interested landholders of the county as aforesaid, who shall not be related to any of the parties interested in opening or objecting against such proposed road, and shall assign a day for such landholders to meet where such proposed road begins; it shall be the duty of such landholders respectively, having had six days previous notice from either party, to meet on the day and at the place assigned by the commissioners, and then having first taken an oath or affirmation, before some judge or justice of the peace, impartially to review such proposed road, and report whether such road, if opened and kept in repair by the public, will be useless, Continued. inconvenient and burthensome, or otherwise, and if the landholders, who reviewed the same, or any three of them, agree that the said proposed road is likely to be useless, inconvenient and burthensome, if it be opened and kept in repair by the public, then unless the petitioners will agree to open and keep in repair such proposed road at their own private expense, all the proceedings shall be stayed, and the petitioners shall, in either case, pay the costs and charges which may have accrued, but if three of the said reviewers do not report against such road as likely to be useless, inconvenient and burthensome, then the objectors shall pay the costs and charges which shall have accrued on

Persons objecting to a

over their lands, how to proceed.

ers to appoint five freeholders,

etc.

To take an oath, etc.

such review, and the said road shall be ordered to be recorded and opened as aforesaid, and shall thenceforth be deemed a public road.

Sec. 6. And be it further enacted, That if any road passing person through whose land any proposed road may run, feels aggrieved thereby, such person may, at any time before such road is recorded, set forth his or her grievance, in writing, to the Commission commissioners, whereupon the commissioners shall appoint five disinterested landholders as aforesaid, and shall assign a day for such landholders to meet on the objector's land, where such road crosses, the same (having first taken an oath or affirmation before some judge or justice of the peace) truly and impartially to assess the damage or several damages which any such objector or objectors will sustain by reason of such road, in case the same should be opened and continued through his land, having had six days previous notice by either of the Their duty. parties, said landholders shall proceed to review said road, through the land of such objector or objectors, and take into their consideration how much less valuable the property of such objector or objectors will be rendered by reason of such roads being established, and shall assess the damage or damages, if any, report the same

the dam

to the commissioners at their next meeting, and To assess if a majority of such landholders agree in assess- ages. ing damages to the amount of the costs accruing on such review, the commissioners may, if they consider it expedient, order the damages to be defrayed out of the county treasury, or if that may be considered inexpedient and that petitioners will defray the same, then, in either case, such roads shall be ordered to be opened and a record made thereof, and the costs and charges having accrued in virtue of such review, shall be defrayed out of the county treasury; but if a majority of such landholders do not. agree in assessing damages to the amount of the: costs as aforesaid, then such objector or object- Costs, how ors shall pay the costs, and such road shall be ordered to be opened and recorded in like manner as though no such objections had been made.

Sec. 7. And be it further enacted, That if any person through whose land any road shall run, shall be desirous of cultivating such tract of his land, such person or persons may petition said commissioners to permit him, her or them, at his, her or their own expense, to turn such road through any part of his, her or their land, on as good ground and without increasing the distance to the injury of the public; and upon such

to be paid.

desirous to

Any person change the through his proceed.

road running

land, how to

ers to appoint three

viewers, etc.

When and how to re

port.

Commission- petition, the said commissioners shall appoint three disinterested landholders, who shall proceed to view the ground on which the said road is designed to be turned, and measure the reTheir duty. spective distances of that part of the road already established and of the proposed way, until it shall intersect the road established, and at the next meeting of the commissioners shall report the several distances, with their opinion, respecting the ground on which said proposed road is to run, and if it shall appear to the satisfaction of said commissioners, that the ground on which such new part of the road is designed to be run, is equally situated and that the difference in the distance will not injure the public, such commissioners shall permit him, her or them, to turn such road, and on receiving satisfactory assurances that such petitioner or petitioners have opened such proposed road equally convenient for travelers, shall vacate so much of the former road as shall lie between the different points of intersection, and record such -alteration, which afterwards shall be a public road or highway.

Public roads becoming

how to be

Sec. 8. And be it further enacted, That when useless, etc., any public road shall be considered useless and the repairing thereof an unreasonable burthen, any twelve landholders may make application in

discontin

ued.

to be paid.

writing, subscribed by themselves, setting forth their reasons wherefore they wish such road vacated, which shall during the meeting to which it is presented, be publicly read in open meeting, and no further or other proceedings shall be then had thereon, but the same shall be continued to the next meeting, where the same shall again be read as aforesaid, when, if objections are not made thereto in writing, signed by twelve landholders, said commissioners shall, on any day in the same meeting, other than the first, proceed to vacate such public road, and the cost and charges shall be paid by Costs, how the county; but if objections are made in form aforesaid, the commissioners shall proceed in like manner, by appointing viewers thereof, as they are authorized to do in laying out roads: Provided, That nothing in this section contain- Proviso. ed, shall be understood to give authority to said commissioners to vacate any street or highway, in any town which hath been or may be laid out by the proprietors thereof, or by any other person or persons, and given for public use, nor to vacate any road laid out by law, which is not repairable at public charge, nor any road or passage claimed by private right.

Sec. 9. And be it further enacted, That an ap

If objec

tios are to appoint

made, commissioners

viewers, etc.

Streets or etc., in

highways,

town not to

be vacated.