servants; all actions of debt founded upon any contract without specialty; all actions of debt for arrearages of rents; actions of debt for other causes, and all actions of covenant which shall be sued or brought at any time, after this act shall go into operation, shall be commenced and sued within the time herein after directed, and not after; that is to say, the said actions upon the case, excepting actions for slander, and the said actions of account, and the said actions for debt, founded upon any contract without specialty, or brought for arrearages of rents, and all actions of detinue and replevin, shall be brought and commenced within six years after the cause of the said actions, and not after; the said actions of trespass, and trespass and ejectment, shall be brought within four years next after the cause of such action, and not after; and actions upon the case for words within two years next after the words spoken, and not after; all actions of debt, other than those before specified, and all actions of covenant, within twenty years next after the cause of said actions, and not after. SEC. 2. If any person against whom there is or shall be cause for any action, herein before enumerated, shall, at the time such cause accrue, be without the limits of this state, or being within said state at the time such cause accrue, shall go out of said state before said action shall be barred by this act, and shall not have or leave property or estate therein that can, by the common and ordinary process of law, be attached, then and in such case, the person entitled to such action may commence the same, within the time before limited, after such persons return into this state. SEC. 3. If any person at the time any such action shall accrue to him shall be within the age of twenty-one years, feme covert, non compos mentis, imprisoned, or beyond the limits of the United States, such person may bring the same, within such time as is herein before limited, after such impediment is removed. SEC. 4. If any person, for or against whom any of said actions shall accrue, shall die before the time limited for bringing the same, or within thirty days after the expiration of said time, and the cause of said action shall survive, such action may be commenced by or against the executor or administrator of the deceased person, as the case may be, at any time within one year after the granting of letters testamentary or of administration, and not afterwards, if barred by the provisions of this act. SEC. 5. If any action duly commenced, within the time limited and allowed therefor, in and by this act, shall be abated or otherwise avoided or defeated by the death of any party thereto, or for any matter, or if after verdict for the plaintiff the judgment shall be arrested, the plaintiff may commence a new action for the same cause, at any time within one year after the abatement or other determination of the original suit as aforesaid; and if the cause of action does by law survive, his executor or administrator may, in case of his death, commence said new action, within the said one year. SECTION An Act to prevent Frauds and Perjuries. SECTION 1. Actions not to be brought in certain 2. Fraudulent conveyances, &c., to be cases unless upon promises in writing. void. It is enacted by the General Assembly, as follows: SECTION 1. No action shall be brought whereby to charge any executor or administrator upon his special promise to answer any debt or damage out of his own estate, or whereby to charge the defendant upon his special promise to answer for the debt, default or miscarriage of another person; or to charge any person upon any agreement made upon consideration of marriage, or upon any contract for the sale of lands, tenements or hereditaments, or the making of any lease thereof for a longer time than one year; or upon any agreement which is not to be performed within the space of one year from the making thereof, unless the promise or agreement upon which such action shall be brought, or some note or memorandum thereof, shall be in writing, and signed by the party to be charged therewith, or by some other person by him thereunto lawfully authorized. SEC. 2. Every gift, grant or conveyance of lands, tenements, hereditaments, goods or chattels, or of any rent, interest or profit out of the same, by writing or otherwise, and every note, bill, bond, contract, suit, judgment or execution, had or made and contrived, of fraud, covin, collusion or guile, to the intent or purpose to delay, hinder or defraud creditors of their just and lawful actions, suits, debts, accounts, damages or just demands of what nature soever; or to deceive or to defraud those who shall purchase bona fide the same lands, tenements, hereditaments, goods or chattels, or any rent, interest or profit out of them, shall be henceforth deemed and taken as against the person or persons, his, her or their heirs, successors, executors, administrators or assigns, and every of 223 them, whose debts, suits, demands, estates, rights or interests, by such guileful and covinous devices and practices as aforesaid shall or might be in any wise injured, disturbed, hindered, delayed or defrauded, to be clearly and utterly void; any pretence, color, feigned consideration, expressing of use, or any other matter or thing, to the contrary notwithstanding. SECTION An Act establishing Courts of Probate. SECTION 1. Town councils constituted courts of 11. Executor, administrator and guardian probate. 2. Jurisdiction of courts of probate. 4. Before any removal, complaint to be 5. If executor, &c., removed, be sole ex- 9. Courts of probate may grant license to 10. On settlement of administrator's, &c., account embracing proceeds of sales of real estate, court of probate to adjudge whether terms of sale have been complied with. may resign trust--court of probate 12. 13. Town clerk to be clerk of probate. Clerk being absent, court of probate may appoint clerk pro tem. 14. Suits on bonds given to probate court to be in name of court and not in name of persons composing court. 15. Notice to be given by court of probate before passing certain decrees-kind and mode of notice specified. 16. Appeal granted to supreme court. 17. Appeal when to be claimed, and appeal bond when to be given. 18. 19. 20. 21. Reasons of appeal when to be filed, and adverse party when and how notified. Appeals when to be tried-facts may be determined by a jury. If party appealing neglect to enter his appeal, decree appealed from may be affirmed on complaint, by supreme court. Decree appealed from to be suspended except in certain cases. 22. Municipal court of city of Providence a court of probate. It is enacted by the General Assembly, as follows: SECTION 1. The town councils of the several towns in prothis state are hereby constituted and ordained courts of bate, within their respective towns. The major part of the members elected shall be a quorum for doing business, and the major part of those present at any legal meeting may decide upon any matter before them. and power SEC. 2. Every court of probate shall have full authority to take the probate of wills, and to grant administration on the estates of persons deceased, being at the time of their decease inhabitants of or residents in the town to which such court of probate may belong; and also on the es tates of persons who, at the time of their decease, were not inhabitants of or residents within this state: provided, any of the rights, credits or estate of such deceased person shall be found therein; and the administration first granted shall be a bar to any other administration, although such deceased person may have left such rights, credits or estate, in other towns; to appoint suitable persons to have the charge and care of the personal property of such deceased persons, until letters testamentary or of administration be granted; and may require such persons to give bond to such court, with or without surety, at the discretion of such court; also to approve and to appoint guardians of the persons and estates, or of the persons only, or of the estates only, of such as are or may be subject to guardianship; to examine, allow and settle the accounts of executors, administrators and guardians; to make partition of estates, to assign dower to widows, and to do and transact all such matters and things as the courts of probate within the several towns shall, by the laws of this state, have cognizance and jurisdiction of, according to law. SEC. 3. Every court of probate shall have power, whenever any executor of a last will and testament by such court approved, or any administrator or guardian appointed by such court, shall, by means of absence, sickness or insanity, become incapable of executing his trust, or shall neglect or refuse to do the duties thereof, or shall waste the estate of his ward, or that on which he administers, on a regular inquiry, to remove such executor, administrator or guardian, from office. SEC. 4. In every such case, a complaint shall first be made, in writing, to such court, by an heir, devisee, legatee, ward, creditor, or surety in the administration or guardianship bond, who may have been injured or exposed to injury, or by any person interested in the same, and the court shall, thercupon, issue a summons to such executor, administrator or guardian, embodying therein or annexing thereto said complaint, or the substance thereof, and requiring such executor, administrator or guardian to appear at a time and place named therein, if he shall see fit, to show cause, if any he have, why he should not be removed, in pursuance of such complaint; which summons shall be served on such executor, administrator or guardian, by some sheriff, deputy sheriff, town sergeant or constable, a reasonable time, to be determined by the court issuing the same, before the time appointed for hearing said complaint, by reading the same in his presence and hearing, or by leaving an attested copy thereof at his usual place of abode. SEC. 5. If the executor, administrator or guardian removed from office in pursuance of the next preceding section be sole executor, administrator or guardian, the said court of probate shall appoint an administrator of the goods not administered or another guardian, as the case may require, as in case of the death of an executor, administrator or guardian. SEC. 6. Whenever an administration or guardianship bond shall be found insufficient, either in amount or in security, it shall be the duty of the court of probate who took the same to require further bond or sureties of the executor, administrator or guardian; and on his neglect or refusal to give such further bond or sureties, to remove such executor, administrator or guardian without further notice, and to appoint an administrator or guardian to succeed him, as in the preceding sections is provided. SEC. 7. The administrator or guardian appointed to succeed the executor, administrator or guardian removed from office for either of the causes aforesaid, or in the manner prescribed in the sixth section of the act entitled "an act respecting guardians," shall ask for, demand and receive of the executor, administrator or guardian so removed, his heirs, executors or administrators, or guardian, all the goods and effects of the deceased or of the ward, and also all books of account, bonds, notes or other securities, documents or papers whatsoever, touching the estate, which may be needed in the settlement thereof; and in case of refusal to deliver the same he may sue therefor; which action shall be no bar to any other proper action to be brought on such executor's or administrator's or guardian's bond. SEC. 8. No action or suit in law or equity which, at the time such executor, administrator or guardian is removed from officc as aforesaid, shall be pending in favor of or against such executor, administrator or guardian, shall abate by such removal; but the same may be prosecuted by or against the administrator or guardian who shall be appointed to succeed him. SEC. 9. Courts of probate shall have cognizance and jurisdiction over petitions of executors and administrators for authority and license to sell the lands, tenements and hereditaments of deceased persons, or growing wood, or stone, or peat, or coal thereon, to pay the debts of such deceas ed, the expense of their funerals, of supporting their families, and settling their estates, with incidental charges; and over similar petitions of guardians to sell like property to pay the debts of their wards, the expenses of supporting them, their families, and of settling their estates, with incidental charges; to hear, |