REVISED STATUTES. ANACT FOR REVISING AND CONSOLIDATING THE GENERAL Whereas, it is expedient that the general statutes of this state should be consolidated, revised and amended, and arranged in appropriate titles, chapters and sections, and that omissions should be supplied: Therefore, Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of Michigan, In manner following, that is to say : : TITLE I. OF THE STATUTES AND THE LEGISLATure. Chapter 1. Of the Statutes. Chapter 2. Of the Legislature. CHAPTER 1. OF THE STATUTES. and recorded. SECTION 1. The original acts of the legislature shall be deposited Original acts— with, and kept by the secretary of state; and they shall be recorded where deposited by him in books to be provided by him at the expense of the state, in the order in which they were passed; and he shall carefully compare Laws 1837-8, p. such records with the original acts. 258. take effect. SEC. 2. Every statute which does not expressly prescribe the time When statutes to when it shall go into operation, shall take effect throughout the state on the sixtieth day next after that on which it shall be approved by the governor, or otherwise become a law according to the provisions of the constitution. struction of statutes. SEC. 3. In the construction of the statutes of this state, the follow- Rules of coning rules shall be observed, unless such construction would be inconsistent with the manifest intent of the legislature, that is to say: 1. All words and phrases shall be construed and understood ac TITLE L CHAPTER 1. cording to the common and approved usage of the language; but technical words and phrases, and such as may have acquired a peculiar and appropriate meaning in the law, shall be construed and understood according to such peculiar and appropriate meaning: 2. Every word importing the singular number only, may extend to and embrace the plural number, and every word importing the plural number, may be applied and limited to the singular number; and every word importing the masculine gender only, may extend and be applied to females as well as males: 3. All words purporting to give a joint authority to three or more public officers or other persons, shall be construed as giving such authority to a majority of such officers or other persons, unless it shall be otherwise expressly declared in the law giving the authority: 4. The words "annual meeting," when applied to townships, shall be construed to mean the annual meeting required by law to be held in the month of April: 5. The word "grantor," may be construed as including every person from or by whom any estate in lands passes, in or by any deed; and the word "grantee, as including every person to whom any such interest or estate passes in like manner: 6. The word "inhabitant, may be construed to mean a resi dent of a city, township, village, district, or county: 7. The words "insane person," shall be construed to include an idiot, a non compos, lunatic, and distracted person: 8. The word "issue, as applied to the descent of estates, shall be construed to include all the lawful lineal descendants of the an cestor : 9. The word "land," or "lands," and the words "real estate," shall be construed to include lands, tenements, and real estate, and all rights thereto, and interests therein : 10. The word "month," shall be construed to mean a calendar month; and the word "year," a calendar year; and the word "year" alone, shall be equivalent to the words "year of our Lord:" 11. The word " oath," shall be construed to include the word "affirmation," in all cases where by law an affirmation may be substituted for an oath; and in like cases the word "sworn shall be construed to include the word "affirmed:" 12. The word "person," may extend and be applied to bodies politic and corporate, as well as to individuals: 13. The words "preceding" and "following," when used by way of reference to any title, chapter or section of these revised statutes, shall be construed to mean the title, chapter or section next preceding, or next following that in which such reference is made, unless when some other title, chapter or section is expressly designated in such reference: 14. In all cases in which the seal of any court or public of fice shall be required to be affixed to any paper issuing from such court or office, the word "seal," shall be construed to mean the impression of such seal on such paper alone, as well as the impression of such seal affixed thereto by means of a wafer or wax: 15. The word "state," when applied to the different parts of the United States, shall be construed to extend to, and include the district of Columbia, and the several territories belonging to the United States; and the words "United States," shall be construed to include the said district and territories: 16. The word "will," shall be construed to include codicils, as well as wills: 17. The words "written," and "in writing," may be construed to include printing, engraving and lithographing; except that in all cases where the written signature of any person is required by law, it shall always be the proper hand writing of such person; or in case he is unable to write, his proper mark: 18. All acts of incorporation shall be deemed public acts, and as such, may be declared on, and given in evidence, without specially pleading the same: 19. The words "general election, "shall be construed to mean the election required by law to be held in the month of Novem ber. TITLE I. CHAPTER 1. SEC. 4. Whenever a statute, or any part thereof, shall be repealed Repeal of repealing statute. by a subsequent statute, such statute, or any part thereof, so repealed, shall not be revived by the repeal of such subsequent repealing stat ute. SEC. 5. The secretary of state, immediately after any act of the Secretary of state to furnish copies legislature shall have been deposited with him, shall furnish a true of statutes for copy thereof to the publishers of the state paper, who shall immedi- publication. ately publish the same in such paper. 1837, p. 22. SEC. 6. The secretary of state shall be entitled to one copy of the Distribution of statutes for the use of his office, and he shall annually, and from statutes. time to time, immediately after their publication in volumes, deposit thirty copies thereof in the state library, for the use of the legislature, and distribute to the following public officers, persons, corporations and societies, one copy each, that is to say: The governor, lieutenant governor, senators and members of the Who entitled to house of representatives, the secretary of the senate and clerk of the copy. house of representatives, the senators and representatives of this state in congress, the secretary of state of the United States, chancellor, each judge of a court of record in this state, attorney general, auditor general, state treasurer, adjutant general, the president of the board of internal improvements, superintendent of public instruction, superintendent of the state prison, judge of the district court of the United States for the district of Michigan, clerk of the last named court, the several clerks and registers of courts of record, masters in chancery, prosecuting attorneys, sheriffs, keepers of jails, judges of probate, registers of deeds, county treasurers, county surveyors, coroners, justices of the peace, supervisors and clerks of townships, for the use of their townships, the historical society of Michigan, the library of congress, the library of the university of Michigan, and of each branch thereof, the governor of each of the states and territories of the United States, for the use of such state or territory. of state with No. entitled to copy of laws. SEC. 7. Each county clerk, within one month after the adjourn County clerks to ment of the legislature in each year, shall forward to the secretary of furnish secretary state, a statement of the number of officers, persous, corporations, of officers &c. and societies in his county, entitled by law to a copy of the laws of the next preceding session of the legislature; and as soon as the same are ready for distribution, the secretary of state shall, at his office, deliver to such clerk, or to his order, properly packed, the number of 1837-8, p. 251. copies set forth in such statement, and take a receipt therefor. SEC. 8. The county clerk, on the receipt of the laws, shall give no- County clerk to tice thereof in a newspaper published in his county, if there be one, take receipt. give notice, and |