marked in a plain manner across the face of each bond and coupon so refunded, and such canceled obligations shall be carefully preserved in the office of the county clerk, or destroyed by the county commissioners, a register of the number, amount and date of issue having been first made by the county clerk. The proper officers shall, at the time of issuing refunding bonds, make out and transfer to the auditor of state a certified statement of all proceedings had by the proper board or city council, as shown of record, and that the said bonds have been issued for value, in all respects in conformity to this act, for certain indebtedness surrendered, distinctly describing the bonds issued and the indebtedness surrendered, and that they have been duly registered by the attesting clerk and the county clerk, as required herein, which statement shall be in such form and include such other information as the auditor of state may require, and be signed by all the officers whose signatures are attached to such bonds, and attested by the proper clerk with the corporate seal of the county, city, township, school district, or board of education, if any, and be duly acknowledged before the county clerk; and the auditor shall, upon being satisfied that such bonds have been issued according to the provisions of this act, and that the signatures thereto of the officers signing the same are genuine, register the same in his office in a book kept for that purpose, and shall, under his seal of office, certify upon such bonds the fact that they have been registered in his office according to law. (Laws 1891, ch. 163, sec. 3.)

SEC. 26. Indebtedness Not to be Increased. [592.] In all cases in which any county, city, township, the board of education of any city, or school district, shall effect a compromise of its indebtedness under this act, at a rate of sixty-five per cent or less upon the amount of such indebtedness, and shall issue bonds therefor under the provisions of this act, such county, city, township, the board of education of any city or such school district so compromising at such a rate, shall never increase its indebtedness beyond the amount of such refunding bonds so issued under this act until the same are paid or liquidated, and any bonds that may be issued or indebtedness created in addition to such amount of refunding bonds so issued shall be absolutely null and void. (Laws 1879, ch. 50, sec. 5.)

SEC. 27. Annual Levy. [593.] In every instance in which any county, city, township, the board of education of any city, or any school district, shall issue bonds under this act, it shall be the imperative duty of the proper officers of such county, city, township, the board of education of any city, or of such school district, whose duty it may be to levy taxes, to annually levy, at the time of making the levy of other taxes,

a tax sufficient in amount to pay the interest upon said bonds and the coupons as they become due, and to create a sinkingfund as provided for in this act for the payment of the principal of such bonds; and if such officers fail or neglect to make such levy, it shall be the duty of the county clerk forthwith to levy such tax; and in case any such officer shall neglect or refuse to levy any such tax at the time aforesaid, and in case any county clerk shall neglect or refuse to extend such tax upon the tax-roll of the county at the proper time, then, and in that case, any such officer so neglecting or refusing to levy or extend such tax shall be severally and individually liable, and shall also be liable upon his official bond to the holder of any such bond or coupon falling due during the year for which such tax should have been levied or extended for the full amount thereof, as soon as the same is due, which liability may be enforced in a civil action in the name of such holder; and any such officer so neglecting or refusing to levy or extend such tax shall also be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and on conviction thereof shall be fined in an amount equal to the amount which it may be shown should have been so levied or extended during such year, or imprisoned in the county jail for a term of not less than three nor more than twelve months. (Laws 1879, ch. 50, sec. 6.)

SEC. 28. County Treasurer to Make Levy. [594.] Should the proper officers whose duty it is to levy the taxes to pay such bonds and coupons fail or neglect to make such levy as provided for in this act, it shall be the duty of the auditor of state, at any time thereafter, to ascertain the amount of interest and sinking-fund or principal of such bonds, accrued and to accrue during that year, and shall certify the amount thereof to the treasurer of the county in which such bonds were issued, setting forth the amount thus due, and whether from the county or from a particular city, township, the board of education of any city or school district within such county; and it shall be the duty of such county treasurer, immediately upon receiving such certified statement from the auditor of state, to proceed to ascertain from the assessment roll of the county the amount of taxable property in such county, city, township, the board of education of any city, or such school district, and what percentage is required to be levied thereon to pay said interest and sinking-fund or principal, and when so ascertained shall levy such percentage upon the taxable property of such county, city, township, the board of education of any city, or such school district, as may be liable thereto, and shall immediately place the same upon the tax-roll of the county, in a separate column or columns, designating the purpose for which said taxes are levied; and the said taxes shall be collected by the county treasurer of such county in the same manner that other taxes are collected. And should such

county treasurer neglect or refuse to levy such tax and place the same upon the tax-roll for collection, as herein provided, he shall be personally liable, and also liable upon his official bond to the holder of any such bonds or coupons then due for the full amount thereof, and shall also be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be imprisoned in the county jail for not less than three nor more than twelve months. (Laws 1879, ch. 50, sec. 7.)

SEC. 29. Sinking-fund. [595.] It shall be the duty of every county, city, township, the board of education of any city, and of every school district, issuing bonds under this act, and of the proper officers thereof, to create a sinking-fund, and to levy annually a sufficient tax therefor, for the redemption of such bonds, which shall be collected as other taxes, and paid into the treasury as provided by law for other taxes, and shall remain as a specific fund for the redemption of said bonds; the amount of which sinking-fund shall be as follows: In every instance in which bonds shall be issued under this act for twenty years or less, the quotient found by dividing the amount of the principal of such bonds by such number of years shall be the amount of sinking-fund to be levied each year for the redemption of such bonds; but in every instance in which such bonds shall be isued for more than twenty years, it shall not be necessary to create a sinking-fund, or to levy a tax therefor, until the twentieth year prior to the maturity of such bonds, at which time, and each year thereafter, one-twentieth of the principal amount of such bonds shall be levied as a sinking-fund for the redemption of such bonds; provided, that any county, city, township, the board of education of any city, or any school district issuing bonds under this act, may buy in and cancel any such bonds whenever the same can be done at or below par; and provided further, that such sinking-fund, when not required for the payment or purchase of bonds, may be invested in bonds of the United States or of the State of Kansas, and in no other manner; and provided further, that under the provisions of this act, the proper officers are authorized, if desirable, to issue instalment bonds, running thirty years, having coupons attached representing the semiannual interest to become due thereon; and each coupon attached to any instalment bond shall, after five years from its date, represent one-fiftieth of its principal, which amount shall be shown by separate words and figures aside from the interest represented in the coupon, and each instalment bond shall show upon its face that its principal is included in its coupons. (Laws 1879, ch. 50,. sec. 8.)

SEC. 30. Coupons Paid and Destroyed. [596.] Whenever the bonds or interest coupons issued under this act shall become due, they shall be, on presentation, promptly paid by the proper disbursing officer, out of the money in his hands collected for that purpose; and he shall indorse upon the face of

any bond or coupon paid by him, in red ink, the word "Paid," and the date of payment, and sign his name thereto, and at each settlement he shall turn over the bonds and coupons so paid and canceled, which shall be carefully preserved, or destroyed. (Laws 1879, ch. 50, sec. 9.)

SEC. 31. Penalty for Wrongful Use of Money. [597.] Any person who shall appropriate, use, or aid or abet in appropriating or using, any of the funds or moneys mentioned in this act, for any other purpose than as in this act provided, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and on conviction thereof shall be fined in a sum equal to the amount of money so appropriated or used, and imprisoned in the county jail for not less than three nor more than twelve months, and shall also be liable in a civil action for the amount misappropriated or used, to be prosecuted by any such bondholder or other party entitled thereto. (Laws 1879, ch. 50, sec. 10.)

SEC. 32. Coupons Receivable for Taxes. [598.] The interest coupons provided for in this act shall, as fast as they become due, be receivable in payment of taxes due to the particular county, city, the board of education of any city, the township or school district which may have issued such coupons, and shall be received by all collecting officers the same as cash, in payment of such taxes. (Laws 1879, ch. 50, sec. 11.)

SEC. 33. Merged districts May Refund Bonded Indebtedness. [7639.] That the officers of any school district or joint district, containing all, the greater amount or an equal amount to the largest fraction contained in any other existing district, of the territory of a school district heretofore or hereafter disorganized (under chapter 177 of the Laws of 1899, or chapter 305 of the Laws of 1901), are hereby authorized and empowered to compromise and refund the legally existing bonded indebtedness of the merged district and to issue refunding bonds in the manner and upon the terms prescribed by chapter 50 of the Laws of 1879 and the amendments thereto. (Laws 1903, ch. 430, sec. 1.)

SEC. 34. Form of Bonds. [7640.] Bonds issued under this act shall contain a recital that they are issued in pursuance of this act and of chapter 50 of the Laws of 1879 and the amendments thereto, and shall run in the name of the merged school district, and may be substantially in the following form:

No.......

STATE OF KANSAS.

MERGED SCHOOL-DISTRICT REFUNDING BOND.

BE IT KNOWN, That merged school district No. county, state of Kansas, is indebted to

$ . . . . . .

in the sum of per cent per

dollars, bearing interest from date at the rate of annum, payable semiannually, on the 1st day of January and July in each year, at the office of in the city of coupons are hereto attached.

and for which

This bond is one of .... bonds, amounting in the aggregate to $......

issued for the purpose of refunding the legally existing bonded indebtedness of said merged district, and in pursuance of chapter 430 of the Laws of 1903, and chapter 50 of the Laws of 1879 and the amendments thereto. The principal of this bond is made payable at the office of the in lawful money of the United States, on the 1st day of and for such payment the faith and property of the territory comprised in said merged district at the time of its disorganization is hereby pledged. Said merged district was disorganized on the .... day of 19..,

territory thereof was, on the

day of
county, state of

and the 19. ., incorporated with school district No. Kansas. The officers signing this bond hereby certify that all the requirements of law have been fully complied with.

IN TESTIMONY WHEREOF, This bond has been issued and signed by the director, attested by the clerk and countersigned by the treasurer of school district No. ....9 and registered by the county clerk. county of state of Kansas, this .... day

Dated at

of

19...

Signed:
Attested:

Director. ...Clerk.

Countersigned:

Treasurer.

SEC. 35. Commissioners to Levy. [7641.] It shall be the duty of the county commissioners of the county in which the territory of such merged district lies to annually cause to be levied upon the property, real and personal, in the territory of such merged district, a tax sufficient to meet the interest and provide a sinking-fund for the payment of the indebtedness so refunded. In case of the disorganization and merger of any joint district, such tax shall be levied by the county commissioners of the respective counties wherein the territory of the merged district lies, and the moneys arising out of said levies, when collected, shall be paid to the treasurer of the county having the greater amount of the territory of said district, in the manner prescribed by section 1, chapter 226, of the Laws of 1889. (Laws 1903, ch. 430, sec. 2.)

SEC. 36. Suits against Merged Districts. [7642.] Suits may be brought by or against merged districts respecting bonds so issued, and the school-district officers issuing said bonds or their successors shall appear for and in behalf of said merged district. (Laws 1903, ch. 430, sec. 4.)

SEC. 37. May Take up Merged-district Bonds. [7643.] That the qualified voters of any school district or joint district containing all of the territory of two or more school districts heretofore or hereafter disorganized may, by a majority vote thereof, at a special election called for that purpose, vote to issue the bonds of such joint district for the purpose of refunding or taking up of the bonds of the merged or disorganized district contained in such joint district. Such bonds shall recite that they are issued in pursuance of this act, and shall run in the name of the joint school district; provided, that no greater amount of bonds shall be issued under this act than the total amount of bonds outstanding of the merged districts whose territory is contained in such joint district. (Laws 1903, ch. 430, sec. 5.)