tend. Provided always, That the proprietors of the ground through which Union-street may be extended shall have the liberty of making use of any earth which it may be necessary to remove in regulating the said street. CHAP. XXV, An act for incorporating the town of [Chap. LXV in original.] Qualifica tions of elec I. BE it enacted by the General Assembly, That the Town of Richmond town of Richmond, bounded according to the direction incorpora of the act intituled "An act for establishing towns at ted and to Rocky Ridge, Gloucester court-house, and Layton's be stiled Ci warehouse, and for other purposes therein mentioned," ty of Richshall be stiled the city of Richmond; and on the first Tuesday in July in the present, and on the same day of every third year afterwards, the freeholders of lois within the said city, whether improved or not, aud whether such freeholder resides therein or not, and the house-keepers and inhabitants of the said city, who shall have resided therein at any time for the space of three months without the intermission of one twelve tors to ballot months, and possess in their own right within the same, for officers. moveable or immoveable property to the value of one hundred pounds, shall meet at the house now used as the court-house of the county of Henrico, or at such other place as shall by a bye-law be hereafter appoint- Mayor, reed, and shall then and there elect by ballot, twelve fit corder, aldermen, and and able men, being freeholders and inhabitants of the common said city, who, or a major part thereof shall, on the council same or second day thereafter, between the hours of eight and twelve in the forenoon, publicly elect by ballot from among themselves, one person to act as mayor, another as recorder, and four others as aldermen of the said city, and the other six of whom shall be com- Term of sermon council. The services of the persons at any time vice. elected mayor, recorder, aldermen, or of the common ed. council, shall not be continued longer than until other persons shall have been elected to those offices respectively, or than the expiration of the second day immediately following the said first Tuesday in July in every third year, as the case may be, but they may nevertheless be re-elected except that no person shall be capable of acting as mayor more than one year in any term of two years; vacancies occasioned by death, disVacancies, ability or resignation at any time before the triannual how suppli- election, shall be supplied by the choice of the mayor, recorder, aldermen and common council, in common hall assembled, that is to say, a vacancy in the office of mayor or recorder shall be supplied out of the aldermen; a vacancy in the office of alderman out of the common council; and a vacancy in the common council out of the freeholders and inhabitants of the said Qath of office city. The mayor, recorder and aldermen to be elected for this present year, shall not enter upon the execution of their office before they shall respectively take an oath or affirmation before some justice of the peace for the county of Henrico, for the faithful discharge of the duties thereof; and the mayor, recorder and alder-men to be elected afterwards shall take such oath or affirmation before they respectively enter upon the duties of their office, in presence of the court of hustings, or of some mecting of the common council hereafter mentioned. Style of corporation. Corporate powers. II. And be it enacted, That the said freeholders, house-keepers, and inhabitants, and those persons who shall hereafter become freeholders, house-keepers or inhabitants as aforesaid, shall be a body politic and corporate, by the name of the mayor, aldermen and commonalty of the city of Richmond, and by that name have perpetual succession and a common seal: They and their successors by the name aforesaid, shall be able and capable in law to have, purchase, receive, enjoy, possess and retain to them and their successors forever, any lands, rents, tenements, hereditaments of what kind, nature or quality soever; and also to sell, grant, demise, alien or dispose of the same; and by the same name to sue and implead, be sued and impleaded, answer and be answered, in all courts and places, and from time to time, under their common seal, to make and establish such bye-laws, rules and ordinances, not contrary to the constitution or laws of the com monwealth, as shall by them be thought necessary for the good ordering and government of such persons as shall from time to time reside within the limits of the said city and corporation, or shall be concerned in interest therein. Market To impose taxes. III. And be it enacted, That they and their succes- Power to esors, by the name aforesaid, shall especially have pow- rect public buildings. er to rent, erect or repair work-houses, houses of correction, a court-house, prison, market-house, and hospitals for the reception of persons infected with conta- house. gious disorders, and other public buildings for the benefit of the said city, to pay the charge of removing To regulate such infected persons to the hospital, to provide doc- internal potors, nurses and other necessary attendants, as well as lice. guards to prevent the spreading of such disorders; to purchase fire-engines, to hire proper fire-men to keep such engines at all times in good order and to be ready for service; to cause wells to be sunk and pumps provided; to appoint and pay watchmen, and to repair and keep in order the streets and lands in the said city, and to impose taxes on the white and black male tithables, and on the property real and personal within the said city, for the execution of all or any of the powers hereby given them, taking care however, that not more than one third of the sum to be levied shall be levied on the tithables aforesaid, to make provision and regalations for collecting and accounting for the taxes raised, by appointing a collector, or directing distress to be made for delinquencies, or by any other ways or means; to erect wharves, and to lay a reasonable duty on the vessels coming to and using the same, for the wharves, & impose du purpose of defraying the expence of erecting and keep- ties on vesing in repair the wharves so erected; to hold two fairs sels. in each year, to wit, one on the first Thursday in May, firs and the other on the first Thursday in October; to fix fines upon every billiard-table and tippling-house, To fix fines booth or tent, within the jurisdiction of the corporation, on billiard and to demand reasonable fees for every ordinary-li- and demand cense within the same, over and above those establish- fees on ordied for raising a revenue; and to expel disorderly per- nary licensons who shall not have been resident therein for twelve months. To erect To establish tables, &c. ces. Common constituted IV. And be it further enacted, That all acts herein hall, how directed to be done by the mayor, recorder, aldermen ond conve aud common council, shall be done by them when as- ned.. Court of hustings. sembled in common hall. They shall be said to be assembled in common hall when seven members, of which the mayor, recorder or eldest alderman shall be always one. They shall meet upon the summons of such mayor, or in his absence, sickness or disability, of the recorder; or in the absence, sickness or disability of both mayor and recorder, then of the eldest alderman. V. And be it enacted, That the mayor, recorder and aldermen, or any four or more of them, shall have power to hold a court of hustings on the third Monday in every month: The jurisdiction of such court shall relate to those cases which originate within the limits of Civil juris- the said city, and shall be the same as the jurisdiction of the county court as established by the act of the general assembly, intituled, "An act for establishing county courts and regulating the proceedings therein," except in the following instances: the said court shall Criminal ju not hear and determine any penal case, unless it be for diction. risdiction. Exclusive power of licensing ta verns, and fixing their rates. a breach of laws of the corporation, the penalty whereof does not exceed forty shillings, or two hundred pounds of crop tobacco, nor of any action beyond the value of one hundred pounds, or ten thousand pounds, weight of crop tobacco, unless it be in ejectment; the said court shall have the farther power of examining criminals for all offences committed within the limits of the said corporation, either at their monthly sessions or in the vacation, according to the act of the general assembly intituled, " An act directing the method of trial of criminals for capital offences, and for other purposes therein mentioned;" the said clerk shall have the sole power of licensing tavern-keepers and settling their Clerk of rates, appointing a clerk of the market, establishing an market, ser assize of bread, wine, wood, coal and other things, and jeant, conalso appointing a serjeant, who shall have the power Assize of of a sheriff, constables, and other necessary officers of bread &c. the court, and surveyors of the streets, and any other officers not specially directed in this act to be appointed by any other power; the same fees shall be allowed. to the officers of the court as are allowed by law to the clerk and sheriff of the county of Henrico; and shall be Oath of office collected and accounted for in the same manner. No officer of the court shall enter upon his office until he shall have taken an oath or affirmation before the court, stables for the faithful discharge thereof; the serjeant shall moreover give bond with security, payable to the mayor, recorder, aldermen and common council, and their successors, in a reasonable penalty, for the due execution of his office. aldermen. VI. And be it further enacted, That the mayor, re- Judicialpow. corder and aldermen shall each be vested with the pow- ers of trayor ers of justice of the peace within the said city, and shall recorder & have jurisdiction for the space of one mile on the north side of James river, without and round the said city and every part thereof, including so much of the said river to low-water mark on the shore of the county of Chesterfield as shall lie between two lines drawn due limits of ju south from the eastern and western terminations of the risdiction. one mile aforesaid, for matters arising within the same, according to the laws of the commonwealth. Territorial VII. And be it enacted, That the mayor, recorder, Officers how any alderman or common council-man may be removed from his office for good cause, and after due summons, by the opinion of seven members of the common hall; and that no bye-law, ordinance or regulation shall be binding, unless the same shall have been passed and entered into by the voice of seven members of the common hall. vested in trustees of VIII. And be it further enacted, That all the pro- Property perty, real and personal, now vested in trustees of the town of Richmond, for the use and benefit of the in- town of habitants thereof, is hereby transferred to and vested Richmond, in the corporation for the benefit of the said city. And transferred in all courts of law and equity, this act shall be con- tion. strued, taken and held most favorably for the said corporation, so far as it respects or relates to the same. to corpora ed. IX. And be it further enacted, That the jurisdiction Territorial of the court of hustings in the town of Fredericksburg risdiction of limits of ju shall extend one mile without and around the former town of limits of the said town, on the south side of Rappa- Frederickshannock river, and shall have power to hold pleas in burg enlargall cases originating within the limits before described, in like manner and under such limitations as are directed and prescribed by the act for incorporating the Court of hus said town: That the court of hustings in the said town tings of Freof Fredericksburg shall be, and is hereby constituted dericksburg declared a a court of record, and as such to receive probate of wills and deeds, and grant administrations in as full cord. court of re |