turn-outs, switches and connections as may be necessary and convenient for the full enjoyment of said railroad. Provided however, that such railway shall not be constructed over any highways or bridges within the limits of said Suffield and Windsor Locks, without the consent of the selectmen of the town having charge of such respective highways or bridges. Said road shall be laid out and located by the said company, subject to the written approval of a majority of the railroad commissioners.

SEC. 2. Said corporation shall, in all cases in which their railway is located in the traveled part of the highway, keep and maintain all their part of the highway over which their railway is laid, together with a space two feet on each side of their track, in good and sufficient repair, without expense to the towns having charge of said highways, and shall also make good all damage to any highways in said towns of Suffield and Windsor Locks over which their road or way shall pass, caused by the construction of such road or way. And all such highways shall be left, on the completion of said railway, in as good condition as they were when the same was located thereon. And if it shall be necessary when said railroad is built for the accommodation of public travel, to widen any of said highways in consequence of the building of said railway thereon, said widening shall be done at the expense of said company.

SEC. 3. The said company is hereby vested with all the powers and privileges conferred and granted, and is made subject to all the duties, conditions and requirements imposed by sections 443 to 546 inclusive, of the act entitled An Act concerning Communities and Corporations; but until said corporation, by a vote of its directors or otherwise, shall elect and determine to use steam as a motive power upon said railroad, and while said road shall be operated by animal power alone, said company shall not be liable to pay to, or deposit for the use of, or secure to the acceptance of the owners of the fee of the highways, or the owners of lands adjoining the highways over which said railroad is located, the appraisal of damages for the use of said highways, or of the fee therein, or any appraisal of damages to the lands of said adjoining proprietors arising from the use of said highway by said company. Whenever said company shall use steam as a motive power upon said road, said appraisal shall be paid to or deposited for the use of the parties in whose favor damages have been appraised, or secured to their acceptance.

SEC. 4. The capital stock of said company shall be ninety thousand dollars, with liberty to increase the same to one hundred and fifty thousand dollars, and shall be divided into shares of one hundred dollars each.

SEC. 5. The persons named in the first section hereof, or a majority of them, shall open books to receive subscriptions to the capital stock of said company, at such time and place as a majority of them may appoint, and shall give such notice thereof as they may deem reasonable, and shall receive said subscriptions under such regulations as they may adopt for that purpose; and in case the subscriptions shall exceed the amount of nine hundred shares, the same shall be reduced and apportioned in such a manner as shall be deemed just and equitable.

SEC. 6. In case of the increase of the capital stock of said company, as provided in the fourth section of this resolution, the directors of said

company shall proceed to receive subscriptions for such amount of increased capital stock as they may determine upon, in the same manner and subject to the provisions mentioned in the fifth section of this act: provided however, that the stockholders of the company, at the time of such increase, shall be first entitled to subscribe for such increased capital stock in proportion to the number of shares of old stock then held by each of such stockholders.

SEC. 7. The persons mentioned in the first section, or a majority of them, shall call the first meeting of the stockholders of said company, in such manner and at such time and place as they shall appoint, to choose directors and perfect the organization of said corporation. And in all meetings of the stockholders each share of stock shall entitle its holder to one vote, which vote may be cast by the stockholder in person or by lawful proxy.

SEC. 8. In case it shall so happen that an election of directors shall not be made on the day appointed by the by-laws of said company, such company shall not for that reason be dissolved, but such election may be held at any subsequent meeting of the stockholders, specially warned and held for that purpose by the directors last elected.

SEC. 9. When the lands of any feme covert, cestui que trust, infant or non compos mentis, shall be necessary for the construction of said road, said lands may be taken on giving notice to the husband of such feme covert, the trustee of any such cestui que trust, the guardian of such infant, and the conservator of such non compos mentis; and they respectively may release all damages for any lands taken as aforesaid, as fully as they might do if the same were holden in their own right respectively.

SEC. 10. Said corporation may purchase, receive and hold in fee simple or otherwise, at their pleasure, such real estate as may be necessary or convenient, in order to accomplish the objects and purposes of this act; and may make any lawful contract with any other company relating to the business of either of said corporations, and may lease their road, or any part thereof, to, or operate their road, or any part thereof, with, or merge and make common stock with any other railroad company having railway connection therewith.

SEC. 11. That if said company shall not expend the sum of ten thousand dollars upon said railroad or way within two years from the rising of this assembly, or if they shall not construct and operate said road within four years from the passage of this act, then the rights, privileges and powers of said corporation shall be null and void.

SEC. 12. This act may be altered, amended, or repealed at the pleasure of the general assembly.

Approved, June 6th, 1866.

[Vol. V, 543, 618.]

Concerning the Boston, Hartford and Erie Railroad Company.

Resolved by this Assembly, SEC. 1. That the Boston, Hartford and Erie Railroad Company may make with the Erie Railway Company, a corporation existing in the state of New York, and with any railway com

pany whose track shall intersect or connect with the railway of said Boston, Hartford and Erie Railroad Company, at any of the termini of its chartered lines in the states of Massachusetts, Rhode Island, or New York, any contract it is by section four of its charter authorized to make with any railroad company, whether said Erie Railway and such intersecting or connecting railway has or has not the same gauge of track as the said Boston, Hartford and Erie Railroad: provided, that nothing in this act contained shall be construed to give to said company any power to lease, unite, or make joint stock with any railroad company whose track is laid within the limits of this state.

SEC. 2. The time within which the Boston, Hartford and Erie Railroad Company may construct its chartered lines of railways, is hereby extended to the fourth day of July, 1869.

Approved, June 6th, 1866.

Incorporating The Rockville and Springfield Railroad Company.

Resolved by this Assembly, SEC. 1. That Lorin Gowdy, Edward Pricket, H. Leverett Gowdy, and Franklin Smith of the town of Enfield, in Hartford county; Pliny C. Allen and Francis Gowdy of the town of East Windsor, in said county; John L. King, George R. Townsley, A. D. Briggs, D. L. Harris, A. S. Dwelly, and Hamilton F. Downing of the town of Springfield, in the state of Massachusetts; Tudor Gowdy, Ansel Arnold, Sanford M. Billings, L. E. Pease, Jabez Collins, and William H. Kibbee of the town of Somers, in Tolland county; George Kellogg, E. B. Preston, George Talcott, J. J. Robinson, A. P. Hammond, and Joseph Seldon of the town of Vernon, in said Tolland county; with such other persons as shall associate with them for that purpose, are hereby constituted a body politic and corporate, by the name of The Rockville and Springfield Railroad Company, and by that name to sue and be sued, plead and be impleaded, in any court in this state, have a common seal, and the same to break, alter or renew at pleasure; and said company is hereby vested with all powers, privileges and immunities which are or may be necessary to carry into effect the purposes and objects of this act, as herein set forth. And said company is hereby authorized and empowered to locate, construct, complete, maintain and use a single, double or treble railroad or way from some suitable point on the Rockville Branch Railroad, near the village of Rockville, in the town of Vernon, through the towns of Vernon and Ellington, or Ellington and East Windsor, to the town of Enfield, and thence through the town of Enfield, or the towns of Enfield and Somers, as said company, when duly organized, shall in lawful meeting held for that purpose decide, to the Massachusetts state line, there to connect and unite with a railroad to be constructed from the town of Springfield, in said Massachusetts, to said state line. And said company is further hereby authorized and empowered to take, transport and carry property and passengers upon said railroad or way, by the power and force of steam, animals or any other power, or any combination of them. And for the purpose of constructing said railroad the said company is hereby authorized to lay out its road not exceeding six rods in width through its entire length, and to take and occupy for the pur

pose of cuttings, embankments, turnouts and depot buildings, and for the purpose of obtaining stone, earth and gravel, as much more land as may, in its judgment be necessary and proper: provided, that all damage that may be occasioned to any person or corporation, by the taking and occupying of any and all such lands and materials as aforesaid, shall be paid for by said railroad company.

SEC. 2. That the capital stock of said company shall be three hundred and fifty thousand dollars, with the privilege of increasing the same to five hundred thousand, if it shall so desire. Said capital shall be divided into shares of one hundred dollars each. And in all stockholders' meetings each share of stock shall entitle the holder thereof to one vote, which vote may be cast by said holder or by his lawful proxy.

SEC. 3. That the persons named in the first section hereof, or a majority of them, shall open books to receive subscriptions to the capital stock of said company, at such times and places as they judge proper, and shall give notice of said times and places, by publishing the same in a newspaper printed in Hartford and Springfield, at least ten days before said books are opened, and shall receive said subscriptions under such regulations and upon such conditions as they see fit to adopt; and when said subscriptions shall amount to or exceed one thousand shares, said corporators, or a majority of them, may call the first stockholders' meeting of said company, in such way, with such notice and at such time and place as they shall judge proper, for the choice of directors and other officers of said company. Provided, that said corporators shall not receive any subscription to said capital stock, unless they, or a majority of them, are fully satisfied that the same is made in good faith, and by parties having the purpose and ability to pay in full for all the stock for which they shall offer to subscribe; and provided further, that if said subscriptions shall exceed five thousand shares in all, the same may be reduced and apportioned by said corporators, or a majority of them, in such manner as they may deem most beneficial to said company and the public.

SEC. 4. That said company is hereby authorized and empowered to make any lawful contract with any other railroad company with whose road its road may connect, in relation to the business or property of the same; and may take a lease of any railroad, or lease its railroad to or make joint stock with any other railroad company, whose road shall connect with the one which said company is hereby authorized to construct. SEC. 5. When the lands of any feme covert, infant, or any non compos mentis, shall be necessary for the construction of said road, said lands may be taken, on giving notice to the husband of such feme covert, the guardian of such infant, and the conservator of such non compos mentis; and they may respectively release all damages for any lands taken as aforesaid, as freely as they might do if the same were holden in their own right.

Sec. 6. That if said company shall not expend the sum of fifty thousand dollars upon said railroad or way, within two years from the rising of this assembly, or if they shall not construct and complete and put in operation a single, double or treble railroad or way within four years after the passage of this act, then the rights, privileges, and powers of this corporation shall be null and void.

SEC. 7. That the said company have all the powers and privileges, and be subjected to all the duties, liabilities, and other provisions contained in the statute laws of this state, relating to railroad companies.

SEC. 8. That this act may be altered, amended, or repealed at the pleasure of the general assembly.

Approved, June 8th, 1866.

An Act relating to School Societies in the Town of Suffield.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives, in General Assembly convened, SEC. 1. That all the rights, powers, privileges and immunities held by the inhabitants of the several school societies, as they existed in the town of Suffield prior to July fourth, 1856, shall hereafter be held and enjoyed by the present inhabitants living within the limits of the late school societies in said town, in all matters pertaining to burying grounds and places of sepulture within the respective limits of said societies.

SEC. 2. The selectmen of the town of Suffield are hereby empowered to warn a school society meeting in each of said societies, respectively, to be held some time in the month of September or October of the present year, for the election of officers, and the transaction of any business relating to such societies; and notice of such meeting shall be given by posting the same upon the sign post within the society wherein the meeting is to be held, at least two weeks previous to the meeting. Approved, June 14th, 1866.

[Vol. V, 463.]

Amending the Charter of the Norwalk Water Company.

Resolved by this Assembly, That the provisions of the ninth, tenth, and eleventh sections of the act incorporating the Norwalk Water Company, shall extend and apply to any springs, streams, water-courses, lands, and other real estate, in the towns of Norwalk, Wilton, and New Canaan, which said company shall find it necessary to use, take, or enter upon in pursuance of said act of incorporation.

Approved, June 20th, 1866.

Authorizing the Town of Norwalk to Construct a Bridge across Norwalk River, and to Establish a Toll-Gate thereon.

Resolved by this Assembly:-SEC. 1. That the town of Norwalk be, and the same is hereby authorized and empowered to construct and maintain a bridge for foot passengers, horses, cattle, carriages and teams, across the Norwalk river, from a suitable place on the westerly side of said river, between a point one hundred yards southerly of the foot of Washington street, in South Norwalk, and a point one thousand