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missioners

sup. court.

upon a notice to be given him by said corporation, or by the appointed by owner or owners of such land or real estate, to appoint three disinterested commissioners, from the county in which the land lies, to determine the compensation and damages which the owner or owners of said real estate or land have sustained by reason of the occupancy thereof by the said corporation: the said commissioners are also directed and required to assess the damage which any individual or individuals may sustain by the said road, arising from the removing, making, and maintaining the fences on the line of the route of the said road, through any improved land which the same may run: and it shall be the duty of the said commissioners, after having taken an oath or affirmation faithfully and impartially to discharge the trust herein reposed in them, to deliver to the said corporation a written statement, signed by them, or a majority of them, of the awards they shall make, containing a description of the lands or real estate appraised, together with the amount of assessment for running, making, and maintaining the fencing, to be recorded by the said corporation in the office of the clerk of the county where such lands are situated; and upon payment or tender of such compensation as aforesaid to the said owner or owners, then the said corporation shall be deemed seized and possessed, in fee-simple, of all such land or real estate so appraised; and in case any owner or owners of such land or real estate shall be feme covert, under age, non compos mentis, or out of the state, and in such case then the said corporation shall pay the amount which has been awarded as due to the last mentioned owners, respectively, in the court of chancery, to the clerk thereof, subject to the order of said court, for the use of the said owner or owners, all of which proceedings shall be had at the proper costs and charges of the said corporation, to be determined by the said justice of the supreme court: Provided always, that should the corporation or owner of any real estate, land, or materials feel themselves aggrieved by the decision of the commissioners aforesaid, either party, upon six days' notice to the other, may appeal to the next court of common pleas, in the county where the land lies, and the said court of common pleas shall have the power thereupon to direct a proper issue for the trial of the said controversy, to be formed between the parties, and to order a jury to be struck, and a view of the premises or materials to be had, and the said issue to be tried, upon the like notice, and in the same manner, as other issues in the said Amount of court are tried; and it shall be the duty of the said jury to ascompensation sess the value of the said land or materials and damages susfor damages tained; and if they shall find a greater sum than the said com

Appeal from

decision of commission

ers to court com. pleas.

assessed by

jury.

of

missioners shall have awarded in favor of the said owner or owners, then the judgment thereon, with costs, shall be entered against the said company, and execution awarded therefor; but if the said jury shall be applied for by the said owner or

owners, and shall find the same or a less sum than the company shall have offered, or the said commissioners awarded, then the said costs shall be paid by said applicant or applicants, and either deducted out of the said sum found by said jury, or execution awarded therefor, as the said court shall direct: Provided, that such application shall not prevent the said company from taking the said land or materials, upon filing the said report: And provided also, that in case the said company, Proviso. after the same is completed, shall abandon the said road, or any part thereof, or cease to use and keep the same, or any ment of road, part thereof, in repair, at any time for three successive years, lands to revest that then and in that case this charter shall be annulled, and in former the title to the lands over which the said road shall pass shall owners. be revested in the person or persons from whom the lands were taken by concession or by inquisition, as aforesaid, their heirs and assigns; but the said road shall for ever thereafter be considered as a public highway.

On abandon

tolls.

SEC. 7. And be it enacted, That the said corporation may Corporation build bridges, fix scales and weights, raise embankments, or may build make any other works necessary for the construction, use, or bridges, &c. enjoyment of the said rail or McAdamized road; and in case of any damage done to the lands contiguous, by workmen and teams in the employ of the said corporation, either in constructing, repairing, or maintaining said rail or McAdamized road, the damages shall be determined in like manner, by commissioners appointed as aforesaid, with the same right of appeal. SEC. 8. And be it enacted, That the president and directors shall have power to charge and demand tolls and rates for the May establish passage of all carriages upon the said rail or McAdamized road, and fix, make, and, at pleasure, change and alter such Regulate time tolls and rates, and also to make regulations and rules for the and manner collection and levying of the same, and to regulate the time of transportaand manner of transporting goods and passengers, and manner tion. of collecting tolls on the said rail or McAdamized road, and also the description and formation of carriages that shall or may be used on said rail or McAdamized road, and all necessary machines, engines, wagons, carriages, or vehicles: Provided, that the said corporation shall cause the rates of tolls charged to be inscribed or painted in some conspicuous place at each gate where toll shall be required to be paid: Provided Proviso. also, that the said tolls so to be charged shall at no time exceed Rates of tolls. the following rates, viz: for an empty carriage with its appendages, weighing less than one ton, two cents per mile; above one, and under two tons, five cents per mile; above three tons or more, eight cents per mile: and the following additional tolls for passengers or freight, viz: in the carriages as charged aforesaid, for every species of property, six cents per ton per mile, and three cents per mile for each and every passenger carried on said rail or McAdamized way in said carriages. SEC. 9. And be it enacted, That if the corporation hereby

Time limited created shall not within three years from the passage of this for construct act, commence the construction of said road at both ends, and ing road.

Passage on public roads

or to farms not to be impeded.

Obstacles to

removed.

within ten years thereafter, finish and put in operation the said rail way or ways, or a McAdamized way, then the said corporation shall forever cease thenceforth, and this act be null and void.

SEC. 10. And be it enacted, That the said corporation shall provide by means of bridges or otherwise, convenient ways or passage for the public, over the said rail or McAdamized way, wherever it may cross a public road; and shall fix at least one easy mode of passage on each farm, for cattle or common wagons, across the rail way or the McAdamized way; and if the company neglect to perform the same, after being requested so to do, the owner or possessor may do it himself, and recover the value of the work of the corporation, by common process of law.

SEC. 11. And be it enacted, That for the purpose of protecting their works from the overflowing of the tides on the meadows or lowlands, it shall be lawful for the said corporation or their agents, to enter into and upon any part of the said meadows or lowlands, to remove every obstruction to the free of the water within the limits aforesaid, and to erect, passage the passage of cast up, or make, good and sufficient banks, dams, floodgates, water, may be sluices, and every other work, which, on any part of the said meadows, they may deem necessary to keep out the tide at all times, and to dig, open, and clear out all such sluices and water courses as may be required to drain the same; and if the owner or occupier of any such lowlands or meadow, shall consider himself aggrieved, or injured by the erection of any such work or works, and cannot agree with the company or their agents, upon the amount of damages, he or they may have sustained thereby, it shall and may be lawful for such injured person or persons to apply, agreeably to the provisions of the sixth section of this act for the appointment of commissioners, for the purpose of assessing and ascertaining such damages, with the right of appeal and redress therein given.

Penalty for

or works.

SEC. 12. And be it enacted, That if any person or persons shall wilfully or maliciously injure the said rail or McAdaminjuring road ized road, or any building, machinery, or other work of the said corporation, appertaining thereto, such person or persons shall forfeit and pay therefor, to the said corporation, three times the amount of damages sustained by means of such offence or injury, to be recovered in the name of the said corporation, with costs of suit, in any court having cognizance of the same.

SEC. 13. And be it enacted, That the president or treasurer of said company, shall within two years after the completion Statement of of the said road, file in the office of the secretary of this state, cost and an- under oath or affirmation, a statement of the whole cost and nual stateexpenses of the said road and appendages, and annually there

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ceeds of road

after, a statement of the nett proceeds thereof; and whenever ment of prothe annual nett proceeds shall amount to more than seven per coiled. centum per annum upon the cost of the said road with its appendages, the said company shall pay to the treasurer of this state, the one half of one per cent. per annum on the Payment to said cost, to be paid on the first Monday in January of each the state.

year.

SEC. 14. And be it enacted, That it shall and may be lawful for the president and directors for the time being, or a majority in number of them, whenever they may deem it expedi

ent, to call a special meeting of the stockholders, by giving Special meetthe like notice as is hereinbefore directed, for choosing direct- ings of stockors, specifying therein the object of said meeting; but that no holders. business shall be transacted by such meeting unless there be present a majority in value of the stockholders, who may require any books, accounts, securities, or other papers of said corporation, to be exhibited before them.

SEC. 15. And be it enacted, That this act shall be deemed and taken as a public act, and shall at all times be recognized

as such in all courts and places whatsoever, and that the road Road, public authorized by this act, be, and the same is hereby declared to highway. be a public highway subject to such regulations as are provided for in the eighth section of this act.

Capital not SEC. 16. And be it enacted, That this act shall not be so con- employed in banking. strued as to authorize the company to employ any of their capital in banking operations.

SEC. 17. And be it enacted, That the said company may Route of road alter such parts of said route as they may deem proper; pro- may be altervided the same be not more than one mile distant from the ed. line of said road as located by the sixth section; Provided also, that no land necessary for such alteration, shall be taken without first obtaining the assent of the owner or owners there

of.

of the cost.

SEC. 18. And be it enacted, That at the expiration of fifty When the years from the completion of the said road, the legislature of state may this state may cause an appraisement of the said road and the take the road appendages thereof to be made by six persons, three of whom on payment shall be appointed by the chief justice of this state for the time being, the remaining three by the company, who, or a majority of them, shall report the value thereof to the legislature, within one year from the time of their appointment, or if they cannot agree, they shall choose a seventh, who, with the aforesaid six, shall report as aforesaid, or in case the said company shall neglect or refuse to appoint the said three persons on their part, for two months after the said appointment by the chief justice, then the three persons so appointed by him, shall proceed to make such appraisement, which shall be binding on the said company; or in case the said six commissioners shall be appointed as aforesaid, and they cannot agree upon the seventh man, then upon two weeks notice to the said company,

L

the said chief justice shall appoint such seventh man, as aforesaid, to make such appraisement as aforesaid, and thereupon the state shall have the privilege, for three years, of taking said road, upon the payment to the company of the amount of the said report within one year after electing to take said road, which report shall be filed in the office of the secretary of this state, and the whole property and interest of said road, and the appendages thereof, shall be vested in the state of New Jersey, upon payment of the amount so reported to the said company; and that it shall be the duty of the president of the company to lay before the legislature, under oath or affirmation, when they shall so request, a full and fair statement of the costs of said road and of all the receipts and disbursements of the company: Provided always, that the aforesaid valuation shall be made without reference to the receipts or disbursements of the company or the advance of stock; and the said valuation shall in no case exceed the first cost of said rail or McAdamized road, with the lands and appendages thereof: And provided also, that if the state should not take the said road at the expiration of fifty years, that then at the end of Limitation of ninety-nine years from the date hereof the powers, privileges, and immunities hereby granted shall cease and determine. Passed February 11, 1833.

Proviso.

charter.

Style of incorporation.

AN ACT to incorporate the New Jersey Peat Company.

SEC. 1. BE IT ENACTED by the Council and General Assembly of this State, and it is hereby enacted by the authority of the same, That William Woodworth and his present and future associates be, and they are hereby declared a body politic and corporate, in fact and in name, by the name and style of "the New Jersey Peat Company," and, by that name and style, shall have succession, and be, in law, capable of suing and being sued, pleading and being impleaded, answering and being answered unto, in all courts and places, and in all manner of action or actions.

SEC. 2. And be it enacted, That the stock of the said company shall consist of two thousand shares, of fifty dollars each: Capital stock. in the choice of directors, each share shall be entitled to one vote; there shall be five directors, one of whom shall be president.

Commissioners to open

SEC. 3. And be it enacted, That Littleton Kirkpatrick, Jacob Rutsen Van Rensselaer, William L. Stone, Cornelius Harson, books for sub- and William W. Woodworth shall be commissioners to open scriptions. books and receive subscriptions to the stock of the said com

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