tees; nor shall any alteration or regulation of an organized school district be made to take effect between the first day of December in any one year, and the first day of May following. superintend ents. No. 71- 46. If the town superintendent in any town, Joint meet shall require by notice in writing, the attendance of the ing of town town superintendents of any other town or towns, at a joint meeting for the purpose of altering a school district formed from their respective towns, and a major part of the town superintendents notified shall refuse or neglect to attend, the town superintendents attending, by a majority of votes, may call a special district meeting of such district, for the purpose of deciding on such proposed alteration; and the decision of such meeting shall be as valid as if made by the town superintendents of all the towns interested, but shall extend no further than to dissolve the district formed from such towns. trict, how ed of. No. 72-§ 47. When a new district shall be formed from Altering dis one or more districts, possessed of a school house, and in school house cases where any district from which such new district shall &c., disposbe in whole or in part formed, shall be entitled to other property than its school house, then the town superintendent of common schools, at the time of forming such new district, shall sell at public auction said school house and other property belonging thereto, and precede the sale thereof by printed or writen notices, to be posted in at least five public places in the district interested in such sale. appropriated No. 73- 48. The proceeds of such sale shall be divided Proceeds between the parts of said district, in proportion to the as- how to be sessed value of the parts respectively, to be applied by them towards the erection of new school houses. made. Effect of consolidating or an. tricts. No. 74- 49. No such sale shall take place where the in- when sale habitants of the several parts into which such district shall cannot be be divided at a special meeting, called for that purpose, shall agree upon a division of such property among them. No. 75-850. When two or more districts shall be consolidated into one, the new district shall succeed to all the rights of property possessed by the districts of which it shall be nulling discomposed; and when a district is annulled, and portions of it are annexed to other districts, that district into which the school house, or its site or any other property of such dissolved district may fall, shall succeed to all the rights of the annulled district in respect to such property, and whenever two or more districts or parts of districts shall be united, and there shall be more than one school house in such new or altered district, the trustees of such district may sell the site and buildings thereon, of either or both the school houses situated in such new district. property of trict. Appraisal of No. 76-51. In cases where by the dissolving a district, dissolveddis- its school house or other property shall be annexed or included in another district, the town superintendent, by whose order such dissolution was effected, shall appraise such property in the manner provided by law in cases of the creation of new districts; and the proportions assigned to the inhabitants of such dissolved district who are not annexed to the district which includes the school house, or other property, shall be raised by the trustees of such last mentioned district and paid over to the trustees of the district to which such inhabitants are annexed, in the same manner as in case of the creation of a new district, and to be applied to the same purpose. Moneys of No. 77-852. When there shall be any moneys in the hands such district. of the officers, of a district that is or may be annulled, or belonging to such district, the town superintendent of the town may demand, sue for and recover the same, in his name of office, and shall apportion the same equitably between the districts to which the several portions of such annulled district may have been annexed, to be held and enjoyed as district property. Trustees of dissolved districts may make out rate bills, &c Town superintendents to No. 78-853. Whenever a school district shall be dissolved by consolidation, or otherwise, it shall be the duty of the trustees of such district to make out all the necessary ratebills and tax-lists, and issue their warrants according to law, for the collection of all such sums of money as shall be necessary to discharge all legal liat ilities of such district so dissolved or consolidated, and to call special meetings of the legal voters of such district, if it be necessary; to raise money by tax, to discharge such demands, and the collector to whom any such rate-bill or tax-list and warrant shall be delivered for collection, shall have power to execute the same in the same manner and with the like authority as though such district had not been dissolved or consolidated. Of the powers of school district inhabitants, and of the choice, duties and powers of school district officers. No. 79-854. Whenever any school district shall be formed give notice. in any town, it shall be the duty of the town superintendent, within twenty days thereafter, to prepare a notice in writing, describing such district, and appointing a time and place for the first district meeting, and to deliver such notice to a taxable inhabitant of the district. Notice for first meeting No. 80- 55. It shall be the duty of such inhabitant to notify every other inhabitant of the district, qualified to vote at district meetings, by reading the notice in the hearing of such inhabitant, or in case of his absence from home, by leaving a copy thereof, or of so much thereof as relates to the time. and place of such meeting, at the place of his abode, at least six days before the time of the meeting. No. 81-§ 56. In case such notice shall not be given, or the When to be inhabitants of a district shall refuse or neglect to assemble, renewed. or form a district meeting, when so notified; or in case any such district, having been formed and organized in pursuance of such notice, shall afterwards be dissolved, so that no competent authority shall exist therein, to call a special district meeting in the manner hereinafter provided; such notice shall be renewed by the town superintendent, and served in the manner above prescribed. not serving. No. 82-857. Every taxable inhabitant to whom a notice of Penalty for a district meeting shall have been properly delivered for service, who shall refuse or neglect to serve the notice in the manner above in this article enjoined, shall for every such offence forfeit the sum of five dollars. when to as semble. No. 83-§ 58. Whenever any district meeting shall be call- Inhabitants ed, in the manner prescribed in the preceding, sections of this article, it shall be the duty of the inhabitants of the district, qualified to vote at district meetings, to assemble together at the time and place mentioned in the notice. of voters in trict meet No. 84-859. Every male person of full age, residing in Qualification any school district, and entitled to hold lands in this state, who school disowns or hires real property in such district subject to taxa- ings. tion for school purposes, and every resident of such district authorized to vote at town meetings of the town in which such district or part of district is situated, and who has paid any rate-bill for teachers' wages in such district, within one year preceding, or who owns any personal property liable to be taxed for school purposes in such district, exceeding fifty dollars in value, exclusive of such as is exempt from execution, and no others, shall be entitled to vote at any school district meeting held in such district. and oath. No. 85-§ 60. If any person offering to vote at any school Challenge district meeting, shall be challenged as unqualified by any legal voter in such district, the chairman presiding at such meeting shall require the person so offering, to make the following declaration: "I do declare and affirm that I am an actual resident of this school district, and that I am qualified to vote at this meeting." And every person making such declaration shall be permitted to vote on all questions proposed at such meeting; but if any person shall refuse to make such declaration, his vote shall be rejected. false decla No. 86-9 61. Every person who shall wilfully make a Penalty for false declaration of his right to vote at a district meeting, upon ration. being challenged as herein before provided, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and punishable by imprisonment Powers of district meeting. Trustees first elected by lot. in the county jail for a term not exceeding one year, nor less than six months, at the discretion of the court; and any person voting at any school district meeting without being qualified, shall, on conviction, be subject to a fine of ten dollars, to be sued for and recovered by the trustees of the district for its use, and with costs of suit, before any justice of the peace. No. 87-§ 62. The inhabitants so entitled to vote, when so assembled in such district meeting, or when lawfully assembled at any other district meeting, shall have power, by a majority of the votes of those present: 1. To appoint a chairman for the time being: 2. To adjourn from time to time, as occasion may require: 3. To choose a district clerk, three trustees, a district collector, and a librarian at their first meeting, and as often as such offices or either of them become vacated: 4. To designate a site for a district school house : 5. To lay such tax on the taxable inhabitants of the district, as the meeting shall deem sufficient to purchase or lease a suitable site for a school house, and to build, hire or purchase such school house, and to keep in repair and furnish the same with the necessary fuel and appendages: 6. To alter, repeal and modify their proceedings from time to time as occasion may require: 7. To vote a tax for the purchase of a book for the purpose of recording the proceedings in their respective districts: 8. With the consent of the town superintendent of the town, to designate sites for two or more school houses, for such district, and lay a tax on the taxable property in such district, to purchase or lease such sites, and to hire, build or purchase such school houses, and to keep in repair, and fur-. nish the same with necessary fuel and appendages, and may also in their discretion lay a tax, not exceeding twenty dollars in any one year, to purchase maps, globes, black-boards, and other school apparatus. No. 88-63. The trustees chosen at the first legal meeting to be classed of any school district, shall be divided by lot into three classes, to be numbered, one, two and three; the term of office of the first class shall be one year, of the second, two, of the third, three; and one trustee only shall thereafter annually be elected, who shall hold his office for three years, and until a successor shall be duly elected or appointed. In case of a vacancy in the office of either of the trustees, during the period for which he or they shall have been respectively elected, the person or persons chosen or appointed to fill such vacancy shall hold the office only for the unexpired term. No 89-8 64. Every notice of a district meeting called in Contents of pursuance of this act shall state the purpose for which such notice. meeting is called. Annual No. 90-§ 65. In each school district an annual meeting shall be held at the time and place previously appointed; and meetings at the first district meeting, and at each annual meeting, the time and place of holding the next annual meeting shall be fixed. election of cers. No. 91-66. Whenever the time for holding annual meet- Special ings in a district for the election of district officers shall pass meeting for without such election being held, a special meeting shall be district offinotified by the clerk of such district to choose such officers; and if no such notice be given by him or the trustees last elected or appointed, within twenty days after such time shall have passed, the town superintendent or town clerk may order any inhabitant of such district qualified to vote at district meetings, to notify such meeting in the manner provided by law in case of the formation of a new district; and the officers chosen at any such special meeting, shall hold their office until the time for holding the next annual meeting. a school district meet ings. When suNo. 92-§ 67. When the clerk and all the trustees of perintendent school district shall have removed or otherwise vacated their may order office, and where the records of a district shall have been destroyed or lost, or where trustees neglect or refuse to call meetings to choose trustees, the superintendent shall have authority to order such meetings, and the same shall be notified in the manner provided by law in the case of the formation of new districts. No. 93-§ 68. When in consequence of the loss of the records of a school district, or the omission to designate the day for its annual meeting, there shall be none fixed, or it cannot be ascertained, the trustees of such district may appoint a day for holding the annual meeting of such district. When trustime for an tees may fix nual meeting. No. 94-8 69. A special meeting shall be held in each dis- Special trict whenever called by the trustees; and the proceedings of meetings. no district meeting, annual or special, shall be held illegal for want of a due notice to all the persons qualified to vote thereat, unless it shall appear that the omission to give such notice was wilful and fraudulent. school No. 95-§ 70. No tax to be voted by a district meeting for Limitation of building, hiring or purchasing a school house, shall exceed tax for the sum of four hundred dollars, unless the town superintend- houses. ent of the town in which the school house is to be situated, shall certify in writing his opinion that a larger sum ought to be raised, and shall specify the sum; in which case, a sum not exceeding the sum so specified, shall be raised; and in districts composed of parts of several towns, the certificate |