same as provided in the foregoing sections; and having collected the same, shall without delay disburse the money to the best advantage on public roads in the district to which such labor or tax properly belongs. In all cases the supervisor shall be a competent witness in suits brought as above stated; and an appeal may be taken to the circuit court by either party, as in other cases of appeal from justices of the peace.

SEC. 20. Every supervisor shall endeavor to collect all road and labor tax, and close the work by the twenty-fifth Tax to be collected by 25th of December, annually. And they are absolutely bound to re- December. turn to the clerk of the county commissioners' court the tax list, by the first of January, marking carefully and truly the amount paid on said road tax list, how much in work, and the amount in money by each individual named, and shall give a receipt to each individual if requested. The clerk and collector shall give credit on the general tax list, to each person, for the amount paid, and the balance due shall be collected by the proper officer out of the goods and chattels, lands and tenements of the person owing, in the same manner as other revenue for the State and county shall be collected. All money's collected as above, after deducting the per lected to be a Money so col'cent. for collecting and costs paid out to be allowed by the road fund. commissioners' court, shall be set apart in the treasury of the county as a road fund, to be disbursed by order of the commissioners' court, in the erection of bridges, and improvement of such public roads in the county as they may deem most advantageous to the public; and in no case shall the court appropriate or divert any portion of said road fund to any other purpose than the construction of roads and road purposes: Provided, always, That fines and forfeitures incurred under the provisions of this act, shall be applied to the improvement of the public roads within the bounds of such road district wherein such fines and penalties may have been incurred.

Proviso.

SEC. 21. Supervisors are hereby authorized to hire teams Supervisor to to do the necessary hauling, ploughing and scraping, to con- hire teams. tract for materials for building bridges, causeways, erecting guide-boards, for making and furnishing road scrapers, and repairing roads in discharge of labor and road tax due, and so far as funds shall come into possession, procuring said teams, materials, implements, and work, on the best possible terms.

SEC. 22. All power, jurisdiction and control, is hereby Jurisdiction. given to the county commissioners' court of the several counties, of and concerning State roads, roads located directly by the State, and the same shall be opened, improved and kept in repair as other roads in the counties, subject to alteration, change and relocation, as hereinafter pointed out.

Manner

of

SEC. 23. When any person or persons desire a change proceeding in or relocation of any State road now located, notice of such relocating intended application shall be given by setting up advertise-roads.

Proviso

ments in writing, at least one in each road district through which said road shall pass, and on the court-house door, twenty days previous to the sitting of the court to which application shall be made; and on petition of a majority of the qualified voters of each road district through which said road shall pass, and a majority of the voters living immediately in the vicinity of such road, the court shall appoint three viewers to examine and make the necessary relocation; they shall carefully view the road as located, and the ground for the proposed route, and being of opinion that the public good requires an alteration, in view of obtaining a more suitable place to erect a bridge over a stream, wind a hill, avoid a swamp, expensive work, or where the present road greatly damages an individual, and can be varied without material damage to the public; in such cases alterations may be made; and a majority of said viewers being of that opinion, they shall cause a survey and relocation to be made, returning to the commissioners' court a plat with the courses and distances of the road as established. But if they consider an alteration not necessary, they shall so report, and the court may confirm and accept the report, or take such further action thereon as to them may seem right. In like manner, any State road now established, which may be considered useless or burthensome, on notice, petition, view and report to that effect, as required in this section in case of an alteration, the same may be annulled and vacated.

SEC. 24. That when it shall become necessary to have a Viewers to be State or county road now located and established, altered, appointed. relocated, or vacated at a county line, or a new road laid out, the same being petitioned for, and notice given, as required in the preceding section, the same shall be agreed on by viewers from each county, to be appointed by the counties immediately interested, and no road shall be altered at a county line, or elsewhere, unless a majority of the viewers appointed agree on such change or alteration: Provided, That no application shall be acted upon, or viewers appointed, as contemplated in the preceding sections, unless the petitioners deposite money sufficient to pay the viewers in case an unfavorable report be made, to be refunded should the road be located, altered or vacated, as petitioned for. And the petitioners, in case a new road shall be established, or a change in the location of a road, shall contribute one day's work on the same or some other road in the county, as required in the ninth section of this act. In case of a disagreement in the location or alteration of any road crossing a county line by the county authorities, either county may appeal to the circuit court, who shall hear and determine the case, grant a review, appoint viewers, and make such order therein as shall seem right in the establishment of the road in dispute.

SEC. 25. All roads shall be surveyed, and a plat, with the courses and distances thereof, returned with the report of

the viewers to the commissioners' court, which shall be. re- Roads to be corded and filed. The commissioners' court, on the return of surveyed and plat filed. the report and plat, shall determine and establish on record the width of the road, making the main leading roads four rods wide, and none less than thirty feet.

Roads to be

SEC. 26. In the location and alteration of all roads, it shall be the duty of viewers to make the same as direct as made direct. the ground and circumstances will allow, particularly the main leading roads. Previous to entering upon their duties, they shall be sworn before some judge of a court, or justice of the peace of the State, that they will faithfully, impartially, and to the best of their judgment, discharge the duties incumbent on them as road viewers under the law and appointment of the court.

SEC. 27. At the March term of the commissioners' court, Supervisor to I make report annually, each supervisor shall make a report, showing the in March. whole number of day's work that has been done in his district during the year; by whom done; the amount of money by him received; from whom; for road tax, or otherwise due on roads; the amount paid out by him in constructing roads, with the vouchers accompanying; at which term he shall make a settlement with the court, and if a balance should appear in his hands, the same shall be disbursed in the district, or added to the general road fund, as the court shall order. Supervisors may appoint one or more persons to warn in the hands, and make an allowance out of the labor or tax due from such person. No allowance shall be made to any supervisor for services out of the county treasury, except for sums required by the seventh section of this act, but be shall be wholly exempt from doing military duty in time of peace, and from serving on grand and petit juries while acting as supervisor; and shall have power and authority to appoint one or more deputies, suitable persons, to oversee laborers, and direct the work, the supervisor being responsible.

SEC. 28. Road viewers shall be allowed one dollar, and Compensasurveyors two dollars, for each and every day necessarily tion to read employed; and chain and axe-men, seventy-five cents per

day.

viewers.

from unim

SEC. 29. The supervisor, for the purpose of building or Supervisor to repairing any bridge or causeway, by order of the county haul materiale commissioners' court, is hereby authorized to enter upon the proved land. nearest unimproved land, and to cut and haul away timber, or to quarry and haul rock, gravel, sand, or earth, which may be necessary for that purpose: Provided, He shall not take Proviso. away timber already cut, or any rock or gravel already quarried for another purpose, without leave from the owner or

viso.

his agent; Provided, also, That unless the owner, or his or Further proher agent, shall first consent to the cutting of timber, or the quarrying of stone, or the taking of gravel, sand, or earth, the supervisor shall call upon two discreet householders to value

the materials about to be used. If the owner of the materials, or his agent shall see proper, he may choose two other discreet householders, to act with such as may be chosen by the supervisor, and if they cannot agree, the four shall choose a fifth, as umpire; and the five or a majority of them, shall make out their award under their hands and seals, and transmit it to the clerk of the county commissioners' court who shall file and preserve the same; which award shall be final and conclusive, of the amount of damages sustained by such person, and the amount so awarded shall be paid to the owner of the materials, or his or her agent, out of the county treasury; and the supervisor shall be authorized and warranted in taking such materials so soon as the award shall be made.

Supervisors to SEC. 30. In all cases where a public road shall have been apply to jus- heretofore authorized by law to be laid out or constructed tice of peace. in this State, either by State or county authority, and the

Proviso.

same is required to pass over the land belonging to any company, corporation, or individual, and the owner or owners shall object thereto, and cannot agree with the commissioner, superintendent, or supervisor, authorized to construct the same, on the amount of damage which such owner or owners may claim, it shall be lawful for such commissioner, superintendent, or supervisor to apply to some justice of the peace of the county where the same may occur, who shall cause three householders to appear before him, and the householders so summoned, after being sworn faithfully and impartially to examine the ground which shall be pointed out to them by the commissioner, superintendent, or supervisor, shall assess the damages which they shall believe such owner or owners will sustain, over and above the additional value which such lands will derive from the construction of such road, and make two written reports signed by at least a majority of them, one of which they shall give to the commissioner, superintendent, or supervisor requesting the view, and the other to the opposite party, which award or assessment of damages shall, as well where the amount shail be agreed upon by the parties without applying to a justice of the peace, be laid before the county commissioners' court for consideration, who shall examine the matter, and should they decide the amount of damages is not unreasonable, or more than should be given, and that the opening and improving the road is called for by the public interest, and the finances of the county will justify, they, in that case, will approve and accept the award, and order the money to be paid, and the same being paid, the commissioner, superintendent, or supervisor, shall proceed to open and construct said road, which proceedings being recorded in the commissioners' court, the right of way shall be thereby secured: Provided, That the corporation, company, owner or owners of the land shall have

the right to appeal from the decision of the commissioners' court to the circuit court, and the case shall be acted upon in such manner as the court may determine, with a view to justice, and the establishment of the road, and shall make such order therein as may seem right and just, which decision shall be final. The provisions of this section shall extend to a cart-way, as contemplated in the thirteenth section of this act, viewers appointed to be sworn, report to be made, the damages to be paid by the individuals desiring the cartway, to be confirmed by commissioners' court, and either party may appeal to the circuit court, where the case being fully heard, such judgment or order shall be made thereon as the court shall deem right, and which shall be a final decision. SEC. 31. Supervisors are hereby authorized to bring suits Supervisors to before any justice of the peace of the county, to recover any and all sums due for road labor, road tax, fines and forfeitures imposed by this act, which are intended to come into the hands of such supervisors for road purposes, and to collect, disburse, and account for the same, suing in the name of the county commissioners, in their official capacity.

bring suit.

SEC. 32. Any supervisor who neglects to keep the roads Penalty when in his district in good repair, agreeably to the provisions of supervisor nethis act, or fails to perform any other duty herein required, glects duty. shall be liable to indictment, and on conviction thereof, shall

be fined in a sum not less than five dollars, and not exceeding fifty dollars, to be expended on some road within the district of said supervisor.

SEC. 33. The clerk of the commissioners' court in each Duty of clerk. county, shall, at each term of the circuit court, make out and furnish the grand jury with a list of the names of all supervisors in the county, with the date at which they were appointed.

tion to sheriffs

and clerks.

SEC. 31. Sheriffs and clerks of the county commissioners' Compensacourts, shall be allowed a fair and reasonable compensation for discharging the duties required of them by this act, to be paid out of the county treasury, on the allowance and order of the county commissioners' courts respectively.

SEC. 35. That all laws heretofore passed, and now in All road laws force, upon the subject of State and county roads, be, and repealed. the same are hereby repealed; but rights acquired, or liabilities incurred thereby, are not hereby affected: Provided, Proviso. That nothing herein contained shall be construed so as to operate as a repeal of the act entitled "An act concerning the right of way, and for other purposes," approved, February twenty-eighth, one thousand eight hundred and thirty-three. This act shall not extend or be construed in any manner to authorize a change or any interference with the Great Western Mail Route, or the Darwin and Charleston turnpike. This act to be in force from and after the first day of March next.