district shall examine the roads in his own sub-district
with one other commissioner from another district; they shall take
a note of the public roads in the county, their character and condi-
tion. Upon such examination the board shall, at least four being
present, proceed to divide all of the roads of the county into three
classes. The first class shall consist of such roads as are generally
and frequently used by the public, and highways used in common
by several or more neighborhoods; and these shall be called high-
ways. The second class shall include all roads for neighborhood
purposes, and roads leading into the public highways; and these
shall be called county roads. The third-class roads shall be such as
are used by a few individuals, and have been opened for the use and
benefit of said individuals, or for their farms. The first class, or
highways, shall be repaired and kept in order by contract or by
means of hired labor, as hereinafter provided. The second class, or
county roads, shall be repaired and kept in order by the labor here-
inafter provided, and such appropriations as may be made to them
by the said board. The third class, or private roads, shall be kept
up by the parties benefited by said roads, as they may see fit.

§ 7. The road precincts shall remain as now laid out and described
by metes and bounds, until changed by the road commissioners.
The said board shall have power, and it shall be their duty, to make
such changes therein as they may think proper. The commissioners
now in charge of roads shall continue to discharge their duties when
this law goes into effect, until their successors are appointed and
qualify under this act. The road commissioners shall take charge
of and provide for keeping in repair all first and second class roads
of the county, and to this end may, at their discretion, between the
fifteenth and twentieth days of May in each year, or as soon there-
after as practicable, let to contract the said highways, in such sec-
tions as they may prescribe, at public letting to the lowest bidder,
for the term of not less than one nor more than two years—the said
letting to be made by the two road commissioners of each magiste-
rial district as to the highways in said district; and the said com-
missioners shall report the same to the board, which shall have
power to reject any and all bids. The specifications of work to be
done upon each section, and the condition in which the same is to
kept, shall be such as in the judgment of those who have examined
the same the said highway will require, and shall be written out and
made known at the time of the letting. The board of road commis-
sioners, at their annual June meeting hereinafter provided for, shall
examine the bids made for each section, and if no reason appear to
the contrary shall confirm said letting, and the commissioner of the
sub-district shall enter into a written contract with the person to
whom the road or section is let, which contract shall be in accord-
ance with the terms of letting, and in a penalty of not less than fifty
dollars nor more than double the contract price, and with security to
be approved by the board. If any road or section remains unlet by
reason of there being no bid, or any other reason, the commissioner
in whose sub-district the road or section may be may take charge of
the said road or section and put and keep it in repair, and to this
end employ teams, hands, and so forth, paying for the same the cus-
tomary price for labor in that portion of the county, and agreed upon
by the board. He shall keep an accurate account of such work and
expenses and make oath to the same, and report it to the board, and,
if found to be correct, the board shall allow the same.

§ 8. If the board shall so elect, they may take charge of any por-
tion of the highways as classified by them, and repair and improve
and work the same with the chain-gang of the county, where one is
established, under section twenty-four, chapter eleven, criminal code,
acts of assembly of eighteen hundred and seventy-seven and eigh-
teen hundred and seventy-eight; or the board may, in its discretion,
appoint an overseer of such portions of a highway as they may se-
lect, and have said portion worked by hired hands and teams, and
pay the same as other payments are made under the seventh and
twenty-sixth sections of this act.

§ 9. Annually, not later than the fifteenth of July, the road com-
missioners may appoint overseers for second-class roadsif they may
think it advisable. The said overseer shall reside in the precinct
for which he may be appointed.

§ 10. The duty of the overseer of roads shall be to see that the
roads in his precinct are kept in good repair; that the bridges and
rossings for foot passengers are in safe condition; that the roads
re of the necessary width, well drained and free from obstruction;
hat all dead trees near the road are cut down, and all lose stones re-
noved from the roads; that neat sign-boards are kept at all forks
ind crossings of public roads, plainly indicating the most noted
lace to which the road leads, and the distance thereto. He shall
erform such other duties as may be required by law.

§11. No person shall hereafter be compelled to work upon the
ublic roads of Botetourt county.

§ 12. Each overseer shall, within forty days after he has worked
he roads in his precinct, make a report in writing to the road com-
nissioner of his sub-district, showing what work was done on his
oads.

§13. On the first day of June and December of each year, or as
oon thereafter as practicable, the board shall meet at the court-
.0use and audit all claims against the road fund of the county, in-
luding the accounts of commissioners and overseers, which account
hall be verified by affidavit; and the said board shall draw their
varrant, signed by the chairman and countersigned by the secretary,
ipon the treasurer of the county, who shall pay the same out of the
reasury. The secretary of said board shall make statements of set-
lements of the accounts of each of the commissioners of roads,
showing what moneys have been received, and from what source, and
how disbursed for each month, which statements of settlements,
together with itemized accounts verified by affidavits, shall be placed
by the said secretary before the board of supervisors at a meeting to
be held at the court-house on the first day of June and December of
each year, or as soon thereafter as practicable, which said settle-
ments and accounts shall be reviewed by the board of supervisors,
and, if found correct, approve the same. Said board of supervisors
shall have the power to summons the commissioners and witnesses
and examine them upon the said settlements and accounts, and if
the board of supervisors do not approve the said settlements and
accounts, they shall correct the same, which correction shall stand
and their decisions shall be final, of which proceedings the clerk of
the board of supervisors shall keep a fair record; if any commis-
sioner shall be found in default at the end of any one year, the
board of supervisors shall report the same to the attorney for the
commonwealth, who shall proceed against such commissioner, by
motion in the county court, as prescribed by section thirty-two hun-
dred and ten of the code of Virginia, on his official bond for the
amount in arrear; and the board of supervisors shall be allowed the
usual per diem and mileage whilst engaged in examination of said
road accounts, which shall be a charge on the road fund. The trea-
surer of the county shall furnish the said board, at their said meet.
ings, a statement of the amount on hand to the credit of the road
fund, and no money shall be paid out of said road fund except upon
the warrant of the board of road commissioners, and the said board
shall not draw warrants for a greater amount than is in the trea.
surer’s hands when the warrants are drawn, and it shall be unlawfw
for them to draw at any one time a greater amount than will be
shown necessary to be properly expended on the roads for one month.
And at their June meeting the board shall determine what amount in
their judgment will be necessary to open new roads, work and keep in
repair the highways and county roads for the ensuing year: provided
when the costs of altering or changing a road, or opening a new road,
to be in their judgment too burdensome to be paid in one year, they
may, in their discretion, provide for the same in not exceeding three
annual instalments. They shall certify the amount so ascertained
to the board of supervisors at their annual meeting in July, and the
board of supervisors shall levy a road tax to meet the same, not ex-
ceeding twenty-five cents on the one hundred dollars’ worth of real
and personal property of the county, including railroads, to be col-
lected as other county levies; also a tax on licenses, as adjusted for
state taxes, not exceeding fifteen per centum of the state tax on
said licenses and said levies, to be made upon all! the persons and
property liable to other county levies, anything in the charter of any
incorporated town in said county to the contrary notwithstanding ;
and in addition thereto, the board of supervisors shall provide out
of the general levy for the building and keeping in repair all
bridges over ten feet long in said county, the amount necessary for
that purpose to be ascertained by the board of road commissioners
and reported to the board of supervisors, and the amount so provided
is to be expended only on the bridges over ten feet in length; and
the board of road commissioners shall keep an accurate account of
all its proceedings in a well-bound book prepared for that purpose.

§ 14. The commissioner of roads shall have general supervision of
all roads and bridges in his sub-district. The overseer of roads in
his sub-district shall be under his authority and subject to his
orders, and the commissioner shall have authority to direct what
work shall be done by the overseer, how the county roads shall be
repaired and on what part of the precinct labor shall be bestowed;
but in the absence of such directions the overseer shall control the
same. It shall be the duty of the commissioner to see that all the
roads in his district are the proper width, and in all cases where
they are not, to notify the person trespassing by written notice, and
if the obstructions are not removed within thirty days, he shall
direct the contractor in the highway or the overseer of the precinct
to remove the fencing or other obstruction, and may recover the ex-
penses, with costs, from the trespasser upon a judgment of a justice
of the peace. The commissioner shall examine all the roads (both
highways and county roads) in his sub-district at least twice in each
year, in the months of May and November, and also whenever so re-
quested by not less than three tax-payers of a precinct. He shall
view any road complained of, and see that the roads and bridges are
kept in good repair by the contractor and overseers, and if at such
times, or any other time, he shall find any overseer or contractor de-
linquent, he shall give him notice in writing, and on his failure to
comply with the law or his contract for ten days thereafter, shall
make the necessary repairs of the highways and enforce payment
thereof by proceeding before a justice of the peace without limit as
to the amount, which recovery shall embrace cost of recovery, in-
cluding two dollars a day for said commissioner while attending to
said repairs, with the right of appeal to the county court if the sum
recovered exceeds twenty dollars. In case an overseer is delinquent,
it shall be the duty of the commissioner to report the same to the
attorney for the commonwealth, who shall cause the commissioner
and such other witnesses as may be known to him to appear before
the grand jury to testify in said matter. Any overseer of a road who
shall fail to perform any duty required of him in this act shall pay
a fine of not less than five nor more than thirty dollars, which fine
hall be paid by the officer collecting the same into the county trea-
ury, to be credited to the road fund.

§ 15. But, if upon the semi-annual examinations the commissioner
hall find that such contractor or overseer has executed his contract,
performed his duty according to the law and his contract, he
hall give him a certificate to that effect, with a statement showing
he amount contractor or overseer is entitled to receive under his
ontract for his services.

§ 16. Whenever in the opinion of the commissioners of roads of a
ub-district it is necessary, or whenever a citizen desires to alter,
change or discontinue a public road, to open a new road, build a
bridge or establish a ferry, such persons shal! apply to the county
court for the same, and the county court shall appoint four of the
com missioners of roads (the commissioner of the sub-district in which
the change is proposed to be made being one, any three of whom
may act, the said commissioner of the sub-district being one), to
view the ground of any new road, bridge, landing or ferry, or any
proposed change. The county surveyor or other competent surveyor
shall accompany the viewers, and, if necessary, survey and map the
road.

§ 17. Notice of the time and place of meeting of the viewers shal] be
given by the commissioner of the sub-district, by written or printed
notices in the vicinity of the proposed road, at least five days before the
time of mneeting. The viewers shall, on the day named, go upon the
ground and examine the same; they may view and makea report of
any estimate for any modification of the work. If they decide there
18 & necessity for the road or change, they shall lay out the same,
having respect for the shortest distance and best ground, and so as
to dothe least injury to private property, and also as far as practicable
to be agreeable to the petitioners. They shall assess the damages done
to the land through which the road passes, taking into consideration
the advantages to be derived from the road passing through the land,
and shall report in writing to the next term of the court the proba-
ble amount of damages, cost of construction 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 per-
80n, will be benefited by the opening of any road, yet the court may, in
its discretion, cause said road to be opened, requiring such beneficiary
and the county respectively to pay such part of the damages, ex-
penses of construction, cost of repair, from time to time, as tothe
court may seem right. That upon the return of the report of the
viewers, the owner, his guardian or committee, if within the county,
f not, the occupier of the land upon which the said road will be, if
stablished, shall be summoned to show cause against said report, and
ny proprietor or tenant of lands on which said road will be, if estab-
ished, or commissioner of roads may enter himself a party de-
endant to said petition, after which the same proceedings shall be
ad as under the general road law of the state. The court may, at
ts aliscrotion, grant a second view by the other commissioners of
oads.

§ 18. That the court shall examine the amount of damages assessed
nd the probable expense of opening the road, and if satisfied that
he public interest will be subserved by opening the road, or the pro-
yosed change, shall approve the report and order the damages to be
aid as determined under the preceding section, and shall cause the
lerk to deliver a copy of the order establishing, changing or alter-
ng the road to the commissioners of roads in whose district or dis-
ricts the road may be. The commissioner shall embrace the amount
»f damages, cost and expenses of opening or changing the road and
<eeping it in repair in his estimate of road tax to be laid before
she board of road commissioners.

§ 19. That if the court decides against the application to alter,
shange or open a road it may require the cost to be paid by the pe-
Litioners or by the county, as to the court may seem just.

§ 20. The viewers shall be paid two dollars per diem for their ser-
vices, and the surveyor two dollars and fifty cents per diem.

§ 21. The commissioner receiving the said order of the county
court shall lay the same before the board of commissioners, and they
shall direct to what class any new road shall be assigned, and in case
of a highway they shall let the same to contract as provided in sev:
enth section. In case of a county road, if, in their opinion, the roac
or the proposed change can be made by the overseer of the precinct
with the tools and labor at his command, they shall direct the same
to be done; if not, they may let the same to contract or direct the
commissioner of the sub-district to hire teams and labor and make
the same.

§ 22. The commissioner may order any change in a road in hit
sub-district which may be agreed to by the board which does not in.
volve the condemnation of lands or payment of damages as where
the land-owners consent. |

§ 23. The board shall furnish all necessary tools, impléments and
other things necessary to work the roads under this law, and may fo!
their purposes purchase and hold wagons, horses, mules or oxen, 01
any machinery used for making or working roads. The commis:
sioner shall collect together all. the tools, and so forth, belonging tc
the county now in the hands of overseers of roads in his sub-district
and shall issue them to the overseers appointed under this act, to be
used by them for working the road, taking their receipts therefor
and after, on the demand of the commissioners, the overseer shal.
return said tools, and so forth, to the said commissioner, and the
overseer shall be responsible for the same while in his possession.

§ 24. It shall be the duty of the attorney of the commonwealth t
represent the road commissioners in all matters affecting the publi
oads in the courts of record in the county and also to proceed
gainst said commissioners on their official bonds or otherwise fo:
ny dereliction of official duty.

§ 25. The county treasurer shall, annually, at the July meeting ot
he board of supervisors, settle and adjust before said board his ac.
ount with the road fund. The said board shall charge him witk
he full amount of the road tax levied in the county and all sums
ollected from delinquent contractors and from all other sources
nd shall credit him by his commission, delinquent and all pay.
nents made by him for which he has the proper voucher.

§ 26. The commissioners shall receive as compensation two dol.
ars per diem for ten hours of time actually employed in discharge
f their duty: provided that in no case shall they receive over ont
undred dollars in any one year, except that he shall be paid on
ollar and fifty cents for each day he may be employed superintend
ng work on his roads, and each overseer shall receive one dollar pe
em for ten hours.

§ 27. The general road law of the state, except so far as the sam
sin conflict with this act, shall be enforced in Botetourt county.

2. All acts and parts of acts inconsistent with this act are hereb:
epealed.

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