meetings.

ARTICLE THIRD

Of Town Meetings.

§ 1. The citizens of the several towns of this state, qualified by the constitution to vote at general elections, shall annually assemble and hold town meetings in their reTime of town spective towns, on the first Tuesday of April, at such place in each town as the electors thereof, at their annual town meetings, shall from time to time appoint; and notice of the time and place of holding such meeting shall be given by the town clerk, by posting up written or printed notices in three of the most public places in said town, at least ten days prior to said meeting.

Officers elected.

Town Officers.

§ 2. There shall be chosen, at the annual town meeting to be in each town, one supervisor, one town clerk, one assessor, one collector, one overseer of the poor, three commissioners of highways, two constables, two justices of the peace, as many overseers of highways as there are road districts in the town, and so many pound-masters as the electors may determine Provided, that justices of the peace and constables shall be elected only once in four years, except to fill vacancies, and such justices and constables shall be successors Additional pro- to precinct justices and constables: Provided, further, that any town having eight hundred or more legal voters shall be entitled to elect one additional supervisor.

Proviso.

viso.

Fence Viewers.

§ 3. The assessor and commissioners of highways electEx officio fence ed in every town shall, by virtue of their office, be fence viewers of such town.

viewers.

Powers of Electors at Town Meetings.

§ 4. The electors of each town shall have power, at

Power of voters. their annual town meetings

1st. To determine the number of pound-masters, and the locality of pounds.

2d. To elect such town officers as may be required to be chosen.

3d. To direct the institution or defence of suits at law or in equity, in all controversies where such town shall be interested.

4th. To direct such sum to be raised in such town, for prosecuting or defending such suit, as they may deem necessary.

5th. To make rules, regulations for ascertaining the sufficiency of all fences in such towns, and for impounding animals.

6th. To determine the time and manner in which cattle, horses, mules, asses, hogs, sheep or goats shall be permitted to go at large.

7th. To impose such penalties on persons offending against any rule or regulation established by such town, except such as relate to the keeping and maintaining of fences, as they may think proper, not exceeding ten dollars for each

offence.

8th. To apply such penalties, when collected, in such manner as they may deem most conducive to the interest of such town.

§ 5. Special town meetings shall be held to supply va- Special town cancies in the several cases hereinafter provided for. They meetings. shall be held when the supervisors, town clerk and justices

of the peace, or any two of them, together with at least When called. twelve other freeholders of the town, shall, in writing, file in the office of town clerk a statement, that a special meeting is necessary to the interest of the town; and the town clerk, or, in case of his absence, the supervisor shall post up notices in five of the most public places in the town, giving at least ten days' notice of such special town meeting, and such meeting shall act on no subject that shall not be specified in the notice calling such meeting.

ARTICLE FOURTH.

Of the method of conducting Town Meetings.

Powers of.

§ 1. The electors present, at any time between the hours Town meetings, of nine and ten o'clock in the forenoon of the day on which how conducted there is an annual or special town meeting, shall be called

to order by the town clerk, if there be one; in case there be none, or he is not present, then the voters may elect, by acclamation, one of their number chairman. They shall then proceed to choose one of their number to preside as moderator of such town meeting.

§ 2. The town clerk last before elected or appointed, Who to be clerk. shall be the clerk of the town meeting, and shall keep faith

ful minutes of its proceedings, in which he shall enter at length every order or direction, and all rules and regulations made by such meetings.

Clerk pro tem.

§ 3. If the town clerk be absent, then such person as Clerk pro tem. shall be chosen for that purpose by the electors present shall act as clerk of the meeting.

Town meetings, how long to be kept open.

§ 4. Town meetings shall be kept open from the time of opening in the morning until the setting of the sun, unless the voters present may by vote adjourn one hour, from twelve till one o'clock.

§ 5. All questions upon motions made at town meetings Motions, how shall be determined by the majority of the electors voting; and the officer presiding at said meeting shall ascertain and declare the result of the votes upon each question.

decided.

lenged to take eath.

Challenge of Voters.

§ 6. If any person offering to vote at any election, or Persons chal- upon any question arising at such town meeting, shall be challenged as an unqualified voter, the presiding officer shall proceed thereupon in like manner as the judges at general elections are required, adapting the oath to the circumstances of the town meeting.

Qualification of voters.

§ 7. No person shall be a voter at any town meeting Qualification of unless he shall be qualified to vote at general elections and has been for the last thirty days an actual resident of the town wherein he shall offer to vote.

voters.

Minutes of proceedings.

§ 8. The minutes of the proceedings of every town Clerk to keep meeting, subscribed by the clerk of said [meeting,] and by the presiding officer, shall be filed in the office of town clerk, within two days after such town meeting.

minutes.

ARTICLE FIFTH.

§ 1. Before the electors shall proceed to elect any town Proclamations. officer, proclamation shall be made of the opening of the polls, by the town clerk, and proclamation shall in like manner be made of each adjournment, and of the opening and closing of the polls, until the election is ended.

of.

§ 2. The supervisor, town clerk, assessor, overseer of Vating, manner the poor, collector, commissioners of highways, constables. and justices of the peace, shall be chosen by ballot; all other officers shall be chosen either by ballot, by yeas and nays, or by dividing the electors, as the electors of the meeting may determine.

Ballots, folded.

3. When the electors vote by ballot, all the officers' how voted for shall be named in one ballot, which shall contain written or printed, or partly written and partly printed, the names of the persons voted for, and the offices to which such persons are intended to be chosen, and shall be deliv

ered to the presiding officer so folded as to conceal the con

tents.

§ 4. When the election is by ballot, a poll list shall be Poll list. kept by the clerk of the meeting, on which shall be entered the name of each person whose vote shall be received. .

§ 5. When the election is by ballot, the presiding officer Ballot box. shall deposite the ballots in a box provided for that purpose.

§ 6.

At the close of every election by ballot, the presiding officer shall proceed publicly to canvass the votes; Canvass of voter which canvass, when commenced, shall be continued, with

out adjournment or interruption, until the same be com

pleted.

§ 7. The canvass shall be conducted by taking a ballot Canvass, how at a time from the ballot box, and continue counting until made. the number of ballots are equal to the number of names on the poll list, and if there shall be any left in the box, they shall be immediately destroyed, and such persons as shall have the greatest number of votes shall be declared to be

elected. If, on opening the ballots, two or more ballots Double votes to shall be found to be so folded that it shall be apparent that be destroyed. the same person voted them, the presiding officer shall destroy such votes immediately.

Result to be entered by clerk.

tered on min

§ 8. The canvass being completed, a statement of the Result to be enresult shall be entered at length, by the clerk of the meet- utes. ing, in the minutes of its proceedings, to be kept by him as before required, which shall be publicly read by him to the meeting, and such reading shall be deemed notice of the result of the election, to every person whose name shall have been entered on the poll list as a voter.

Notice to officers elect.

§ 9. The clerk of every town meeting, within ten days Notice given to thereafter, shall transmit to each person elected to any town persons elected.. office, whose name shall not have been entered on the poll list as a voter, a notice of his election.

ARTICLE SIXTH.

§ 1. No person shall be eligible to any town office, un- Qualification for less he shall have been one year a resident of such town.

To take oath.

office.

§ 2. Every person chosen to the office of supervisor, Oath of office. town clerk, assessor, overseer of the poor, and commission

er of highways and collector, before he enters upon the du

Certificate.

ties of his office, and within ten days after he shall be noti fied of his election or appointment, shall take and subscribe, before some justice of the peace, such oath or affirmation of office as is prescribed by law.

And file certificate.

§ 3. Such person shall, within eight days thereafter, cause such certificate to be filed in the office of town clerk.

Neglect to.

§ 4. If any person chosen or appointed to either or any Effect of neglect of the town offices above enumerated, shall neglect to take

ance.

and subscribe such oath, and cause the certificate thereof to be filed as above required, such neglect shall be deemed a refusal to serve.

Acceptance to be signified.

§ 5. Every person chosen or appointed to the office of Notice of accept- overseer of highways or pound-masters, before he enters on the duties of his office, and within ten days after he shall have been notified of his election or appointment, shall cause to be filed in the office of town clerk, a notice signifying his acceptance of such office. A neglect to cause such notice to be filed shall be deemed a refusal to serve. § 6. Every person chosen or appointed to the office of Collecto: to file collector, before he enters upon the duties of his office, and within eight days after he receives notice of the amount of taxes to be collected by him, shall execute to the supervisor of the town, and his successor in office, and lodge with him a bond, with one or more sureties, to be approved by such supervisor in double the amount of such taxes, conditioned for the faithful execution of his duties as such collector.

bond.

§ 7. The supervisor shall, within six days thereafter, Bond to be lien file such bond, with his approval indorsed thereon, in the on real estate. office of the recorder, who shall make an entry thereof in a

book to be provided for the purpose, in the same manner in which judgments are recorded, and every such bond shall be a lien on all the real estate, severally, of such collector within the county at the time of the filing thereof, and shall continue to be such lien until its conditions, together with all costs and charges which may accrue by the prosecution thereof, shall be fully satisfied.

§ 8. Every person chosen to the office of constable, beConstables to fore he enters upon the duties of his office, and within eight take oath and days after he shall be notified of his election or appointment, shall take and subscribe the oath of office prescribed by law, and shall execute, in the presence of the supervi

file bond.