Articles of association, to contain what. Articles of association, filed where. Powers of corporation. Idem. Liability of stockholders. with their successors and assigns constitute a body politic and corporate in fact and in name, under any name assumed by them in the articles of incorporation: Provided, That no two such corporations so incorporated shall assume the same name. SEC. 2. The articles of association of every such corporation shall be signed by the persons associating in the first instance and acknowledged before some person authorized by the laws of this State to take acknowledgments of deeds, and shall state: First, The names of the [parties] persons associating in the first instance and their places of residence; Second, The corporate name by which such corporation shall be known in law; Third, The place of its business office and the period for which it is incorporated, which period shall not exceed thirty years; Fourth, The object for which it is incorporated. SEC. 3. A copy of said articles of association shall be filed with the Secretary of State and a copy thereof shall also be filed with the county clerk of the county of this State in which the office of said association for the transaction of business shall be located; and provided that any association incorporated under the provisions of this act shall be governed by section twelve of act number one hundred and sixty-four of the public acts of eighteen hundred ninety-five; and a copy of the record of such articles of association under seal of this State, duly certified according to law, shall be received as prima facie evidence in all courts of this State for the existence and due incorporation of such corporation. SEC. 4. Such corporation shall have full power and authority to make and establish rules, regulations and by-laws for the regulating and governing the affairs of said corporation according to the laws of this State and of the United States, and to designate, elect and appoint in such manner as they shall determine, all necessary officers, may fix their compensation and determine their duties, and may make from time to time such by-laws not inconsistent with the constitution and laws of this State as a majority of the members thereof shall direct. SEC. 5. Any corporation formed under this act shall possess all the powers usually possessed by corporations, and may take, purchase, receive, hold and enjoy to them and to their successors or assigns, estates real and personal to the amount not exceeding one hundred thousand dollars; and shall be capable of suing and being sued in any court of this State and may have a common seal and may alter and amend same at pleasure: Provided, That each stockholder in said corporation shall be personally liable for any moneys collected by said corporation for its customers in the regular course of the business of such corporation, and in case any stockholders shall be holden for any debt he may collect from each stockholder the pro rata share due from each. SEC. 6. All corporations formed under this act shall have a Capital stock. capital stock of not less than ten thousand dollars and shall have a paid up capital of not less than ten thousand dollars. Approved June 2, 1897. [No. 254. ] AN ACT to provide for the construction and maintenance of drains, and the assessment and collection of taxes therefor, and to repeal all other laws relative thereto. CHAPTER I. DRAINS. ment and cleaning out water courses. of drains and SECTION 1. The People of the State of Michigan enact, That Establishdrains may be located, established, constructed and main tained, and drains and water courses may be cleaned out, straightened, widened, deepened and extended, whenever the same shall be conducive to the public health, convenience or welfare. SEC. 2. The word "drain" whenever used in this act shall Interpretation of word be deemed to include any water course or ditch, opened or pro- "drain." posed to be opened and improved for the purpose of drainage, and any artificial ditch or drain, levee, dyke or barrier, or tile drain proposed or constructed for such purpose. CHAPTER II. DRAIN COMMISSIONER. of county SECTION 1. The board of supervisors of each organized Appointment county in this State shall, at their annual meeting in the year drain comeighteen hundred and ninety-seven and every second year missioner. thereafter, appoint one county drain commissioner, whose Term of office. term of office shall be two years, and shall begin on the first day of January following his appointment. All county drain Present commissioners holding office at the time this act takes effect sioners shall continue in office until the first day of January, eighteen to hold office drain commis to January 1, 1898. filled. Vacancy, how hundred and ninety-eight. In case of vacancy in the office of the county drain commissioner occurring thirty days or more previous to a regular or special meeting of the board of supervisors, the same may be filled within ten days, or as soon thereafter as practicable, by appointment by a majority vote of the county clerk, prosecuting attorney and judge of probate of the county and of which election they shall file the certificate with the county clerk, and the person so appointed shall hold his office until the next regular or special meeting of the board of supervisors, when the said board shall fill such vacancy. To subscribe Every county drain commissioner shall within ten days after his appointment, take, subscribe and file with the county clerk the oath of office required by the constitution of this State and shall also within the same time execute and file with such clerk a bond to the county in the penal sum of five thou sand dollars with two or more sufficient sureties to be approved by such clerk, conditioned upon the faithful discharge of the duties of his office. It shall be the duty of the county clerk, upon the appointment of any county drain commissioner, to make report thereof to the Secretary of State, giving also the date that he qualified and entered upon the discharge of his duties. to oath and file bond. Clerk to notify Drain commissioner to hold office for remainder of term. Jurisdiction of county drain commissioner. County drain commissioner SEC. 2. All county drain commissioners heretofore appointed, who may be in office when this act takes effect shall continue to hold their respective offices for the remainder of the term for which they have been appointed, and they shall be deemed to be the drain commissioners of their respective counties until their successors are chosen and qualified under the provisions of this act. SEC. 3. The county drain commissioner shall have jurisdiction over all drains within his county including those heretofore established and now in process of construction by township drain commissioners, except that in all cases where the entire drain shall be laid in one county, and the benefits to be derived therefrom and the assessments for its construction shall extend to lands situated in one or more adjoining counties, then all such drains shall be laid by the commissioners of such counties acting jointly, and all their proceedings shall be had under the provisions of this act regulating the construction of drains traversing more than one county. SEC. 4. In case it is proposed to run a part of a drain may run drain through an incorporated city, the whole of such drain shall be through a city. located, established and constructed, and the assessment for its construction made by the county drain commissioner in the same manner as herein provided for the construction of other drains by county drain commissioners, and whenever the word "township," is used in this act, it shall be construed to mean ship construed "city," as the case may be: Provided, That when an appeal is When appeal taken from the assessment of such county drain commissioner by the owner of lands in a city, such appeal shall be made to the common council of such city subject in every other respect Word town to mean city. to be taken to common council. to the provisions of this act covering appeals made to township boards. SEC. 5. It shall be the duty of each county drain commis- Commissioner to keep a sioner to make and keep a full financial statement of each financial drain laid out by him. The county drain commissioner shall statement. also make and keep in his office, in a book to be provided for that purpose, a complete record of each drain laid out or Record of applied for under his supervision, under the provisions of this drain. act, which record shall include a copy of the application for the laying out of the drain, of the minutes of the survey, of the releases of the right of way where the same has been released, together with the minutes of his doings, of his orders of determination of the necessity for, and of the establishing the drain, and his assessments of benefits. Where special commissioners In case of or a jury have been called it shall also contain a copy of the missioners, special comapplication to the probate court, of the return of the special original pacommissioners or jury as the case may be, and of all other filed in office papers in his office necessary to show a complete history of clerk. each drain, all of which said original papers shall then be deposited and filed in the office of the county clerk. And no drain tax shall be spread until all the records required have been deposited and filed in the office of the county clerk. pers to be of county minister SEC. 6. Drain commissioners may take acknowledgments of May take acknowledg releases of right of way and administer oaths in all proceed- ments and adings in any way pertaining to drains under this act. A simple oaths. form of release of right of way and damages that shall set Release of right of way. forth by reference to the survey of the drain, or by other convenient description, the particular land intended to be conveyed, and signed and acknowledged by the person having the Sufficient conright to convey, shall be deemed a sufficient conveyance under the provisions of this act. All releases for rights of way shall Right of way be deemed to include sufficient ground on each side of the what. center line of such drain for the deposit of the excavations therefrom. veyance. to include commission statement. SEC. 7. Every county drain commissioner shall make a County drain report to the board of supervisors on the second day of their er's report. annual meeting in October, of each year, of all drains constructed, finished or begun under his supervision during the year then ending, and he shall also render to them a full financial statement of each drain. The reports required by this Financial section shall include an itemized statement of all expenses and Reports to indisbursements on account of each and every drain laid or operated by him during the year, and a debit and credit balance of every such drain. Each county drain commissioner Liability of shall be liable on his bond for any gross neglect of duty or any drain commisapplication of moneys coming under his control as such missioner. drain commissioner. clude what. county SEC. 8. No person holding the office of supervisor, highway Who eligible commissioner or township clerk shall be eligible to the office of to the office. county drain commissioner, and any county drain commissioner accepting the office of supervisor, highway commis Office abolished. sioner or township clerk shall thereupon be considered as having vacated the office of county drain commissioner. SEC. 9. The office of township drain commissioner is hereby abolished. Application for drain. Proviso. CHAPTER III. LOCATION OF DRAIN. SECTION 1. Before the commissioner takes any action towards locating or establishing any drain there shall be filed with him an application signed by not less than ten freeholders of the township or townships in which such drain or the lands to be drained thereby and to be assessed therefor may be situated; also that three or more of said signers shall be owners of lands liable to an assessment for benefits in the construction of said drain: Provided, That where there are only three or less property owners liable to assessments for benefits, one or more of such owners of lands so liable shall be necessary upon such application, giving a general description of the beginning, the route and the terminus thereof. And in case any county drain commissioner shall directly or indirectly interest himself in securing signatures to an application for any drain he shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof shall be fined not to exceed fifty dollars or by imprisonment in the county jail not to exceed ninety days or both such fine and imprisonment in the discretion of the court, and the office of such drain commissioner shall be deemed vacant, and the drain commissioner so convicted shall be incapable of again holding the office of county drain commissioner. Such applicants shall be jointly and severally liable for all costs and expenses in case the county drain commissioner upon examination or upon examination and survey shall determine that the same is unnecessary or impracticable or in Suit for costs. case the proceedings shall be dismissed for other cause. If the persons signing such application shall refuse to pay such costs and expenses the county drain commissioner shall bring suit in a court of competent jurisdiction and collect such costs and expenses with costs of suits. If upon the presentation of such application the county drain commissioner shall deem the sponsibility. financial responsibility of the applicants insufficient he shall have the right to return such application for additional signatures. Liability of applicants for cost. Insufficient financial re To examine route for proposed drain. To make survey. SEC. 2. Upon the filing of such application, the county drain commissioner authorized to act thereon shall as soon as practicable thereafter proceed to personally examine the route of the proposed drain and if in his opinion it is necessary and conducive to the public health, convenience or welfare, that the application should be granted, he shall, as a means of determining the practicability thereof, make a survey and |