an east line shall strike the centre of the highway sixty rods south of the four corners; thence east to the place of beginning, shall hereafter be known and distinguished as the village of De Ruyter, and the inhabitants residing within the bounds aforesaid shall hereafter, henceforth and forever, be a body politic and corporate, in fact and in name, by the name of "The Trustees of the Village of De Ruyter," by which name they and their successors shall have perpetual succession, and in law capable of suing and being sued, impleading and being impleaded, answering and being answered unto, defending and being defended in all courts and places whatsoever; may adopt a corporation seal, change and alter the same at pleasure, and shall be capable of purchasing, holding and conveying any estate, real and personal, for the public use of said village. S2. The inhabitants of said village residing therein, First meeting who shall be qualified to vote at town-meetings, shall meeton the first Tuesday of May next, at such place in said village, and at such time of the day as a justice of the peace residing within said village shall direct, by a notice to be posted up in four or more public places within said village, at least six days previous, and then and there elect by ballot five trustees, three assessors, one treasurer, one clerk and one collector, who shall be freeholders of said village and residents therein. The justices residing in said village shall attend as inspectors of said election; shall decide upon the qualifications of persons offering to vote; shall declare the persons receiving the greatest number of votes to be duly elected, and shall immediately notify them of their election; and in case of the non-attendance of any justice as aforesaid, the majority of voters present shall appoint some proper person to perform the same duties as the justices aforesaid are required to do. And on the first Tuesday in May in each year thereafter, there shall in like manner be a new election of the same officers, and the trustees for the time being shall preside at such election, and conduct the same as the justices are above directed to do.

$ 3. It shall be the duty of the trustees of said village President. within eight days after having been elected, to choose one of their number to be the president of the said corporation, whose duty it shall be to preside at all meetings of the trustees to be held during the term of his appointment; but in case of his absence at any such meeting, the trustees attending may choose one their number to preside in his absence. The clerk of said village shall have the custody of the records, books and papers of said corporation, and shall file and preserve all papers delivered to him for

Special

meeting.

Penalty

President's

duty.

Of the clerk.

that purpose; he shall attend all meetings of the inhabitants of said village, be clerk of the trustees, and record the proceedings in a book to be provided for that purpose; in case the clerk shall be absent from any such meeting, such person as shall be chosen shall perform the duties of said clerk in his absence.

S4. The trustees shall have power to call special meetings, which shall be called and conducted as annual meetings are, whenever they or a majority deem fit, either to fill vacancies in office happening by death, removal, resignation or otherwise, and for other purposes; and the officers elected at an annual or special meeting, shall hold their offices until others are duly elected and qualified to succeed them.

S 5. If any freeholder who shall have been duly elected to any office in said village, and shall for five days after being notified of such election, refuse to take upon himself the duties of such office, or neglect to give notice of his acceptance thereof to the clerk of the board of trustees, he shall for neglect or refusal, forfeit the sum of five dollars, recoverable in the name of the village treasurer in any court having cognizance thereof, with costs of suit, for the use of the corporation; but no person shall be finable for refusing to serve for two successive years after his election.

S6. It shall be the duty of the president of said village, when present, to preside at the meetings of the trustees, to call extraordinary meetings of the trustees whenever he shall think proper, to receive complaints of any breach of the by-laws, to see that the by-laws, rules and regulations and ordinances are faithfully executed and preserved, and to prosecute in the name of the treasurer for all offences against such by-laws and ordinances.

$7. It shall be the duty of the clerk of said village to keep the books and papers belonging to said corporation, to record in a book to be provided for that purpose the rules, votes, orders, regulations and proceedings of the inhabitants at their annual or special meetings, and also all by-laws, votes, ordinances and proceedings of the board of trustees, to notify officers of their election as soon as may be after their election, and to perform such other duties as the trustees shall from time to time direct and require of him; and the said trustees may allow to him such sum for his services as they shall deem proper; but neither the said trustees or treasurer shall receive any thing for their services under this act.

$8. The said trustees shall have power to make and By-laws publish rules and regulations relative to removing and preventing encroachments upon the streets and sidewalks of said village; to restrain cattle, horses, sheep, geese and swine from running at large in said streets; to regulate slaughter-houses and nuisances generally; to determine what are nuisances, and to remove, destroy or prevent the the same; to suppress and restrain disorderly houses, houses of ill fame, gaming houses and instruments and devices for the purpose of gaming; to regulate and prevent the firing in the streets, of guns, pistols, crackers, rockets and squibs; to prevent the immoderate riding or driving of horses and carriages in the same; to enter and examine, (by permission of the owner and occupant,) houses, stores, yards and out-houses, to ascertain if they are in a dangerous state in regard to fires, and direct them to be put in a safe condition; to examine and regulate the weights and measures of the said village; to erect and regulate hayscales in the same; to establish and organize a fire company in said village, whenever the said corporation shall vote to purchase an engine, the members of which company, not to exceed twenty-four in number, shall be exempt from military duty and jury duty, except from justices juries in said village; to prescribe the powers and duties of fire companies, in preventing and extinguishing fires; to enforce and carry into effect all the rules, regulations and ordinances adopted by the corporation at their annual or special meetings, by inflicting such penalty as they shall deem fit, not exceeding ten dollars for any one offence, recoverable with costs in action of debt, in the name of the treasurer of said village, in any court having cognizance thereof, in which action the first process shall be by warrant, and in which action it shall be sufficient to declare in debt for such penalty, and give the special matter in evidence, and the defendant may plead the general issue, and give the special in evidence under it; and no person shall be deemed incompetent either as justice, juror or witness, by reason of his being an inhabitant of said village, upon any trial arising under this act.

$9. The inhabitants of said village qualified as aforesaid, at their annual or special meeting, shall vote and determine what sum shall be raised, levied and collected from the inhabitants of said village, for the purchasing of any real or personal estate for the use of said village, for the improving or repairing the streets and sidewalks of said village, and for all necessary expenses of the same: and thereupon the said board of trustees shall make out a tax-roll under the seal of the said corporation, apportion

Security.

Shows, &c.

Money how

ing the sum and the per centage of the collector, which they are authorised to add to the sum so to be raised and collected, among the several persons liable to taxation in said village, both resident and non-resident, according to the value of their real and personal estate within the said village. The valuation of taxable property shall be ascertained as far as possible from the last assessment roll of the town, and no person shall be entitled to any reduction in the valuation of such property as so ascertained, unless he shall give notice of his claim to such reduction to the trustees of said corporation before the tax-list shall be made out, and the said trustees shall by warrant authorise the collector, under their hands and seal, to collect the said tax and pay the amount to the treasurer, retaining in his hands not less than three nor more than five per cent for collecting; and the said collector, after giving sufficient security to the said trustees, shall proceed to the collection with the like power and authority as the collectors of towns, and shall pay the said tax to the treasurer at the time directed in his warrant; and in case any sum assessed upon any real estate cannot be collected in the manner as aforesaid, it shall remain a debt of record against the owner or occupant, and may be sued for and recovered in the name of the treasurer, with costs; but no greater sum than one hundred dollars shall be raised in any one year; and the same when raised shall be paid to the treasurer, together with the other moneys belonging to the corporation, subject to the order of the trustees, but the money raised by tax shall not be diverted from the special purpose for which it was raised.

$10. The trustees shall have power to exact from the treasurer such security as they shall deem proper; and no rule or ordinance shall be of any effect until it has been recorded in the clerk's book, and a copy thereof posted up in four or more public places within the said village.

$11. The trustees may restrain within the said corporotion, (or permit under such regulations as they may deem fit,) the exhibition of any show, caravan, circus, theatrical performances or natural or artificial curiosities, on the receipt of not less than two nor more than twentyfive dollars.

S 12. No money shall be paid by the treasurer unless to be paid. by a previous vote of the trustees, and a check of the clerk, countersigned by the president of the board; and the treasurer in his settlement with the trustees shall be allowed for no monies except such as are paid out as above.

Accounta

S 13. The trustees shall, each and every year, at the place where the annual meeting is held, exhibit a state

ment of all the moneys received by them and paid out and expended, and how expended, which statement shall be left with the clerk at least three days before and previous to such meeting.

clause.

$14. If for any cause whatever the first meeting of saving the inhabitants of said village shall not be held on the day specified by the second section of this act, any three freeholders of said village may give notice of the time. and place of holding such first meeting, within fourteen days thereafter, in the manner prescribed in said second section.

$15. This act shall be a public act, and liberally con-Rights reser strued in all courts and places whatsoever, and the legis-vel. lature may at any time alter or repeal the same.

CHAP. 155.

AN ACT to amend an act, entitled "An act relative to the fishery in the county of Oswego," passed March 12th,

1823.

Passed April 15, 1833.

The People of the State of New-York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:

§ 1. It shall be lawful for any person to fish with a net Fishing sen or seine in the waters of lake Ontario, in the town of Rich-. land, in the county of Oswego, at any time except in the months of September and October, during which months it shall not be lawful for any person to fish with a net or seine in said waters within the distance of one hundred and fifty rods of the mouth of Salmon river, in said town of Richland: and any person who shall violate the provisions of this section shall forfeit the sum of twenty-five dollars, to be sued for, recovered and applied in the manner prescribed in and by the third section of the act, entitled “An act relative to the fishery in the county of Oswego, passed March 12, 1823."

$2. Each and every net, seine, seine-boat or skiff used Penalty. in fishing by any person contrary to the provisions of this act, or used in the waters of Salmon river contrary to the provisions of said act of one thousand eight hundred and twenty-three, shall be forfeited to any person who shall prosecute to conviction any individual who shall have so used them, or either of them, contrary to the provisions of this act.