being apprehensive that the said tract of 93,000 acres had been forfeited to the Commonwealth of Virginia for the non-payment of taxes, obtained new grants for all the lands embraced in said survey that had not been granted to third persons, and in the year 1858 these new grants were entered and charged with taxes, on the books of the commissioners of the revenue for the counties of Nicholas and Braxton, and the taxes thereon were paid for a number of years; and it not being the will of the legislature to duplicate the taxes charged on the same land, although the owner may claim the same under two distinct titles,

Be it, therefore, further enacted:

to be omitted

new grants were

That the auditor in ascertaining the amount of taxes as Original tract aforesaid, shall omit the original tract from the time the from time the new grants were charged, as aforesaid, and continue the charged. charges upon the new grants, the more especially as the lands embraced in the new grants were charged at a higher aggregate value than those charged in the old grant.

Authority to

treasury.

Auditor to re

3. Be it further enacted, That when the said sums shall be ascertained by the auditor, as aforesaid, which shall be done as soon as practicable, the said William H. Edwards, his heirs or personal representatives, is hereby authorized to pay into the treasury of the state to the credit of the pay taxes into school fund, the taxes aforesaid, on all or either of said tracts; and upon each payment being made the auditor ceipt for same. shall receipt the same, and such receipt shall operate as a Receipt to operconveyance of the title of the state acquired to the land. or lands aforesaid, or the forfeiture aforesaid to him, the said William H. Edwards, or his heirs, and re-invest him, or them, with the title of the same. And the recording of said receipt in the recorder's office of the counties in which recorded; effect the land lies, shall have the same effect as the recording of of. a deed: Provided, however, that nothing in this act con- Proviso. tained shall in any way effect the title or interest of any

third person, who may have adverse claims of title to said lands or any part thereof, it being the intention of the legislature by this act to restore to the said William H. Edwards, or his heirs, the title only acquired by the forfeiture aforesaid, subject to all the rights of third persons.

ate as a convoyance.

Receipt to be

Authority to borrow money,

secure their

payment.

CHAPTER LXIII.

An Act to confer additional privileges on the Northern and Southern West Virginia Railroad Company.

Passed February 20, 1872.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:

That it shall be lawful for the Northern and Southern issue bonds and West Virginia Railroad Company, by its board of directors, to borrow money at a rate of interest not exceeding ten per centum per annum, to the amount of twelve millions of dollars, and to issue bonds therefor; and to sell the said bonds at the best price that can be obtained therefor; and to secure the payment of such bonds by mortgage on or deed of trust, to be executed by the president of its board, by order of the board of directors, upon its franchises and its real and personal property, including its road, running stock, equipments, authorized branches, income, and things, and make preference of such bonds, to certify the same, fixing the order of preference before issuing the same, and said company may authorize the conversions of said bonds or any part thereof, with the consent of any holder, of the same into stock of the company, and issue Bonds converti- certiffcates of stock therefor, upon such terms as may be and stock in- agreed upon between the company and such holder, and when so converted and the bonds so converted are canceled, the capital stock of the company shall be deemed to have been increased to the extent of such conversion.

ble into stock,

creased.

Who may sub

Hold and own bonds and guarantee payment.

2. That it shall be lawful for any persons and bodies scribe for stock. Corporate or politic, whatsoever, and whether in or out of this State, to subscribe for and hold any of the capital stock of said company; to purchase and hold any of the bonds of said company, or to guarantee or otherwise enter as security for the payment of any of the bonds of the company authorized to be issued by this act, and it shall be lawful for such persons and bodies corporate or politic, whether in or out of this State, to own and hold any of the bonds of the said company authorized to be issued by this act; and it shall be lawful for any other railroad company, pany may con- whether in or out of this State, to construct, work and operate the road authorized to be constructed by "The Northern and Southern West Virginia Railroad Company"

Any other com

struct road.

upon such terms as may be agreed upon between such other company and the said Northern and Southern West Virginia railroad company, but without any other powers, franchises and privileges, than may have been conferred upon the said Northern and Southern West Virginia railroad company.

counties, town

incorporated

towns.

scription sub

Powers of board

and council of

city or town.

3. It shall be lawful for any county, or township, or any Subscriptions by county or city or incorporated town, in this state, to sub- ships, cities and scribe for and to own parts of the capital stock of said company, in the manner hereinafter prescribed; the board of supervisors of any county, acting for a county or township, or the council of any city or incorporated town, acting for such city or town, may submit the question of sub- Question of subscription to the capital stock of said company, to the vo- mitted to veters. ters of such county or township, or the voters of such city or town, to test the sense of the voters as to whether such county, township, city or town, desire to make such subscription. And such board of supervisors, or council of a city or town, shall have the power to fix the amount of such of supervisors subscription to be voted for, and shall have power to fix the terms and conditions upon which such subscriptions may be made, and when the same shall be made, and shall have power to order a special election on the question, to fix the Special election. time of such special election and to provide for holding the same at the several places of voting in such county, township, city or town, after having posted at least five printed Notice. notices of such special election, with a copy of the ordinance directing such election, at the most prominent places in such county, township, city or incorporated town, and published for at least four weeks, in case of a county subscription, in all the county papers, if any be published in such county, stating the time of the election, the amount must contain. of the proposed subscription, the terms and conditions of the same, and when the same is to be made, for at least twenty days before such election, or they may order such election to be held at any general election in this state, after had at any gen the notice as herein provided for has been given; such eral election. election shall be held at the places and conducted in the manner, and by the persons prescribed by law for general elections. Those voting for such proposed subscription shall have written or printed on their ballots the words What ballots "For Subscription," and those voting against it, the words must show.

What notice

Election may be

tion; to whom certified.

scription, presi

supervisors,

mayor and re

corder to issue bonds.

Rate of interest.

Result of elec- "Against subscription.' The result of the election in a county or township, shall be certified to the board of supervisors of the county, and in the case of a city or town, to the council thereof. If a majority of votes of such If a majority of county, township, city or town, as the case may be, voting votes favor sub- on the question be for the proposed subscription, then the dent of board of amount which was proposed shall be subscribed to the capital stock of said company on behalf of the county, town ship, city or town, so having voted for the same, upon the terms and conditions imposed by such ordinance, submitting the question to such vote. To pay for such subscription so made by a county, township, city or town, the president of the board of supervisors, acting for such county or township, and the mayor and recorder acting for such city or town, may issue bonds under their official signatures, in sums of one hundred dollars each, or some multiple of one hundred dollars, payable within twenty years, bearing not more than ten per centum interest payable annually, and such interest shall be taken in payment of taxes, and other public debts to such county, township, city or town; and the supervisors acting for a county, or township, shall assess and cause to be collected, as other taxes are collected, upon the real and personal property within such county or township subject to taxation for state purposes, taxes sufficient to pay the interest on such Sinking fund to bonds, and to provide a sinking fund to discharge the prinpay principal. cipal of such bonds, when the same shall become due, and the council of such city or town, so subscribing, shall impose and collect in like manner, and upon like subjects, the necessary taxes for the payment of the interest, and to provide a sinking fund to discharge the principal of the bonds so issued, by such city or town. But nothing herein contained shall be so construed to prohibit any county from making a subscription of stock to said company, in subscribing un- the manner prescribed by the law of the code.

Taken in pay

ment of taxes

and other pub

lic debts.

How interest paid.

Counties not

prohibited from

der the code.

How land need

may be con

ties cannot agree on value.

4. When the road or any branches of said company are ed by company located, if the owners of the land on which the same may demned if par- be located, or their agents, and the officers and agents of said company cannot agree upon the value of such land,. as the said company may deem necessary to use and occupy for their railway sidings, depots, warehouses and stations, the said company may have and hold such land

for its sole use and benefit, in the manner following,

to-wit: The said company shall make out a particular de- on filing description of such lands in writing, and file it in the clerk's scription of land office of the circuit court of the county in which such clerk's office. lands are situated, stating therein the sum they propose to pay therefor, and also file therein a bond with good security to the satisfaction of the judge of said court, conditioned to pay all that may be recovered against the company, as hereinafter provided, and thereupon the company may enter upon and take possession of such lands so described, and proceed at once to operate, work upon, and use the same for the purposes designated in such description, but in no case shall the amount of land for the tracks, which may be either single or double, of said road or branches exceed taken. sixty-six feet in width, except in cases of cuts and fills; and the owner of such land, or his agent, may file with the claim. clerk of such court his or her claim therefor in money,

in which shall be stated the sum he or she may demand

Company may

enter on lands.

Amount of land

Owner may file

for such land, and the said court shall appoint five Jury of viewers. disinterested persons for the purpose of ascertaining a just compensation therefor, any three of whom may act, but in no case shall the court appoint for such purpose any person or persons through whose land said road is to pass, and the sheriff of the county, after such appointment is made by the court, shall summon the said viewers to meet on the land at such time as he may appoint, within sixty days after such appointment, giving ten days' notice to the Notice. parties interested, and the sheriff shall administer an oath

Their meeting.

Report to be cer

to the viewers, which he is hereby authorized to do, that Oath and report. they and each of them will fairly, impartially and honestly express, fix and determine the amount said company shall pay for said land, and return their report signed by them to the clerk of the circuit court of the county, setting forth the amount, if any, to be paid by the company, which report shall be certified by the sheriff, and on the first day tified by sheriff. of the next term of the court, the judge thereof shall direct a judgment to be entered on said report for the Judgment on reamount so ascertained by said report, if no exceptions be taken in writing by either party; but if exceptions be taken and filed thereto, the court shall submit the matter report and trial in dispute to a jury of twelve men, selected according to Right of comlaw, except the right is given to the company to object, and its objections sustained, to any juror who may be an

port.

Exceptions to

thereof.

pany to chal

lenge any juror.