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Payment of commutation money.

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§ 3. Every person intending to commute for his assessment, or any part thereof, shall, within twenty-four hours after he shall be notified to appear and work on the highways, pay the commutation money for the work required of him by such notice, and the commutation shall not be considered as complete until such money be paid.

Teams, &c, may § 4. Every overseer of highways shall have power to be required. require a team or a cart, wagon or plough, with a pair of horses or oxen, and a man to manage them, from any person having the same within his district, who shall have been assessed two days or more, and who shall not have commuted for his assessment, and the person furnishing the same upon such requisition shall be entitled to a credit of two days for each day's service therewith.

Substitutes.

§ 5. Every person assessed to work on the highways. and warned to work, may appear in person or by an ablebodied man as a substitute, and the person or substitute so Eight hours to appearing shall actually work eight hours in each day, unconstitute day's der a penalty of twelve and a half cents for every hour such person or substitute shall be in default, to be imposed as a fine on the person assessed.

work.

Penalty for idle

ness.

Penalty for neg

to work.

§ 6. If any such person or his substitute shall, after appearing, remain idle or not work faithfully, or hinder others from working, such offender shall, for ever offence, forfeit the sum of one dollar.

§ 7. Every person so assessed and duly notified, who lect or refusal shall not commute, and who shall refuse or neglect to appear as above provided, shall forfeit for every day's refusal or neglect the sum of one dollar. If he was required to furnish a team, carriage, man or implements, and shall refuse or neglect to comply, he shall be fined as follows:

Complaint for

fusal.

1st. For wholly omitting to comply with such requisition, three dollars for each day.

2d. For omitting to furnish a cart, wagon or plough, one dollar for each day.

3d. For omitting to furnish a pair of horses or oxen, one dollar for each day.

4th. For omitting to furnish a man to manage the team, one dollar for each day.

§ 8. It shall be the duty of every overseer of highways, neglect or re- within six days after any person so assessed and notified shall be guilty of any refusal or neglect, for which a penalty or fine is prescribed in this act, unless a satisfactory excuse shall be rendered to him for such refusal or neglect, to make complaint, on oath, to one of the justices of the peace of the town,

Justice to issue summons.

§ 9. The justice to whom such complaint shall be made, shall forthwith issue a summons, directed to any constable. of the town, requiring him to summon such delinquent to appear forthwith before such justice, at some place, to be

specified in the summons, to show cause why he should not be fined according to law, for such refusal or neglect; which How served. summons shall be served personally, or by leaving a copy

at his personal abode.

return of sum

mons.

§ 10. If, upon the return of such summons, no sufficient Proceelings on cause shall be shown to the contrary, the 'justice shall impose fine as is provided in this act for the offence complained of, and shall forthwith issue a warrant, under his hand and seal, directed to any constable of the town where such delinquent shall reside, commanding him to levy such fine, with the costs of proceedings, of the goods and chattels of such delinquent.

ble.

§ 11. The constable to whom such warrant shall be di- Duty of constarected, shall forthwith collect the moneys therein mentioned. He shall pay the fine, when collected, to the justice of the peace who issued the warrant, who is hereby required to pay the same to the overseer who entered the complaint, to be by him expended in improving the roads and bridges in the district of which he is overseer.

§ 12. Every penalty collected for refusal or neglect to Penalty, how appear and work on the highways, shall be set off against applied. his assessment upon which it was founded, estimating every dollar collected as a satisfaction for one day's work.

excuse, not to

$13. The acceptance by an overseer of any excuse for Acceptance of refusal or neglect, shall not, in any case, exempt the person release duty of excused from commuting for or working the whole number road labor. of days for which he shall have been assessed during the

year.

Overseers.

§ 14. Each and every overseer of highways shall be Compensation of entitled to one dollar per day, to be paid out of fines and commutation money, for every day he is necessarily employed in the execution of his duties as overseer, beyond the amount of his own highway labor and road tax-the number of days to be accounted to and audited by the commissioners of highways: Provided, that when there is no funds from fines and commutations, the commissioners may pay the overseers out of other funds in their hands, if they think proper.

Proviso.

on

paid in labor.

§ 15. It shall be the duty of the overseer of highways Road tax to warn all residents of his district, against whom a land land, may be road tax is assessed, giving them three days' notice to work out the same upon the highways, and he shall receive such tax in labor from every able-bodied man, or his substitute, at the rate of seventy-five cents per day, and any person or his agent may pay such tax in road labor at the rate of seventy-five cents per day, or in that proportion, for a less amount: Provided, that any person may elect to pay such tax to the overseer in money.

to be noted.

§ 16. It shall be the duty of the overseer of highways, Payment of tax when such land tax has been paid, either in money or labor,

to write the word "paid," distinctly, against each name or tract on his list on which the same has been paid.

Return of over- § 17. Every overseer of highways shall deliver to the

seers.

lect.

supervisor of his town, at least five days previous to the annual meeting of the board of supervisors, the list furnished by the commissioners of highways, containing the land road tax, with an affidavit thereon, sworn to before some justice of the peace of said town, that on all tracts of land on such list, opposite which the word "paid" is not written, such tax is due and remains unpaid, according to the best of his belief and knowledge.

Penalty for neg§ 18. If any overseer shall refuse or neglect such list to the supervisor, as provided in the last preceding section, or shall neglect or refuse to make the affidavit as therein directed, he shall, for every such offence, forfeit the sum of five dollars, and also the amount of tax or taxes remaining unpaid, to be recovered by the commissioners of highways of the town, and to be applied by them in improving the roads and bridges of such town.

Duty of supervi

§ 19. It shall be the duty of the supervisors of the sevsors severally eral towns to receive the list of the overseers of highways when delivered pursuant to the preceding section, and to lay the same before the supervisors of the county.

supervisors.

Duty of hoard of $20. It shall be the duty of the board of supervisors to cause the amount of such arrearages of road tax to be levied on the lands so returned, and to be collected in the same manner that the contingent charges of the county are levied and collected, and to order the same when collected to be paid over to the commissioners of highways of the towns, to be by them applied to the construction of roads and bridges.

Road labor, when to be done.

Assessor to make return.

Nature of re

turns.

§ 21. It shall be the duty of every overseer of highways, to have at least three fourths of the road labor assessed in his district worked out or actually expended on the highways previous to the first day of October in every

year.

§ 22. Every overseer of highways shall, on the second Tuesday next preceding the time of holding the annual town meeting in his town, within the year for which he is elected or appointed, render to one of the commissioners of highways of the town an account in writing, containing

Form and order of List.

1st. The names of all persons assessed to work on the highways in the district of which he is overseer. 2d. The names of all those who have actually worked on the highways, with the number of days they have actually worked.

3d. The names of all those who have been fined, and the sums in which they have been fined.

4th. The names of all those who have commuted, and the manner in which the moneys arising from fines and commutations have been expended by him.

5th. The amount of uncollected road tax which he has returned to supervisor of the town, as required in section 17 of this article.

§ 23.

Pay over money.

Every such overseer shall, also, then and there Overseer to pay pay to the commissioners all moneys remaining in his hands over money. unexpended, to be applied by the commissioners in making and improving the roads and bridges in the town, in such manner as they shall direct.

In case of refusal, &c.

§ 24. If any overseer shall refuse or neglect to render Penalty for resuch account, or if having rendered the same he shall re- fasal or neglect. fuse or neglect to pay any balance which may then be due from him, he shall, for every such offence, forfeit the sum of five dollars, to be recovered, with the balance of the moneys remaining in his hands, by the commissioner of highways of the town, and to be applied in making and improving the roads and bridges. It shall be the duty of the commissioners to prosecute for such penalty, in every instance in which no return is made.

ARTICLE TWENTY-FOURTH.

Alteration or

of roads.

§ 1. The commissioners of highways may alter or discontinue any road, or lay out any new road, when petition- discontinuance ed by any number of legal voters, not less than twelve, residing within three miles of the road so to be altered, discontinued or laid out. Said petition shall set forth in writing a description of the road, and what part thereof is to be altered or discontinued; and if for a new road, the names of the owners of lands, if known, over which the road is to pass, the point at which it is to commence, its general course, and the place at or near where it is to terminate.

§ 2. Whenever any number of legal voters determine Copy of notices to petition the commissioners of highways for the alteration to be posted. or discontinuance of any road, or laying out of any new road, they shall cause a copy of their petition to be posted up in three of the most public places in the town, twenty days before any action shall be had in reference to said petition.

commissioners.

§ 3. Whenever the commissioners of highways shall re- Proceedings of ceive a petition in compliance with the two preceding sec

Burvey.

Duty of town clerk.

Damages.

tions, they shall, or a majority of them, within ten days after the expiration of the twenty days required in section two of this article, personally examine the proposed alteration, discontinuance or route for the new road proposed to be laid out, and shall hear any reasons that may be offered for or against altering, discontinuing or laying out the same. If they shall be of opinion that such alteration, discontinuance or laying out shall be necessary and proper, and that the public interest will be promoted thereby, they shali grant the prayer of the petitioners as hereinafter provided.

§ 4. Whenever the commissioners of highways shall determine to lay out any new road, or alter any old one, they shall cause a survey to be made by a competent surveyor, who shall make a report to them of such survey, accompanied with a plat, particularly describing the route by metes and bounds, courses and distances, and also the lands over which such road passes. They shall incorporate such report and survey, accompanied with the plat, in an order, to be signed by them, declaring such road so altered or laid out to be a public highway; which order, together with the petition, shall be deposited with the town clerk, who shall note the time of filing the same. In case the commissioners shall determine not to alter, discontinue or lay out any roads in accordance with any petition to them presented, they shall note the fact on the back of said petition, and deposite it with the town clerk, who shall note the time of filing the same.

§ 5. It shall be the duty of the town clerk, whenever any order of the commissioners for laying out, altering or discontinuing a road shall be received by him, to carefully file the same, and the time hereinafter limited for appealing from such order shall be computed from the time of filing the same, but the town clerk shall not record such order until a final decision is made, and not then unless such order is confirmed.

§ 6. The damages sustained by reason of the laying out, or opening, or altering any road may be ascertained by the agreement of the owners and the commissioners of highways, and unless such agreement be made or the owners of the land shall, in writing, release all claims to damages, the same shall be assessed in the manner hereinafter prescribed, before such road shall be opened, or worked, or used. Every agreement and release shall be filed in the town clerk's office, and shall forever preclude such owners of such lands from all further claim for such damages. In case the commissioners and owners of land claiming damages cannot agree, it shall be the duty of the commissioners to assess the damages at what they may deem just and right to each individual claimant with which they cannot agree, and deposit a statement of the amount of damages so assessed to

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