council to ap tendents of alien 1848, 313, § 1. Bonds. to give notice to place of examin 1. The governor, with the advice and consent of the Governor and council, shall appoint and commission some suitable person point superinto be superintendent of alien passengers in each city and passengers. town of the commonwealth, when it may be necessary for the execution of the provisions herein contained, who, before entering upon the duties of his office, shall be duly sworn, and shall give bonds to the state treasurer, with Oath. sufficient sureties for the performance thereof, in such sum as shall be specified by the governor in his commission, and who shall hold said office until another shall be appointed, commissioned, and qualified in his stead. And the super- Superintendent intendent shall, from time to time, notify the pilots of pilots of the the port of the said city, or town, of the place or places ation. where the said examination is to be made; and the said pilots shall be required to anchor all such vessels at the place so appointed, and shall require said vessels there to remain until such examination shall be had; and any pilot who shall refuse or neglect to perform the duty imposed upon him by this section, or who shall, through negligence or design, permit any alien passenger to land, before such examination shall be had, shall forfeit to the city or town a Penalty. sum not less that fifty, nor more than two thousand dollars. 2. The governor, with the advice and consent of the Salary. council, shall determine the salary of each superintendent of alien passengers, by him appointed, and shall specify the same in his commission; provided, however, that such Proviso. salary shall never exceed the net amount of alien-passenger money received by such superintendent, according to the provisions of this act. Ibid, 2. Duties. Ibid, § 3. Prosecutions. condition of pas &c. Ibid, § 4. 3. The superintendents of alien passengers shall have a care and oversight of all causes and matters arising under this act, in the city or town for which they are appointed; and whenever a breach of any of its provisions shall come. to their knowledge, they shall, with the advice of the district attorney for their district, institute prosecutions, by indictment or otherwise, for the forfeitures incurred. To examine into 4. When any vessel shall arrive at any port or harbor sengers arriving, within this state, with alien passengers on board, who have never before been within the state, the superintendent of the city or town where it is intended to land such passengers, shall go on board such vessels, and shall examine into Master of vessel the condition of said passengers; and the master or commanding officer of such vessel shall, within twenty-four hours after such arrival, make a report in writing, under oath, to said superintendent, of the name, age, sex, occupation, place of birth, last place of residence, and conNo alien passen- dition, of every such passenger; and none of them shall land till report be landed, or be permitted to land, until such report shall be made, except as is hereinafter provided. to make report under oath. ger permitted to made. Lunatics, idiots, ted to land till bond given by master, &c. Ibid, § 5. 5. [If, on examination, there shall be found, among said &c., not permit passengers, any lunatic, idiot, maimed, aged, or infirm person, incompetent, in the opinion of the superintendent so examining, to maintain themselves, or who have been paupers in any other country, no such alien passengers shall be permitted to land until the master, owner, consignee, or agent of such vessel, shall make and deliver, to said superintendent, a bond to the commonwealth, with such sureties as are undoubted and satisfactory, in the sum of one thousand dollars, that no such lunatic or indigent passenger shall ever become a city, town, or state charge, from the date of said bond; provided, however, that if it shall be made to appear to said superintendent, by undoubted evidence, that any passengers on board such vessel are in such condition, as to health, property, capacity and character, that they are not likely to become chargeable to any city or town, he may permit them to be landed, on payment to him, by said master, consignee, or agent, of the sum of two dollars for each passenger so landed; and the names of all such Proviso. such as are sick or destitute, when the master port them. passengers shall be certified by said superintendent on the back of the report; and provided, further, that if any such Proviso as to passengers are so sick or destitute as to require relief, and if said master shall refuse to report them, or if said refuses to supmaster, owner, consignee, or agent, shall refuse to give such bond as is herein required, the said superintendent may permit them to be landed; and in such cases, any city or town, that shall be put to any expenses for the support, sickness, or burial, of any such passenger, within ten years of the time he was so landed, may maintain an action of debt against said master, owner, consignee, or agent, and recover all expense incurred as aforesaid; and said commanding officer, owner, consignee, or agent, shall be liable to the penalties provided in the tenth section of this act.1] to render acIbid, 6. 30. 6. Every superintendent of alien passengers shall, on Superintendents the third Wednesday of January, April, July, and October counts. of each year, render an account, to the treasurer of the But see post, p. commonwealth, of all the money received by him and his assistants, under the provisions of this act, up to the first days of said months of January, April, July, and October; and, after deducting therefrom the amount of salary due to Balance to be him up to which said quarterly accounts shall severally ex- treasury. tend, shall pay the balance into the state treasury; and the treasurer shall, as soon as may be after the third Wednesday of January of each year, lay said accounts before the legislature. paid into state ports and bonds Ibid, 7. 7. The treasurer of the commonwealth shall cause to Abstract of rebe published, monthly, in some convenient form for refer- to be published. ence, an abstract of the reports and bonds deposited with 1850, 105, § 3. him by superintendents, as provided in the seventh section,2 1 This section is mainly if not entirely superseded by the first section of the act of 1850, c. 105. See p. 29, post. See also, Norris v. City of Boston, (4 Metcalf's Rep. 282.) Smith v. Turner, (7 Howard's U. S. Rep. 283.) Norris v. City of Boston, (ibid.) 2 The intention here was, probably, to refer to the "seventh section " of the act as originally reported. In the act as it finally passed, that section was struck out. See Senate Documents, 1848, No.'s 46, 116, 122. which abstract shall contain an alphabetical list of all the names of alien passengers that shall have been reported up to the time of publishing said abstract, and not previously published, with the reported age, sex, occupation, place of birth, and last place of residence, of each of said aliens; also the time and place of their landing, the name of the vessel from which they were landed, and, if bonds of indemnity shall have been given as is provided in the fifth section, the names of the obligors in said bonds, and their residences, and also the names of such alien passengers as shall have been permitted to land by any superintendent, under the second proviso contained in said fifth section; together with the name of the vessel from which they were landed, the time when landed, with the names respectively of the master, commanding officer, owner, consignee, or Copy of abstract agent, of such vessel; and the treasurer shall forward a copy of said abstract, when so published, monthly, to the clerks of the several towns and cities in the commonwealth.1 to be sent to each city and town. 1848, 313, § 7. 1850, 105, § 3. Overseers of the poor to perform intendents in certain cases. 1848, 313, § 8. 8. The overseers of the poor, in any town where there duties of super- may be no superintendent of alien passengers, or where such superintendent shall be unable to perform his duties by reason of absence or ill health, shall perform the duties and exercise the authority herein conferred on such superintendents, and shall in like manner render their accounts to the state treasurer, and pay over the money so received, deducting therefrom a reasonable compensation for their services. Penalty for land- Penalty for land ing passengers 9. If any master, or commanding officer of any vessel, shall land any such alien passengers at any place within this state other than those to which said vessel is destined, with intent to avoid the requirements of this act, such master or commanding officer shall forfeit the sum of one hundred dollars for every such passenger so landed. 10. If any master or commanding officer of any vessel without comply- shall land, or permit to be landed, in this state, any alien passengers as aforesaid, without complying with the fore ing with law. Ibid, $ 10. 1 So much of this section as relates to alien passengers not bonded, was repealed by stat. 1849, c. 34. going provisions, said master or commanding officer, and any Master, owner, bring give bond for &c., of vessel, to every alien pas never senger. 1850, 105, § 1. instead. 11. Any master, owner, consignee, or agent of vessel, or any passenger-carrier by water, who shall or aid in bringing into this commonwealth, any alien before within the state, shall, for each and every such alien, give a bond to the commonwealth with good and sufficient sureties, to be approved by the superintendent of alien passengers, in the penalty of one thousand dollars, with a condition that no such alien shall ever become a city, town or state charge as a pauper, and in default of giving such bond, shall forfeit and pay to the use of the common- Penalty, wealth, the sum of one thousand dollars for every such. alien so brought into the state, to be recovered by action of debt, in any court competent to try the same; provided, May pay $2 that it shall be at the option of every such master, owner, consignee, or agent of any vessel, or passenger-carrier by water, to pay to the superintendent of alien passengers, for the use of the commonwealth, in place of such bond, the sum of two dollars for every such alien, who is not, in the opinion of the superintendent, a pauper, lunatic, or idiot, or maimed, aged, infirm or destitute, or incompetent to take care of himself or herself, without becoming a public charge as a pauper; and provided, also, that this act shall not ex- Proviso, tend to seamen sent from foreign ports by consuls or viceconsuls of the United States, nor to ambassadors, consuls, or public ministers, or other persons representing foreign states, nor to persons coming on shore from vessels in distress, nor to any alien passenger taken from any wreck where life is in danger. 1 The stat. of 1848, c. 313, § 11, repealed stat. 1837, c. 238; 1840, c. 96; and 1845, c. 76. |