lege.

emical degree, granted or conferred by the government use of the Col of either of the Colleges in the State, shall be paid into No officer to the Treasury for the use of the College; and no part thereof shall be received by any officer of the College, fees, as a per. as a perquisite of office. [Approved March 31, 1831.] fice.

receive any part of such

quisite of of

Chapter 518.

AN ADDITIONAL ACT regulating Elections.

Ch. 115, vol.

2, p. 464.

Selectmen of

Assessors of

SECT. 1. BE it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives, in Legislature assembled, That it shall be the duty of the Selectmen of each town, and of the Duty of the Assessors of every plantation in this State, on or before towns and the the twentieth day of August, annually, to deposit in the plantations. office of the town or plantation Clerk, and also to post up, in one or more public place or places in their town or plantation, the list of voters, required to be prepared [Preceding by the first section of an Act, entitled "An Act regula- Act, ch. 472, vol. 3, p. 319.] ting elections," passed on the nineteenth day of March, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and [Ch. 115.] twenty-one and the Selectmen of any town and the Assessors of any plantation, who shall wilfully neglect or Penalty for refuse to perform the duty aforesaid, shall, for each and wilful neglect $50. every such offence, severally forfeit and pay a sum not less than fifty dollars nor more than one hundred dollars; and for each day they shall so neglect to perform said Penalty for duty, after the twentieth day of August, and until the each day's neelection then next ensuing, they shall severally forfeit gust 20th till and pay the sum of thirty dollars. And the sum or sums $30. so forfeited, shall be recovered to the use of such town, How recov or plantation, in an action of debt in the name of the ered and to inhabitants thereof; and it shall be the duty of the Treasurer of such town or plantation, if he be not one of such Constable to delinquent officers, and he be one of them, then it shall prosecute the be the duty of one of the Constables of such town, or plantation, at the request of any citizen thereof, to cause such action to be commenced and prosecuted to final judgment.

glect from Au

day of election

whose use.

Treasurer or

commence &

action.

List of voters

SECT. 2. Be it further enacted, That, after said list of not to be alter voters shall have been prepared, as required by the first

ed by adding

voters, except

Bions for that

thereto, or by section of the Act aforesaid it shall not be lawful for the striking there. from, names of Selectmen of towns or Assessors of Plantations, to alter at regular ses said list by adding thereto, or striking therefrom, the purpose. name of any person, except at their sessions required to be holden by the first and second sections of the Act aforeDuty of Se-, said. And it shall be the duty of Selectmen of towns, lectmen, and Assessors, to and Assessors of plantations, at their sessions aforesaid, place on the list the name to place on said list the name of any person, whom they son known, know to be a legal voter, or who shall be proved to be In towns and such, whether he do, or do not, personally appear and plantations having less request the same to be done: Provided, however, That than 5000 in- it shall be lawful for Selectmen of towns and Assessors habitants, the officers may of Plantations having less than five thousand inhabitants, dence of qual to receive evidence of qualifications of voters, and to add add names of their names to said list at any time during the day of election.

of every per

&c.

receive evi

ifications and

voters, during

the day of election.

Votes for all

chosen, shall

one list.

SECT. 3. Be it further enacted, That the Selectmen and Assessors, authorized and required to preside in any meeting of a town or plantation, which shall be convened for the election of Governor, Senators, Representatives in the Legislature of this State, Representative in Congress, County Treasurer and Register of Deeds, be, and they are hereby required to call on the legal voters, in officers to be such meeting, directing them to give in their votes on be given in on one list, or ballot, for the officer or officers to be chosen, or for so many thereof as the person voting shall determine to vote for, designating, on the ballot against the name of cach person voted for, the office, to which each classed, may is intended to be elected; Provided however, That in vote for Representative in any town, not classed with another for the choice of a State Legislature separate. Representative, they may vote for a Representative to the determine by ly, if town so State Legislature, on a separate ballot, if the town shall by vote so determine; and the ballots aforesaid shall be Ballots shall written in the mode usually called writing, or in that deprinted. nominated printing, on clean white paper; and no ballot Officers liable which shall be on colored paper of any description, or to penalty of fifty dollars, for which shall bear any distinguishing mark or figures be

Towns not

vote.

be written or

lot on colored

sides the names of the persons voted for, and of the offi- receiving bal ces aforesaid, shall be received by any Selectmen or paper, or on Assessors, on pain of forfeiting for each offence the sum distinguishing of fifty dollars, to be recovered in the manner and for the use provided in the first section of this Act.

paper bearing

marks other than names of candidates & officers.

Duty of Secre

when returns

not seasona

at his office, to

ty Attorney to

SECT. 4. Be it further enacted, That whenever the returns of votes of any town, or plantation, for Governor, tary of State, Senators or Representative in Congress, shall not be de- of votes are livered into the office of the Secretary of State at the bly delivered time required by the Constitution and laws of the State, notify County it shall be the duty of the Secretary of State forthwith Attorney. to certify the fact to the County Attorney of the County, in which such town, or plantation, lies; and it shall be the duty of the County Attorney, to ascertain whether Duty of Coun such returns were not so delivered by reason of the neg-prosecute delect of the Selectmen, or Assessors, to perform the duties linquent offirequired by law to be by them performed, or by reason of the neglect of the Town Clerk, or plantation Clerk, and to demand of the officer, or officers, who shall have neglected to perform his, or their duty, the sum, or sums, forfeited, by such neglect; and, if the same shall not be paid, then it shall be the duty of the County Attorney to prosecute such delinquent officer, or officers, in the man- shall be recov ner by law provided; and the sums so forfeited shall be the State. recovered to the use of the State.

cer or officers.

Sums forfeited

ered to use of

for official acts or neglects, unless unrea

SECT. 5. Be it further enacted, That, in no case, No officer liable to penalty shall any town, or plantation officer incur a penalty, or or damages, be made to suffer in damages, by reason of his official acts, or neglects, unless the same shall be unreasonable, sonable, cotcorrupt, or wilfully oppressive: Provided, however, That rupt, or wilfully oppressive: the neglect to prepare the list of voters, to deposit it in the Town Clerk's office, or to post it up, as by this Act required, and the neglect to call town, or plantation, meetings for elections, or to cause returns of votes to be What neglect delivered into the office of the Secretary of State, as required by the Constitution, and laws of the State, or to make the records by law required, shall be deemed unreasonable, unless the contrary shall be made to appear.

shall be deemed unreasonable.

returns of

lost or destroy

record to be

certificate of

be certified in

such case.

Certificate

ed and sworn

SECT. 6. Be it further enacted, That whenever the When original original returns of the votes of any town, or plantation, votes shall be for Governor, Senators or Representative in Congress, ed, copy of shall in any way be lost or destroyed, it shall be the duty made, with of the Selectmen and Clerk of such town, and of the its truth, by the Assessors and Clerk of such plantation, as soon as such proper officers loss or destruction shall be discovered, or as soon after as may be, to cause a copy of the record of the meeting of the town, or plantation, at which such votes were given, What facts to to be made, with a certificate, upon the same sheet, that the same is a true copy of the record of such meeting, that it truly exhibits the names of all the persons voted for, as Governor, Senators or Representative in Congress, (as the case may be) and the number of votes given for each person so voted for, at the meeting mentioned in said record, and that said copy contains all the facts, which were stated in the original return of votes lost or destroyed; and the Selectmen and Town Clerk, or the Assessors and shall be sign plantation Clerk, who were present at such meeting, and to, by all the attested the original return, so lost or destroyed, shall attested the o- sign said certificate, designating their office against their riginal return. names, as in the original return, and shall make oath, or affirmation, that said copy and certificate are true, before make certifi- some Justice of the Peace for the County, in which they cate of the live, who shall make his certificate thereof on the same same paper. paper; which copy and certificates shall be sealed up Copy and cer- and directed to the Secretary of State, with the nature of sealed up and the contents written on the outside, and it shall be the Secretary of duty of the Clerk of such town, or plantation, to cause the same to be delivered into the office of the Secretary Duty of Clerk. of State, as soon as may be. And any Selectman, AsPenalty for sessor or Clerk, who shall neglect or refuse, on notice of neglect of said duty, not less such loss or destruction, to perform the duty aforesaid, than $100, nor more than five shall forfeit and pay a sum, not less than one hundred dollars, nor more than five hundred dollars, to be recovered by indictment, in the Court of Common Pleas, or Sudronic preme Judicial Court, to the use of the State; and any of making and Selectman, Assessor or Clerk, who shall make a false cer

officers, who

Justice to

cath, on the

tificates to be

directed to the

State.

hundred.

How recover

ed.

Officer convic

ted S. J. C.

false certifi

tificate, in the case aforesaid, and make oath or affirma- swearing to tion, to the truth thereof, shall, upon conviction thereof cate, shall suf fer the pains in the Supreme Judicial Court, suffer all the pains and and penalties penalties by law provided against the crime of perjury, and shall, after such conviction, be disqualified from Disqualified from holding holding any office under the Constitution and laws of this office for term State for the term of ten years.

of perjury.

of ten years.

person, to

of votes shall entrusted

tary's office.

-SECT. 7. Be it further enacted, That any person, to whom the returns of votes of any town, or plantation, for Liability of Governor, Senators or Representative in Congress, shall whom returns be entrusted by the Clerk for the purpose of forwarding be them to the office of the Secretary of State, who shall for the purpose of forwarding wilfully neglect to use all proper means to cause them to them to Secrebe so delivered, within the time required by the Constitution, and laws of the State, shall forfeit and pay, for such neglect, a sum, not less than one hundred dollars nor more than five hundred dollars, to be recovered to the use of the State by indictment in the Court of Com-ed and to mon Pleas, or Supreme Judicial Court; or upon conviction of said offence in manner aforesaid, such offender may be punished by imprisonment for a term, not less be punished by imprisonment. than two nor more than six months, at the discretion of the Court, before which such conviction shall be had.

How recover

whose use.

Offender may

State to make

plantations,

ed on 1st Mon

SECT. 8. Be it further enacted, That it shall be the Secretary of duty of the Secretary of State, on the first Monday of list of towns & November, annually, to make a list of the names of the whose votes towns and plantations, whose returns of votes for Gov-are not returnernor or Senators shall not, at that time, have been re- day of Nov. ceived at his office, and, as soon as may be, to cause the Such list to be published in same to be published in the public newspaper of the State paper. printer to the State.

towns and

SECT. 9. Be it further enacted, That when towns Mode of fixing and plantations are or may be classed for the purpose of time and place for meeting of choosing a Representative, it shall be the duty of the Se- officers of lectmen of the oldest town in said district, or the Asses- plantations, sors of the oldest plantation, if there be no incorporated choice of Reptown in such district, to notify the Selectmen of towns, examine copand Assessors of plantations in their respective districts, votes.

classed for

resentative, to

ies of lists of