section, said company shall forfeit all right to lands secured by this act, not alienated as required by law.

SEC. 6. That said company shall not sell, or lease to, or consolidate with, or purchase any other competing, converging or parallel railroad or line in this State; and any violation of this section shall forfeit all rights secured by this act. And the State of Texas hereby expressly reserves the right to prescribe the rates to be charged for transportation of persons and property, at any and all times upon said road within this State; and that said company shall be subject to the laws of this State now, or hereafter to be in force, so far as said road is within the State; and that said company shall keep an office within this State.

SEC. 7. That this act shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage.

Passed May 9th, 1873.

[NOTE. The foregoing act was presented to the Governor of Texas for his approval on the fifteenth day of May, A. D. 1873, and was not signed by him, or returned to the house in which it originated, with his objections thereto, within the time prescribed by the Constitution, and thereupon became a law without his signature.-JAMES P. NEWCOMB, Secretary of State.]

CHAPTER CLX.

An Act authorizing the City of Galveston to issue her Bonds to the amount of Five Hundred Thousand Dollars in aid of the Bar and Harbor improvement of Galveston; and to provide a tax of onefourth of one per centum for a sinking fund wherewith to pay the principal and interest of said Bonds.

SECTION 1. Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Texas, That the city of Galveston is authorized to issue her bonds, not to exceed five hundred thousand dollars, with ten per cent. interest thereon from the day of their date, payable in sums not less than one hundred dollars each; and said bonds shall be of three classes, viz.: the first class shall be payable with interest as aforesaid in ten years from the date of their issuance; the

second class shall be payable with interest as aforesaid in twenty years from the date of their issuance; and said bonds shall be issued to the purchaser or his order, or to the bearer, at the option of the city; and all moneys derived from the sale or negotiation of said bonds, or any of them, shall be used in aid of any improvements of the bar or harbor of Galveston, which may be authorized by the city council, or undertaken by the said city, whether entirely of itself or by way of co-operation with the authorities of the United States or of this State.

SEC. 2. It shall be the duty of the city council, at the time of resolving to issue the bonds herein provided for, to levy a tax, not to exceed one-quarter of one per centum on the assessed value of all taxable property within the corporate limits of the city of Galveston not exempt from taxation by the laws and the Constitution of this State, which tax shall be paid into the city treasury to be held as a special fund for the payment of the principal and interest of said bonds. No bonds shall issue in excess of such as may be provided for by such sinking fund, and a copy of this act shall be printed on the back of all such bonds; and said city is authorized to carry on such works of bar and harbor improvements of Galveston as may be necessary or deemed advantageous to the same, and to the commerce of said city; and any tax so levied shall be collected in the same mode and manner as the general tax of said city, and together therewith; but the amount thereof shall, nevertheless, be kept separately, and be so reported to the city council, and paid into the hands of the treasurer, as and for such special fund as aforesaid. Said bonds shall be known as "Galveston Bar and Harbor Improvement Bonds;" and the city council shall have full power and authority to pass all necessary ordinances or resolutions to carry into effect the provisions of this law.

SEC. 3. Said bonds shall have coupons attached for the interest herein provided, and shall be issued from time to time as may be indicated by the "Board of Harbor Improvement of the city of Galveston, and resolved or ordained by the city council, but not in excess of the amount herein provided for; and it is furthur provided, that the sale of all such bonds shall be made by, and the disbursement of the funds arising from such sales shall be subject to, the expenditure, control and disposition of

the said "Board of Harbor Improvement" of said city, for the purposes expressed and set forth in this act.

SEC. 4. That whenever, from the increase of taxable property, or from other cause, the amount produced by the taxation herein provided for shall produce an amount more than sufficient for the current deposit for the sinking fund and annual interest, such surplus so in excess may be sent to the general fund by the council, and be subject to its appropriation for general purposes; but in no other event than as is herein provided.

SEC. 5. That this act shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage.

Passed May 9th, 1873.

[NOTE. The foregoing act was presented to the Governor of Texas for his approval on the fifteenth day of May, A. D. 1873, and was not signed by him, or returned to the house in which it originated, with his objections thereto, within the time prescribed by the Constitution, and thereupon became a law without his signature.-JAMES P. NEWCOMB, Secretary of State.]

CHAPTER CLXI.

An Act amendatory of and supplementary to an Act entitled "An Act to Incorporate the Merchants' Mutual Insurance Company," approved September 18th, 1866.

SECTION 1. Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Texas, That section one of the act aforesaid shall be so amended as to read as follows, viz: That J. S. Sellers, J. M. Swisher, J. C. Massie, J. T. Brady, Boulds Baker, M. McMorris, M. Kopperl. J. W. Shipman, C. Thompson, W. R. Hodges, J. H. Shropshire, W. H. Nichols, C. F. Jenney, and their present and future associates, successors and assigns, be and are hereby incorporated and created a body politic and corporate, by the name and style of the Merchants' Insurance Company; and by the same name and style they and their successors shall be capable of suing and being sued, and maintining any action to final judgment and execution; and shall be in law capable of purchasing, holding, im

proving and conveying any estate, real, personal or mixed, for the use of said corporation; and may have a common seal; and the said corporation shall have the power to ordain, establish and put in execution such by. laws, ordinances and regulations as shall be necessary for the government thereof; and it shall be lawful for the said corporation, after the expiration thereof, to use the corporate name, style and capacity, for the purpose of suits for the final settlement and liquidation of the affairs and accounts of the corporation, and for the sale and disposition of their estate, real, personal or mixed, but not for any other purpose, nor for a period exceeding three years after the expiration of the term of incorporation.

SEC. 2. Be it further enacted, That the president and directors of said corporation shall annually, or semi-annually, make such dividends of the net profits of the company, as shall appear to them advisable, but the rule of distribution shall in all cases be observed, to-wit, a reserved fund of twenty-five per cent. shall be deducted, and the remainder of said net profits shall be paid to the stockholders, in proportion to the stock owned by them. SEC. 3. Be it further enacted, That section seven (7) of the aforesaid act of incorporation, approved September 18th, 1866, be and the same is hereby repealed.

SEC. 4. Be it further enacted, That this act shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage. Approved May 9th, 1873.

CHAPTER CLXII.

An Act to incorporate the Mechanics' Real Estate and Savings Association of Dallas.

SECTION 1. Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Texas, That C. S. Mitchell, Philip Langer, W. L. Murphy, Benj. Long, Olin Wilbam, M. Thevenent, E. W. Baylor, Henry Ball, J. B. Scruggs and Edward McDowell, and their associates and successors, are hereby created and established a body corporate and politic, under the name and style of "The Mechanics' Real Estate and Savings Association of Dallas;" with capacity in said corporate name to make contracts; to hold, buy and sell

property, both real and personal; to contract and execute leases; to take grants and gifts; to execute deeds and mortgages, and deeds of trust; to have succession and a common seal; to make by-laws for the government and regulation of its affairs; to sue and be sued; to plead and be impleaded; to declare dividends and make divisions of property; to loan its money to any person or persons on any securities it may think proper; to receive deposits, buy and sell bills of exchange, drafts or other obligations, bonds and other securities; and do and perform all such things, consistent with the laws of this State, as may be necessary and proper for, and incident to the fulfillment of its obligations under this act; provided, nothing in this act shall be so construed as to authorize this corperation to use its moneys in any manner which it may not be lawful for any citizen of this State to do.

SEC. 2. That the officers and managers of this association shall consist of nine (9) directors, to be elected by the share holders; one president and one vice president, to be chosen from and by the board of directors; also, one secretary and one treasurer, to be selected by the directors from the share-holders. Such officers shall receive such compensation as the by-laws may provide, and their term of office shall be for one year, subject to removal in such manner as the by-laws may prescribe.

SEC. 3. That the capital stock shall be sixty thousand dollars, with the power and privilege to increase the same to three hundred thousand dollars.

SEC. 4. That this association shall not own or possess, at any one time, real property in the State of Texas exceeding one million of dollars.

SEC. 5. That the capital stock of sixty thousand dollars shall be divided into one hundred shares, of six hundred dollars each, payable in monthly installments of ten ($10) dollars per month until the capital stock of sixty thousand dollars is paid in; provided, that at any time after the said capital stock of sixty thousand dollars has been paid in, two-thirds of a quorum of said stockholders, at any regular meeting, or at any special meeting called for this purpose, two weeks notice of which special meeting shall have been given by the president in some newspaper published in the city of Dallas, may continue and require the payment of the above mentioned installments, in the same manner as above directed, for as many years.