each individual with the town clerk, who shall note the time of filing the same.

It shall be the duty of commissioners, in all cases of assessing damages, to estimate the advantages and benefits the new road or alteration of an old one will confer on complainants for the same, as well as the disadvantages.

lowed.

§ 7. No damages shall be allowed by reason of the alDamages, when teration of any old road, unless such alteration or new road not to be alpasses through enclosed, cultivated or improved lands: Provided, that commissioners of highways may allow dam- Proviso. ages, when in their opinion it is absolutely necessary so to lay out a new road, either diagonally across a lot of land, or in any way so as materially to injure the same.

§ 8. Any person or persons, being owners of or agents Appeals. for any tract of land over which any highway, altered, discontinued or laid out, shall run, feeling themselves aggrieved by any order made by the commissioners of highways, may appeal from the same at any time within thirty days after the filing of such order in the town clerk's office. Such appeal shall note the time that such order was filed, and shall be made to three supervisors of the county, neither of which shall be a resident of the town in which said highway is situated. All persons who desire to make an appeal from such order shall act in concert, and make their appeal to the same three supervisors.

§ 9. Every such appeal shall be in writing, addressed to Mode of appeal. the supervisors, and signed by the party or parties appealing. It shall briefly state the ground upon which it is made, and whether it is brought in relation to damages assessed by the commissioners of highways, or in relation to the alteration, discontinuance or laying out of the road, or whether it is brought to reverse entirely the determination of the commissioners, or only to reverse a part thereof; and in the latter case it shall specify what part. The appeal shall be left with one of the three supervisors, by the person or persons appealing, and such person or persons shall also leave a notice of such appeal with each of the other supervisors to whom the appeal is made.

supervisors.

§ 10. It shall be duty of the supervisors to whom the Proceeding of appeal is made, as soon as may be convenient after the expiration of thirty days from the filing of the order in the town clerk's office from which the appeal is made, to agree upon a time when and where they will meet to consider the same; which shall be at some place deemed convenient at or near the road to be examined.

ing.

11. The person or persons making the appeal shall Notice of hearcause a notice in writing, of the time and place agreed on by the three supervisors when and where they will meet, to be served on each of the commissioners of highways from whose order they appealed, and also on at least three of the

Trial of appeal.

supervisors.

petitioners who petitioned in relation to such road; which notices shall be served at least eight days before the time mentioned therein, by delivering one to cach commissioner, or leaving one at each of their dwelling houses, and in like manner shall the notices be served on each of the three petitioners.

§ 12. It shall be the duty of supervisors to convene at the time and place mentioned in the notice, and to hear the proofs and allegations of the parties. They shall have power to issue process, to compel the attendance of witnesses, and may adjourn from time to time, as may be necessary. Their decision, or that of any two of them, shall embrace the whole matter in controversy. They shall first consider the propriety and expediency of locating, altering or discontinuing the road; secondly, the subject of damages, if such subject was embraced in the appeal under which they are acting, and they shall fix upon the amount of damages which, in their judgment, is right and just to be paid to each person claiming, but no person shall be entitled to a re-assessment of damages unless his or her name appears in the appeal in reference to that subject. The supervisors shall be governed by the same, unless in assessing damages as is provided in section 6th of this article, for the government of commissioners of highways in such case.

Compensation of 13. Every such supervisor shall be entitled to receive one dollar and fifty cents for every day employed in hearing and deciding such appeal, to be paid by the party appealing, where the determination of the commissioners shall be affirmed; but where it is reversed, to be charged against the

Appeal from de

cision of commissioners.

Daty of visors.

super

town.

§ 14. Upon the refusal of the commissioners to alter, discontinue or lay out any new road petitioned for as provided in section one of this article, any one of the petitioners may appeal from such determination, in the same manner, and subject to the same provisions and restrictions, as relates to persons who feel themselves aggrieved by a determination of the commissioners to alter, discontinue or lay out a new road.

§ 15. Where an appeal shall have been made from a determination of the commissioners refusing to lay out, alter or discontinue a road, and the supervisors shall reverse. such determination, such supervisors shall alter, discontinue or lay out the road applied for, as the case may be, and in doing so shall proceed in the same manner in which commis sioners of highways are directed to proceed in the like cases. Such roads shall be opened by the commissioners of the town, in the same manner as if laid out by themselves. § 16. In case any one of the supervisors to whom such when supervi- application shall have been made, shall become unable to attend before the determination of such appeal, it shall be tl.e

Proceedings,

sors cannot attend.

duty of the remaining supervisors named therein to associate with themselves another of the supervisors of the same county, who shall act with them in all subsequent proceedings, in the same manner as if he had been originally named in such appeal. In case the term of office of any supervisor shall expire before the determination of such appeal, he shall continue to act in the premises the same as if he had been re-elected.

paid.

§ 17. The amount of damages as finally settled by the Damages, how three supervisors, or as agreed on by the commissioners of highways, together with all charges of officers and other persons employed in laying out, altering or discontinuing any road, shall be rendered by the commissioners of highways to the board of town auditors, with the amount of damages and charges due each individual; which accounts shall be audited by said board, certified to and deposited with the town clerk. The town clerk shall make out the aggregate amount of such damages and charges, with his certificate thereto attached, and deliver the same to the supervisor of the town, previous to the annual meeting of the board of supervisors.

when damages

§ 18. After a final decision by any three supervisors to Proceedings whom any road difficulty has been appealed, if in the opin- are deemed too ion of the supervisor, town clerk, the justices of the peace, high. and the commissioners of highways, or any five of them, the damages are manifestly too high, and that in providing for the payment thereof an oppressive tax will have to be levied on the property of said town, they may petition the board of supervisors, at any meeting of said board held within six months after such decision for relief, either from the whole. or a part of the damages. The board shall hear the reasons for and against granting such relief, and if a majority of them shall be of opinion that the town should be relieved from the whole amount of damages, then and in that case the opening of said road shall be postponed until the damages, or a major part thereof, are in some other way provided for than by levying a tax upon the property of the town. § 19. When the commissioners of highways of any town Proceedings shall disagree with the commissioners of any other town of sioners of difthe same county, relating to the laying out of a new road, or the alteration of an old road, extending into both towns, or when the commissioners of a town in one county shall disagree with the commissioners of a town in another county, relative to the laying out of a new road, or altering an old road, which shall extend into both counties, the commissioners of both towns shall meet together, at the request of either disagreeing commissioner, and make their determination upon such subject of disagreement.

§ 20. Whenever the commissioners of highways of any town receive a petition, praying the location of a new road,

when commis

ferent towns disagree.

roads on town line.

Discontinuance alteration or discontinuing of an old one, upon the line beor alteration of tween two towns, such road shall be laid out, altered or discontinued by two or more of the commissioners of highways of each of said towns, either upon such line or as near thereto as the convenience of the ground will admit, and they may so vary the same, either to the one or the other side of of such line, as they may think proper.

Boad districts.

Allotment of districts.

Allotment of the roads.

val of fences.

§ 21. It shall be the duty of the said commissioners, when there may be such highway, to divide it into two or more road districts, in such manner that the labor and expense of opening, working and keeping in repair such highway, through each of the said districts, may be equal, as near as may be, and to allot an equal number of the said districts to each of the said towns.

§ 22. Each district shall be considered as wholly belonging to the town to which it shall be allotted for the purpose of opening and improving the road, and keeping it in repair, and the commissioners shall cause such highway, and the partition and allotment thereof, to be recorded in the office of town clerk, in each of their respective towns.

§ 23. All highways heretofore laid cut upon the line between any two towns, shall be divided, allotted, recorded and kept in repair in the manner above directed.

§ 24. Whenever the commissioners of highways shall Time for remo-have laid out any public highway through any enclosed, cultivated or improved lands, in conformity with the provisions of this act, and their determination shall not have been appealed from, they shall give the owner or occupant of the land though which such road shall have been laid, sixty day's notice, in writing, to remove his fences. If such owner does not remove his fences within sixty days, the commissioners shall cause such fences to be removed, and shall direct the road to be opened and worked.

In cases of appeal.

Public roads.

Private roads.

If the determination of the commissioners shall have been appealed from, then the sixty days' notice shall be given after the decision of the supervisors upon such appeal shall have been filed in the office of the town clerk of the town.

Public roads and public highways.

§ 26. The public roads now existing by law are declared the public highways of the town in which they shall lay. § 27. Any person liable to be assessed for road labor, may apply to the commissioners of highways to lay out a private road, and the commissioner shall proceed to ex-, amine into the merits of such application, and be governed in their proceedings by the rules and regulations prescribed in this act, in relation to public roads. The damages as

sessed, in consequence of the laying out of such private road, shall be paid by the person applying for the same.

sec. 24.

§ 28. Whenever the commissioners of highways shall Repetition of have laid out any public highway through any enclosed, cultivated or improved lands, in conformity to the provisions of this act, and their determination shall not have been appealed from, they shall give the owner or occupant of the lands through which such road shall have been laid sixty days' notice, in writing, to remove his fences. If such owner shall not remove his fences within sixty days, the commissioner shall cause such fences to be removed, and shall direct the road to be opened and worked.

§ 29.

All public roads to be laid out by the commission- Width of roads ers of highways of any town shall not be less than four rods wide, and all private roads shall not be more than three rods wide.

their use.

§ 30. Every private road, when laid out, shall be for Private roads, the use of the applicant applying for the same, his heirs and assigns, but not to be converted to any other use or purpose than that of a road.

§ 31. The public roads now existing by law, are declared the public highways of the town in which such roads shall lay, and this act shall not be construed as conferring any power, on commissioners of highways to alter state roads now or hereafter existing by law.

ARTICLE TWENTY-FIFTH.

Miscellaneous Provisions.

Repetition of

sec. 26.

to have no pow

er to alter state

roads.

cincts.

§ 1. Each town acting under township organization Towns to be eshall constitute an election precinct, and the supervisor, lection preassessor and collector shall be ex officio judges of elections. The supervisor, or, in case of his absence, the town clerk, shall post up notices of general elections, in like manner as is now required of sheriffs and county clerks, under the general laws of this state.

lectors.

§ 2. The county judge, sitting as a county court, with- County judge to have jurisdicout associates, in counties acting under township organiza- tion of suits tion, shall have the same jurisdiction of suits brought by brought by colcollectors for taxes on delinquent lands and town lots as the county courts have under existing laws, and all acts of county courts, heretofore done in suits for taxes on delinquent lands and town lots, are hereby legalized.

a supervisor.

3. The several wards in the city of Chicago shall be Each ward in entitled to elect one supervisor in each ward, in addition to Chicago to eleot the township supervisors, and the several supervisors so elected shall be members of the board of supervisors of Cook county, and shall have, possess and enjoy all the rights, powers and privileges that are now or hereafter shall be pos