Paw Paw to Lawton Enabling Act.

AN ACT to authorize the township of Lafayette in the county of Van Buren to raise, by tax or loan, money to aid in the construction of a railroad from the village of Paw Paw, in said county, to the village of Lawton, or to some other point on the Michigon Central railroad.

SECTION 1. The People of the State of Michigan enact, That the township of Lafayette, in the county of Van Buren, is hereby authorized and empowered. to borrow money on the faith and credit of said township, and issue bonds therefor, from time to time, as hereafter directed, not exceeding in all the amount of eight per centum on the amount of the taxable property of such township, as the same shall be assessed in the year eighteen hundred and sixty-four; or, instead thereof, to levy taxes to an amount not exceeding two per centum per annum upon the taxable property of said township, in any one year, and to loan or donate the same to any railroad company now organized, or hereafter to be organized, for the construction of a railroad from the village of Paw Paw, in said county, to the village of Lawton, or to some other point on the Michigan Central railroad, in the manner hereinafter directed: Provided, That a majority of the property-holding, tax-paying electors of said township, voting at any annual or special meeting duly called therefor, shall vote, by ballot, for such loan or tax, and not otherwise.

SEC. 2. Such electors of such township may also, at such meeting or meetings, determine the terms, conditions, or manner of executing securities, and other particulars in regard to such loan, or may empower some township officer or officers, or committee of such electors, to determine the same, and in case of no such determination or delegation of power to an officer or

committee, then the township board of such township shall have power to determine all such particulars.

SEC. 3. It shall be the duty of the supervisor of such township, to call such meetings of the electors as are hereby authorized, whenever requested, in writing, by thirty of such electors thereof, and to give public notice thereof by posting three notices of such meeting in three public places in such township, for at least two weeks immediately preceding any such meeting, and by publishing the same for three successive weeks in some newspaper published in said county: Provided, That not more than one such special meeting shall be called in said township in any one year, and such notice shall specify the amount or per centage proposed to be voted for and loaned or raised at such meeting: And provided further, That if such vote shall be taken at an annual meeting, the like notice shall be given thereof. To perpetuate the evidence of publishing and posting of such notices, the person or persons posting or publishing the same, or having knowledge thereof, may make an affidavit or affidavits of such posting or publishing, with a copy of the notice attached thereto; and such affidavits and copy of notice shall be filed and recorded in the office of the township clerk, and when so filed and recorded, the said affidavit and copy, or the record thereof, shall be prima facia evidence of such posting or publishing, as the case may be.

SEC. 4. Said township bonds may be issued for sums not less than one hundred dollars each, and made payable at a time not exceeding ten years from the issuing thereof, and in such manner that not more than onefourth of the whole amount thereby authorized to be issued shall become due in any one year, bearing interest not exceeding seven per centum per annum, payable annually, and represesented by coupons in the usual

form, and shall be signed by the supervisor and countersigned by the clerk of such township.

SEC. 5. No bonds, or other evidences of debt, shall be delivered to the treasurer of any township, for any railroad company, until all the terms and conditions required by the vote of said township, or the proper authorities thereof, shall have been fully complied with: Provided, That no bonds, or other evidences of debt, issued under the provisions of this act, shall be sold for less than their par value, nor such bonds, or other evidences of debt, or the moneys arising from the sale of the same, be delivered or paid over to said railroad company until the ties shall be furnished and delivered on the line of said road, and the road bed thereof, including all bridges, cattle-guards and road crossings, shall be fully complete and ready for the iron.

SEC. 6. Whenever said township shall, in accordance with the provisions of this act, authorize any loans or taxes, and when the conditions of the preceding sections shall have been complied with, it shall be the duty of the township board of such township to issue and deliver to the treasurer of the township, for the use of such railroad company, the bonds of such township, for the amount so authorized to be borrowed, or to give orders on the township treasurer of such township, in favor of the treasurer of such railroad, for the amount of taxes so raised, when collected; and the supervisor of such township shall levy and assess the tax so authorized on the taxable property of the township, or shall, as the case may be, from time to time, levy and assess a tax sufficient to meet the bonds issued by the township, as aforesaid, and interest thereon, as the same shall, from time to time, become due; and such taxes shall be assessed and collected in the same manner as other taxes are, by the provisions of law, assessed and collected; and the taxes thus collected to meet said loans shall be

exclusively applied and appropriated to the payment of the bonds and interest aforesaid.

SEC. 7. No part of the moneys raised, loaned or donated under the provisions of this act shall be applied o the purchase of any stock, or to the payment of any of the debts or liabilities of any company heretofore contracted or incurred, but the same shall be applied faithfully and wholly to aid in the future construction of such railroad.

SEC. 8. This act shall take immediate effect.

Approved February 5, 1864.

Battle Creek to Hastings Enabling Act.

AN ACT to authorize the city of Battle Creek, and the several townships of Calhoun and Barry counties, to pledge their credit to aid in the construction of a railroad from the city of Battle Creek, in the county of Calhoun, to the village of Hastings, in the county of Barry.

SECTION 1. The People of the State of Michigan enact, That it shall and may be lawful for the city of Battle Creek, and for the several townships in the counties of Calhoun and Barry, or any or either of said townships, to loan money to any railroad company now or hereafter to be organized, for the construction of a' railroad from the city of Battle Creek, in the county of Calhoun, to the village of Hastings, in the county of Barry, but the outstanding indebtedness and liability to be incurred for such purpose shall not at any time exceed five per centum of the assessed valuation, for the time being, of the city of Battle Creek, or ten per centum of the assessed valuation, for the time being, of the several townships of the said counties of Calhoun and Barry, or any or either of them.

SEC. 2. For the several purposes mentioned in this act, the said city and townships are severally authorized to borrow money, and on their credit to issue bonds, at

a rate not exceeding ten per centum per annum, and for the final payment of the principal sums, and for the interest thereon, to pledge the faith of such city and townships. They may also hypothecate the bonds, coupons and other evidences of indebtedness which they may receive from such railroad company, or any part thereof, as security for any loans they may make for the purposes aforesaid, or may sell the same, or any part thereof, and apply the proceeds to the payment or purchase of the outstanding indebtedness and liabilities contracted or incurred under this act, or may exchange the same on such terms as shall be deemed advisable for the outstanding bonds issued under the provisions of this act, but no such evidence of indebtedness shall be sold at less than its par value until public notice of the intention to sell the same shall have been given for at least thirty days, and the common council, town board, or committee of electors having charge of the same, shall have fixed a minimum price below which the same shall not be sold, and no trustees in whose hands such securities may be hypothecated shall sell the same except upon the like notice given in a public newspaper of the same or some adjoining county. The bonds so to be issued by said city or townships shall be payable at a time or times which shall not exceed twenty years from the date thereof, and may be made payable at the option of the obligor at any time after the expiration of a less number of years: Provided, That the amount of bonds which shall fall due in any one year shall not exceed two per centum of the assessed valuation of such city or townships at the time of issuing the same.

SEC. 3. No such sale or loan shall be made without the assent of the people of the said city or township making the same, which assent shall be obtained in the manner hereinafter provided. The common council of such city, and the township board of any township,