Municipal corporations. Irregularity in name, style or title of municipality. Validating ordinances, elections, contracts, etc. Provise. No. 15. AN ACT Validating ordinances and other transactions of municipal corporations, wherein there has occurred a misnomer, omission, informality, or irregularity of, or in, the corporate name, style, and title of such municipality. Section 1. Be it enacted, &c., That no misnomer, omission, informality, or irregularity heretofore made or occurring of or in the name, style or title of any municipal corporation of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, in any ordinance, by-law or regulation passed by the councils thereof, and approved by the mayor or burgess thereof, for the government of the inhabitants within the territorial limits comprising the same; or in elections held therein to incur or increase the indebtedness thereof; or in the annexation of territory thereto or extending the limits thereof, over which jurisdiction has been and now is exercised by the corporate authorities; or in the issuing of bonds for the indebtedness thereof; or in deeds or other conveyances of lands or hereditaments, to or from the same; or contracts by or with the same; or in any other ordinance, matter or thing within the lawful powers or duties thereof, shall invalidate the same; but all such ordinances, elections, annexations or extensions of territory, bonds, deeds, contracts, and all other matters or things done as aforesaid, are hereby validated and made good in law, as if done in the proper corporate name of such municipality: Provided, That the matters hereinbefore validated shall be otherwise legal; and that this act shall not affect any suit or suits now pending. APPROVED-The 10th day of March, A. D. 1905. Whereas I. Whereas II. No. 16. AN ACT Making an appropriation for the payment of the deficiency in the maintenance and other expenses of the hatcheries of the Department of Fisheries. Whereas, By the General Appropriation act, approved the fifteenth day of May, Anno Domini one thousand nine hundred and three, the Department of Fisheries is authorized to erect two new hatcheries for the propagation of fish, and an appropriation was made therefor; and Whereas, The General Appropriation act, approved the fifteenth day of May, Anno Domini one thousand nine hundred and three, in providing for the salaries and expenses of the several Departments, made no provision for the maintenance and other expenses of the two new hatcheries authorized to be established, therefore: Section 1. Be it enacted, &c., That the sum of eight Appropriation. thousand five hundred and four dollars ($8,504), or so much thereof as may be necessary, be and the same Fisheries. is hereby specifically appropriated to the Department Department of APPROVED-The 10th day of March, A. D. 1905. No. 17. AN ACT Relating to the institution, prosecution and taxation of costs in criminal cases. Whereas, Certain practices in the institution, prose- Whereas. cution and taxation of costs in criminal cases have arisen, which may not be contrary to the letter of existing laws, yet do offend against their spirit, and impose unjust burdens upon the taxpayers of this Commonwealth, therefore: rant, subpoena, Section 1. Be it enacted, &c., That from and after Criminal cases. the passage of this act, it shall be unlawful for any person, or officer of any township, ward, borough, city or county, within this Commonwealth, in instituting and prosecuting criminal cases, to duplicate any return, complaint, information, indictment, warrant, Indictment, warsubpoena, or other writ against any person or persons etc., not to be duplicharged with the commission of any criminal offense or offenses, committed at one and the same time or growing out of one and the same transaction, and when one return, one complaint, one information, one warrant, one subpoena or one other writ can be legally made to serve and promote the due administration of justice. cated in certain cases. Section 2. It shall be unlawful, in all criminal prose- Taxation of costs. cutions hereafter instituted, to tax costs in and on more than one return, information, complaint, indictment, warrant, subpoena or other writ, against the same defendant or defendants, where there has been a severance or duplication of two or more offenses which grew out of the same occurrence, or which Duty of public officers. Repeal. might legally have been included in one complaint and in one indictment by the use of different counts. Section 3. It shall be the duty of all public officers charged with the duty of taxing, and issuing certificates and warrants for the payment of, costs in criminal cases, to see that no costs are taxed and paid in violation of the provisions of the first and second sections of this act. Section 4. All laws or parts of laws of this Commonwealth inconsistent herewith be and the same are hereby repealed. APPROVED-The 10th day of March, A. D. 1905. SAML. W. PENNYPACKER. Townships of the first class, Petition. Commissioner. Enrollment. No. 18. AN ACT To enable townships of the Commonwealth, which have heretofore been declared townships of the first class, and which no longer have a population such as is required by law, to again become townships of the second class. Section 1. Be it enacted, &c., That at any time, not less than two years before the time fixed for taking a decennial census of the United States, whenever twenty or more freeholders, residing in any of the townships of the first class, shall present their petition to the court of quarter sessions of the county, averring that the said township no longer has a population such as is required by law, and shall give such security as the court may prescribe for the payment of all costs and expenses which may be incurred in any proceedings had upon said petition, the said court shall appoint a competent commissioner to make an enrollment of the inhabitants of the said township and to report the said enrollment, with a finding of the population of the said township, during the next ensuing term of the said court. Upon the filing of the report of the said commissioner, the same shall be confirmed nisi; said confirmation to become absolute unless excepted to within twenty days thereafter, during which time notice of the said filing and confirmation shall be advertised in a newspaper of said county, in general circulation in the district to be efExceptions to re- fected thereby, once a week for three weeks. If exceptions are filed to the said report within the said period, the court, upon consideration thereof, shall confirm the said report or modify the said finding; and thereupon the clerk of the court shall certify to the county commissioners of the county and to the township commissioners of the said township, the finding as shown by the said proceedings. The costs Commissioner's report. Advertisement. port. and expenses of the said proceedings, including a reasonable fee for the said commissioner, shall be paid by the said petitioners, or by the townships, or partly by each, as the court shall direct. Section 2. It shall be the duty of the county commissioners in every county of the Commonwealth, by proclamation to be issued prior to the first day of Proclamation, January of each year, to designate the townships, if any, which since the last preceding proclamation have been ascertained to come within said conditions, and to be townships of the second class; and in all town Townships of the ships so designated, the officers provided by general law for townships of the second class shall be chosen at the township election then next ensuing, and the township government constituted by general law for townships of the second class shall go into force on the first Monday of March, then next ensuing. APPROVED-The 14th day of March, A. D. 1905. second class. No. 19. AN ACT over 800,000 in To fix the salaries of district attorneys, and providing for the appointment of assistant district attorneys, in the several counties of this Commonwealth having over eight hundred thousand inhabitants; prescribing the powers and duties, and fixing the salaries of the said assistant district attorneys. Section 1. Be it enacted, &c., That in all counties Counties having of this Commonwealth having over eight hundred habitants. thousand inhabitants, the annual salary of the district District attorney's attorney shall be twelve thousand dollars; and the district attorneys of said counties shall have authority to appoint one or more assistants, learned in the law, Assistants. not exceeding eight in number, to assist the district. attorney in the discharge of his duties. salary. Three of the said assistant district attorneys shall receive salaries of five thousand dollars per annum Salaries. each; three of the said assistant district attorneys shall receive salaries of four thousand dollars per annum each, and two of the said assistant district attorneys shall receive salaries of three thousand dol lars per annum each. In the event of the appointment of a less number of assistants than eight, the district attorney shall have the power to determine in which class, as to salaries, the appointee or appointees shall be placed: Provided, That not more than three shall be in any one such class. Said salaries shall be paid out of the county treasury. Section 2. All acts or parts of acts inconsistent Repeal. herewith be and the same are hereby repealed. APPROVED-The 14th day of March, A. D. 1905. SAML. W. PENNYPACKER. Borough of Bristol. Section 2. act of February 15, 1851, cited for amendment. Certificates of indebtedness, etc. No. 20. AN ACT To amend an act, entitled "An act to amend the charter of incorporation of the borough of Bristol, granted the fourteenth day of November, Anno Domini one thousand seven hundred and twenty, and the several acts supplementary thereto," approved the fifteenth day of February, Anno Domini one thousand eight hundred and fifty-one, by striking out the proviso to the tenth section of said act, which limits the amount of the indebtedness of said borough. Section 1. Be it enacted, &c., That section ten of an act, entitled "An act to amend the charter of incorporation of the borough of Bristol, granted the fourteenth day of November, Anno Domini one thousand seven hundred and twenty, and the several acts supplementary thereto," approved the fifteenth day of February, Anno Domini one thousand eight hundred and fifty-one, which reads as follows, to wit: "Section 2. That the burgess and council shall have power to borrow, for the use of said borough, any sum or sums of money which they shall deem necessary, and to issue certificates of indebtedness or other evidences of debt for the sum or sums, amount or amounts, so borrowed, to the persons respectively lending the same, and the said certificate or other evidences of debt, signed by the burgess and by the treasurer, shall be binding and obligatory on the said corporation: Provided, That the whole amount of indebtedness of said borough shall not at any time exceed the sum of ten thousand dollars," be and the same is hereby amended to read as follows: Section 2. That the burgess and council shall have power to borrow, for the use of said borough, any sum or sums of money which they shall deem necessary, and to issue certificates of indebtedness or other evidences of debt for the sum or sums, amount or amounts, so borrowed, to the persons respectively lending the same; and the said certificate or other evi dences of debt, signed by the burgess and by the treas urer, shall be binding and obligatory on the said corporation. APPROVED-The 14th day of March, A. D. 1905. No. 21. AN ACT Making it a misdemeanor for persons to have in their possession certain mechanical devices or tools, commonly called burglars' tools, and prescribing the punishment therefor. Section 1. Be it enacted, &c., That if any person shall have in his possession any tool, false-key, lock |