CHAPTER 64. AN ACT for the benefit of illegitimate children. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Tennessee, That upon its becoming evident to the county court that the Mother of illegitimate children, disregards their moral and mental culture, and that she keeps a house of ill-fame, or lives in one; although she may provide ordinary food and raiment, may have power to bind out such children as though they were orphans: Provided, it is clearly satisfactory that the condition of such child or children will be bettered by so doing. DANIEL S. DONELSON, Speaker of the House of Representatives. Passed March 17, 1858. Speaker of the Senate. CHAPTER 65. AN ACT for the benefit of Blunt county, to authorize the County Court of Knox to fix PREAMBLE. An act to amend the fifth section of an act entitled, An act to authorize the county court of Blount county to subscribe stock in the Knoxville and Charleston Railroad Company, and issue bonds in the payment thereof. SECTION 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Tennessee, That the proviso in the fifth section of the above recited act which this is intended to amend, Taxes. prescribing the mode of levying taxes by the county court on merchants and druggists, be and the same is hereby repealed, and in lieu thereof the said County Court of Blount is hereby authorized to levy one-fourth in amount of the State tax upon privileges, merchants and druggists. Sheriff's ocmpeneation. SEC. 2. Be it further enacted, That the County Court of Knox may give to the Sheriff of said county, such compensation for collecting the railroad tax of said county, as to it seems proper and right. 1 SEC. 3. Be it further enacted, That the first section of an act passed the 8th February, 1858, entitled, An act to produce uniformity in the reports of railroad companies, and to define the duties of the Road Commissioner, be so amended that in preparing said form of report the Com- Commissioner's missioner shall so change or alter such items specified in Report. said 1st section as shall better adapt said form of report to the present railroad system of this State, and the manner of keeping the books of the different companies, but in no case make such alteration as will destroy uniformity in said reports, or prevent a full and detailed statement of the condition and operations of the different companies. SEC. 4. Be it further enacted, That instead of bringing their reports up to the last of July, as required by the 4th section of said act, the several companies shall be required to report up to the 30th of June of each year, as required by law. Protection SEC. 5. Be it further enacted, That hereafter, when any railroad contractor, by himself, agent, or operatives, shall wrongfully cut down, appropriate or otherwise destroy any growing timber, or wood, or any fence rails, on timber, &c. ground not belonging to any railroad company, said contractor shall be liable in damages to the party so injured, whether the wrong be committed by the said contractor, or his agent or operatives. SEC. 6. Be it further enacted, That any surplus of State Bonds issued under the internal improvement act, and the acts amendatory thereof, which any railroad company may have left after providing the rails and equipment of their road, or of any section thereof, may be applied to ballasting, trestling or construction. SEC. 7. Be it further enacted, That the county court of any county having stock in any railroad, shall be empowered by and with the consent of the people of the county to be signified in the manner prescribed for authorizing county subscriptions of stock to sell the same. SEC. 8. That this act take effect from and after its passage. DANIEL S. DONELSON, Speaker of the House of Representatives. JOHN C. BURCH, of Passed March 17, 1858. Speaker of the Senate. New boards to be CHAPTER 66. AN ACT to preserve the credit of the State. SECTION 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Tennessee, That whenever the president and directors of any railroad in this State, shall fail to pay the interest on their bonds which have been endorsed by the Governor, and which they are required by law to pay, the entire board of directors shall be immediately supplanted elected in certain by the election and appointment of a new board; and it shall be the duty of the Governor to notify the stockholders in such railroad of the delinquency, and command them to elect another board, at such time and place as he may direct. Provided, That said president and board of directors shall not be removed, or a new election had, unless in the opinion of the Governor the interests of the State will be promoted thereby. SEC. 2. Be it further enacted, That any such board, so failing to pay the interest on their bonds, and suffering them to go to protest, all further State aid shall be withheld, until said railroad companies shall pay off all interest due on any of said bonds. DANIEL S. DONELSON, Speaker of the House of Representatives JOHN C. BURCH, Passed March 17, 1858. Speaker of the Senate. CHAPTER 67. AN ACT to secure medical fees under certain circumstances. SECTION 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Tennessee, That the owners of hired negroes shall be responsible in all cases for medical attendance on their negroes to the physicians who may render such service, and no contract which the hirer or owner may make on the subject shall release the latter from this obligation to the medical attendant: Provided, it shall be the duty of the hirer to employ such physician as the owner of said hired negro or negroes may designate. SEC. 2. Be it further enacted, That the trustees of all trust funds, in which negroes are included, shall be responsible to the physicians for their medical attendance on said negroes, which shall be paid out of said trust fund. DANIEL S. DONELSON, Speaker of the House of Representatives. Passed March 19, 1858. Speaker of the Senate. CHAPTER 68. AN ACT to provide for the Blind School, and for other purposes. SEC. 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Tennessee, That the following sums are hereby appropriated for the use and support of the Blind School; five thousand five hundred dollars for heating apparatus, for cooking apparatus, for introducing water into the build- Appropriation, ings, for repainting and repairing them, for school apparatus, for furniture and for pavements and fences; and according to the estimate submitted with the special report of the Trustees, two hundred dollars a year, or at this rate, for the tuition, maintenance and clothing of each poor pupil admitted into the school according to law. SEC. 2. The aforesaid appropriation shall be drawn from the Treasury, applied and accounted for in the manner prescribed in the Revised Statutes. SEC. 3. The law making an annual appropriation of four thousand dollars to said school, is hereby repealed. SEC. 4. Be it further enacted, That so much as has been drawn by said institution from the State Treasury for the year 1858, under existing laws be expended and accounted for in accordance with the provisions of this act. SEC. 5. Be it further enacted, That the Governor be empowered to draw on the Treasury to an amount not exceeding ten thousand dollars for the purpose of making the necessary repairs or extensions of the Penitentiary. DANIEL S. DONELSON, Speaker of the House of Representatives. Speaker of the Senate. Passed March 17, 1858. Titles. CHAPTER 69. AN ACT to amend the act of 1844, chapter 92, in relation to the sale of land for taxes. SECTION 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Tennessee, That the third section of the act of 1844, chapter 92, in relation to the sale of land for taxes, be so amended as to authorize the circuit courts to condemn lands distrained for public taxes, when the same has been returned by the sheriffs or revenue collectors in cases where he has been unable to state in whose name the same has been entered, or granted, or the range, section or surveyor's district; Provided, The same be described in his reports, sufficiently to identify the same; and all sales of land heretofore made in conformity with this act and the act this is intended to amend, shall be good and valid, and communicate a good title to the purchaser at said sale, and his assignees. SEC. 2. That the first section of the act of 1844, aforesaid, be, and the same is hereby repealed. SEO. 3. That this act shall take effect immediately after its passage. DANIEL S. DONELSON, Speaker of the House of Representatives. JOHN C. BURCH, Passed March 17, 1858. Speaker of the Senate. CHAPTER 70. AN ACT to amend the criminal laws of this State. SEC. 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Tennessee, That the criminal laws of this State be so amended that any person who shall willfully and maliciously injure by cutting or breaking with any instrument whatever, any flatboat or floating mills, or other watercraft, or whoever shall willfully and maliciously destroy, sink, or cause to be sunk, any flatboat or floating mill, or other watercraft, shall be held and deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall suffer fine, or imprisonment, or both, at the discretion of the court trying said case. |