empt from militia duty, and from serving on juries, and from any fine or penalty for the neglect thereof. SEC. 11. Contracts made by telegraph shall be deemed to be Contracts. contracts in writing; and all communications sent by telegraph, and signed by the person or persons sending the same, or by his or their authority, shall be held and deemed to be communications in writing. SEC. 12. Whenever any notice, information, or intelligence, Actual written or otherwise, is required to be given, the same may be notice. given by telegraph; provided, that the dispatch containing the same be delivered to the person entitled thereto, or to his agent or attorney. Notice by telegraph, shall be deemed actual notice. that may SEC. 13. Any power of attorney, or other instrument in Instruments writing, duly proved or acknowledged, and certified, so as to be sent by be entitled to record, may, together with the certificate of proof telegraph. or acknowledgment, be sent by telegraph, and the telegraphic copy or duplicate thereof, shall, prima facie, have the same force and effect, in all respects, and may be admitted to record and recorded in the same manner and with like effect as the original. SEC. 14. Checks, due bills, promissory notes, bills of ex- Same. change, and all orders or agreements for the payment or delivery of money, or other thing of value, may be made or drawn, by telegraph, and when so made or drawn, shall have the same force and effect to charge the maker, drawer, indorser, or acceptor, thereof, and shall create the same rights and equities in favor of the payee, drawce, indorsee, acceptor, holder, or bearer, thereof, and shall be entitled to the same days of grace as if duly made or drawn, and delivered in writing, but it shall not be lawful for any person, other than the maker or drawer thereof, to cause any such instrument to be sent by telegraph, so as to charge any person thereby. Except as hereinafter, in the next section, otherwise provided, whenever the genuineness or execution of any such instrument, received by telegraph, shall be denied, on oath, by the person sought to be charged thereby, it shall be incumbent upon the party claiming under, or alleging, the same, to prove the existence and execution of the original writing from which the telegraphic copy or duplicate was transmitted. The original message shall, in all cases, be preserved in the telegraph office from which the same is sent. SEC. 15. Except as herein before otherwise provided, any Same. instrument in writing, duly certified, under his hand and official seal, by a Notary Public, Commissioner of Deeds, or Clerk of a Court of record, to be genuine, within the personal knowledge of such officer, may, together with such certificate, be sent by telegraph, and the telegraphic copy thereof shall, prima facie only, have the same force, effect, and validity, in all respects whatsoever, as the original, and the burden of proof shall vest with the party denying the genuineness or due execution of the original. SEC. 16. Whenever any person or persons shall have been Arrest. indicted or accused, on oath, of any public offence, or thereof convicted, and a warrant of arrest shall have been issued, the Magistrate issuing such warrant, or any Justice of the Supreme Proviso. Writ, order, etc., may be sent by Court, or Judge of a District or County Court, may indorse thereon an order, signed by him, and authorizing the service thereof, by telegraph, and thereupon such warrant and order may be sent by telegraph to any Marshal, Sheriff, Constable, or Policeman. and, on the receipt of the telegraphic copy thereof by any such officer, he shall have the same authority, and be under the same obligation to arrest, take into custody, and detain, the said person or persons, as if the said original warrant of arrest, with the proper direction for its service duly indorsed thereon, had been placed in his hands; and the said telegraphie copy shall be entitled to full faith and credit, and have the same force and effect, in all Courts and places, as the original. But, prior to indictment or conviction, no such order shall be made by any officer, unless, in his judgment, there is probable cause to believe the said accused person or persons guilty of the offence charged; provided, the making of such order by any officer, as aforesaid, shall be prima facie evidence of the regularity thereof, and of all proceedings prior thereto. The original warrant and order, or a copy thereof, certified by the officer making the order, shall be preserved in the telegraph office from which the same is sent, and, in telegraphing the same, the original, or the said certified copy, may be used. SEC. 17. Any writ or order, in any civil suit or proceeding, and all other papers requiring service, may be transmitted by telegraph. telegraph for service in any place, and the telegraphic copy of such writ, or order, or paper, so transmitted, may be served or executed by the officer or person to whom it is sent for that purpose, and returned by him, if any return be requisite, in the same manner, and with the same force and effect, in all respects, as the original thereof might be if delivered to him, and the officer or person serving or executing the same, shall have the same authority, and be subject to the same liabilities, as if the said copy were the original. The original, when a writ or order, shall also be filed in the Court from which it was issued, and a certified copy thereof shall be preserved in the telegraph office from which it was sent. In sending it, either the original or the certified copy may be used by the operator for that purpose. Seal. Officer of company may file County Clerk. SEC. 18. Whenever any document, to be sent by telegraph, bears a seal, either private or official, it shall not be necessary for the operator, in sending the same, to telegraph a description of the seal, or any words, or device, thereon, but the same may be expressed in the telegraphic copy by the letters "L. S.," or by the word "Seal." SEC. 19. The President or Secretary of any telegraphic company in this State may file, in the office of the Clerk of the device with County Court of the county in which the principal office of said county is situated. a copy of any printed blank or envelop, picture or device, used, or intended to be, by said company, with his certificate that the same is commonly used, or is intended so to be, in the business of said company, as a distinguishing mark, notice, or index, of said business, and thereupon such blank, envelop, picture, or device, shall become the property of said company, and it shall not be lawful for any person, unless by the employment or permission of said company, to print, publish, distribute, or use, or cause to be printed, publish use of. ed, distributed, or used, either of them, or any copy, counter- Penalty for feit, or imitation thereof. Any person wilfully offending against the provisions of this section, may be punished by a fine, not to exceed five hundred dollars, or imprisonment, not to exceed six months. SEC. 20. It shall be the duty of any telegraph company do- order of ing business in this State, to transmit all dispatches in the order dispatches. in which they are received, under the penalty of one hundred dollars, to be recovered, with costs of suit, by the person or persons whose dispatch is postponed out of its order; provided, Proviso. that communications to and from public officers, on official business, may have precedence over all other communications; and, provided, also, that intelligence of general and public interest may be transmitted, for publication, out of its order. construed. SEC. 21. The term "telegraphic copy," or "telegraphic du- Terms plicate," wherever used in this Act, shall be construed to mean any copy of a message, made or prepared for delivery, at the office to which said message may have been sent by telegraph. SEC. 22. Nothing herein contained shall be construed in any Liabilities. manner to take away, lessen, or limit, the liabilities of any telegraph companies doing business in this State. SEC. 23. An Act concerning Telegraphic Messages, and to Act repealed. secure Secrecy and Fidelity in the transmission thereof, approved May fourteenth, one thousand eight hundred and sixtyone, is hereby repealed. SEC. 24. This Act shall take effect immediately. CHAP. CCLXIII.—An Act granting the Right to construct and maintain a Bridge across the South Fork of the American River, at, or near, Salmon Falls, in the County of El Dorado. [Approved April 18, 1862.] The People of the State of California, represented in Senate and SECTION 1. The right to erect and construct, and to have, Franchise. enjoy, and maintain, for twenty years, a public toll bridge, across the South Fork of the American River, at, or near, Salmon Falls, in the County of El Dorado, is hereby granted to A. H. Richards, together with such associates as he may admit, and their assigns, upon the terms and conditions hereinafter mentioned. SEC. 2. Said bridge shall be erected and constructed in a Conditions. good and substantial manner, and of the best and most durable materials, and shall be completed within eighteen months from and after the passage of this Act. SEC. 3. The said A. H. Richards, and his associates, are here- Tolls. by authorized and empowered to charge and collect such rates of toll as the Board of Supervisors of said county may determine upon annually. SEO. 4. The said A. H. Richards, and his associates, may speed of travel. May regulate regulate and determine the speed of travel, riding or driving, upon said bridge, and may require the speed not to be faster than a walk. Notice of such regulation shall be kept posted upon some conspicuous part of each end of said bridge, and for Violation of each violation of said regulation the party offending may be regulations. fined, in any Court of competent jurisdiction, in any sum not less than ten nor more than fifty dollars; provided, also, that parties violating such regulation shall be liable for any actual damage sustained by reason of such violation. License. SEC. 5. No toll bridge, or ferry, shall be established within one mile immediately above or below said bridge, unless it be required by public convenience. SEC. 6. The Board of Supervisors of the County of El Dora do shall fix and regulate the amount of license to be paid on said toll bridge, each year. SEC. 7. This Act shall take effect from and after its passage. Power to sell Same. CHAP. CCLXIV.-An Act to authorize Mrs. Mary Comstock, and her Minor Children, Bertha Comstock, John Felt Osgood Comstock, and George Comstock, to sell their Homestead. [Approved April 18, 1862.] The People of the State of California, represented in Senate and SECTION 1. Mrs. Mary Comstock, of San Francisco, California, is hereby authorized and empowered to sell her family homestead, situate on Pine street, in the City and County of San Francisco, at public or private sale, as she shall deem most advantageous for the interest of herself and children, to wit: Bertha Comstock, John Felt Osgood Comstock, and George Comstock, minors, under the age of fourteen years, to such person or persons, and at such time or times, and on such terms, as she shall deem most expedient, and for the best interest of herself and children. SEC. 2. The said Bertha Comstock, John Felt Osgood Comstock, and George Comstock, are hereby authorized and empowered to unite with their mother, Mrs. Mary Comstock, in the conveyance of the said homestead, by deed or deeds, either in one parcel, or in subdivisions, and each to execute, acknowledge, and deliver, the same, to the purchaser or purchasers thereof; which said deed or deeds, so executed and delivered, shall be a valid conveyance of said homestead, and vest the title in the purchaser or purchasers thereof, with the same legal rights as if the said minor children were of full age, and the parties had lawful right to sell and convey the same. CHAP. CCLXV.-An Act to authorize the Sale of Real Estate belonging to Estate of Henry P. Haun, deceased, at public or pri vate sale. [Approved April 18, 1862.] The People of the State of California, represented in Senate and SECTION 1. Catherine M. Haun, relict of Henry P. Haun, Sale. SEC. 2. The Administratrix shall make a full report of any sale or sales that she may make by virtue of the powers herein granted, to the Probate Court of the County of Yuba, and the Judge of said Court shall, either in term time or vacation, in open Court or in chambers, examine the same, and confirm or set aside said sale or sales, as he may deem just and proper, and for the interest of said estate. Report. SEC. 3. After the approval of the sale or sales, by the Pro- Conveyance bate Court, the Administratrix shall convey to the purchaser or purchasers, the property so sold, and receive the purchase money therefor, and the titles so conveyed shall be as valid as if made under the order of the Probate Court, or as if made by the deceased, in his lifetime, in proper person. SEC 4. In case of the death, resignation, or removal, of the said Administratrix, her successor, duly appointed and qualified, shall have the same authority and power to sell and convey such real estate, as is by this Act granted to said Administratrix. SEC. 5. This Act to take effect immediately after its passage. CHAP. CCLXVI.-An Act to grant H. J. May, Charles M. Baxter, William Kohl, and others whom they may associate with them, and their assigns, the Right to lay a Railroad Track along certain streets in the City of Petaluma, and through a public road in the County of Sonoma. [Approved April 18, 1862.] The People of the State of California, represented in Senate and SECTION 1. It shall be lawful for H. J. May, Charles M. Bax- Franchise. ter, William Kohl, and others whom they may associate with them, and their assigns, to construct a single track iron railroad, commencing at a point on Petaluma creek, at or near a place commonly known as the Italian Garden, in the County of Sonoma, and State of California; thence to the southerly boun |