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ed by such road, or by the doings of such company, to the clerk of the court of common pleas in the county in which the estate affected by such road lies, a special court of common pleas may be called and had for the purpose of hearing and determining any matter or thing whereof courts of common pleas at their regular terms have jurisdiction and cognizance, relative to turnpikes or rail roads, by virtue of any act of incorporation; due notice being given to the adverse party by citation, under the seal of the court and hand of the clerk, at least ten days before the time of holding the same, by the sheriff or his deputy; such special courts, so called and held, shall have all the powers over such matters and things as said court at any regular term thereof.

SEC. 22. In any case of appeal by either party from the report or award of the commissioners appointed to appraise damages sustained by land holders, in consequence of the building of any turnpike or rail road over or upon their lands, the sum awarded shall be lodged by the company liable for the same, with the clerk of the court having cognizance of the appeal, subject to the order of such court, to await the final trial and determination of such appeal; and so much thereof as shall be finally recovered against such company shall be paid to the party so recovering, and shall be endorsed on the execution when issued; or if sufficient in amount, shall, when so paid, go to satisfy and discharge the judgment; and the surplus, if any, shall be repaid to such company.

SEC. 23. No turnpike company shall set up any gate on their road, or receive toll for travelling or transporting thereon, nor shall any rail road company or any person start any locomotive engine, or car, or other vehicle, upon any rail road, excepting for the construction or completion of the same, until all the damages assessed or awarded against such company shall have been released, or the sums assessed against them as aforesaid paid, or lodged as required by the preceding section of this act; nor until such company shall, moreover, have performed and complied with all the conditions and requirements incumbent on them to have previously performed and complied with, by virtue of their several acts of incorpora

tion.

An Act directing the times and places of holding the terms of the Supreme Court, and the Courts of Common Pleus.

SECTION

SECTION

1. Supreme court when and where holden. 3. Writs, executions, &c. to be returned 2. Common pleas when and where holden. to said courts respectively.

It is enacted by the General Assembly, as follows:

SECTION 1. The terms of the supreme court shall be holden yearly, and every year, at the times and places following, viz: At Newport, within and for the county of Newport, on the first Monday of March, and on the fourth Monday in August. At Bristol, within and for the county of Bristol, on the second Monday in March, and on the second Monday in September. At Providence, within and for the county of Providence, on the third Monday in March, and on the third Monday in September. At East-Greenwich, within and for the county of Kent, on the fourth Monday in April, and on the Monday next preceding the last Monday in October. At South-Kingstown, within and for the county of Washington, on the second Monday in August, and the first Monday in February.

SEC. 2. The terms of the courts of common pleas shall be holden yearly, and every year, at the times and places following, viz: At Newport, within and for the county of Newport, on the third Monday in May, and on the fourth Monday in November. At Providence, within and for the county of Providence, on the fourth Monday in May, and on the first Monday in December. At South-Kingstown, within and for the county of Washington, on the third Monday in April, and on the first Monday in November. At Bristol, within and for the county of Bristol, on the third Monday in November, and on the first Monday in June. At East-Greenwich, within and for the county of Kent, on the third Monday in February, and on the third Monday in August.

SEC. 3. All writs, executions, summons, appeals, recognizances, and all other processes of every name, nature and description, returnable to or pending in either of said courts, shall be returnable to and pending in said courts respectively, at the terms thereof herein before provided, in the same manner and to the same effect as they would have been at the terms of said courts respectively, as the same were established previous to the passage of this act.

SECTION

An Act in relation to Justices of the Peace.

1. Justices of the peace may be appointed by general assembly in addition to those elected by the towns.

SECTION

13.

2. All justices to be commissioned and to

be sworn.

3 Criminal jurisdiction of justices of the

14.

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natics.

7. Civil jurisdiction of justices of the

17.

peace.

8. Justices' writs, how to be issued, signed, served, and when returned.

18.

9. Writs, &c. before justices to be serv-19.
ed, levied and returned as other writs,
&c., by law.

10. Proceedings in trespass before justices,
where title to real estate is pleaded

20.

21.

11. Evidence to be given under the gene-22.

ral issue.

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may be sued for.-Defendant may re-
cover balance in such actions.-Bal-
ance due on notes may be sued for.
Defendant may go with officer to jus-
tice and confess judgment.
Justices may receive and record con-
fessions of judgments without process,
when made by a debtor in person.
Justice who signs writ to tax cost and
sign execution, but any other in same
town may enter up judgment.
Appeal granted to court common pleas.

-Terms of.

Executions when to issue.
Judgments and proceedings to be re-
corded. Records to be lodged in town
clerk's office.-Penalty for neglect.
Justice to deliver papers to successor
in certain cases.

No attorney's fee to be allowed in jus-
tices' courts.

No justice to sell blank writs.
Town sergeants and constables to serve
process throughout county.

Wardens to have same powers as jus
tices of the peace.

It is enacted by the General Assembly, as follows:

SECTION 1. The general assembly may elect so many justices of the peace for any town as they shall think proper, in addition to those that shall be elected by such town. Said election shall be made in grand committee, and not in separate houses.

SEC. 2. Every justice of the peace, whether elected by any town or by the general assembly, shall be commissioned by the governor, and shall be under oath, faithfully and impartially to discharge the duties of his office, and to support the constitution of the United States, and the constitution and laws of this state.

SEC. 3. Every justice of the peace within the county in which he resides shall have jurisdiction and cognizance of all crimes, offences and misdemeanors, done or committed within the said county, punishable by fine, not exceeding twenty dollars, or by imprisonment in a county jail, not exceeding three months; and of all other criminal matters, which are or shall be declared specially to be within his jurisdiction, by the laws of this state, which shall be legally brought before him; with power to proceed to trial, render judgment, pass sentence and award a warrant for execution thereof.

SEC. 4. Every justice of the peace within the county in which he resides shall have cognizance over all other crimes,

offences and misdemeanors against the laws of this state, other than those in the section next preceding mentioned, which shall be done or committed within said county, and which shall legally be brought before him; to cause all persons guilty or suspected to be guilty thereof, to be apprehended, examined, bailed or committed to jail, according to law, to answer therefor before the supreme court or court of common pleas.

SEC. 5. Every justice of the peace within the town in which he resides shall have power, according to the provisions of law, to take the acknowledgment of deeds and other instruments, to administer oaths, to take depositions, and to do all such other acts as are or shall be committed to justices of the peace, by the general assembly.

SEC. 6. Whenever complaint in writing, and under oath, shall be made to any justice of the peace, that any person within his county is a lunatic, or so furiously mad as to render it dangerous to the peace or safety of the good people of the state for him to be at large, and that such person is at large, such justice of the peace shall issue his warrant under his hand and seal, returnable forthwith, directed to the sheriff, deputy sheriffs, town sergeants and constables in said county, requiring the officer charged therewith to apprehend the accused, and have him, with such warrant, before said justice, or some other magistrate, for examination relative to such complaint. And if said justice, on such examination, shall adjudge such complaint to be true, he shall, unless a recognizance satisfactory to said justice, be then given before him that said person shall not be permitted to go at large until restored, by warrant under his hand and seal, commit such person to the county jail, there to be detained until he, in the judgment of some magistrate in the county on inspection, shall be restored to soundness of mind, or until recognizance satisfactory to some such magistrate shall be given with like condition. And the costs of his apprehension, commitment and detention shall be paid by such person, if he have any estate, otherwise by the person or town upon whom his maintenance was chargeable, if he had not been committed.

SEC. 7. Every justice of the peace shall have original and exclusive jurisdiction of all civil actions, legally brought before them, wherein the debt or damages demanded do not exceed twenty dollars, excepting only actions relating to real estate or some easement therein, in which the title to the same may be in dispute, or those over which jurisdiction hath

been or may be conferred on some other tribunal, with power to enter up judgment and award execution therein.

SEC. 8. The original writ, in any such case, shall be in the name of the state of Rhode-Island and Providence Plantations; shall be signed by a justice of the peace of the town where the action shall be commenced; and shall be directed to the sheriff, his deputy, or to either of the town sergeants or constables in the county in which such suit shall be brought; and in case both parties live in the same county, then the action shall be brought either in the town where the plaintiff lives, or in the town where the defendant lives, or is to be found, except in cases in which a different provision is made by law. But in case the parties live in different counties, then the plaintiff may commence his action before any justice of the peace in any town in the county where the defendant lives, or may be found. Every such writ shall contain the plaintiff's declaration at length, and shall be served six days, at least, before the day of trial named therein.

SEC. 9. All writs, summons, and executions issued in pursuance of this act shall be served and levied and returned in the manner pointed out in the act entitled "an act prescribing the forms of writs and manner of serving them;" and any person who shall become bail for any defendant, and all goods and chattels attached on any such writ, shall be holden thereon, notwithstanding the justice who signed such writ shall, after judgment rendered thereon, cease to sustain said office.

SEC. 10. When an action of trespass shall be brought before any justice of the peace, and the defendant shall plead the general issue, he shall not be allowed to offer any evidence that may bring the title of real estate in question; and when the defendant in any such action shall plead the title of himself or any other person in justification, the justice, upon having such plea filed, shall require the defendant to give bond to the adverse party in a reasonable sum, with sufficient surety or sureties, to enter the said action at the next court of common pleas to be holden within the same county, and to prosecute the same in the same manner as upon an appeal from a justice's judgment; and if such defendant shall refuse so to give bond, the justice shall render judgment against him in the same manner as if he had refused to make answer to the suit; and either party in such case shall be allowed to appeal from the judgment of the court of common pleas, in the same manner as if the suit had been originally commenced there.

SEC. 11. In all actions triable before a justice of the peace, except such actions of trespass wherein the defendant

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