Chap. 647.—An ACT to provide for working and locating public roads and re-
pairing and building bridges in Caroline county.

Approved March 5, 1894.

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia, That on
and after the first day of May, eighteen hundred and ninety-four,
it aball be lawful for the county of Caroline to work and keep in re-
pair the highways, roads and bridges, as follows:

2. The board of supervisors of said county shall take charge of
and have worked and kept in repair all public roads and bridges
heretofore and hereafter established, and for this purpose are author-
ized and empowered to levy a road tax, not exceeding in any one year
ten cents upon one hundred dollars of assessed taxable values in
said county, to secure the proper working of roads and building and
repairing bridges in said county.

3. The board of supervisors shall, as soon after the first day of May,
eighteen hundred and ninety-four, as may be practicable, and every
year thereafter at same time, appoint one commissioner of roads
in each magisterial district, who shall qualify before the county
judge of said county by taking the usual oath of office, and shall
continue as such until their successors are duly qualified. The term
of said commissioners of roads shall be one year, and shall com-
mence on the first day of Juneof each year. The said commisgioners
of roads shall have supervision of all the roads and bridges within
their respective districts.

4. The said commissioners of roads, severally, shall on the first
day of June, eighteen hundred and ninety-four, and each year there-
after as soon as practicable, let to contract to the lowest suitable bid-
der the work of keeping in repair roads and bridges in their respec-
tive districts, notices of which letting shall be posted for ten days
previously at each post-office in the magisterial district, and otherwise
published at the discretion of the commissioner. The said lettings
shall be in sections of not less than three nor more than five miles,
at the discretion of the commissioner, and for one year, ending the
thirtieth day of June of each year. They shall require the bids
to be in writing and signed by the contractor, and shall deliver the
same, under seal, to the board of supervisors, for their examination
and approval or rejection at their first meeting thereafter. Each con-
tractor shall be required to give bond with good security, ina penalty
at least double the amount of his bid, for the faithful performance
of his contract, and recovery may behad for any breach of said con-
tract in the name of the county, for the benefit of the road fund, in
the county court by motion, after ten days’ notice to the contractor
and his securities. The attorney for the commonwealth shall insti-
tute and prosecute such motion. The contracts and bonds shall be
filed with the county clerk of said county.

5. It shall be the duty of the commissioner of roads to give per-
sonal supervision to all the roads and bridges within their respective
districts, to see that the contractor is faithfully performing his con-
tract, and for any failure to carry out his contract the commissioner
of the district shall at once institute, through the commonwealth’s
attorney, proceedings in the county court of said county for damage
for any breach of said contract.

6. The commissioner of roads shall receive as compensation not
exceeding twenty dollars per year, to be paid by the county out of the
road funds. .

7. All levies made and collected under this act shall be collected
and accounted for by the county treasurer as other levies, and shall
be paid out on the order of the board of supervisors. The treasurer
shall receive five per centum commission for collecting and disbursing
the road fund. The treasurer shall give a bond with security before
county judge for the faithful discharge of his duties under this act,
under a penalty deemed reasonable by the judge.

8. No member of the board of supervisors or commissioner of
roads shall be directly or indirectly interested in any contract under
this act, and participation therein by either shall render the con-
tract null and void.

9. When the court shall order the opening of a new road or the
section of a new bridge, the work of opening or building shall be let
to contract to the lowest bidder.

10. The board of supervisors shall have power at any time, for good
cause, to revoke the appointment of any commissioner of roads and
appoint his successor to fill his unexpired term.

11. The board of supervisors shall keep a book, known as a road
book, in which shall be kept an account of the road tax levied and
the amount collected therefor, the purchase price of all tools and
implements, materials and other moneys expended: provided that
when a new road is opened or a new bridge built an appropriation,
not exceeding twenty per centum of the entire road tax collected
may be expended therefor. No public road shall be less than thirty
feet wide.

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