he shall record, in a fair and legible hand, all deeds and conveyances which shall be brought to him for that purpose, according to law.

SEC. 2. That every two years there shall be a poll Recorder to be opened, at the annual election, for recorder of deeds elected bienfor each organized county in this Territory, and the nially. election shall be conducted as other elections for county officers, and the person having the highest number of legal votes, shall receive a certificate of election from the county commissioners' clerk. And after receiving his certificate of election shall, within ten days thereafter, give bond, with two good and Bond. sufficient securities, in the penal sum of five hundred dollars, to the county commissioners of the county for which he is elected, and to their successors in office, conditioned for the true and faithful perform-Condition. ance of the duties of his office, and to deliver up the records, papers, and effects, to his said office belonging, safe and undefaced to his successor in office; which said respective bonds shall be filed in the office of the clerk of the county commissioners' court for the county for which said recorder is elected, and there safely kept in order to be made use of, for making satisfaction to the parties that shall be aggrieved, as is or shall be directed by law.

given.

SEC. 3. And no recorder of deeds, hereafter to be Penalty for of elected as aforesaid, shall enter upon or officiate in ficiating before his said office before he hath given such security as security be aforesaid, upon pain of forfeiting the sum of one hundred and fifty dollars, one half to the use of the county, the other for the use of the party complaining, but no record made by such recorder of deeds shall be vacated, or so avoided as to operate against the parties to the instrument recorded, by reason of such recorder not giving such bond.

SEC. 4. Every recorder of deeds shall keep a fair Entry book. book in which he shall immediately make an entry of every deed or writing brought into his office to be recorded, mentioning therein the date, the parties, the place where the lands, tenements, hereditaments, granted or conveyed by the said deed or writing, are situated, dating the entry on the day on which such deed or writing was filed in his office, and shall record all such deeds and writings in regular suc- Deeds to be cession according to the priority of time of their being recorded in brought into his said office, and shall also make and keep a complete alphabetical index to each record book, showing the page on which each instrument is Index.

succession.

Receipt,

Fees.

Recorders now

in office.

recorded, with the names of the parties thereto; he shall give a receipt to the person bringing such deed or writing to be recorded, bearing date on the same day as the entry, and containing the abstract aforesaid: Provided. That it shall be the duty of all recorders under this act to file immediately all deeds and papers which may be presented to them for record, and they shall note, on the back of the same, the hour and the day when the same were filed.

SEC. 5. And as a compensation for the duties to be performed by said recorder of deeds, that the following be his lawful fees, which he may demand and collect for recording all deeds, mortgages, and other instruments of writing; for every one hundred words, twelve cents; for copies of the same, when requested, for every one hundred words, twelve cents; for every official certificate, with seal, when requested, twentyfive cents.

SEC. 6. But nothing herein contained shall be so construed as to affect or remove from office any recorder of deeds now elected in this Territory, until an election take place in each organized county, either general or special, and the newly elected recorder is sworn into office. That all acts, or parts of acts, now in force in this Territory, relating to the recorder of deeds, be and the same are hereby repealed from the taking effect of this act.

SEC. 7. This act to take effect and be in force from and after the first day of March next. APPROVED, January 19, 1839.

Action of replevin, when, by whom, and for what pur

REPLEVIN.

AN ACT regulating the action of Replevin.

SEC. 1. Be it enacted by the Council and House of Representatives of the Territory of Iowa, That where any goods and chattels are wrongfully detained, an action of replevin may be brought for the recovery pose instituted. Of such property, by the person entitled to the immediate possession thereof, or, in his name, by any person duly authorized, by him, for that purpose.

Affidavit, when

filed, and what

SEC. 2. The writ, in this action, shall not issue and with whom without an affidavit of the plaintiff, his agent or attorney, shall have been filed in the office of the clerk forth therein. by whom such writ is to be issued, stating that such goods and chattels are wrongfully detained by the

shall be set

defendant, that the plaintiff has a good right to the present possession thereof, and that they were not taken from him by writ of replevin, or in execution issued on any judgment against him, nor for the payment of any tax, fine, or amercement against the said plaintiff.

SEC. 3. Where property shall have been taken in Property exexecution, which was exempted therefrom by law, empt from leupon affidavit filed as aforesaid, that such property was so exempt, a writ of replevin may issue as above provided.

vy, may be replevied.

SEC. 4. Any writ of replevin, issued without an Clerk and affidavit being filed as aforesaid, shall be quashed at Plaintiff liathe costs of the clerk, who issued the same, who, as ble, where affiwell as the plaintiff, shall be, moreover, liable in filed. damages to the party injured.

davit is not

SEC. 5. Such writ, however, shall not be quashed Defects in affifor any defect in the affidavit happening by mistake, davit, how reor oversight, if upon being objected to, a new affidavit medied. of the proper form and substance shall be made and

filed as aforesaid.

and its require

ments.

SEC. 6. The writ shall be directed to the sheriff (or The writ, to coroner, as the case may be,) of the county, command- whom directed, ing him to cause to be replevied, to the plaintiff, the goods and chattels therein named, and to summon the person charged with their unlawful detention, to appear at the proper district court, on the first day of the next term thereof, to answer unto the plaintiff for such unlawful detention.

enclosures.

SEC. 7. The officer executing such writ may break Privilege of of open any house, or other building, or inclosure, in ficer, as to which such property is concealed, in order to replevy buildings, and the same, having first made demand of such property, Demand and and of entrance into said building, or enclosure, and refusal. the same having been refused.

SEC. 8. Before such officer shall deliver to the Bond and seplaintiff any goods or chattels, replevied as afore-curities. said, a bond shall be given to the said officer, with two or more sufficient sureties, conditioned that the Condition. plaintiff shall appear at the return term of the writ, and prosecute his suit to effect, and pay all costs and damages that shall be awarded against him.

SEC. 9. Such bond shall be in double the value of Amount of property replevied (which value shall be ascertained bond returned by two or more disinterested persons whom the officer with the writ, shall swear truly to appraise the same,) and shall be security. returned with the writ for the security and benefit of the defendant, and of the officer taking the same.

and for whose

Remedies and liabilities of

SEC. 10. The remedies and liabilities of the officer taking such bond, and all the parties bound by, or the officer, &c. interested in the same, shall be like those in case of an ordinary bail bond and the same proceedings, as far as the nature of the case will admit, may in all respects be had to carry those remedies into effect. SEC. 11. If the plaintiff, his agent or attorney, shall ecuted within refuse, or neglect, to execute and give bond, as afore24 hours, or the said, within twenty-four hours from the taking of such property by virtue of said writ, the officer who shall have said property in possession, must return the same to the defendant.

Bond to be ex

property re

turned.

Officer's liabi

lity, where in

SEC. 12. If such officer shall deliver any property, so replevied, to the plaintiff, or detain the same from sufficient secu the defendant, without taking sufficient security as aforesaid, he shall be liable to the defendant in damages.

rity shall have

been taken.

Where property is claimed by third per

sons.

Claimant made

tion, &c.

SEC. 13. If the property replevied, or any part thereof, be claimed by some third person, the right of property shall be tried in the same manner as where property may have been thus claimed, after having been taken in execution.

SEC. 14. Such claimant shall, in all cases, on motion, a def't. on mo- be made a defendant in the action, unless he will disclaim, or the plaintiff relinquish the right to said property

Where proper

ty is not delivered, action

SEC. 15. If the property replevied, as aforesaid, in any case, be not delivered to the said plaintiff, he may proceed. may, nevertheless, proceed in the action for the recovery of said property, or the value thereof.

This action to conform to what rules, usages, &c.

Right of property, trial by jury, &c.

When the jury

SEC. 16. The proceedings in an action of replevin shall, as far as practicable, be subject to the same usages and rules of practice, as in ordinary personal action, except as otherwise provided by law, or by the rules of court.

SEC. 17. If the plaintiff shall discontinue his suit, or become non-suit, or judgment be rendered against him on demurrer, or he shall otherwise fail to prosecute his suit to final judgment, the court, on application of the defendant, or his attorney, shall empanel a jury to inquire into the right of property and right of possession of the defendant, to the goods and chattels in controversy.

SEC. 18. If such jury find that said goods and find for the de-chattels were the property of the defendant, or that fendant;-da- he was entitled to the possession thereof, at the commencement of the action, they shall assess damages for the defendant, as may be right and proper, for

mages, costs,

&c.

which, together with costs of suit, the court shall render judgment against the plaintiff.

SEC. 19. In all cases, upon issue joined where the Right of propjury shall find for the defendant, they shall also find erty, and right whether he had the right of property, or right of of possession. possession in said goods and chattels, and if they find either in his favor, they shall assess the damages of the defendant, on which judgment shall be rendered as declared in the preceding section.

plaintiff,

SEC. 20. Where the jury find for the plaintiff on Where the jury an issue joined, or on inquiry of damages, they shall find for the assess adequate damages to the plaintiff for the costs, damages, illegal detention of the property for which, and the &c. costs of suit, the court shall render judgment.

not been re

SEC. 21. In such case, if said property shall not have Additional been replevied and delivered to the plaintiff, he judg't, where shall, in addition to the judgment authorized by the property has preceding section, be entitled to a further judgment, plevied; value that such goods and chattels be replevied and deliv- how ascertainered to him, without delay, or in default thereof, ed, &c. that he recover the value of said property, as the same shall have been assessed by the jury who gave the verdict in the case, the requirements of the writ of execution shall be regulated accordingly.

SEC. 22. The judgment for the plaintiff shall be Judgment, against all those defendants who have been guilty of against whom, wrongfully detaining the property or interposing a claim thereto, as aforesaid.

&c.

be commenced

SEC. 23. No suit shall be instituted on the bond Suit on bond, given by the plaintiff, as provided in this act, nor when it may against the officer who took the same, until an execution shall have issued on the judgment in favor of the defendant, in which it shall be returned, that sufficient property of the plaintiff cannot be found in the county, whereon to levy, and make the amount of said judgment.

APPROVED, January 23, 1839.

REVENUE.

AN ACT for assessing and collecting county revenue.

SEC. 1. Be it enacted by the Council and House of Representatives of the Territory of Iowa, That for the County compurpose of raising a revenue for county purposes, missioners to the board of county commissioners shall levy a tax levy a tax, and