as they shall deem necessary and proper, and any or every such collector to displace and remove at their pleasure. fons may IV. And be it further enacted, That it shall and may be Certain perlawful for any person or persons living within one mile in commute for any direction from the bridge aforesaid, to commute with toll. the said superintendents, or with any one of them for such sum to be annually paid to the collectors as the said superintendents, or any one of them, shall think proper; which commutation shall be deemed in full satisfaction by the collectors; Provided, Every person so commuting Provifo. shall produce to the collector a certificate of such agreement or commutation, signed by one of the superintend ents. ents annually V. And be it further enacted, That the said superintend- Superintend ents shall annually render an account for any monies to account. which may be by them received by virtue of this act to the supervisors of the said county of Montgomery. An ACT to authorize the building of Toll Bridges over obfolete, Passed 7th April, 1800. Sess. 23, ch. 109. TWENTY-FOURTH SESSION. CHAP. LVII. An ACT for building a Bridge over Flushing-Creek, and constructing a Road and establishing a Turnpike between Flushing and Newtown in the County of Queens. Passed 21st March, 1801. E it enacted by the People of the State of New-York, Aut mphle mentary Ful & 570 A company eftablished for 1. Bretreated in Senate and Assembly, That there shall abide herein men. corporate. tion. Their powers be established a company of stockholders for the purposed." ges. Capital ftock of laid com. pany, and votes how ap portioned. ers herein named to receive fubfcriptions. II. And be it further enacted, That the capital stock of the said company shall consist of four hundred shares, and that the amount to be paid for each share shall be twenty-five dollars; and that each stockholder shall be entitled to a vote for every share he or she shall hold ; Provided; That no person shall in any case be entitled to more. Commiffion than twenty votes; and subscriptions for shares in the said company shall be taken in the manner following, to wit: Samuel Riker, Robert Moore and David Gardiner, shall be and they are hereby appointed commissioners for taking subscriptions, and each of the said commissioners shall on or before the first Tuesday of May next provide himself with a book, and shall enter therein as follows: "We whose names are here under subscribed, do for our selves and our legal representatives, promise to pay to the Flushing and Newtown turnpike, bridge and road compa ny the sum of twenty-five dollars for each share of stock in the said company set opposite to our respective names, in such manner and proportions, and at such time and place as shall be determined by the president and directors of the said company, until the whole amount of twenty-five dollars is paid on each share ;" and the said commissioners respectively shall open their books for taking subscriptions for the purpose aforesaid on the said first Tuesday of May next, and shall continue them open from day to day until the whole number of shares are subscribed for; and each subscriber shall at the time of subscribing pay unto the commissioner with whom he subscribes three dollars for each share so by him subscribed; and as soon as three hundred shares are subscribed, the said com missioners shall cause an advertisement to be inserted in two of the public newspapers printed in the city of NewYork, thereby giving fourteen days notice of the time and place when and where the said subscribers shall meet for the purpose of choosing seven directors to manage the concerns of the said company for one year, and the day of such election shall for ever thereafter be the anniversary day for electing directors; at which said first election the aforesaid commissioners or any two of them shall preside, and shall on estimating the whole number of votes taken at such election declare under their hands in writing, the seven persons having the greatest number of votes for directors for the year then ensuing, and shall forthwith notify them of their election, and of the time and place when and where they are required to meet; and the said directors or a majority of them, being met in pursuance of such notice, shall elect one of their number for presi dent; and five of the directors of the said company shall to form a quo. be a quorum, and capable of transacting the business of the said corporation, and every act of the majority of the directors so met shall be binding on the said compa As foon as 300 hares are fubfcribed feven direc. tors to be chofen, Who are to elect a pre. fident. Five directors rum. ny; and the president and directors may meet when and where they may think proper, and shall have full power to make such bye-laws, rules and regulations, not inconsistent with the laws of the United States or of this state, as shall be necessary for the proper government of the said corporation, and shall and may appoint and employ such officers, agents, artists, workmen and others as they shall think necessary for executing the business of the said corporation, and allow and pay to them respectively such compensation for their services as they shall deem pro per. ers named, The expense of furvey how paid. III. And be it further enacted, That the aforesaid Samuel CommiffionRiker, Robert Moore and David Gardiner, be and they their duty are hereby appointed commissioners, whose duty it shall be and power. to examine and determine at what place the bridge shall be built over Flushing-creek aforesaid, what route or course the said road shall be laid out over the said creek, salt meadow and upland, from the place of beginning to the town-spot of Newtown aforesaid, and of what width the same shall be, so nevertheless that the said bridge shall be not less than twenty feet wide and the said road not less than four rods wide; and after having made such examination and agreed and determined on the spot or place where the bridge shall be built over the said creek, and the route or course that the said road shall run over the salt meadows and upland to the town-spot of Newtown aforesaid, and the width of the said bridge and road, the said commissioners shall cause a proper survey thereof to be made and returned to them, which they or any two of them shall certify under their hands and deliver to the president and directors of the said company, on or before the first Tuesday of July next, together with a certified account of the expenses attending such examination and survey, which shall be forthwith paid to the said commissioners by the president and directors of the said company; and it shall and may be lawful for the said commissioners, together with such persons as they shall employ, to enter upon any land that they shall think necessary for the purpose of making such examination as aforesaid, and of executing and completing such survey as aforesaid. IV. And be it further enacted, That when the aforesaid survey shall be completed and delivered in the manner aforesaid to the president and directors of the said company, they shall thereupon cause a bridge of the width of twenty-four feet at least, and with a good and sufficient railing thereon, to be built, and a road to be laid out in conformity thereto, eighteen feet in width of which said road shall be bedded with wood, stone, gravel, or any other hard substance, well compacted together a sufficient depth to secure a solid foundation to the same; and the said road shall be faced with wood, gravel or other hard VOL. II. After which furvey a bridge to be built, And a road to and made as be laid out herein direct her Said bridge Bridges and road to be Provifo. Authorities and privileges of the faid corporation. substance, in such manner as to secure, as near as the materials will admit, an even surface, or shall and may be well and sufficiently planked upon piles properly secured in the ground of the like width as aforesaid; and the said bridge so to be built over the Flushing-creek, shall be constructed on the plan of a draw-bridge, having at least one draw, with fit and complete machinery to draw up and let down, which said draw shall not be less than eighteen feet wide in the clear, and the piles on the respective sides of the said draw shall be so distant from each other as to admit a raft of twenty-two feet wide to pass under; and it shall be the duty of the said company to keep and at all times have ready, proper persons to attend the drawing up of said bridge for the passage of any vessel or vessels, for which no toll or other compensation shall be taken or demanded; and it shall be the duty of the said company at all times to keep and maintain in good and sufficient repair the bridge and road aforesaid, and such other bridges as they shall cause to be erected upon the said road; and in case the said road shall cross a ditch lately dug by Edward Leverich and Cornelius Remsen, that then and in that case the said company shall cause a draw-bridge to be erected over the said ditch, so as to admit boats to pass and repass the same in like manner as the bridge over Flushing-creek aforesaid; Provided always, That the part of the said road which the said company shall be bound to make in the manner herein before prescribed, and to keep at all times in proper turnpike order and repair, shall not extend farther than from the place of beginning at Flushing, to the place where the said road shalt last leave the salt meadows; and that it shall only be the duty of the said company to put and keep the residue of the road to the town-spot of Newtown, or such part thereof as shall be opened under this act, in ordinary condition and repair, but that they shall, at their own expense, set up good and lawful fences on each side of the said residue of the said road as far as the same shall be laid open by the commissioners aforesaid for that purpose appointed. V. And be it further enacted, That the president and directors of the said company or any agent, superintendent or artist by them appointed or employed, may enter into any land to be included in the survey so as aforesaid to be made, or which may be necessary to enable them to construct the said bridge and road, and may contract and agree with the owner or owners of the land for the purchase of so much thereof as may be necessary for the purpose of building the said bridge, and of making the said road, and for erecting and establishing gates, toll-houses, and all other works to the said road belonging, if they can Damages how agree with such owners; but in case of disagreement between the president and directors of the said company and afcertained. ed, and their. the owner or owners respecting the damages to be done to the said land, or if the owner or owners thereof shall be insane, feme covert, infants, or out of the state, then the said president and directors may apply to one of the judges or assistant justices of the said county of Queens, not interested in the said road, who shall thereupon nominate, and by an instrument in writing under his hand, appoint three Freeholders freeholders of the said county, not being inhabitants of to be appoint either of the aforesaid towns, who shall do and perform the duty. duties hereinafter mentioned; and it shall be the duty of the president and directors to cause a copy of such appointment to be served on each of the three freeholders so appointed, and also to give notice to the owner or owners of such lands of such appointment, and the time and place (which shall be determined upon by the said freeholders so appointed) at least eight days previous to such meeting, when and where they will meet to examine the land and assess the damages, except the owner or owners shall labour under any of the disabilities heretofore enumerated, or be absent, in either of which cases a copy of such notice. may be left at the dwelling house of the party, if any, or other notorious place on the land through which such road shall be laid; And further, Each of the said freeholders so to be appointed, shall before he proceeds to execute the trust reposed in him by this act, take and subscribe an oath or affirmation, before one of the justices of the peace in and for the said county, that he will without favour or partiality, estimate and assess the damages that may be sustained by the owner or owners of any lands or improvements which the said company shall deem necessary for said road; and the said freeholders so as aforesaid appointed, shall then proceed to view the premises, and having determined the damages, shall make an inquisition under their hands and seals, or the hands and seals of any two of them, stating the amount of damages. which each or any of the owners of any parcel of land used or to be used for the said road, have sustained or shall sustain, which inquisition shall be acknowledged by the said freeholders so as aforesaid appointed, signing the same before one of the judges aforesaid and filed in the office of the clerk of the said county of Queens, who shall at the Duty of the costs, charges and expenses of the said company, record county clerk. the same in the book of deeds; and the said company paying or tendering to the said several owners of the land the several sums awarded by such inquisition, shall have and hold to them, their successors and assigns for ever, the lands and tenements occupied by the said road; and Compenfation the said company shall pay to the judge or justice for the miffioners, appointment aforesaid two dollars, and to each of the said &c. freeholders, for each day necessarily attending the duties required of him by this act, two dollars and fifty cents; to the com. |