A. D. 1698. Acts relating to the City of Charleston. half to the informer, the other half to be delivered to the commissioners of the poor, for the use of the poor. X. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That every person that fills up all such houses of offices or privy houses that shall be deemed nuzances by any two of the commissioners aforesaid, when so filled up, shall after so filling up and covered, keep tubbs or some other small vessels, in their houses of offices, or privy houses, in order to preventing of nuzances, and to empty them once a week, under the penalty and forfeiture of five shillings for every such offence, to be levyed by a warrant from under the hand and seal of any justice of the peace, to the use aforesaid. XI. And be it enacted by the authority aforesaid, That no person or Chimnies how persons whatsoever, after the ratification of this Act, shall build or cause to be built, any chimney in any place within the limits of Charles Town, but such as shall be made of stone, brick, or both, without leave first had and obtained from Mr. Jonathan Amory, Capt. William Smith, Capt. Christopher Garrett, Mr. John Buckly and Mr. George Logan, or any three of them, on penalty of five pounds upon him or them att whose charge such chimney or chimneys shall be built. to be built. Fires, XII. And be it likewise enacted, That any person owning by inheritance, mortgage, or lease of seven years, any building in Charles Town, which hath a wooden chimney, that is deemed or taken by the commissioners last mentioned, or any three of them, to danger the firing the said building or neighbours houses, the claimer or owner of such buildings or chimneys, shall, within one month after notice given him or them by the said commissioners or any one of them, pull down or cause to be pulled down the said wooden chimneys to the ground, and cause no chimney to be built in the place thereof, but such as shall be made of stone or brick, on penalty of five pounds for each default and neglect. XIII. And bee it allso enacted and declared by the authority aforesaid, That if any fire shall happen to break out in any part of Charles Town, already built or hereafter shall be built in the said town, that the commissioners aforesaid or any two of them, shall or may and hereby are empowered to give all such directions for the pulling down or blowing up any such house or houses, that shall bee by them adjudged meet to be pulled down or blown up for the stopping or preventing the further spreading of the same; and if it shall happen that the pulling down or blowing up any such house or houses by the directions aforesaid, shall be the occasion of stopping the said fire, or the fire stops before it comes to the same, and not otherwise, then all and every owner of such house or houses, shall receive satisfaction, be paid for the same by the rest of the inhabitants in Charles Town, whose houses shall not be burnt, and the commissioners are hereby empowered to make such rate or rates for the raising and levying such sum or sums of money, as shall be thought convenient by the said commissioners; Provided all ways, that if that house where the fire shall first begin and break out, shall be adjudged fitt to be pulled down, to hinder the further spreading and increase of the same, that then the owners of such house shall receive no manner of satisfaction for the same, any thing in this Act or any other Act to the contrary notwithstanding. XIV. Bee it enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That whereas there is several complaints, that most of the inhabitants of Charles Town are very negligent in not sweeping and keeping their chimneys clean from sutt, which oftentimes occasions the firing the said chimneys, and so indangers the firing of the said house or houses adjoyning to the same; Acts relating to the City of Charleston. A. D. 1698. Bee it therefore enacted by the authority aforesaid, That if any chimney Chimneys to be or chimneys in Charles Town, after the ratification of this Act, happen kept clean. to catch or take fire, the person or personas living in the said house or tenement, where the said chimney or chimneys that so catches or takes fire, shall forfeit twenty shillings, to be levyed by a warrant from under the hand and seal of any justice of the peace, one half to the informer, the other half to be delivered to the commissioners of the poor, for the use of the poor. and hooks. XV. Whereas, it is very necessary that there should be several lathers, fire hooks and leather buckets, for the benefit of preventing the further en- Fire buckets creasing and quinching of fires that may happen in any house or houses in Charles Town; Bee it therefore enacted by the authority aforesaid, That within ninety days after the ratification of this Act, there shall be levyed and assest on all the houses and tenements in Charles Town, the sum of forty pounds current money, each owner and tenant of every house to be assessed by the commissioners of the town as aforesaid, until the said sum of forty pounds be raised; and the said commissioners are hereby empowered to assess and levy the same, each house and tenant to be assessed, according to his value and ability, as the said commissioners shall judge; and when the said money is received by the commissioners, they, or any three of them, shall lay out and buy for the only proper use of Charles Town, six lathers of several sizes, fifty leather bucketts, and six fire hooks. XVI. And further bee it enacted, that by the authority aforesaid, That if there should be any money of the aforesaid forty pounds, left after the aforesaid lathers, bucketts and fire hooks are bought, the remaining part of said money so left, shall remain in the said commissioners's hands, to be by them, or any three of them, laid out for the necessary and public use of Charles Town, as the said commissioners, or any three of them, shall deem convenient. filled. XVII. And bee it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That in case any of the commissioners, or any other hereafter appointed, shall Commissioners depart this life or go out of this Province, the Governour for the time vacancys how being is hereby empowered and authorized to appoynt another in his or their rooms, which persons so named and appoynted, shall have the like power as the aforesaid commissioners have, or shall have. wood on lands XVIII. And bee it allso enacted, That no slave or slaves whatsoever, from and after the ratification of this Act, shall fell, cutt, or carry away Slave cutting any timber or other wood, growing, lying or being on any person or per- not his mastson's land, (his master's or owner's land excepted,) without having with er's. him or them a tickett or lycense for their so doing, from the owners of the said land, his attorney or assigns, on penalty, for every default, that it shall and may be lawful for any person or persons whatsoever, to apprehend any such slave or slaves, and him or them deliver into the custody of the marshall, who shall and may detain them in safe custody, till the owner or claimer shall pay him five shillings for such slave, and six pence for every day the said slave shall be in his custody, after the first day; one moiety of the same five shillings to be paid to the party or partys that do apprehend and deliver the said slave to the marshall, and the other moiety to the marshall, if he whips the said slave, or in default thereof, that moiety to be paid to the commissioners of the poor, for the use of the poor. XIX. Bee it allso enacted by the authority aforesaid, That if any slaughter house, cattle penn, sheep pen, hogg styes, or other thing whatsoever, erected, lying or being in Charles Town, which the commissioners aforesaid A. D. 1698. Nuisances. Acts relating to the City of Charleston. shall judge a nuzance, shall not be removed by the person or persons that occasions the same, within tenn days after notice given him or them by any two of the commissioners, shall forfeit forty shillings for each month the said nuzance continues, to be recovered by a warrant under the hand and seal of any justice of the peace, one half to be paid to the commissioners of the poor for the use of the poor, the other half to the informer. XX. Whereas, the streets in Charles Town, after rains, in many places, Side Walks. especially the most frequented parts of the said town, is then much overflowed with water, and makes it very unfit, ill convenient and unpassable; Bee it therefore enacted by the authority aforesaid, That every person or persons living and dwelling in those streets, lanes and alleys, in that part of Charles Town hereinafter mentioned, shall, within four months after the ratification of this Act, shall mend and raise the breadth of the fronting part of that lott which belongs to the house they live in, either in street, lane or alley, with broken oyster shells, six feet upon a direct line into the street, lane or alley, so that it shall be adjudged sufficient by the commissioners aforesaid, And all such houses that bounds or butts on either said streets, lanes or alleys, that no persons dwell in, then the owners of said houses shall raise and mend their part of such lott as aforesaid; and every person or persons that shall neglect, for doing the same shall forfeit for each house with that part of the lott belonging to the same so fronting, twenty shillings, to be recovered by a warrant from under the hand and seal of any justice of the peace, to be paid into the hands of the commissioners aforesaid, towards the mending the other parts of the streets, lanes and alleys of Charlestown, as they shall think fitt and convenient. The streets, lanes and alleys that are so to be mended, is butted and bounded as followeth : from Capt. Risby's store-house fronting to the harbour of Charles Town, to the house that Mary Cross lately lived in; from the house that Walter Hookley now lives in, to the house that Richard Tread now lives in; and from the house Capt. Christopher Garrett now lives in, on both sides that street, to the dwelling-house of Capt. William Rhett; and from the head of the broad street that leads to the Church on both sides to the Church; and from the head of the lane that Mr. Callybuff lives in, to the street Mr. Mazick now lives in; and from the head of the lane beginning from the street Mr. John Alexander lives in, to the lane Mr. Callybuff lives in. XXI. And it is hereby enacted and declared, That an Act entitled "An Act to revive an Act for the better settling and regulating the militia," ratified in open assembly, the fifth day of December, one thousand six hundred and ninety-six, to be, in every clause, paragraph, sentence and words, null, void, repealed and of no effect, to all intents and purposes whatsoever. Read three times and ratified in open Asssembly, the 8th day of October, 1698. JOSEPH BLAKE, AN ACT FOR Acts relating to the City of Charleston. A. D. 1700. SECURING THE PROVINCIAL LIBRARY AT CHARTESTOWN, No. 171. IN CAROLINA. WHEREAS, at the promotion of the Reverend Dr. Thomas Bray, and the encouragement and bounty of the Right Honourable the true and absolute Lords and Proprietors of this Province, and the aforesaid Dr. Bray, and the inhabitants of this Province, a library hath been sent over to Charlestown, for the use of this Province, and it is justly feared that the books belonging to the same will quickly be embezzeled, damaged or lost, excepting a law be passed for the effectual preservation of the same Preamble. be kept. I. Be it therefore enacted, by his Excellency John Earl of Bath, Palatine, and the rest of the true and absolute Lords and Proprietors of this Library how to Province, by and with the advice and consent of the rest of the members of the General Assembly, now met at Charlestown, for the South-west part of this Province, and by the authority of the same, That the Provincial Library of Carolina shall be, continue and remain in the hands, custody and possession and safe-keeping of the incumbent or minister of the Church of England, in Charlestown, in this Province, for the time being; which said incumbent is and shall be hereby bound and obliged to keep and preserve the several and respective books therein, from waste, damage, embezzelment, and all other destruction, (fire and all other unavoidable accidents only excepted,) and is and shall be hereby accountable for the same, and every book thereof, to the commissioners hereafter nominated: And to that end and purpose, the incumbent of Charlestown, and his successors, shall pass two receipts for the books belonging to the library aforesaid, one to the commissioners hereafter named, and the other to the church-wardens of Charlestown for the time being, in which receipts the titles of each book shall be inserted; and in case all or any of the books is or shall be found to be wasted, endamaged or embezzeled, or any otherwise destroyed, except as before excepted, the respective incumbent, his executors or administrators, are and shall be hereby bound and obliged to answer double the value of the same; and the said commissioners are hereby impowered to sue for the same, in any court of record in this Province, by bill, plaint or information, or other action, wherein no essoign, protection, injunction or wager of law shall be allowed; and what thereby shall be recovered, reasonable charge and expences deducted, to employ and dispose towards the compleating and perfecting the aforesaid library, so wasted, endamaged, embezzeled or otherwise destroyed, within the space of twelve months after such recovery. II. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That in case of the death or removal of the incumbent of Charlestown, in this Pro vince, that then the respective church-wardens of Charlestown shall immediately take into their respective hands, custody, possession and safe-keeping, all the books belonging to the said library, and shall be answerable for the same to the commissioners hereafter nominated. III. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That the church-wardens of Charlestown, upon their receiving of the books belonging to the said provincial library, into their custody, shall compare the same with the catalogue and receipt for the same, in their custody, and if any of the books are wanting or damaged, they shall give an account thereof in twenty days time at farthest, to the commissioners A. D. 1700. be used. Penalty for damage. Acts relating to the City of Charleston. hereafter mentioned, who are hereby impowered to sue the said incumbent, or, in case of his death, his executors or administrators, for the same, as aforesaid: And in case the said church-wardens refuse to give such account, then they, their executors and administrators, are hereby made accountable to the commissioners hereafter named, for all the books belonging to the said library, and contained in the catalogue thereof. IV. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That the inBooks, how to habitants of this Province shall have liberty to borrow any book out of the said provincial library, giving a receipt for the same to the incumbent of Charlestown, for the time being, with a promise to return the said book or books; if a folio, in four months time; if a quarto, in two months time; if an octavo, or under, in one month, upon penalty of paying three times the full value of the said book or books so borrowed, in case of failure of returning or damnifying the same: And the said incumbent is hereby obliged to enter such receipt in a book, to be fairly kept for that purpose, and upon the same being returned, shall note it returned, on the other side or column of the said book, and not cross or blot the same: And in case the persons that borrowed any book or books out of the said library, doth refuse to return the same, or doth damnifie the said book, upon complaint thereof given by the said incumbent, his executors or administrators, to two or more of the commissioners, and by them, or any five of them, to the chief justice of this Province for the time being, or any two justices of the peace, it shall be lawful, and the said chief justice, or any two justices of the peace, are hereby impowered and required, by warrant of distress, directed to any of the constables of this Province, to levy three times the value of such book or books, on the goods and chattels of the person so refusing to deliver, or damnifying the same; and for want of such distress, to commit the person to prison, till Catalogues to be made. Appraise ment. satisfaction be made to the incumbent. V. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That the commissioners hereafter named shall make, or cause to be made, seven catalogues of all and singular the books in the said library, and the same being fairly written, one of which shall be sent to England to the Right Honourable the Lords Proprietors of this Province; one to the Right Reverend Father in God the Lord Bishop of London; one to the aforesaid Reverend Dr. Bray; one to be entered on record in the Secretary's office of this Province; one to be in the custody and for the use of the commissioners hereafter named, under which the incumbent shall sign a receipt for the respective books; one to be in the custody of the churchwardens of Charlestown, for the time being, under which the incumbent shall also sign a receipt for the respective books; and one to be fairly entered in a book for that purpose to be kept by the incumbent in the said library, that so any person may know what books are contained in the said library. VI. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That the commissioners hereafter named, after making an exact catalogue of all and singular the respective books in the said library, shall, and are hereby impowered to, appraise and rate each book, at a price certain, in the cur rent money of this Province; which appraisement shall be an established rule to judge and determine the value of the said books, in case any suit is brought by the said commissioners against any person that shall detain or damnify any of the said books, or against the incumbent of Charlestown, or his executors or administrators. |