CHAP. XX. An act to empower the court of Greenbrier county to have a waggon road · opened from their courthouse to the eastern waters. Court of thorised to their court WHEREAS it is represented to this general assembly, that the inhabitants of the county of Greenbrier Greenbrier labour under very great inconveniences for want of a county auwaggon road from their courthouse through the moun- have a wagtains to some place on the eastern waters, from whence gon road othere is a waggon road to the town of Richmond, that pened from such a road would not only be very beneficial and con- house to the venient to the said inhabitants, but of great publick eastern wautility, and that they are willing to pay the expense of ters. viewing and clearing the same; Be it therefore enacted. by the General Assembly, That the justices of the said county of Greenbrier, or a majority of them, shall have full power to appoint three or more proper persons, who being first sworn to view and mark a way for a waggon road from Greenbrier courthouse to the Warm Springs, or to the waggon road at the mouth of the Cow Pasture river, whichever the said commissioners shall think the nearest and best way, a report of which being returned to and approved of by the said court of Greenbrier, they, or a majority of them are empower ed to employ a person or persons to clear and open the same agreeable to the said report, upon the best terms they can, the expense of which shall be delivered to the commissioners of the tax for the county for the next year, who shall proportion the same amongst the owners of property in the said county, according to the value of their respective estates, agreeable to the assessment made in October 1780, which shall be collected by the sheriff in the same manner as the last payment of the tax for the same year. Provided always, That the said inhabitants shall have the alternative of paying the said tax in money or clean merchantable hemp, to be delivered at the courthouse of the said county of Greenbrier, to whatever person the sheriff or collector may appoint to receive it, according to the price of hemp at Richmond, allowing a deduction for carriage. And provided also, that no distress for the said tax shali be made before the first day of March one thousand seven hundred and eighty two. And be it farther enacted, That the aforesaid county court of Greenbrier shall have full power to levy such sum or sums of money, from time to time, as will be necessary to keep the said road in repair, the expense of which to be levied and collected as abovementioned. CHAP. XXI. Chan, Rev. p. 134.] See ante p, 164. Penalty in tobacco on Overseer. On masters or overseers failing to send; and on o thers compelled to work on roads. Penalty for felling a tree into a road ! An act to amend an act entitled An act to amend an act entitled An act concerning High-ways, Mill Dams, and Bridges. I. WHEREAS the penalties imposed by an act of assembly entitled "An act to amend an act eutitled an act concerning highways, mill dams, and bridges,' have been found insufficient to compel the due execution thereof, Be it therefore enacted, That instead of the penalty inflicted by the said act upon every surveyor of a road for neglect of duty, he shall forfeit and pay two hundred and fifty pounds of tobacco; and that for every male labouring servant or slave, the owner thereof, or overseer as the case may be, shall fail to send when required by a surveyor, he or she shall forfeit and pay fifty pounds of tobacco, and all other per sons who are dy the said recited act compelled to labour on roads, failing to attend and labour when required dy the surveyor, with such tools as he shall direct them to bring, shall also forfeit and pay fifty pounds of tobacco; which said penalties shall be to the informer, and recoverable before a justice of the peace of the county where such offence shall be committed. II. And be it enacted, That if any person shall fell any tree or trees into such highway, or cause the same to be felled, and not cut and carried away immediatemoving it, or killing trees ly, or shall kill any tree or trees within the distance of and not re sixty feet from such highway, or cause the same to be killed and not felled, or shall make any fence into such highway, such person shall for every such offence for feit and pay one hundred weight of tobacco, recoverable as aforesaid. And that if any person shall presume to cut, pull up, destroy, or deface, any stone or post or the inscriptions thereon, and be thereof convicted by confession, or the oath of one or more creditable witnesses before a justice of the peace of the county where such offence shall be committed, he or she shall forfeit and pay two hundred weight of tobacco, recoverable as aforesaid. road; or ma. near the king a fence across; or to destroy or cut, pull up, deface a direction stone or post. Overseers exempt from III. And be it farther enacted, That all overseers of highways, shall be personally exempted from working working on on any other highway beside the road he is appointed other roads. overseer of. And where any presentment shall be made On presentby a grand jury against any surveyor, the penalty ments, the shall be applied towards lessening the county levy. So fines to the much of the said recited act as comes within the per- county. view of this act, is hereby repealed. use of the CHAP. XXII. An act for the more equal division of the parishes of Amherst and Lexington, in the county of Amherst. of Amherst herst alter WHEREAS it hath been represented to this pre- Boundaries sent general assembly, that the dividing line between of parishes the parishes of Amherst and Lexington, as established and Lexing by an act of assembly entitled "An act for dividing ton, in coun the parishes of Camden and Amherst and for other ty of Ampurposes," is unequal and unjust, in as much as it gave a to the parish of Lexington too large a proportion of tithables, Be it therefore enacted, That instead of the dividing line mentioned in the said act, the said parishes shall be divided by the following lines, to wit: Beginning on the Fluvanna river at the mouth of Elk Island creek, and with the said creek to Hilton's mill, VOL. X. W 2 from thence a direct line to Tye river at the mouth of Camp creek, thence up Tye river to the mouth of Piney river, thence up Piney river to Rose's mill, thence continued up Piney river to the fork thereof above Lucas Powell's plantation, and thence up the north fork to the blue ridge. The collector of the parish of Lexington, shall have power to collect and distrain for any dues which shall remain unpaid by the inhabitants of that part of the said parish of Lexington hereby made part of the said parish of Amherst, and shall be answerable for the same in like manner as if this act had not been made. Commission ers to ascer tain centre of county of Stafford, in order to fix the court house. CHAP. XXIII. An act for ascertaining the center of the county of Stafford. WHEREAS it is represented to this present general assembly, that the court of the county of Stafford hath failed by the time limited for that purpose, to carry into execution an act passed in the year one thousand seven hundred and seventy nine, directing them to fix on a place at or as near the center thereof as the situation and convenience would admit, for building a court house and prison; Be it therefore enacted, That Francis Thornton of the county of Spotsylvania, Joseph Brock, John Herndon, John Taliaferro, and James Lewis, gentlemen, shall be and they are hereby ap pointed commissioners for the following purpose, that is to say: That they or a majority of them, shall on or before the fifth day of April next, ascertain the center of the said county of Stafford, and fix on a proper place as near thereto as convenience will admit, for building a court house and prison, and lay down the distance and bearing of such place from the present place of holding the said court, and return their proceedings to the court of the said county, and the said court shall make return thereof to the next general assembly; the expense of ascertaining the center of the said county, shall be adjusted and levied by the said court at the laying of their next county levy. CHAP. XXIV. An act for restoring certain slaves to BE it enacted by the General Assembly, That so Slaves sold many of the slaves, conveyed by John Harmer of Great as the escheated proBritain to George Harmer, now a citizen of this com- perty of monwealth, as were sold under the act of assembly en- John Hartitled "An act concerning escheats and forfeitures from mer, and British subjects and for other purposes," and purcha- by the pubpurchased sed by the publick, shall on the tenth day of January lic, restored next be vested in and restored to the said George Har- to George mer, except a negro named Ned, who shall from and after the passing of this act be vested in the said George Harmer. The executive shall cause the said slaves to be delivered to the said George Harmer, agreeable to the directions of this act. Harmer. |