certain pers ns. own officers, &c. Reduced rates to this act shall be construed to prohibit any common carrier from giving reduced rates to ministers of religion, or to municipal governments for the transportation of indigent persons, or to inmates of the national homes or State homes for disabled volunteer soldiers and of soldiers' and sailors' orphan homes, including those about to enter and those returning home after discharge, under arrangements with the boards of managers of said Free carriage to homes; nothing in this act shall be construed to prevent railroads from giving free carriage to their own officers and employees or to prevent the principal officers of any railroad company or companies from exchanging passes or tickets with other railroad companies for their officers Remedies at com- and employees; and nothing in this act contained shall in any way abridge or alter the remedies now existing at common law or by statute, but the provisions of this act are in addition to such remedies: Provided, that the Commissioners shall have power to suspend any or all the provisions of this section after thirty days' notice to any company. Interchange of passes. mon law or by statute not abridged. Commissioners empowered to suspend this section, &c. Commissioners packages by ex SEC. 26. That said Commissioners are hereby authortransportation of ized and required to make or cause to be made just and press companies. reasonable rates of charges for the transportation of packages by any express company or companies doing To make rates for business in the State; also make or cause to be made messages by tele- just and reasonable rates of charges for the transmission transmission of graph lines. Penalty for charging higher rates. of messages by any telegraph line or lines doing business in the State, and any such express or telegraph companies charging a higher rate than that fixed or approved by said Commissioners shall incur a penalty for each offence of not less than fifty dollars nor more than five hundred dollars for each offence, and actions for the Action to recover recovery of such penalties be brought as provided for in section seven of this act, with reference to penalties. Provisions of sec- incurred by railroad companies; that the provisions of section seven of this act in relation to the publication of schedules, the regulations governing the right of appeal, the regulations as to evidence with reference to railroad penalty. tion 7 applicable to express and telegraph cmpanies. companies shall apply to express and telegraph compa nies. notices, how fail to appear SEC. 27. That all subpoenas for witnesses to appear Subpoenas and before said Commissioners or before any one or more of issued and served said Commissioners and notice to persons or corporations shall be issued by one of said Commissioners and be directed to any sheriff, constable, or marshal of any city or town who shall execute the same in his bailiwick and make due return thereof as directed therein under the penalties prescribed by law for a failure to execute and return the process of any Court; and if any person duly Misdemeanor to summoned to appear and testify before said Commission- when summoned ers shall fail or refuse to testify without a lawful excuse, or shall refuse to answer any proper question propounded to him by said Commissioners in the discharge of duty, or shall conduct himself in a rude, disrespectful or disorderly manner before said Commissioners, or any of them, deliberating in the discharge of duty, such person shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon con- Penalty. viction thereof shall be fined not less than fifty nor more than one thousand dollars. &c., &c. missioners, how SEC. 28. That all the expenses of the Commissioners Expenses of Comexcept as herein before provided, including all necessary paid. expenses for transportation incurred by the Commissioners or by their employees under their orders in making any investigation, or upon official business, or for any other purposes necessary for carrying out the provisions of this act shall be allowed and the Auditor shall issue his warrant upon presentation of itemized vouchers therefor approved by the chairman of the Commission: Provided, that the expenses allowed under this section Not to exceed shall not exceed two thousand dollars annually. $2,000 annually. SEC. 29. That the fiscal year to which all reports shall Fiscal year. be made which may be required of any railroad or transportation company by the Commissioners under this act shall be the thirtieth of June, as now fixed by law by the Inter-State Commission of the United States: Provided, that from all decisions or determinations arising Right of appeal. under the operation or enforcement of this act the party or corporation affected thereby shall be entitled to appeal therefrom as in other cases of appeal where no appeal has heretofore been provided for as now provided by law. Commissioners authorized to investigate causes of railroad accidents. Arbitration of controversies by SEC. 30. The Commissioners may investigate the causes of any accident on a railroad resulting in the loss. of life, and of any accident, not so resulting, which they may deem to require investigation. SEC. 31. Whenever any company or corporation Commissioners. embraced in this act has a controversy or controversies with another such company or corporation or person or persons, and all the parties to such controversy agree in writing to submit such controversy to the Railroad Commissioners aforesaid as arbitrators, said Commissioners shall act as such, and after due notice to all parAward to be final. ties interested shall proceed to hear the same, and their award shall be final. Said award, in cases where land or an interest in land is concerned, shall immediately be certified to the Clerk of the Superior Court of the county in which said land is situated and shall by such Clerk be docketed in the judgment docket for said county, and from such docketing shall be a judgment of the Superior Parties to arbitra- Court of such county. Before such arbitrators parties by attorney. may appear in person or by attorney. To be docketed and have force of judgment. tion may appear Inconsistent laws repealed. When act to take effect. SEC. 32. That all laws and clauses of [laws] inconsistent with the provisions of this act are hereby repealed. SEC. 33. That this act shall go into effect on and after the first day of April, eighteen hundred and ninety-one. Ratified the 5th day of March, A. D. 1891. AN ACT CONSTITUTING THE RAILROAD COMMISSIONERS A BOARD OF APPRAISERS FOR RAILROADS, RATIFIED THE 9th DAY OF MARCH, 1891. missioners to of Appraisers for SEC. 44. The Commissioners elected from time to Railroad Comtime under the authority of "An act to provide for the constitute Roard general supervision of railroads, steamboat or canal railroads. companies, express and telegraph companies doing business in the State of North Carolina," shall constitute a Board of Appraisers and Assessors for Railroad Companies. other officer to Board. to be listed. SEC. 45. The president, secretary, superintendent, or President or other principal accounting officer within this State of make returns to every railroad company, whether incorporated by any law of this State or not, shall return to the said Commissioners, for assessment and taxation, verified by the oath or affirmation of the officer making the return, all the following described property belonging to such corporation on the first day of June of each year within this State, viz. the number of miles of such railroad lines what property in each county in this State, and the total number of miles in the State, including the road-bed, right-of-way and superstructures thereon; main and side tracks, depot buildings and depot grounds, section and toolhouses, rolling stock and personal property necessary for the construction, repairs or successful operation of such railroad lines: Provided, however, that all machine and What property to repair shops, general office buildings, store-houses, and county list-taalso all real and personal property, outside of said rightof-way and depot grounds as aforesaid, of and belonging to any such railroad and telegraph companies, shall be listed for purposes of taxation by the principal officers or agents of such companies with the list-takers of the county where said real or personal property may be situated, in the manner provided by law for the listing and valuation of real and personal property. It shall be List-takers, if the duty of the list-takers, if required so to do by the statement to said Commissioners, to certify and send to the Commis be listed with kers. required, to send Board. To send state ment to Auditor. of taxation and other information to Board. sioners, on or before the third Monday in June in each year, a statement giving the description of the property mentioned in the foregoing proviso, and showing the assessed valuation thereof. The list-taker shall also, on or before the same day, send to the Auditor of State a like certificate of the assessed valuation and character of To send local rate said property. The list-takers and assessors shall also certify to the Commissioners the local rate of taxation for county purposes as soon as the same shall be determined, and such other information obtained in the course of the performance of the duties of their office as the Mayors to send said Commissioners shall require of them, and the Mayor of each city or town shall cause to be sent to the said Commissioners the local rate of taxation for municipal purposes. local rate of taxation to Board. Rolling stock, when and how listed. Schedule. SEC. 46. The movable property belonging to a railroad company shall be denominated, for the purpose of taxation, rolling stock." Every person, company or corporation owning, constructing or operating a railroad in this State shall, in the month of June annually, return a list or schedule to the Commissioners, which shall contain a correct detailed inventory of all the rolling stock belonging to such company, and which shall distinctly set forth the number of locomotives of all classes, passenger cars of all classes, sleeping and dining cars, express cars, horse cars, cattle cars, coal cars, platform cars, wrecking cars, pay cars, hand cars and all other kinds of cars and the value thereof. And a statement or schedule as follows: (1.) The amount of capital stock authorized and the number of shares into which such capital stock is divided. (2.) The amount of capital stock paid up. (3.) The market value, or if no market value, then the actual value, of the shares of stock. (4.) The length of line operated in each county and the total in the State. |