mediately imprisoned by the sheriff, either of meat or drink from any person whatever from the time they came to the said place until their inquest sealed shall be charged by the said sheriff impartially, and to the best of their skill and judgment to value the said lots of ground in so many several and distinct parcels as shall be owned and held by several and distinct owners and tenants, and according to their respective interest and estates therein; and if the said valuation cannot be completed in one day, then the said sheriff shall adjourn the said jurors from day to day until the same be completed; and after such valuation made, the said sheriff shall forthwith return the same under the hands and seals of the said jurors to the clerk's office of the said county, and the right and property of the said owners and tenants in the said lots of land, shall be immediately divested and be transferred to this commonwealth in the full and absolute dominion, any want of consent or disability to consent in the said owners and tenants notwithstanding. The cost of the said inquest and the several sums at which the rights of the owners and tenants are valued, shall be paid by the treasurer to the said owners, tenants, and others entitled respectively, on warrant from the auditors.

2. And whereas it may be expedient to enlarge the said town of Richmond, by laying off a number of lots to be added thereto, and it may also happen that some of the lands adjacent to the said town may be more convenient for the publick uses: Be it therefore enacted, That the said directors cause two hundred additional lots or half acres, with necessary streets to be laid off adjacent to such parts of the said town as to them shall seem most convenient, and they shall also be at liberty to appropriate the six squares aforesaid, or any part of them, either from among the lots now in the said town, or those to be laid off as before directed, or of the lands adjacent to the said former or latter lots, and the said six squares and two hundred lots shall thenceforth be a part of the said town. And the said directors shall return into the clerk's office of the said county of Henrico, there to be recorded a full and distinct report under their hands and seals of the lots and squares of land added by them to the said town, or appropriated to the publick uses, together with the plan thereof. The rights of the several owners and tenants of the lots of land so to be added to the town and not appropriated to the publick uses, are nevertheless saved to them.

3. But whereas from the great expence attending the just and necessary war this Commonwealth is at present engaged in, the difficultics of procuring the materials for building, and the high price for labour, it will be burthensome to the inhabitants if the said publick buildings be immediately erected: Be it therefore enacted, That the directors aforesaid shall, with all convenient speed, cause to be erected or otherwise provide some proper and temporary buildings for the sitting of the General Assembly, the Courts of Justice, and the several boards before described.

4. And whereas the present jail of the county of Henrico, now within the said town of Richmond, if enlarged may be made sufficient for a publick jail until a more commodious one can be built: the said direc

tors are hereby empowered to enlarge the same. Provided nevertheless, there shall not be drawn out of the publick treasury for any or all the said purposes a sum exceeding twenty thousand pounds; and the directors aforesaid are hereby prohibited from making any contracts for erecting any of the publick buildings described by this act to be built on any of the squares appropriated for publick use, fixing on the squares or laying off the additional lots until further provision shall be made for the same by the General Assembly. And be it farther enacted, That from and after the last day of April which shall be in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and eighty, the said Court of Appeals, High Court of Chancery, General Court, and Court of Admiralty shall hold their sessions in the apartments prepared for them by the said directors; that the first meeting of the General Assembly after the same day shall be in such house or houses as shall be provided by the said directors; that the Clerks of the two Houses of Assembly and of the several Courts before mentioned, shall previously cause to be removed thither at the publick expence, the records, papers, and other things belonging to their respective offices; and that the keeper of the publick jail shall in like manner cause all prisoners in his custody to be removed to the publick jail so to be built as before directed, which shall thenceforward be deemed and used as the publick jail spoken of by the laws whether heretofore or hereafter passed.

CHAP. VII.

An Act, for locating the Publick Squares, to enlarge the Town of Richmond, and for other purposes.

BE it enacted by the General Assembly, That the ground to be appropriated to the purpose of building thereon a Capitol, Halls of Justice, State House for the Executive boards, and an house for the Governour, shall be located on Shockoe hill; and those to be appropriated to the use of the publick market, shall be below the said hill, on the same side of Shockoe creek; which location shall be made immediately; and where the nature of the ground shall render other form more eligible for the said uses than a square, it shall be lawful for his excellency Thomas Jefferson, Esquire, Archibald Cary, Robert Carter Nicholas, Richard Adams, Edmund Randolph, Turner Southall, Robert Goode, James Buchanan, and Samuel Du-Vall, Esquires, directors, or a majority of them, to lay off in such form, and of such dimensions as shall be convenient and requisite. The said directors shall cause the several tenements of irregular shape and size included within the limits of the town of Richmond, to be laid off into regular squares with intervening streets at such intervals as in the other parts of the town, unless by varying the said intervals more favorable ascents may be procured up the hill. They shall cause all the streets on Shockoe hill to be enlargened to a breadth, not less than eighty, or more than one hundred and twenty feet, of which breadth also shall be such new

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streets as shall be laid off below the hill as before directed; and where by such enlargement or laying off new streets, or from any other circumstances, any house already erected shall happen to be in a street, it shall be lawful for the said house to be continued twenty years, and no longer. They shall also lay off, in the most easy direction, whether straight or curved, so many streets for ascending and traversing with facility, the several hills in the said town as may be thought necessary in any supposed state of future increase and population, and at such intervals as shall be convenient, making them to communicate with the streets above the brow, and below the foot of each hill. The injury which individuals shall sustain by opening new streets through their lots, and the expense of laying off and marking the said streets, shall be estimated by a jury, on a writ of ad quod damnum, in like manner as directed by an act, entitled "An act, for the removal of the seat of government," for estimating the ground to be taken for the publick buildings; and shall be assessed by the directors on the several land holders within the said town, in proportion to the value of their respective lots, which assessments shall be delivered to the Sheriff of the county of Henrico, and shall be by him collected and paid to the several claimants in like manner, under the like penalties, and subject to the like remedies as are provided by law for collecting and paying the public taxes; and where the owner of any lot shall be not known, or not found, the Sheriff shall levy the assessment on the said lot by sale of so much thereof as shall be necessary, offering the same by publick vendue, on advertising the same three weeks in the Virgi nia Gazette, to him who will give the money required for the smallest proportion of the said lot, in such part thereof as the said Sheriff shall designate, and his deed of conveyance to the purchaser shall operate as effectually in law for conveying the fee simple estate, as if the same were executed by the legal proprietor or proprietors.

And Whereas it may be expedient to enlarge the said Town of Richmond by laying off a number of lots to be added thereto; and it may also happen that some of the lands adjacent to the said Town may be more convenient for the publick uses, Be it therefore enacted, That the said directors, if it be found expedient, shall cause two hundred additional lots or half acres, with necessary streets, properly arranged, to be laid off adjacent to such parts of the town as shall seem most convenient; and they shall be at liberty to appropriate the six squares aforesaid, or any part of them, either from among the lots now in the said town, or those to be laid off as before directed, or of the land adjacent to the former or latter lots; and the said six squares and two hundred lots shall thenceforth be a part of the said town; the rights of the several owners and tenants of the lots of land so to be added to the town, and not appropriated to the publick uses, are nevertheless saved to themselves. And whereas the navigation leading to Shockoe landing is much obstructed of late by freshes, and by the natural course of Shockoe Creek being altered, by which, large banks of sand have been thrown up, which, if not quickly removed, may render the navigation to the upper landing useless, to the great damage of the Town of Richmond, as well as to the back inhabitants. And whereas

it has been represented that a sufficient sum of money will be subscribed to open the said navigation, either by turning the water of Shockoe Creek into its old channel, or by clearing the present channel to the Warehouse Landing, which, if effected, will be greatly beneficial to the inhabitants of the said town, as well as to the community at large; Be it therefore enacted, That the directors aforesaid shall be at liberty to open subscriptions for the above purpose, and the money so raised shall be by them laid out in such manner as in their judgment shall improve the said navigation, either by opening the old channel of the Creek by bringing a greater quantity of water into that, or the present channel, or by such other ways as may best answer the intention of the subscribers, and benefit the publick.

CHAP. VIII.

An Act, to secure to persons who derive titles to Lots, Lands or Tenements under the Lottery or under a Deed of Trust of the late William Byrd, Esquire, a fee simple estate therein. [November 1781, Ch. 6. 10 Stat. Larg. 446.]

1. WHEREAS there are divers persons possessed of lots in the towns of Richmond and Manchester, and of lands and tenements contiguous thereto, who derive titles to the same under the Lottery of the late William Byrd, Esquire, whereof John Robinson, Peter Randolph, Peyton Randolph, Presley Thornton, John Page, Charles Carter, and Charles Turnbull, Esquires, were appointed managers and trustees; and other persons are possessed of lands and tenements, who purchased and derived titles to the same, under a Deed of Trust, bearing date the eighteenth day of December, one thousand seven hundred and fifty-six, made and executed by the said William Byrd, Esquire, to the said John Robinson, Peter Randolph, Peyton Randolph, Presley Thornton, John Page, Charles Carter, and Charles Turnbull, Esquires, for the purpose of paying his, the said William Byrd's debts, which said Deed of Trust is recorded in the General Court of this Commonwealth. And whereas by the deaths of the said William Byrd, John Robinson, Peter Randolph, Peyton Randolph, Presley Thornton, and John Page, Esquires, there are not now living a sufficient number of the said trustees to execute proper deeds of conveyance for the said lots, lands and tenements to the purchasers thereof, whereby the several proprietors are discouraged from improving the same: For remedy whereof,

2. Be it enacted by the General Assembly, That the said Charles Carter, Esquire, the only acting surviving trustee of the said William Byrd, be, and he is hereby empowered and required, upon the application and at the costs and charges of the said purchasers, to execute deeds of conveyance in fee simple for the aforesaid lots, lands and tenements to the respective purchasers thereof, which said deeds so to be executed shall be as good and effectual in law for conveying the

right to the said lots, lands and tenements, and to every of them, as though the same had been made and executed by a majority of the aforesaid trustees: Provided nevertheless, That nothing in this act contained shall be construed to alter or affect the title to any of the before-mentioned lots, lands or tenements, where two or more persons set up titles or claim to the same lot or tenement as purchasers, either under the aforesaid Lottery or Deed of Trust, nor to affect the title or claim of the heir at law of the said William Byrd, Esquire, to all or any of the aforesaid lots, lands or tenements; Provided, The said heir at law prosecute such claim within twelve months from the passing of this act.

CHAP. IX.

An Act for Incorporating the Town of Richmond, and for other purposes.

[May 1782, Ch. 25. 11 Stat. Larg. 45.]

1. BE it enacted by the General Assembly, That the town of Richmond, bounded according to the direction of the act intituled "An act for establishing towns at Rocky Ridge, Gloucester Court-house, and Layton's warehouse, and for other purposes therein mentioned,” shall be stiled the City of Richmond; and on the first Tuesday in July in the present, and on the same day of every third year afterwards, the freeholders of lots within the said City, whether improved or not, and whether such freeholder resides therein or not, and the housekeepers and inhabitants of the said City, who shall have resided therein at any time for the space of three months without the intermission of one twelve months, and possess in their own right within the same, moveable or immoveable property to the value of one hundred pounds, shall meet at the house now used as the Court-House of the county of Henrico, or at such other place as shall by a bye-law be hereafter appointed, and shall then and there elect by ballot, twelve fit and able men, being freeholders and inhabitants of the said city, who or a major part thereof shall, on the same or second day thereafter, between the hours of eight and twelve in the forenoon, publicly elect by ballot from among themselves, one person to act as Mayor, another as Recor der, and four others as Aldermen of the said City, and the other six of whom shall be Common Council. The services of the persons at any time elected Mayor, Recorder, Aldermen, or of the Common Council, shall not be continued longer than until other persons shall have been elected to those offices respectively, or than the expiration of the second day immediately following she said first Tuesday in July in every third year, as the case may be, but they may nevertheless be reelected except that no person shall be capable of acting as Mayor more than one year in any term of two years; vacancies occasioned by death, disability or resignation at any time before the triannual election, shall be supplied by the choice of the Mayor, Recorder, Aldermen and