Admission to poor house. Provision and employment. Proviso. Quorum. Proviso. Monthly meetings. rievances. Pay. Vacancy. Claims. of the several townships of the said county of Beaver. requiring them forthwith to bring the poor of their respective townships to said house of employment; which order the overseers are hereby enjoined and required to comply with, or otherwise to forfeit the costs of all future maintenance, except in cases when by sickness or any other sufficient cause, any poor person cannot be removed, in which case the said overseers shall represent the same to the nearest justice of the peace. who being satisfied of the truth thereof, shall certify the same to the said directors, and at the same time issue an order under his hand and seal to the said overseers, directing them to maintain such poor until such time as he or she may be in a situation to be removed, and then convey the said pauper and deliver him or her to the steward or keeper of the said house of employment, together with the said order; and the charge and expense of such temporary relief, and of such removal, shall be paid by the said directors, at a reasonable allowance. SECTION 7. The said directors shall, from time to time, receive, provide for and employ, according to the true intent and meaning of this act, all such poor and indigent persons as shall be entitled to relief, or shall have gained a legal settlement in said county of Beaver, and shall be sent there by an order or warrant for that purpose, under the hands and seals of any two justices of the peace, directed to any constable of the said county of Beaver, or to the overseers of the proper township in any other county of this commonwealth; and the said directors are hereby authorized, when they shall deem it proper and convenient to do so, to permit any person or persons to be maintained elsewhere: Provided, The expense of their maintenance does not in any case exceed that for which they could be maintained at the poor house of the said county of Beaver. SECTION 8. The said directors, or any two of them, who shall be a quorum in all cases to do business, shall have full power to make and ordain such ordinances, rules and regulations, as they shall think proper, convenient and necessary, for the direction, government and support of the poor and house of employment aforesaid, and the revenues thereunto belonging, and of all such persons as shall come under their cognizance: Provided, The same be not repugnant to this law or any of the other laws of this state or of the United States: And provided also, That the same shall not have any force or effect until they shall have been submitted to the court of common pleas, for the time being, of the county of Beaver, and shall have received the approbation of the same. SECTION 9. A quorum of said directors shall and they are hereby enjoined and required to meet at the said house of employment, at least once in every month and visit the apartments, and see that the poor are comfortably supported; and hear all complaints, and redress or cause to be redressed, all grievances that may happen by the neglect or misconduct of any person or persons, in their employment or otherwise. SECTION 10. The said directors shall each of them receive for their services the sum of one dollar and fifty cents per day, for every day necessarily employed by them in the discharge of their duties. SECTION 11. In case of any vacancy by death, resignation or otherwise, of any of the said directors, the remaining directors shall fill such vacancy by the appointment of a citizen of their county, under the same penalty as is provided by the third section of this act, to serve until the next general election, when another director shall be elected to serve, as if no such vacancy had happened. SECTION 12. All claims and demands existing at the time of this act being carried into effect, shall have full force and effect as if this act had not passed; and when the same may have been duly adjusted and settled, all moneys remaining in the hands of the overseers, as well as the uncollected taxes levied for the support of the poor in the several townships in the county of Beaver, shall be paid over to the supervisors of the highways of their respective townships, to be by them applied towards repairing the roads therein. SECTION 13. As soon as the poor of the county of Beaver shall have Office of overseer been removed to the house of employment of the said county, and the abolished. outstanding taxes collected and paid over, the office of overseer of the poor within the said county shall from thenceforth be abolished. SECTION 14. The power conferred and the duties imposed on the overseers of the poor, in and by an act to empower the overseers and guardians of the poor of the several townships within this commonwealth to recover certain fines, penalties and forfeitures, and for other Fines, &c. purposes, are hereby conferred and imposed on the supervisors of the Supervisors. highways in the said county of Beaver; and that the justices of the peace and sheriff, within the said county, are hereby required and enjoined to pay to the said supervisors, to be by them applied to the repair of the highways, the aforesaid fines, forfeitures and penalties, within the time and in the manner prescribed by the said act for the payment thereof in other counties, to the overseers of the poor; and to give notice of the receipt thereof to the said supervisors, within the time and in the manner aforesaid; and that for any neglect or refusal to perform any of the duties enjoined on them by the said act, the said justice of the peace and sheriff in the said county, shall be subject to all fines, penalties and forfeitures, to which the justices and sheriffs in other counties by the said act are subject or liable. SECTION 15. So much of the laws of this commonwealth relating to Repeal. the poor, as are by this act altered or supplied, be and the same is hereby repealed, so far as they effect the county of Beaver. SECTION 16. For the purpose of ascertaining the sense of the citizens Citizens to vote of Beaver county, as to the expediency of erecting a poor house, it for' or against' shall be the duty of each of the inspectors for the several townships a poor house. and boroughs, at the next general election after the passage of this act, to receive tickets, either written or printed, from the qualified voters thereof, labelled on the outside "poor house," and in the inside "for a poor house" or "against a poor house;" and if it shall appear upon casting up the votes in the different districts, at the court house, on the same day that other returns are made out, that a majority of those who voted are for a poor house, then the foregoing act to take effect; but if a majority of votes are found to be against a poor house, the foregoing act be and the same is hereby null and void. SECTION 17. And the sheriff of Beaver county shall cause to be pub- Duty of sheriff. lished the sixteenth section of this act, in all the newspapers printed in said county, at least six weeks previous to the next general election, the expenses of which to be paid out of the county treasury. JAMES ROSS SNOWDEN, Speaker of the House of Representatives. WILLIAM BIGLER, Speaker of the Senate. APPROVED-The sixteenth day of April, one thousand eight hundred and forty-four. DAVID R. PORTER. No. 198. AN ACT Authorizing the governor to incorporate a company to erect a bridge over Oil creck, in Venango county. 1 SECTION 1. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in General Assembly "met, and it is hereby enacted by the authority of the same, That Commissioners. William Young, James R. Snowden, John H. Smiley and Richard tion. Irwin, be and they are hereby appointed commissioners to do and perform the several duties hereinafter mentioned, to wit: They or any three of them shall, on or before the first day of June, Anno Domini, one thousand eight hundred and forty-four, procure one or more books Form of subscrip- for the use of said company, and shall enter therein as follows: "We whose names are hereunto subscribed, do promise to pay to the president and managers of the Oil creek bridge company, in the county of Venango, the sum set opposite our respective names, in such manner and proportions, and at such times, as shall be determined by the president and managers, in pursuance of the act of assembly authorizing the governor to incorporate a company to erect a toll bridge over Oil creek, where the Franklin and Warren turnpike road crosses said creek ;" and shall thereupon receive subscription for the stock of said company, ai such times and places as they may think proper. Letters patent. Name. Privileges and franchises. SECTION 2. When twenty or more shares of said stock shall have been subscribed, the said commissioners, or any three of them, shall certify under their hands and seals, to the governor of the said commonwealth, the names of the subscribers, and the number of shares subscribed; and thereupon it shall be lawful for the governor, by letters patent, under his hand and the seal of the state, to create and erect the said subscribers, and also all those who may afterwards subscribe, into one body politic and corporate, in deed and in law, by the name, style and title of "The Oil creek bridge company;" and by the said name the said subscribers shall have perpetual succession, and all privileges and franchises incident to a corporation; and shall be capable of holding their said capital stock, and the increase and profits thereof, and of enlarging the same from time to time by new subscriptions, in such manner and form as they shall think proper, if such enlargement shall be found necessary to fulfil the intent of this act; and of taking, purchasing and holding, to them and their successors, in fee simple or any less estate, all such lands, tenements, hereditaments, and real estate and personal, as shall be necessary and convenient to them in the prosecution of their works, and the same to sell and dispose of at their pleasure; of suing and being sued, and of doing all and every other matter and thing which a corporation or body politic may lawfully do: said company may contract for or receive, by gift or otherwise, the materials on the ground, and any piers, abutments, or other property which may belong to the Franklin and Warren turnpike road company. SECTION 3. A majority of the persons named in the letters patent shall, as soon as conveniently may be after receiving the same, give notice in one newspaper in the county of Venango, of the time and place by them appointed, not less than twenty days from the time of issuing the first notice; at which time and place the said subscribers shall proceed to organize the said corporation, and shall ballot, either in Organization. person or by proxy duly authorized, and elect one president, six mana gers and a treasurer, and such other officers as they may think neces- Officers. sary to conduct the business of said company for one year, and until other officers shall be chosen; and make such by-laws, rules and regulations, not inconsistent with the laws of this commonwealth, as shall be necessary for the well ordering of the affairs of said company: Pro- Proviso. vided, That each person shall be entitled to one vote for every share Votes. not exceeding ten, and two votes for every five shares above ten; and generally to have like power, authority and privileges for erecting and Power, duties, completing the said bridge, and be subject to all the duties, qualifica- penalties, &c. tions, restrictions, penalties, fines and forfeitures as are given, granted and imposed in the act, entitled "An Act to authorize the governor to incorporate a company to erect a toll bridge over Red Bank creek, at or near where the road from Bedford to Franklin crosses said creek, in the county of Armstrong," passed the eighth day of April, one thousand eight hundred and thirty-three. SECTION 4. That when a complete bridge is erected over the said Oil creek, the company shall have power and authority to receive and exact toll from all persons crossing the said bridge, for the purpose of keeping said bridge in repair, and for the general benefit of the said company: for every score of sheep, five cents; for every score of hogs, six cents Toll. and one-fourth; for every score of cattle, twelve and a half cents; for every horse or mule, laden or unladen, with his rider or leader, three cents; for every sulkey, chair or chaise, with one horse and two wheels, six and a fourth cents, and with two horses, nine cents; for every dearborne with one horse, six and a fourth cents; for every chaise, coach, phaton, chair, stage, wagon, coachee or light wagon, with two horses and four wheels, twelve and a half cents; for either of the carriages last mentioned, with four horses, eighteen and three-fourth cents; for every carriage or phaton, under whatever name it may go, the like sum according to the number of wheels and horses drawing the same; for every sleigh or sled, three cents for each horse drawing the same; for every cart, wagon or other carriage of burthen, four cents for each horse drawing the same; and when any such carriage aforesaid shall be drawn by oxen or mules, in the whole or in part, two oxen shall be estimated as equal to one horse; and every ass or mule as equal to one horse, in charging the tolls aforesaid; for every foot passenger, one cent: Pro- Proviso. vided. All persons going to and returning from funerals, children going to school and returning from the same, and all persons going to and returning from military parade, shall pass toll free: Provided, That Proviso. nothing in this act shall be so construed as to prevent the said company from contracting with any person or persons, desirous of using said bridge, for an annual sum, in place of the tolls hereinbefore mentioned. JAMES ROSS SNOWDEN, Speaker of the House of Representatives. WILLIAM BIGLER, Speaker of the Senate. APPROVED-The sixteenth day of April, one thousand eight hundred and forty-four. DAVID R. PORTER. Preamble. Proviso. No. 199. AN ACT To authorize Thomas Hoopes to sell certain real estate of Caleb M'Fann, deceased. WHEREAS, A certain Caleb M'Fann, of Little Britain township, Lancaster county, deceased, did, in his last will and testament, made the twenty-eighth day of July, one thousand eight hundred and forty-three, direct his executor, Thomas Hoopes, to sell his personal property, and if the proceeds thereof should not be sufficient to pay his debts, then to sell a part of the real estate of said deceased, for that purpose: And whereas, It is represented that the personal property of the said Caleb M'Fann, is not sufficient to pay his debts, nor can a part of the said real estate be sold without serious injury and damage to the whole; therefore, SECTION 1. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in General Assembly met, and it is hereby enacied by the authority of the same, That upon the petition of Thomas Hoopes, executor of the last will and testament of Caleb M'Fann, late of Little Britain township, Lancaster county, deceased, the orphans' court of the said county shall grant an order to sell the whole of the real estate of said decedent, for the payment of his debts, if necessary, in case said court shall be of opinion that a part thereof, sufficient to pay such debts, cannot be sold without prejudice to and spoiling the whole; and upon such sale the said court shall make a decree for the distribution of the balance of such proceeds, agreeably to the said will, to the persons interested in the real estate, and according to their respective interests therein: Provided, That before said sale the said executor shall give bond to the commonwealth with such sureties, and in such penalty as the said court shall approve, for the faithful appropriation of the proceeds of such sale, according to the decree of said court. JAMES ROSS SNOWDEN, Speaker of the House of Representatives. WILLIAM BIGLER, Speaker of the Senate. APPROVED-The sixteenth day of April, one thousand eight hundred and forty-four. DAVID R. PORTER. |