purpose and either the assessors or the town council, as the town may direct, shall assess the same on the rateable estate of the inhabitants thereof, and all others owning rateable property therein, as other town taxes are by law assessed.

SEC. 5. The town councils shall determine the sum to be expended within the limits of each surveyor, and the persons assessed as aforesaid who shall pay the same, and shall cause to be delivered to each surveyor a list of the said persons whose taxes may be so appropriated for his limits, and the sums at which they are severally assessed.

SEC. 6. Upon the receipt of his bill each surveyor shall give reasonable notice in writing, if desired, to each person in his list of the sum he is assessed to the highways aforesaid, and also to the inhabitants within his district assessed as aforesaid, two days notice, extraordinary casualty excepted, of the times and places he shall appoint for providing materials and laboring; to the end that each person may have opportunity to work on the highways in person or by substitute, or with his oxen, horses, cart and plough, at the rates and prices the town or town council shall affix to such labor, to the full amount of the sum at which he is assessed; or he may pay the surveyor in money the sum he is assessed; in which case the surveyor shall carefully expend the sums thus paid in labor and materials for repairing the highways in his limits, according to his best discretion. In case of any dispute, the surveyor shall be a competent witness of the notice given.

SEC. 7. Immediately after the expiration of one year from the assessment of any such tax, each surveyor shall render to the assessors for the time being a list of such persons as shall have been deficient, if any there be, in working out their highway rate or otherwise paying him the sum assessed therefor, together with the amount of each person's deficiency; which deficient sums shall, by the assessors, be put in a distinct column in the next assessment for the town tax, and be collected by the collector thereof as other town taxes are collected and paid into the town treasury for the use of the town, to be specially appropriated in the district wherein the same was collected.

SEC. 8. If any surveyor, at the expiration of the term aforesaid or whenever required by the said town, shall neglect to make to the assessors or unto the office of the town clerk for their use, the returns required by the preceding section, he shall be held accountable for the whole amount of the tax assigned him to be collected; which shall be by the assessors included in the next town tax against him, and col

lected as other town taxes, to be appropriated when collected for the repair of the highways in such surveyor's district : provided, that any town in lieu hereof may impose any other penalty which they may deem sufficient to ensure the making of such returns.

SEC. 9. Whenever any such tax shall remain unpaid for the space of thirty days after notice given by the surveyor to work out or pay the same, the surveyors shall have the same power to collect said taxes as collectors of taxes in ordinary cases; and they may be collected in the same manner as other taxes, and when collected, they shall be expended in the district of the surveyor collecting them.

SEC. 10. When the sum appropriated and assessed for the repair of the highways in the limits of any particular surveyor shall be insufficient for that purpose, it shall be lawful for the surveyor, with the consent of the town council, to employ such of the inhabitants of the town upon the repair of such highway in his limits, as shall make up such deficiency; and the persons thus employed shall be equitably paid out of the town treasury therefor.

SEC. 11. If the authorized electors in any town shall neglect to vote or agree upon a sum to be assessed for the express purpose of repairing and amending the highways aforesaid, or shall not otherwise provide for effectually mending and repairing the same, each surveyor shall assign to the several persons in his limits, liable to the same, their rateable proportion of day's work, and of cart, team and plough, according to his taxable property, as near as he can; and shall assign certain days for mending and repairing the ways aforesaid, and give notice thereof to the persons aforesaid, in his limits, liable by law to be taxed, in writing; to be left at the usual place of abode of each person liable, two days at least before the assignment, except in extraordinary cases when they may be warned to appear forthwith, to attend to the purpose aforesaid, with suitable tools and with carts and teams, if any they have; and if any person being thus notified shall make default of attending and working, by himself or other sufficient person in his stead, or with his cart and team, as he shall be appointed and assigned, he shall forfeit and pay for each day's neglect one dollar, and for default of his cart and team with a driver, for each day three dollars, and in that proportion for a longer or shorter space of time, to the use of the town; to be recovered in an action of debt, in the name of the town treasurer, before any justice of the peace in said

town.

SEC 12. Each surveyor of highways who shall neglect the duties of his trust, shall forfeit and pay to and for the use of the town the sum of twenty dollars for each neglect, to be recovered as aforesaid.

SEC. 13. Any town which shall neglect to keep in good repair its highways and bridges, shall be liable to be indicted therefor; and on conviction before the court of common pleas, within and for the same county, shall be fined to the use of the state, in a sum not less than fifty dollars, nor more than five hundred dollars; and execution shall issue therefor, against the town treasurer of such town. And said town shall also be liable to all persons who may in any wise suffer injury to their persons or property by reason of any such neglect; to be recovered in an action of the case to be brought against the town treasurer of the town or towns who are bound to keep said road and bridges in repair as aforesaid.

SEC. 14. It shall be the duty of the several towns to provide by law, in such manner and under such penalties as they may deem expedient, for removing snow from the public highways, so as to render the same passable with teams, sleds and sleighs.

SEC. 15. If the snow be suffered to remain in any public highway in any town so as to obstruct any person in passing along such highway with his team, sled or sleigh, for twentyfour hours after such highway shall become obstructed, such town shall be liable to be indicted therefor; and on conviction before the court of common pleas within and for the county, shall be fined to the use of the state in a sum not less than ten dollars, nor more than one hundred dollars: provided however, that nothing herein contained shall be construed to subject any town to the penalty aforesaid, if the surveyor of highways or some other person duly authorized for that purpose by such town, with the power vested in him by the laws of the state, shall have commenced the removal of such obstructions within the time aforesaid, and shall within three days remove the

same.

SEC. 16. All public bridges on the dividing lines between towns ought of right to be, and hereafter shall be, established and kept in repair at the expense of the towns adjoining said bridges; and every public bridge on the dividing line between this state and the adjoining states ought of right to be, and hereafter shall be, established and kept in repair on the part of this state, at the expense of the town adjoining such bridge.

SEC. 17. If any town adjoining any such bridge shall refuse or neglect to keep in good repair the part of such bridge

within and next adjoining the line of such town, the town so neglecting or refusing shall and may be proceeded against by indictment in the court of common pleas within and for the same county; and on conviction shall be fined to the use of the state, in a sum not less than twenty dollars nor more than one thousand dollars; and execution shall issue for the amount of said fine and costs against the town treasurer of such town provided, nevertheless, that nothing in this act contained shall be construed to impair any agreement or agreements heretofore made between any towns, relative to the supporting and repairing of bridges.

SEC. 18. Whenever any artificial watercourse has been or shall be made under, through or by the side of any highway previously existing, the proprietors or occupants of such watercourse ought to and shall make and maintain all necessary bridges over such watercourse, and all fences which may be necessary along the side of the same.

SEC. 19. Whenever any highway has been or shall be laid out over or by the side of any artificial watercourse made previous to such laying out, the town laying out such highway ought and shall make and maintain the necessary bridges over such watercourse, and such fences along the side of the same as may be needed for the safety of travellers.

SEC. 20. Whenever any two turnpike roads commence or terminate at the same bridge, the said roads shall be deemed and taken as commencing or terminating at the middle of said bridge; and the said bridge shall be kept in repair and amended from time to time, so that the same may be safe and convenient for travellers, with their horses, teams, carts and carriages, at all seasons of the year, at the joint charge and expense of the turnpike corporations whose roads commence or terminate at said bridge in manner aforesaid; and the said bridge shall, to all intents and purposes, be deemed and taken as a part of said turnpike road, and not as a bridge for the repairing or amending of which the town in which the same may be situated shall be by law liable.

SEC. 21. Whenever any highway has been or shall be laid out over any tract or parcel of land used at the time of such laying out as a highway, such laying out shall not be deemed or construed to effect or in any wise alter the rights or duties of the town, or any individual, as to the maintenance of bridges over any parts of said new highway which so nearly coincide with the old highway as not to require the removal of such bridges, or the building of them in a different place from which they previously stood.

SEC. 22. Every person owning land adjoining any public highway or turnpike road may build such bridges or culverts over the ditches which may be made in such highway or road for the passage of water, as may be necessary to render the passage from such land to such highway or road safe and convenient; and no such bridge or culvert shall be altered, removed or disturbed by any person, except under the direction of the town council of the town where the same may be situated, or of some person by them appointed.

SEC. 23. No surveyor of highways or officer, agent or servant of any turnpike company, shall remove the earth so near to any wall or fence erected upon or without the limits of such highway or company's road, as to undermine or overthrow the same, unless the same shall be absolutely necessary for the security or convenience of the public; and in that case the repairs shall be made under the supervision of the town council, or of some person by them appointed; and the town or turnpike company shall be at the expense of repairing or resetting the wall or fence removed.

SEC. 24. Instead of the mode herein prescribed for mending highways and bridges by taxes as aforesaid, each and every town may defray the expenses of repairing and keeping the same open out of the town treasury of such town or otherwise, as they may find expedient, any thing herein to the contrary notwithstanding; and may appoint surveyors thereof at any town meeting legally convened in such town.

SEC. 25. The islands of Hope, Prudence and Patience, and Hogg Island, are hereby exempted from the operation of all the provisions of this act.

An Act for the Erection and Support of Guide-Posts upon Public Roads.

SECTION

1. Towns to erect guide-posts and keep them in repair.

2. Town councils to fix the places; keep record thereof.

3. Guide-posts, how constructed.

SECTION

4. Penalty for neglect in erecting, &c. Penalty for not fixing place where, &c.

5. Penalty for injuring or defacing.

It is enacted by the General Assembly, as follows:

SECTION 1. It shall be the duty of the several towns, except New-Shoreham and Jamestown, at all times to keep erected and in good repair, such guide-posts upon all public roads, at such places and in such manner, as is herein after provided.