CHARTERS OF, AND A CJ S STOf'McSgr KEL AT 39QKSTACKS Ofr ICE JERSEY CITY: NARINE & CO., PRINTERS. 1853. I \ I JVSc J I Ul z AC Reference to Charter, Sets, &t. Charter of Jersey City as passed March 18, 1851, and Amended March 26, 1852. Title I.—Of the Boundaries and civil divisions of the city_ u II.—Of the Officers of the city—their election, duties, and term of office_........ u III,—Of the Constitution and duties of the Common Council, “ IV.—Of the powers of the Common Council.... ....... 0 “ V.—OfTaxes, and their collection.... .......... .... ^ “ VI.—Of Improvements, and assessments therefor...... . “ VII.—Of the Auditing of Claims against the city.... .... “ VIII—Miscellaneous provisions........ J An Act for the appointment of Commissioners in relation to supplying the townships of Hoboken, Van Vorst, and the city of Jersey City, with pure and wholesome water, passed March 18, 1851............. i-S An Act to authorize the construction of works for supplying Jersey City ^ and places adjacent, with pure and wholesome water............ * Names of the Presidents and Clerks of the Boards of Selectmen of Jersey oC City, from 1820 to 1837....... Names of the Mayors and Clerks of Jersey City, to the year 1850.__ Names of the Chairmen and Clerks of the Township Committees of Van Vorst township, from 1841......— __ •Names of the Mayors, Clerks, and Aldermen of Jersey City, for 1851 and o n 1852 vCharter to Town and Freeholders of Bergen, 1668..... ^.An Act to Incorporate “The Associates of the Jersey Company”__ An Act to Incorporate the city of Jersey, in the county of Bergen, passed January 28, 1820 - -.... An Act to Incorporate the city of Jersey, in the county of Bergen, and Repeal the former Act, passed January 23, 1829. A Supplement to the Act, entitled An Act to Incorporate the city of Jer¬ sey, in the county of Bergen, passed March 8, 1836.. An Act to Incorporate Jersey City, passed Feb. 22, 1838.. ? A Supplement to the Act, entitled An Act Incorporating Jersey City, pass- § ed March 8, 1839. r Supplement to an Act, entitled An Act to Incorporate Jersey City, pass¬ ed March 11, 1841. ✓ 1 I L A -V PAGE. 5—44 5 7 17 20 25 31 3S 40 45 47 58 59 59 60 61 67 75 78 85 87 104 ! 108 ix rv 4 A Supplement to the Act, entitled An Act Incorporating Jersey City, pass¬ ed March 1, 1844..... 109 A further Supplement to the Act, entitled An Act Incorporating Jersey City, passed February 27, 1847................. 109 A further Supplement to the Act, entitled An Act Incorporating Jersey City, passed February 25, 1848.. —. .— __ 110 An Act to authorize the Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City to raise by loan for a term of years, $15,000, passed February 24, 1849, 112 An Act to set off the township of Van Vorst, in the county of Hudson, passed March 11, 1841...... 113 A Supplement to the Act, entitled An Act to set off the township of Van Vorst, passed Fob. 29, 1844.... 117 A further Supplement to an Act to set off the towmship of Van Vorst, pass¬ ed Feb. 12, 1845. 123 A further Supplement to an Act to set off the township of Van Vorst, pass¬ ed March 26, 1846..... 124 An Act to amend the several Acts relating to the township of Van Vorst, passed Feb. 25, 1848... 125 An Act to enable the township of Van Vorst to grade, pave, curb, and drain the Newark turnpike road within its limits, passed February 28, 1849. 133 A Supplement to the Act, entitled An Act to amend the several Acts relat¬ ing to the township of Van Vorst. passed March 6, 1850.. 134 An Act to Incorporate the Jersey City Gas Light Company, passed March 1, 1849. 137 A Supplement to the Act, entitled An Act to Incorporate the Jersey City Gas Light Company, passed March 24, 1852.-.. 140 A further Supplement to the Act, entitled An Act to Incorporate Jersey City, Feb. 22, 1838, passed March 5, 1850___......... 141 A Supplement to an Act, entitled An Act to Incorporate Jersey City, Mar. 18, 1851, passed Feb. 25, 1853..__ ....____...... 141 An Act to amend an Act, entitled An Act to authorize the construction of works for supplying Jersey City and places adjacent, with pure and wholesome water, March 25, 1852, passed Jan. 18, 1853..__ 142 A further Supplement to the Act, entitled An Act to authorize the busi¬ ness of Banking, Feb. 27, 1850, passed Feb. 25, 1853..... 143 An Act to authorize so much of the Records in the office of the Clerk of the county of Bergen, as relates to the county of Hudson, to be trans¬ cribed and certified, passed March 9, 1853...... 144 An act to regulate the Rates of Ferriage at the Hoboken and Jersey City Femes, passed March 10, 1853.-... 146 An Act to ratify and confirm an agreement respecting the territorial limits and jurisdiction between New York and New Jersey, passed Febru¬ ary 26, 1834. 149 An Act to regulate the selling of grain, passed Feb. 16, 1838...... 155 An Act to regulate the standard of weights, passed Feb. 19, 1835.- 155 t' s AS PASSED BY THE legislature of tjju Itate nf Mm march IStBa, 1S51, AND AMENDED BY AN ACT OF THE SAID LEGISLATURE, Passed March £6th, 1S555. Hit Set ta litearpmate %txm ) City TITLE I. Of the boundaries and civil divisions of the city. 1. Be it enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the Boundaries of State of New Jersey, That the city of Jersey City shall here¬ after consist of all the territory included within the following boundaries, that is to say : commencing at the southwest cor¬ ner of block number seventy-six, as shown on the map of property of Cornelius Van Vorst, being the intersection of South and Dutch streets; and from thence south, sixty degrees east, to the middle of the Hudson river ; thence up the middle of said river, and parallel with Hudson street, to a point in said river, bearing south, sixty degrees east, from the mouth of Harsimus, or Mill creek; thence north, sixty degrees west, to the mouth of said Mill creek ; thence up the middle of said creek, to the first branch or sprout thereof; thence, in a north¬ westerly direction, till it meets the Hoboken embankment; thence, along the southerly side of said embankment south- 6 t'onstiluled a body politic. Boundaries ot first ward. Boundaries of second ward. westerly, to the bridge on the Hoboken turnpike road, near the foot of the hill; thence, along the easterly line of said Hoboken turnpike, to a point on the same, near the first bend or curve of the road, and from which point the spire of Trinity church, New York, bears south, forty-three degrees forty-five minutes east, and the spire of the Presbyterian church, Jersey City, bears south, twenty-three degrees east; thence south, thirty-three degrees west, to the centre of the bridge on the turnpike leading from Jersey City to North Bergen; thence south, thirty-one degrees west, to the Mill creek, or Creek of the woods, on the south side of the New Jersey railroad. thence, down the middle of said creek, to the mouth thereof, where the same empties into Communipaw cove or bay; thence to the corner of said block number seventy-six, the place of beginning. And all citizens of this state, who now are or hereafter may be inhabitants within said limits, shall be, and are hereby con¬ stituted a body politic and corporate, by the name of “ the Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City,” with all the powers incident to a municipal corporation, and necessary for the purpose of carrying out the objects of this act. 2. And be it enacted , That the said city shall be divided into four wards, in the manner following, to wit: All that part of the said city lying south of a line beginning in the middle of the Hudson river, at a point opposite the middle of the street now called York street, and from said point or place of beginning to run westerly up to and along the middle of said York street to the middle of Henderson street, and east of a line drawn thence southerly along the middle of Henderson street, as far as the same extends, and thence in the direction of said line south to the southerly boundary line of the said Jersey City, shall constitute the first ward of said city. And all that part of the said city lying north of the aforesaid line, extending from the middle of the Hudson river up to and along the middle of York street to the middle of Henderson street, and east of a line running from thence, northerly, along the middle of Henderson street, to and across Newark avenue, to the middle of Prospect street, thence continuing along the middle of Prospect street, northerly, to the middle of Harsi- mus street, and south of a line running thence eastwardly along the middle of said Harsimus street, as far as the same runs, and thence in the direction of that line, easterly, to the middle of the Hudson river, shall constitute the second ward of said city. And all that part of the said city lying west of the middle of Boundaries of r J J ° t third ward. Henderson street aforesaid, and south of the middle of Newark avenue, and southwesterly of the Newark turnpike, or avenue, to the westerly and southerly boundary lines of said city, shall constitute the third ward of the said city. And all the residue of the said city shall constitute the fourth Fourth ward, ward thereof. TITLE II. Of the officers of the city, their election , duties, and term of office. 3. And he it enacted, That the city officers shall consist of a City officers, mayor, a treasurer, a clerk of the city, an overseer of the poor, a chief engineer of the fire department, a school superintend¬ ent, a street commissioner, two or more city surveyors, two assessors, one to be a resident of the first or second ward, and the other a resident of the third or fourth ward, and one col¬ lector of taxes, and one collector of arrears of taxes, who shall hold their offices for one year, and a recorder, who shall hold his office for five years. The mayor, recorder, school superintendent, assessors and Election and ap- J ’ 1 \ pomtrnent ofoffi collector, shall be elected at the charter elections; and the cer3 - city clerk, treasurer, overseer of the poor, street commis¬ sioner, collector of arrears of taxes, and city surveyors, shall be appointed by the Common Council, a majority of whom shall be necessary to a choice; and the chief engineer of the fire department shall be elected by the members of said depart¬ ment, subject to the approval of the Common Council. 4. And he it enacted , That the ward officers shall be for Ward officorg each ward, three judges of election and four aldermen ; as many constables in each ward as the Common Council shall determine by resolution, passed two months before the elec¬ tion ; two chosen freeholders; a clerk, who shall be clerk of 8 election, and shall perform all other duties required by law of the clerks of the townships in this state, as far as the same are not otherwise provided for by this charter; two surveyors of the highways, one poundkeeper, and one commissioner of ap¬ peals ; and the aldermen of each ward shall perform such du¬ ties as, by the laws of the state, devolve ex officio on the town committeemen in the other townships of this state. Each ward con- And each ward, for general purposes not provided for by ship. this act, shall be considered a township ; and each of the two city assessors shall, in the meeting of county assessors, have the same voice as the assessors of any two townships in the county. Time and mode 5. And be it enacted , That the city election shall be held on the second Tuesday in April, in each year, at such place in each ward as the Common Council shall designate; the election shall be held and conducted by the judges of election and the clerk of election, at the same hours, in the same manner, and under the same regulations, in all things, as prescribed by law for the state elections for members of the Legislature, except that the return of the election shall be made to the city clerk within forty-eight hours after the closing of the polls, which return shall be a full, true, and correct copy of the original statement of the result of such election made by said judges, and shall be signed by them with their own hands, and attested by the clerk; and the city clerk shall, when he receives said return, immediately file the same in his office, as an offi¬ cial paper. 6. And be it enacted , That every person who would, by the existing laws of the state, be entitled to vote at an election for members of the Legislature, if held on that day, shall be enti¬ tled to vote at the charter election; and every person voting shall vote in the ward where he shall actually reside at the day of the election, and in no other. 7. And be it enacted , That the person or persons receiving the greatest number of votes, of those given in the city, for any city office, and of the votes given in each ward, respectively, for an office in that ward, shall be elected to that office. 8. And be it enacted , That the judges of election in each ward, in every such election, shall appoint one of their num- Who entitled to vote. Election de¬ clared. Statement of re¬ sult to he deliver¬ ed to city can¬ vassers. 9 ■A r> ber to attend the meeting of the board of city canvassers, hereinafter provided for, as a member thereof, and shall de¬ liver to the judge, who shall be so appointed, the original statement of the result of such election in such ward, which shall have been made, signed, and certified, as hereinbefore directed; and it shall be the duty of the judges of election, who shall have been so appointed, to attend the meeting of the board of city canvassers for such election, as members thereof. That the judges of election, to whom the original state- Board, how con ments of the result of such election in the wards to which they respectively belong shall have been delivered, as directed in the preceding section of this act, together with the members of the board of aldermen whose term of office will not expire till after the next succeeding charter election, shall constitute the board of city canvassers; a majority of said board shall be a quorum, and the city clerk shall be clerk of said board. That such board shall meet on the Friday next after such Meeting ofboard election, at five o’clock in the afternoon of that day, at the Common Council Chamber in said city, and at that hour, with¬ out delay, the members of said board who shall be then pre¬ sent, if more than six in number, shall proceed to choose one of their number, who shall be chairman thereof; and as soon as such chairman shall be appointed, it shall be his duty to ad¬ minister to each of the other members, and of each of the other members to take an oath or affirmation, in the following form: “Ido swear, (or affirm, as the case may be,) that I will _ , faithfully and impartially execute the duties of a member of bers - this board of city canvassers, according to law;” and there¬ upon one of the members of said board shall administer to said chairman, and said chairman shall take an oath or affirma¬ tion in the same form as that taken by the other members of such board; and if the city clerk shall be absent at such meet¬ ing, at the time appointed therefor, the board shall forthwith, after the oaths or affirmations shall have been administered, as hereinbefore directed, proceed to appoint a fit person to be clerk of such board ; and before proceeding to canvass and estimate the votes, the chairman of the said board shall ad¬ minister to the clerk thereof, and the said clerk shall take an Oath of clerk. oath or affirmation in the following form : “ 1 do swear, (or affirm, as the case may be,) that I will faithfully execute the duties of clerk of this board, according to law;” thereupon the judges of election, who shall be present as members of said board, shall produce the original statements which shall have been delivered to them, respectively, as hereinbefore directed, and lay the same before such board; and from them the said board shall proceed to ascertain the votes given at such elec¬ tion, for the several persons voted for thereat, for the several offices mentioned in such statements. Certified copy of 9. And be it enacted , That if any of the judges, who shall be used?if n or!gi- have been appointed to attend the meeting of the board of city duced?° 1 r ° canvassers, as a member thereof, shall be unable to attend such meeting, on the day appointed therefor, he shall, at or before the hour of five o’clock in the afternoon of that day, deliver or safely transmit to the city clerk the original state¬ ment of the result of the election, which shall have been de¬ livered to him, as herein before directed; and if, from any cause, such original statement shall not be produced to said board of city canvassers at the time appointed for the meeting of said board, the city clerk shall produce and lay before the said board the certified copy thereof, filed in his office; and thereupon the said board shall proceed to make their state¬ ment and declaration from such certified copy, in the same manner and with the same effect, as if the original statement had been produced by the judge of election, to whom the same was delivered. Written state- 10. And be it enacted , That the said board of canvassers made, ma k e a wr itten statement of the whole number of votes given for Mayor of said city, as well as for the several other offi¬ cers to be elected for said city, and the several wards thereof, the names of the persons for whom such votes were given, and the number of votes given for each. statement of 11. And be it enacted , That upon such statement, the board board to be filed. - .. . ' _ , . , shall proceed to determine and declare what person or per¬ sons have received the highest number of votes for each of the offices mentioned in such statement; in case any two or more persons shall have received an equal number of votes for the same office, the Common Council shall determine between 11 them; the statement and final declaration of the board shall be certified by the presiding officer and clerk, and filed in the office of the city clerk. 12. And be it enacted , That the clerk shall keep proper statement and - 1 declaration to be minutes of the proceedings of the board, and enter the same, published, with the statement and declaration of the board, in the book of minutes of the Common Council; said statement and decla¬ ration shall, within one week thereafter, be published in one or more of the newspapers printed in said city; and within ten days after the board shall have determined what persons have been elected to the several offices in said city, the said clerk shall cause written notices of his election to be given to each of the persons so elected. 13. And be it enacted, That all elections, hereafter to be state and county elections. held within the said city, for members of the Senate and Gene¬ ral Assembly of this State, for sheriff, clerk, surrogate, and coro¬ ners of the county of Hudson, and for members of Congress, and electors of President and Vice President of the United States, or for any other officers of the general or state govern¬ ments, or officers of said county of Hudson, to be elected by the people, shall be held in the several wards of the said city, at the places therein appointed by the Common Council for holding the city elections, on the day or days which now are, or hereafter may be designated for holding such elections; the polls shall be opened at seven o’clock in the forenoon, and closed at seven o’clock in the afternoon; and the judges of election, before mentioned, shall preside at and conduct all such elections; and the clerks of the said wards shall be the clerks of such elections in their respective wards; every per¬ son in said city, entitled to vote at such elections, shall give his vote in the ward wherein he actually resides at the time of such election, and not elsewhere; and in case any person, at any election whatever held in said city, shall vote, or offer his vote, in a ward in which he is not entitled to vote, he shall be liable to the penalty prescribed in the fiftieth section, chapter first, of the act entitled, “ An act to regulate elections,” ap¬ proved April sixteenth, eighteen hundred and forty-six, to be sued for and recovered, in the name of the clerk of the ward 12 Mode of conduct¬ ing elections. Powers and du¬ ties ofthe mayor. where the offence shall be committed, in an action of debt, with costs, and applied to the use of the poor of said city. 14. And be it enacted , That the said judges of elections shall take the same oaths, and conduct such elections, and make re¬ turns thereof, in the same manner as township officers of elec¬ tions are or may be by law required to do, and shall be vested with the same powers and authority, entitled to the same com¬ pensation, and perform the same duties, and be subject to the same penalties, as the like officers of the townships of this state are or may be by law vested with, allowed, or subject to; and in case of the absence, death, incompetency, or refusal to serve, of any of the said officers of elections, at any election provided for by this act, such vacancy or vacancies shall be supplied in the manner prescribed by law for supplying such vacancies in the townships of this state; and the clerks of the said wards, respectively, shall procure election boxes for the use of their wards, in such manner and of such descriptions as are required to be procured by the township clerks of this state, and be subject to the same penalties as township clerks are subject to for neglecting to procure such boxes, and keep¬ ing the same in repair. 15. And be it enacted , That the Mayor shall be elected an¬ nually, and no person shall be eligible to that office unless he shall have resided in the city at least two years, and attained the age of thirty years ; it shall be his duty to see that the laws of the state and the ordinances of the city are faithfully exe¬ cuted therein, and to recommend to the Common Council such measures as he may deem' necessary or expedient for the wel¬ fare of the city; as the head of the police of the city, he shall maintain peace and good order therein, and shall have power to suppress all riots and tumultuous assemblies, and to cause to be arrested, without process or warrant, and to commit for trial, all persons violating, or whom he has reason to believe have violated, the laws of the state, or ordinances of the city; he shall possess the same powers and authority in criminal cases with which justices of the peace are invested; he shall have power to suspend any watchman for cause, to be by him assigned to the Common Council in writing; in case of his ab¬ sence from the city, or his inability to perform the duties of his « 13 office, the President of the Common Council shall, during the continuance of such absence or inability, be vested with the powers, and execute the duties of the Mayor. 16. And be it enacted, That the Recorder shall have all pow- Recorder. ers in criminal matters, that justices of the peace in and for the several counties of the State now have, and shall have like powers as are given to the Mayor, to cause to be arrested and committed without process any person have reason to believe guilty of any crime or misdemeanor, or breach of the peace, and to try all causes and complaints aris¬ ing from the violation of any city ordinance. 17. And be it enacted, That the Recorder of said city be, and Recorder au- been guilty of a violation of any of the ordinances of the said city, to issue a process, either in the nature of a summons or of a warrant, as to him may seem most advisable, against the person or persons so violating such ordinance, which process shall, when in the nature of a warrant, be returnable forthwith, and when in the nature of a summons, be returnable in five entire days; that such process shall state what ordinance the defendant or defendants, named therein, has or have violated, and in what manner the same has been violated; and that on the return of such process, or at the time to which the Recor¬ der shall have adjourned the same, the said Recorder shall pro¬ ceed to hear testimony, and to determine and give judgment in the matter, without the filing of any pleadings ; and that the Recorder shall, if judgment be rendered for the plaintiff, forth¬ with issue execution against the goods and chattels, and per¬ son, of the defendant or defendants; provided, that in all cases Proviso, where the fine or penalty shall exceed twenty dollars, or where the punishment may be imprisonment, there may be a trial by jury, to be conducted as in cases now triable by jury in the courts for trials of small causes, and also an appeal, as in cases where appeal may now be had from judgments in courts for the trial of small causes; and provided also, that in Proviso, all cases an appeal may be made to the Common Council for a remission of any penalty that may be inflicted or adjudged. 2 14 Penalty for not. deliveringover books, &.c ., to successor in office. Officers to take oath or affirma¬ tion. Duties of Treasu¬ rer. Money not to be paid except on warrant. 18. And be it enacted, That if any person having been an officer of the said city, shall not, within ten days after he shall have vacated or been removed from the office, and upon noti¬ fication and request by the city clerk, or within such reasonable time thereafter as the Common Council shall allow, deliver over to his successor in office all the property, books, and pa¬ pers belonging to the city, or appertaining to sucli office, in his possessic^i or under his control, he shall forfeit and pay to the city the sum of five hundred dollars, to be sued for and recov¬ ered with costs. 19. And be it enacted, That every person elected or appoint¬ ed to any office in pursuance of this act, or of any law or ordi¬ nance of the Common Council, shall, before he enters upon the duties of such office, take and subscribe, before the Mayor, City Clerk, or some person authorized to administer the same, an oath, faithfully, fairly, and impartially to execute the duties of his office, according to the best of his knowledge, skill, and ability, and file the same in the office of the City Clerk ; and if any such person shall neglect to take such oath for twenty days after receiving notice of his election or appointment, or shall neglect, within the said twenty days, to give such security as may be required of him, he shall be considered as having de¬ clined such office, and the same shall be deemed vacant; and whenever any vacancy shall occur in any of the offices in which, by this acf the Common Council may make appoint¬ ments, it shall proceed to appoint suitable persons to fill such vacancies. 20. And be it enacted, That the Treasurer shall receive, safely keep, and disburse, under the direction of the Common Coun¬ cil, all moneys belonging to, or under the control of the city; he shall also keep an accurate account of all receipts and pay¬ ments, and make returns thereof monthly, or oftener if requi¬ red, in such manner as the Common Council shall direct. No money shall be paid out of the treasury, except on war¬ rants signed by the Mayor or acting Mayor, and countersigned by the City Clerk—except for the payment of bonds of the city, and certificates of indebtedness for improvements given by the city, and interest on the same, and moneys paid into the .city treasury for the redemption of property sold for taxes and as- 15 sessments; and no warrant shall be drawn on the Treasurer by said officers, except in pursuance of an order of the Common Council, passed at a stated meeting of the Board, and entered in their minutes ; all such warrants shall be numbered, and made payable to the order of the person or persons entitled to receive the same, and shall specify for what purpose the amount therein mentioned is directed to be paid. It shall be the duty of the Clerk, before he delivers any war- Warrants to be • recorded, rant so drawn, to enter in the margin of a book, to be provided for the purpose, to be called “the Warrant Book,” opposite to said warrant, the number, date, and amount of the same, the date of the order or resolution authorizing it to be drawn, the purpose for which it was ordered, and the name of the per¬ son or persons to whose order the same is made payable, and to take his or their receipt in said book, at the end of said mar¬ ginal entry, for the said warrant. 21. And be it enacted , That the City Clerk shall, in addition Duties of Clerk, to the duties in this act required of him, have charge of all the records, books, papers, and documents of the city, except when the Common Council shall by ordinance otherwise direct; coun¬ tersign all licenses signed by the Mayor, and keep the record of the proceedings of the Common Council; he shall engross all the ordinances of the Common Council, in a book to be provided for that purpose, with proper indexes, which book shall be deemed a public record of such ordinances, and each ordinance shall be signed in said book by the Mayor or acting Mayor and said Clerk; copies of all papers duly filed in his office, and transcripts thereof, and of the records and proceed¬ ings of the Common Council, and copies of the laws or ordi¬ nances of the said city, certified by him under the corporate seal, shall be evidence in all courts and places; he shall also receive and pay over to the Treasurer all moneys which by any law or usage are paid to the Clerk of the city. 22. And be it enacted , That the Overseer of the Poor and Su- Overseers of perintendent of Schools, shall respectively perform such duties intendent of Pei as by the laws of this State now appertain to and devolve upon the Overseers of the Poor and Superintendents of Schools in the several townships of this State, except as changed by this act, or any ordinance passed by virtue thereof, and shall, in addition 16 Commissioners of Appeal. City Surveyors, Street Commis¬ sioner, &c. Members of Council may ar¬ rest offenders. Official terms of officers elected. Official terms of appointed officers. Certain officers to give bond. thereto, perform such other duties, and receive such compen¬ sation as the Common Council shall by ordinance direct and award. 23; And be it enacted , That the Commissioners of Appeal shall have the same powers, and perform the same duties, and be entitled to like compensation that Commissioners of Appeals in the several townships of the State now have, or hereafter may have; and, in addition, they shall have the power to ex¬ amine the person or persons appealing in cases of taxation under oath, as to the valuation or amount of the chattels assess¬ ed against them respectively; and it shall be the duty of the said commissioners to receive the oath of any person appeal¬ ing, when offered by him, relative thereto. The City Surveyors, Street Commissioner, Chief Engineer of the fire department, and Marshal shall respectively perform such duties, and receive such compensation as the Common Council shall by ordinance direct and award. 24. And be it enacted, That every member of the Common Council shall have the power, and it shall be his duty, without warrant, to arrest, or cause to be arrested, any person engaged in his presence in disturbing the public peace, or violating any law of the State or ordinance of the city, for the preservation thereof, or of good order or morality, and to bring, or cause such persons to be brought, before the Recorder, or some other magistrate, to he dwelt with according to law. 25. And be it enacted , That the official term of the several persons who shall be elected in pursuance of this act, shall com¬ mence on the first Monday of May next after their election, and they shall continue in office until the end of their term. 26. And be it enacted , That the official term of the city officers who shall be appointed by virtue of this act shall com¬ mence on the second Monday of May in every year, arid they shall continue in office until the end of their term, and until others are appointed and qualified in their place, unless remov¬ ed, as herein provided ; and no apponitments for the full term shall be made more than one week prior to the commence¬ ment of the said term. 27. And be it enacted , That the City Treasurer, City Clerk, Collector of Taxes, and Collector of Arrears of Taxes, and such 17 other officers as the Common Council may require, shall, be- fore they enter on the duties of their office, give bonds to the city, in its corporate name, in such sums and with such secu¬ rities as the Common Council may approve, for the faithful per¬ formance of their duties. And all Constables shall give bonds to the city, in the manner required by law, with sureties, to be approved of by the Common Council. 28. And be it enacted, That for the election of Justices of Justices of the PG3iC6 the Peace, each ward shall be considered as a township, and until the next census, each ward shall be entitled to two Justices only. 29. And be it enacted, That all fines inflicted by ordinances, Fines, shall, when received, be paid into the city treasury. TITLE III. Of the Constitution and duties of the Common Council. 30. And be it enacted , That the legislative power of said Common corporation shall be vested in a Mayor and a Board of Aider- men ; the Board of Aldermen shall constitute and be called the Common Council. 31. And be it enacted, That the Board of Aldermen shall Board of Aider- consist of the aldermen, elected from each ward; and every alderman shall, at the time of his election, be an elector of the ward in which he shall be chosen, and shall have been a resi¬ dent of the city for at least two years immediately previous thereto, and shall have attained the age of twenty-five years. 32. And be it enacted, That the Board of Aldermen, first Aldermen to be divided into elected under and by virtue of this act, shall, at their first meet- classes, ing after their election, divide the aldermen of each ward by lot into two equal classes, one of which shall go out of office at the expiration of the first year, and the other at the expira¬ tion of the second year; and that on the second Tuesday in April, of the year one thousand eight hundred and fifty-two, and every year thereafter, the said wards shall respectively, elect two persons as aldermen of said ward, who shall hold such office for two years; and in case of the death resignation, or other disability of any alderman, a person shall be duly elect¬ ed to fill the unexpired term. 18 Vacancies how 33. And be it enacted. That in case any alderman shall, after supplied. ... . . his election or during his term of office, remove out of the ward in which he shall have been elected, his office shall be deemed vacant, and he shall no longer act as an alderman; any aider- man may also resign his office, at any time, by filing written notice thereof with the Clerk of the Board ; and the Common Council shall have power to direct a special election to supply any vacancy that may occur, but the person so elected shall hold his office only for the residue of the term so vacated. Quorum. 34. And be it enacted , That a majority of the Common Council shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of busi¬ ness, but a smaller number may adjourn from day to day, and compel the attendance of absent members. President of 35. And be it enacted , That the Common Council shall annu- Council. ally elect a President from its own body, and in his absence a President for the time being, choose officers, appoint its time and places of meeting, determine the rules of its own proceed¬ ings, be the sole judge of the qualifications of its members, keep a journal of its proceedings, and may expel a member for disorderly conduct, or a violation of its rules, or declare hi§ seat vacated by reason of absence, provided such absence be continued for the space of two months ; but no expulsion shall take place, except by vote of two-thirds of all members elect¬ ed, nor until the delinquent member shall have had an oppor¬ tunity to be heard in his defence. Ordinance to be 36. And be it enacted , That every ordinance of the Common signed by Mayor. Q oun( qp anc l every resolution of the Common Council affecting the interests of the city, shall, before it. takes effect, be pre¬ sented, duly certified, to the Mayor, and the report of the Clerk shall be conclusive evidence that the said ordinance has been so presented to the Mayor; if he approve it, he shall sign it, if not, he shall return it with his objections, and file the same with the Clerk within ten days after he received it; and the said Board shall, at its first regular meeting thereafter, order the objections to be entered at large on its journal, after which it shall proceed to reconsider the same; and if two-thirds of all the members elected shall then pass the same, it shall take effect as a law ; but in every such case the votes shall be taken by ayes and noes, and entered on the journal; and if such or- \ it Vi 19 dinance or resolution sliall not be so returned by the Mayor, within ten days after he has received it, it shall become a law, in like manner as if he had signed it; provided always, that Proviso, each and every ordinance, so passed as aforesaid, shall be pub¬ lished for the space of twenty days, in at least one newspaper published or circulated in said city, before said ordinance shall go into effect; provided also, that no ordinance or by-law shall Proviso, be enacted or passed by the said Common Council, unless the same shall have been introduced before the said Common Council at a previous stated meeting, and shall have been agreed to by at least nine of the members of the Common Council. 37. And be it enacted , That the Common Council shall, at Annual state- mentof receipts least once a year, not more than thirty, nor less than twenty andexpendi- tures, to bo days before the annual city election, publish, in such of the published, newspapers printed in the city as they shall designate, a full statement of all the receipts and expenditures, of every description, for the fiscal year preceding such statement, in¬ cluding all the moneys which have passed through the hands of the Treasurer, for any purpose whatever, together with the different sources of city revenue, the amount received under each, the several appropriations made by the Common Council, the objects for which the same were made, and the sums ex¬ pended for each ; also any moneys borrowed upon the credit of the city, whether by temporary loans or by the issue of bonds, the terms upon which they were obtained, the authority under which they were borrowed, and the purposes to which they were applied, and how much of the same, or other city in¬ debtedness, has been repaid, and by what means. The statements shall also include a detailed account of the city property, existing debts of every description, and the con¬ dition of the sinking fund, with all such other information as may be necessary for a full understanding of the financial con¬ cerns of the city. 38. And be it enacted, That the Common Council shall hold Meetings ofCom- stated meetings, at least once in each month, at such times and place as they may appoint; but the Mayor, or, in his absence, any three aldermen, may call special meetings, by notice to each of the members of said Council, served personally, or left at his usual place of abode. 20 Resignation. Vacancies. Removal from office. Proviso. Members of Council not to hold office when emoluments are paid from city treasury. 39. And be it enacted, That resignations of any office, held under the provisions of this act, may be made to the Common Council. The Common Council may fill vacancies in any office pro¬ vided for by this act, for the remainder of the current civil year, excepting in the case of justices of the peace or aldermen. 40. And be it enacted, That any officer, except the Mayor, may be removed from office for cause by the resolution of the Common Council; provided, that no such removal shall take place until the party sought to be removed has had an oppor¬ tunity to be heard in his defence, nor unless two-thirds of all the members elected vote therefor; whenever any such re¬ moval shall take place, the cause therefor, together with the ayes and noes upon the vote taken, shall be entered at large on the journal of the Common Council. 41. And be it enacted, That no member of the Common Council shall, during the period for which he was elected, be appointed to, or competent to hold any office, the emoluments of which are paid from the city treasury, or be directly or in¬ directly interested in any contract, work, or business, or the sale of any article, the expense, price, or consideration of which is paid from said city treasury, or by any assessment levied by any act or ordinance of said Common Council; nor shall any such member be directly or indirectly interested in the purchase of any real estate or other property belonging to the corporation, or which shall be sold for taxes or assessments, or become security for any officer appointed by said Common Council, or for any contractor under the city government. TITLE IV. Of the powers of the Common Council. Ordinances. 42. And be it enacted, That the said Common Council shall have power to pass, alter, and repeal ordinances, to take effect within said city, for the following purposes: Public buildings. 1. To manage, regulate, control, and protect the finances and property of the city, and for the building, erecting, and maintaining a town house, school houses, alms house, and work house, a city prison, and such other buildings as may be neces¬ sary for the objects of this charter. 21 2. To establish, regulate, and control a day and night police, Police, and to regulate and define the manner of their appointment and removal, their duties and their compensation. 3 . To establish, regulate, and control a fire department, Fire department, with power" to exempt its members from militia duty in time of peace, and from serving as jurors in courts for the trial of small causes, and the mode of their removal and appointment; to provide fire engines, apparatus, and houses therefor, and, for the purpose of guarding against fire and providing for the safety of firemen, to regulate the manner of building dwelling houses and other buildings, and of constructing and placing engines, chimneys, ovens, flues, pipes, and all matters connected there¬ with, and the keeping of lights in stables, and the manufacture and keeping of gunpowder, fire works, and other dangerous and combustible articles ; and to provide water for extinguish¬ ing fires, to limit the height, and prevent, in certain limits, to i v be from time to time prescribed by ordinance, the erection of wooden buildings. 4. To provide lamps for, and to light the streets, wharves. Lamps, docks, and piers, and public squares of the city. 5 . To make and regulate wells, pumps, and cisterns in the Pumps, &e. public streets and squares. 6. To make and lay out all streets, squares, and public Grading,paving, ^ 1 and regulating grounds, upon all and every part of said premises, and to es- streets. tablish such as have already been laid out; and for planting and protecting shade trees, and from time to time to regulate the same; and to regulate and govern the levelling, pitching, and constructing- of the said streets, and the raising and the ♦ O 7 o levelling of all lots and grounds for buildings, as well public as private ; to ascertain and establish the boundaries of all streets and public alleys in said city, and to prevent and re¬ move all encroachments, encumbrances, and nuisances in or upon the same ; to pave, McAdamize, gravel, and plank, and curb, and gutter the streets; to flag the sidewalks; to fill sunken lots; to repair the sidewalks, or any of them, or any part thereof; to reset the curb and gutters in the streets; to compel the occupiers and owners of lots to curb and flag the sidewalks opposite their lots, and to keep the same and the gutters swept and clean, and clear of snow and ice and other 3 22 Docks, wharves and piers. Proviso. impediments; to prevent horses, cattle, swine, and geese from running at large in the streets, and to provide for the impound¬ ing and sale of the same, and the destruction of diseased quad¬ rupeds ; to prevent immoderate driving in the streets, and riding or driving over or upon the sidewalks, and to regulate the speed and running of locomotive engines and railroad cars through said city; to construct and build sewers and drains in and from the public streets and squares, and such alley ways as may be dedicated for draining purposes; to regulate the building of vaults and the laying of water or gas pipes in or under the streets, and, in every other respect, to secure to the public and the adjoining owners the safe and convenient use of the streets and sidewalks, squares and public grounds, for the purposes for which they are, or may be laid out and dedicated. 7. To order and regulate the building of all docks, piers, and wharves in and about said city, and to regulate said docks, wharves, and piers, and the use thereof when built, and the rates of wharfage, and to make such by-laws and regulations touching the same, not inconsistent with the laws of this State and the United States, as to them may appear proper and necessary, and to order and direct that all lands under water, between high water mark and the place where such dock, wharf, or pier may be built or extended, and for such width as they may^deem advisable, shall be filled in by the owner of such dock, wharf, or pier, or of the shore or shore right from whence such dock, wharf, pier, or filling up may be directed ; and in case more land is thus filled in than may be necessary for the use of said wharf, as a wharf or dock, to lay out proper streets upon the same ; and the residue thereof, not wanted for wharves or streets, may be appropriated to his own use, and sold by the owner of such shore or dock, so directed to con¬ struct or extend said dock, and to fill up said lands, upon his complying with such directions; but the parts reserved for public streets and a wharf shall be held by such person, or his assigns, for such purposes only; provided , that the improve¬ ments contemplated by this paragraph, shall not be made with¬ out the consent of a majority in interest of the owners of the shore in front of which the proposed improvement is to bo made; and 'provided also, that the shore owner shall not pre- Provieo. T3 vent the improvement by the owners, with the consent of the Common Council, of any lands heretofore granted by this State. 8. To declare, by general law, what shall be considered Nuisances, nuisances in lots, streets, docks, wharves and piers, and to di¬ rect, provide for, and to enforce their removal; and to provide for the sale or other disposition of all encumbrances on the streets, side walks,. docks, wharves and piers. 9. To provide health laws, and establish a board of health, Board of health, and to enact all such ordinances as they may deem necessary to protect the health of the city. 10. To establish a board of education, and provide for their Public schools, appointment; to define their powers and duties; to order and regulate public schools, and every thing appertaining thereto, in such manner as they shall deem expedient; to expend and appropriate such portion of the State school fund as shall be apportioned to Jersey City, or the wards composing the same, in the same manner as the city taxes for the support of public schools are expended. 11. To license, regulate, or prohibit inns or taverns, and to inns and taverns, prohibit all traffic in or sale of intoxicating drink or drinks ; and to license, regulate and prohibit hawkers, pedlers, hucksters, butchers, slaughter houses, and markets, on such terms and under such regulations and penalties as the Common Council shall by ordinance impose; and no other license for such pur¬ poses within said city, granted by any other authority, shall be lawful, except licenses granted by the Governor to hawkers and pedlers. 12. To license auctioneers, carmen, hack drivers, omnibus Auctioneers,car- drivers and porters, and to prohibit all persons, not so licensed, versj&c. from following the employment of a common auctioneer, car¬ man, hack driver, omnibus driver, or porter in said city. 13. To provide that the said aldermen, or a majority of^®P® r h ° a f r ^ them, in Common Council assembled, by not less than nine masters > &c - concurring votes, shall and may from time to time, elect and appoint keepers of the city prison, harbor masters, measurers of grain, weigh masters, cullers of staves and heading, inspec¬ tors of beef and pork, pot and pearl ashes, lumber and fire wood, coal and other fuel, and such subordinate officers and agents of said city, not herein named, as they shall think neces- 24 Gaming houses, &c. Rbts. Violation of ordi¬ nances. Interments, &c. Dogs. Fishing. Common Coun¬ cil may borrow money. Proviso. sary, either for the better ordering and governing the said city, or for the convenience, safety, and advantage of c6mmerce, and to define and prescribe their powers and duties; which officers, so appointed, shall continue in office until others shall be appointed to succeed them, and be sworn into office. 14. To prevent and suppress gaming houses, and to prohibit gaming, and to restrain and punish all mendicants, vagrants, street beggars, and common prostitutes. 15. To suppress riots, disorderly and tumultuous assemblies, and to suppress vice and immorality. 16. To punish, by fines or imprisonment in the city prison, all violations of any ordinance authorized by this act, and to provide all means which they may judge necessary to carry into effect the objects and powers provided for by this act; and no fine shall exceed fifty dollars, or imprisonment ten days. 17. To regulate or prohibit interments within the city, and bathing in the adjacent waters, and the exhibition of shows, caravans, circuses, or other like matters, and the firing of guns, fire crackers, or other fire works in said city. 18. To restrain all dogs from running at large, and to au¬ thorize their destruction. 19. To regulate or prohibit the setting up or fixing of any pole or poles, for fishing in the waters within the limits of the city, whereby the lives of persons may be endangered, or the navigation obstructed. 43. And be it enacted , That it shall be lawful for the said Common Council of Jersey City to borrow money, from time to time, for all purposes for which by this act they are autho¬ rized to raise money by tax, and to secure the payment there¬ of, by bond or other instrument, under the common seal and the signature of the Mayor, and to provide by tax for the pay¬ ment thereof; provided, that it shall not be lawful for the said Common Council to raise any sum by loan, whereby the pay¬ ment of the said loan shall not be otherwise provided for than by tax upon the persons and property in said city, unless at least ten aldermen, in Common Council convened, and the Mayor shall approve the same, and then there shall not be a greater sum than ten thousand dollars raised by loan in any one year; unless the repayment thereof shall be provided for / ✓ 25 from the taxes to be raised in said city in any such year; and the said city shall not owe more than seventy-five thousand dollars at any one time. TITLE V. Of Taxes, and their collection. 44. And be it enacted, That it shall be lawful for the Com- Common Coun- ~ . cil authorized to mon Council to raise, by tax every year, so much money as raise money by i • • • tcLX* they may deem expedient, for the purposes of lighting the streets, supporting a night watch, supplying the city with wa¬ ter to extinguish fires, and other purposes; for repairing the • streets, for improving the public grounds, maintaining the poor, supporting and maintaining public schools, erecting and main¬ taining market houses, school houses, a city hall or town house, a city prison, an alms house and work house, for contingent expenses, and all other purposes authorized by this charter; and that the ordinance directing the raising of said tax, shall set forth the amount required for each object, and that the ex¬ penditures for such specification shall be confined to the ob¬ jects therein specified, and be appropriated to no other; which tax shall not exceed, in any one year, five mills on a dollar, of the actual value of property assessed. All taxes for city purposes shall be assessed by the two As- Mannerofas- • • • • sessment find sessors, acting together, within the time directed by the laws collection. of this State for assessing township, county, and State taxes, in the manner following: They shall assess a poll tax on every male resident over the age of twenty-one years, who is not a pauper, not less than one dollar, or more than two dollars, which shall be a school tax, and appropriated to the support of public schools; they shall also assess all real estate and chattels, situate in the city, both of residents and nonresidents, except such real estate and chat¬ tels belonging to religious corporations or churches, or used or occupied by or for schools or academies, as is by law exempt from taxation by the assessors of townships, and also the real estate and chattels belonging to the Mayor and Common Coun¬ cil of Jersey City; by valuing the same at its true, full, fair value, designating the number of lots or parcels of land, and Collector to make return to delin¬ quent tax payers. Proviso.. 26 the value of personal chattels, which they assess to each per¬ son ; and every person owning or having in his charge any lands or chattels in said city, shall, on application of said asses¬ sors, or either of them, disclose and specify the quantity and situation of such lands, and the amount, nature, and value of such chattels. And if any person refuse to answer or give such information, when required, the said assessors shall value his real estate and chattels at double the amount which they may believe the same to be worth ; and such person shall have no relief therefrom, before the Commissioners of Appeal, except for so much as ex¬ ceeds the double value of his estate. And the residue of such city tax, after deducting the amount raised by the poll tax, shall be assessed and raised by such per centum on the whole valuation of such real estate and chattels, as is required to make such residue; and all taxes, so assessed for city purposes, shall be collected by the Collector, in the same manner as he is by law directed to collect township, county, and State taxes, and shall be paid over by him to the city Treasurer, as soon as collected and before the thirtieth day of December, in each year. 45. And be it enacted , That the Collector of the said city, in case of the nonpayment of taxes, on or before the twentieth day of December in each year, shall make out a list of the names of the delinquents, with the sums due from them, respec¬ tively, thereto annexed, and deliver the same to the Clerk of the said city on the thirtieth day of December, in every year, except when the said day shall be Sunday, and then on the next day following; and it shall be the duty of such Clerk to lay the same before the Common Council, at a meeting there¬ of, held next after the same shall be delivered to him; and thereupon the said Common Council may deliver the same to a Justice of the Peace, residing in said city, who shall proceed and issue a tax warrant thereon, as provided by law in case of taxes in townships, which shall be directed and delivered to the Collector of arrears of taxes, who shall have power to collect the same, in like manner, in all things, as the Constables in townships are directed by law; provided , that such Collector shall, before he delivers such list to the said Clerk, take and subscribe an oath or affirmation, before some Justice of the 27 Peace of the said city, that the moneys in the said list men¬ tioned have been duly demanded, or due notice thereof given at the usual place of residence of each delinquent who could be found, or may then reside in the said city. 46. And be it enacted , That whenever, within the said city, interest to be any tax shall remain unpaid after the twentieth day of Decern- paid taxes? her in every year, it shall be lawful for the Collector of arrears of taxes to charge, receive and collect, in addition to the amount of said tax, interest thereon, to be computed, at the rate of twelve per centum per annum, from the twentieth day of December, in each year, until the same is paid ; and such interest shall be paid over by the said Collector of arrears of taxes to the Treasurer of said city, in like manner and at the same time as he may be required to pay over to said Treasurer all taxes by him collected. 47. And be it enacted , That if any person or persons, from Collector author- whom any tax shall hereafter be due and payable to the said teres? hf certain city, for state, county, or city purposes, shall pay the same, or cabes ‘ any part thereof, to the collector of the said city, before the time appointed by law for the said collector to return a list of delinquent tax payers, it shall be lawful for the said collector to allow and deduct from the amount of said tax, so paid, in¬ terest thereon, to be computed at the rate of six per centum per annum, from the time when the said tax shall be received by the said collector, until the time appointed by law to make such return of the list of delinquents aforesaid; provided, that no- Proviso, thing herein contained shall be so constructed as to exempt the said Common Council, or the Collector of said city, from pay¬ ing over to the Treasurer of this State, or the Collector of Hud¬ son county, the full quota of taxes required by law to be raised in said city for State and county puposes. 48. And be it enacted , That all taxes and assesments, which Real estate may be sold for pay- shall hereafter be assessed or made upon any lands, tenements, ment of taxes, or real estate situate in said city, shall be and remain a lien thereon until paid, notwithstanding any devise, descent, alien¬ ation, mortgage, or other encumbrance thereof; and that if the full amount of any such tax or assessment shall not be paid and satisfied within the time limited and appointed by the Common Council for the payment thereof, it shall and may 28 Proviso. Proviso. be lawful for the Common Council to cause such lands, tene¬ ments, or real estate to be sold at public auction, for the shortest term for which any person will agree to take the same, and pay such tax or assessment, or the balance thereof, remaining unpaid, with the interest thereon, and all costs, charges, and ex¬ penses, and to execute under the common seal of the said city, a declaration of such sale, to be signed by the Mayor and City Clerk, and to deliver the same to the purchaser; and such purchaser, his executors, administrators, or assigns, shall, by virtue thereof, lawfully hold and enjoy the said lands, tene¬ ments, or real estate, for his and their own proper use, against the owner or owners thereof, and all persons claiming under him or them, until his said term shall be completed and ended; provided , that the said Common Council shall first have caused such sale to be advertised, for at least sixty days, in at least one public newspaper, printed and published in said city, and and if no newspaper shall be printed and published in the said city, then in at. least one public newspaper generally circulated in the said city, and also by advertisements put up in at least five public places in the said city, which advertisements shall describe the said lands, tenements, or real estate, and specify the amount of the assessment or tax ; and the recitals in such declaration of sale shall be evidence of the assessment, adver¬ tising, and sale; and provided also , that the lands, tenements, or real estate, so sold, may be redeemed by the owner, mort¬ gagee, occupant, or person interested therein, or by any other person, for and on behalf of the owner, mortgagee, or claim¬ ant of such lands, tenements, or real estate, at any time with¬ in two years after the sale, for either taxes or assesments, or for both, by paying to the Treasurer of the city, for the use of said purchaser, the said purchase money, together with any other sum paid for tax or assessment, which the said purchaser may have paid, chargeable on said lands, tenements, or real estate, and which he is hereby authorized to do, with interest thereon, at the rate of fifteen per centum per annum, in ad¬ dition thereto ; and the certificate of the Treasurer of the city, stating the payment, and showing what lands, tenements, or real estate such payment is intended to redeem, shall be evi¬ dence of such redemption. 29 The mortgagee shall have power to redeem, at any time, Mortgagee may until after the expiration of the six months’ notice, herein specified. No mortgagee whose mortgage shall have been duly recorded before sale, for any tax or assessment, shall be affected by such sale, unless six months’ notice in writing shall have been given to him by the purchaser, or those claim¬ ing under him, either personally, or if not to be found in the city, then such notice shall be deposited in the post office of said city, directed to him at his last known place of residence, (or at the post office nearest thereto;) but nothing herein con¬ tained shall be so construed as to impair the lien created by such tax, assessment, or sale. Within a month after the ser¬ vice of such notice by the purchaser, or by those claiming un¬ der him, it shall be the duty of the person serving, or causing the same to be served, to file in the City Clerk’s office a copy of the notice served, together with the affidavit of some person, who shall be certified by the officer before whom said affidavit shall be taken, to be a credible person, proving the due service of said notice, which affidavit shall be evidence in all courts of the facts therein contained; and provided also , that the said Proviso, term of time for which any land, tenement, or real estate, so sold as aforesaid, shall not commence, nor shall said purchaser, or those claiming under him, have a right of possession to said land, tenement, or real estate, until the two years limited for the redemption of the same shall have expired; and the said purchaser, or those claiming under him, shall, at the expiration of said declaration of sale, quit and surrender the said lands, tenements, or real estate'in as good state and condition as when he entered thereon, natural wear and accidents excepted ; pro- Proviso. vided also , that the sale of such lands, tenements, or real estate, or any portion of them, may be adjourned or postponed from time to time, or suspended, as the Common Council may di¬ rect; and provided, that if, at any sale of lands, tenements, or ^ 0 a ^ n ™ci y be ad * real estate, for assessment or taxes, the whole, or any part thereof, shall remain unsold for the want of purchasers, then it shall and may be lawful for the said Common Council to ad¬ journ the said sale, not less than thirty, nor more than sixty days; twenty days’ notice, at least, shall be given, as aforesaid, 4 30 Assessments, &c , to be a lien on property. Record of taxes and sales to be kept. Notice to be giv¬ en of time for re¬ demption. of* the said adjourned sale ; and if, at said adjourned sale, there shall be no purchasers for said lands, tenements, or real estate, or any part thereof, then it shall and may be lawful for the Treasurer of the city to purchase the said lands, tenements, or real estate for the benefit of the city, subject to the same re¬ demption as herein before provided for; provided also, that all moneys paid for the redemption of said lands, tenements, or real estate, as aforesaid, together with such taxes and assess¬ ments paid by a mortgagee or judgment creditor, shall be a lien on said lands, tenements, or real estate for the amount so paid, with interest at the rate of seven per centum per annum ; and such lien shall have precedence of all other liens on said lands, tenements, or real estate; and on foreclosure of any mortgage by such mortgagee redeeming, shall be directed to be made out of said lands, and, on sale of said lands under any such judgment, shall be paid out of the proceeds of sale; pro¬ vided further , that a complete record of all taxes and assess¬ ments shall be kept in the City Clerk’s office, which record shall contain the time when such assessments and taxes were laid, the time when they were paid, (and if the property has been sold therefor) the time of said sale, and to whom sold, and if redeemed, when and by whom. It shall be the duty of the City Clerk to record, in a book to be called “Records of Sales,” all declarations of sale, to give certificates of search in relation to liens, to any person or perons applying for the same, and to cancel such declarations, when the property for which they were given shall be redeemed, on certificate of the Trea¬ surer of such redemption, and to file said certificate in the Clerk’s office. It shall be the duty of the Treasurer to make out two certificates for all property redeemed, one for the person redeeming, and one to be filed in the City Clerk’s office. 49. And he it enacted y That it shall be the duty of the Com¬ mon Council to give notice of the expiratioii of the time limit¬ ed for the redemption of all lands sold for assessments or taxes, by virtue of this act, by advertisement as aforesaid, sixty days next preceding the expiration of the time so limited for redemp¬ tion, specifying the property unredeemed, and the amount due thereon. 31 50. And be it enacted , That all State and county taxes shall Assessment ami collection ofState be assessed by the Assessors, in like manner and upon the same and county taxes, property, as city taxes are assessed, and they shall be collected by the Collector in like manner as city taxes are collected by him, and shall be paid over by him to the county collector in like manner and under like penalties as township collectors are directed by law; provided however , that the proportion or quota Proviso of tax to be levied and collected in said city, for state and coun¬ ty purposes, shall be adjusted and fixed, from year to year, upon the same basis or ratio as by the laws of this State is or may be adjusted and fixed for the several townships in this State, for which purpose the Assessors shall make a list of such persons and property as are by law liable to such taxes. 51. And, be it enacted , That the Common Council shall es-Lamp and watch tablish, by ordinance, certain limits in said city, to be called fabiished? be 63 the lamp and watch district, and shall, in directing taxes to be raised each year, designate how much is to be raised for the expenses of lighting the streets and supporting a night watch, and shall provide that such taxes shall be assessed only on property lying within such lamp and watch district; and the Assessors shall assess such taxes separately from all other taxes, and shall assess \thepi only on pyppe^ty vyithin the lamp and watch district. TITLE VI. Of Improvements , and assessments therefor. / 52. And be it enacted , That all expense for improvements in Assessments for . .. p,,. .. . opening streets, opening, altering, widening, filling up, grading, altering the & G . grade of, refilling, guttering, curbing, bridging, planking and paving streets, and for flagging sidewalks, and for filling and refilling sidewalks, and for repairing and resetting flagging in or on the sidewalks, and for repairing and resetting cufb and gutters, and bridge stone and bridging, and for filling sunken lots, and for building wells, pumps, cisterns, drains and sewers, shall be assessed upon, and paid by the lands and real estate benefited by the same, in proportion to the benefit received. All propositions,for such improvements, except for opening, Notice of assess, altering, altering the grade of and widening streets, and con- menttobe s iven * structing sewers, shall be advertised by the Common Council, 32 Proviso. in one or more of the city papers, for twenty days before the same are adopted; and the parties interested shall, if they de¬ sire, have an opportunity of being heard thereon, before the Common Council, or their appropriate committee; provided , that for paving any street, or portion of a street, lying without the limits of the improved part of said city, or upon which there are no buildings erected, the consent of the owners of a ma¬ jority of the lots to be assessed therefor shall be first had and obtained ; and the expenses of such improvements, when com¬ pleted, shall be ascertained and assessed by three impartial commissioners, not interested therein, who shall be appointed, by the Common Council, from the freeholders resident in the city; which commissioners shall examine into the whole mat¬ ter, and shall determine and report in writing to the Common Council, what real estate ought to be assessed for such improve¬ ment, and what proportion of such expenses shall be assessed to each separate parcel or lot of land, and shall accompany such report w T ith a map containing each lot assessed, and the name of the owner or owners thereof; which report and map shall be filed in the office of the City Clerk, and be by him recorded in the assessment book, whereupon the said Clerk shall cause to be inserted in at least one of the newspapers published in said city, for at least ten days, a notice of the filing of said re¬ port, and that the Common Council will meet at a time and place to be specified in said notice, to consider said assessment, and to receive and consider all objections thereto which may be presented in writing, and if the Common Council shall con¬ firm said assessment, it shall constitute a lien on the property assessed, for the amount of such assessment. 53. And be it enacted , That the Common Council shall not without "consent alter the grade of any street, which has been fixed by any law¬ ful authority, and which has been built upon, unless by the consent of the owners of three-fourths of the lots fronting on the part so altered, nor without paying to the owners of such buildings the damages sustained by the alteration of such grade. Lands may be ta- 54 . And be it enacted , That the Common Council shall have ken on payment of value. power to take any lands that they may judge necessary for the opening, widening, or alteration of any street, upon paying to Grade of streets not to be altered 33 the owner the fair value of the lands taken, and of the improve¬ ments thereon, and the damage done to any distinct lot or par¬ cel, or tenement, by taking part of it for such purpose ; jprovi- Proviso. ded } that any street upon or along any navigable waters, within the limits of said corporation, shall not be widened so as to give the Common Council or corporate authorities of Jersey City any right or interest in, or control over, any docks, wharves, or piers used for ferries, conjmercial, or other pur¬ poses, or to deprive the owner or owners of such docks, wharves, and piers of their right, as riparian owners, or of any franchise or authority as shore owners. 55. And be it enacted , That when any application shall be Applications for ^ 1 A > opening streets, made for opening, altering, or widening any street, or altering &c. the grade of any street, or for constructing any sewer, the Com¬ mon Council shall appoint a time when persons interested therein may be heard before them, or the appropriate com¬ mittee, on the merits of such application, and shall give notice of the nature of such application, and the time and place of hearing, in one or more of the city papers, for ten days before such time of hearing; and if the Common Council shall deter¬ mine to open, alter, or widen said street, or alter the grade of said street or any part thereof, or to construct such sewer, they shall, after determining and defining the precise improve¬ ment to be made, appoint three judicious disinterested free¬ holders, residents of said city, commissioners, who shall deter¬ mine what lands and real estate will be benefited by said improvements; and shall estimate the whole cost of said im¬ provement, according to the best of their judgment; and shall cause a survey and map to be made of said improvement, and of the lots or parcels of land benefited thereby, dis¬ tinguishing each lot or parcel by numbers on said map; and shall assess such estimated costs upon said lands to be benefit¬ ed thereby, in proportion to the benefit received by each lot or parcel in said map, estimating the benefit to be done to the residue of any lot or parcel, of which part may be taken for such improvement in the same manner as to other lands; and they shall also estimate and report the value of lands taken for such improvements, and the erections thereon, and the damages aforesaid done by taking the same, and shall report to whom Remonstrances against improve¬ ments. Assessment of expenses. Persons aggriev¬ ed may appeal. Saul lands so taken belong, and the interest and estate of tbo several owners in the same, as far as practicable, and shall fde said report and map with the City Clerk in ninety days after their appointment; except on applications for the construction of any sewer, in which cases the said commissioners shall file said report and map with the City Clerk, within thirty days after their aj>pointment; the City Clerk shall give notice of the filing of any such report and map within ten days after the same shall be filed with him, in one or more of the city papers, and continue the same for two weeks; and unless, in thirty days after the filing of said report, one half of the owners of the lands to be assessed for such improvements, shall file with the City Clerk a remonstrance, signed by them, or their agents, lawfully authorized, said Common Council shall proceed to execute said improvements. But if such remonstrance shall be filed, the Common Coun¬ cil shall proceed no further in such improvement under that application; and all costs and expenses incurred by the Com¬ mon Council in such proceeding, shall be repaid to the city by the petitioners for such improvements and the Common Coun¬ cil may make such regulations, touching the receiving and pro¬ ceeding upon such petitions, and security for the expenses thereof, as they may deem proper. And if no such remonstrance be filed, then the amount re¬ ported by said commissioners, as the value of any lands to be taken, and the damages by taking the same, shall be the sum to be paid by said Common Council to the respective owners of said lands; and the expenses of said improvements, when completed, including all interest and the costs of the proceed¬ ings, shall be assessed upon the property reported by said com¬ missioners as benefited thereby, and in the proportion reported by them. If the owner of any lands taken who has filed a remonstrance against any such impi'ovements, is dissatisfied with the value and damages reported by said commissioners, or if the owner of any lands assessed who has filed a remonstrance against any assessment, is dissatisfied with such assessment, he may apply to the Justices of the Supreme Court, at their term held next after the end of twenty days from the. expiration of the time 4 35 limited for filing a remonstrance, as above provided, giving ten days’ notice of such application to the City Clerk, or, in his absence, to the Mayor; and said Justices, or a majority of them, at said term, upon petition by such person dissatisfied, setting forth the causes of his complaint, shall appoint three disinterested persons commissioners, who shall be the same in all applications regarding the same improvement; such com¬ missioners shall meet on ten days’ notice, given by any of said persons so applying to each of the others, or to his attorney, if either reside in the city, and to the City Clerk, and shall pro¬ ceed to examine the premises, with power to send for and ex¬ amine persons and papers, and to swear witnesses, and to com¬ pel their attendance, and the production of papers, by process of subpoena to issue out of the Supreme Court, and shall re¬ view the proceedings of the said commissioners appointed by the Common Council, so far only as the complaint of the ap¬ plicants to the Supreme Court is concerned, and shall report* in writing under their hands, to the Common Council, their estimate of the value of such lands taken and damages, and their assessment of such expenses on lands benefited, which report shall be filed with the City Clerk, and shall be conclu¬ sive on all parties; and the costs of their appointment, and of the proceedings of said commissioners, shall, in case their re¬ port is more favorable to the applicant than that of the first commissioners, be paid by the city, and added to the expense of the improvement; and in case such report is not more favor¬ able to any applicant than the first report, then said applicant shall pay all such costs and expenses; and the proportion of such costs paid by the city shall be deducted from the sum to be paid to him or assessed upon his property by the Common Council, and shall become a lien thereon, and collected there¬ from in the same manner as the assessment for such improve¬ ment ; and in case the lands, so valued or damaged by such taking, shall be held by a tenant for life or years, and the fee in remainder or reversion, such commissioners shall, in their report, apportion such value and damages between them; and in case any lands assessed shall be held by a tenant for years or life, and such tenant shall pay such assessment, or the same be made by a sale of his interest in said lands, said tenant, or 4 Assessment book to be kept. Assessments, how paid to ■owners. his legal representatives, shall, at the termination of their es¬ tates, be repaid such principal sum by the reversioner, his heirs or assigns, and shall have a lien upon said lands for the same; and may, by bill in Chancery, have said lands sold to pay such lien, and the proceedings thereon in the Court of Chancery, except the allegations in the bill, shall be the same as if said reversioner had given a mortgage on said lands, and said bill was filed for the foreclosure thereof; and such lien shall have priority of all other encumbrances. And after any improvement authorized by this act shall be completed, all the costs and expenses of making the same shall be reported to, and settled by the Common Council; and the proportion of each lot or parcel of land, designated on the original assessment map, shall be fixed and settled by a reso¬ lution of the Common Council, according to the provisions of this act; which resolution shall be recorded by the City Clerk, in a book kept for that purpose, to be called the assessment book, and shall be signed by the President of the Common Council and the City Clerk; which book, or a transcript there¬ of, certified by the Clerk under the city seal, shall be conclu¬ sive evidence of such assessment. And whenever within said city any assessment on any lot or parcel of land, shall remain unpaid for thirty days after the confirmation thereof by the Common Council, it shall be law¬ ful for the Common Council to charge, receive and collect, in addition to the amount of said assessment, interest thereon to be computed at the rate of twelve per cent, per annum from the time of confirmation of such assessment until the same is paid. The due publication and posting of all ordinances and notices required to be published or posted by the provisions of this act, shall be verified by the affidavit of the printer of the newspapers in which such publication shall be made or his fore¬ man, and of the person who posted such notice; and such affi¬ davit shall be filed in the office of the City Clerk, and shall be evidence of such publication and posting in all Courts and places. 56. And be it enacted , That upon completing the report of the commissioners, assessing the value of lands taken, and the 37 f damages thereby, the city Treasurer shall tender and pay to the owner of said lands, if resident in the city, the amount of such assessment due to him; but if such owner is not resident in the city, or upon due inquiry cannot be found therein, or is a lunatic or idiot, or an infant, or if for any other lawful cause he is incapacitated to receive the same, or if such owner will not accept the same, and sign a proper receipt therefor, when tendered, then the city Treasurer shall make affidavit of such facts, and file the same with the City Clerk; and the Common Council shall, after inquiry into the facts of the case, direct the amount of such assessment to be placed, either in the city treasury or in some safe bank, for the use of the person to whom the same may be due ; and upon filing such receipt of the owner, or the passing of such resolution by the Common Coun¬ cil, the said lands shall be vested in the city, and the city offi¬ cers may proceed with such improvements, and the said mo¬ neys so deposited shall be'paid by the city to the person enti¬ tled thereto, on demand, without interest, except from such time as a demand may be made, and payment refused. 57. And be it enacted , That any assessment, or estimate of Assessments J may be reviewed value and damages, made by any commissioners under this act, an(l3et askle * that may be made upon principles contrary to law and to the provisions of this act, may be reviewed, and for such cause set aside by the Supreme Court, upon certiorari; and the said Court shall, in the case of setting aside any such assessment or valuation, appoint new commissioners to examine into and re¬ port anew, as to the part set aside. And, for the purpose of such examination, the Supreme Court may require, by rule, the commissioners to certify spe¬ cifically as to the principle on which their assessment was made, or may inquire into the same, by affidavits to be taken for that purpose; and the city, in case of reversal, shall pay the costs on such certiorari, and add the same to the expenses of the improvement. 58. And be it enacted, That the Common Council shall not Restriction, alter any street or public highway, in such manner as to cut off any lot that shall front upon or adjoin the same from access thereto, without the consent of the owner of the lot so cut off; 5 I 38 Commissioners ofassessmentsto to take oath. Grading and paving public streets, grounds, cil of Jersey City shall, as soon as can conveniently be done sesto be erected. after this act goes into effect, erect and provide, out of the funds and at the expense of said city, suitable public school houses, fire engines and engine houses, in the territory that is now the township of Van Vorst, to an amount equal to the excess of the debt of the Mayor and Common Council of Jer¬ sey City over that of the township of Van Vorst, beyond their respective available assets at the time this act takes effect. 70. And be it enacted , That the Mayor and Common Council of Jersey of Jersey City shall be liable to the debts, claims, and rights in Vorst - action, which said Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City and the inhabitants of the township of Van Vorst, or either of them, now are liable to, and may be sued and prosecuted for the same in any court, by adding, in the declaration or other proceeding, to the statement of the cause of action, that by virtue of this act they are liable to be sued for the same. 71. And be it enacted , That the Common Council shall have Salaries of offi- power to fix the salary, pay, or compensation of all officers, ceiS ‘ both elected and appointed, except the aldermen, by general ordinance, and the salary or compensation of any officer, which has once been fixed, shall not be increased during the continuance of his term in office. 72. And be it enacted , That all ordinances of the Mayor and Former ordi- i\ftnc68 Common Council of Jersey City, as at present incorporated, that may be in force when this act shall go into effect, so far as the same may be applicable to the city hereby incorporated, and so far as not inconsistent with this act, shall be in force until altered or repealed by the Common Council hereby created. 73. And be it enacted , That the first charter election under First charter this act shall take place on the second Tuesday in April next; elnc,lou ' and it shall be held by one judge, two inspectors of election, and one clerk, in each ward; those of the first and second wards to be appointed by the present Common Council of Jersey City, and those for the third and fourth wards by the present Town Committee of Van Vorst township, and shall be 42 held at such place in each ward as the said body appointing such officers shall direct. And the said Common Council and Town Committee shall cause notice of the appointment of such officers and such places for holding the polls to be pub¬ lished for at least seven days before the day of election, in each of the public newspapers published in the city hereby incorporated ; and the present Town Committee of Van Vorst, ' and such five members of the Common Council of Jersey City, as said Common Council shall appoint for that purpose, shall meet at the Common Council chamber, in Jersey City, on the morning of Friday next after such election, at ten o’clock, and be a board of canvassers of such election ; and one of the . judges of election in each of said wards shall bring, in person, to such board of canvassers the statement of the votes given in his ward, as made and certified by the board of election in such ward ; and from such statements, the said board of canvassers shall then aud there make a statement of the whole number of votes cast for each person voted for in said election, and shall declare the person who shaft have received the greatest num¬ ber of votes for any office, elected thereto ; the said board of canvassers shall sign their names to said statement and decla¬ ration in duplicate, and shall forthwith publish such declara¬ tion in each of the public-newspapers printed in said city, and shall deliver one copy of such statement and declaration to the Clerk of Jersey City and one to the Clerk of the town of Van Vorst. Inhabitants not 74. And be it enacted. That upon the trial of any issue, or incompetent wit- .... A •nesses in trials upon the iudicial investigation of any fact, to which issue or where city is r v ° P art y- investigation the Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City is a party, or in which it is interested, no person shall be deem¬ ed an incompetent judge, witness, or juror, by reason of his being an inhabitant, freeholder, or freeman of the said' city; and that if any person shall be sued or impleaded by reason of any thing done by virtue of this act, it shall be lawful for such person to plead the general issue, and give this act and special matter in evidence at the trial. Election to be 75. And be it enacted , That this act shall be suspended, and or'rejection of° n ^ ave no further force or effect, if the assent of a majority of the charter. electors of Jersey City, or a majority of the electors of the 43 township of Van Vorst, who shall vote thereon, shall be re¬ fused, and for that purpose a poll shall be opened in Jersey City and in the township of Van Vorst on the twenty-seventh dav of March next, at the hour of seven o’clock in the fore- noon, and kept open till the hour of seven o’clock in the after¬ noon of that day, under the direction of the judges of the last election in the said city and township, respectively, and at the place in each township where the last election was held, of which time and place the Mayor and Common Council of Jer¬ sey City and the Township Committee of Van Vorst shall give at least one week’s previous notice in both the newspapers printed and published in Jersey City ; and the electors entitled to vote in either place for town officers, who may vote, shall express their assent or refusal of this act, by depositing their ballots in a box provided for the purpose in said city and township; and the electors who are in favor of this law shall each deposit a ballot containing the word “Charter,” written or printed thereon, and the electors who are opposed shall each deposit a ballot with the words “No charter,” written or printed thereon; and a canvass and return of the votes shall be made by the said judges to the Township Committee of Van Vorst and to the Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City, respectively, and published in the newspapers above men¬ tioned; and if a majority, in either place, of the electors who shall vote at such election shall vote “No charter,” then this act shall not be of any further force or effect; and the present Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City, and all the offi¬ cers of said city, and the Town Committee of Van Vorst, and all township officers, shall continue in office, and have all the powers and authority now vested in them by law, until the Common Council first elected under this act shall be sworn into office and organized, from which time said two present corporate authorities shall cease and determine, except so far as provided for in this act, or necessary to carry out its pro¬ visions. 76. And be it enacted , That all acts in relation to Jersey Former City and the township of Van Vorst, inconsistent with the pro- f>ealed ‘ visions of this act, are hereby repealed ; but the repeal shall acts re * \ 44 Justices of the peace and com missioners of deeds. « Act may be re¬ pealed. Vested rights of persons and in¬ corporations. not affect any proceedings had or commenced under the same when this act takes effect, nor any rights or dues to which the said city or township, or any person or persons, is or are en¬ titled by virtue thereof. 77. And be it enacted , That the present justices of the peace and commissioners for acknowledgment and proof of deeds, for Jersey City and Van Vorst, shall continue in office for the residue of their terms, as justices and commissioners, respect¬ ively, in that ward in which they respectively reside at the passage of this act. 78. And be it enacted , That the legislature may at any time alter, amend, or repeal this act; and this act shall be a public act, and take effect immediately. 79. And be it enacted , That nothing in this act contained shall be constructed to interfere with or impair the vested rights and privileges of any person or corporation whatever, except as to property taken for public use upon compensation, as provided for in this act. Approved March 18, 1851. I 45 State of Ncto Jersey. AN ACT For the appointment, of Commissioners in relation to supplying the townships of Hoboken, Van Vorst, and the city of Jersey City, with pure and wholesome water. Passed March 18th, 1851. 1. Be it enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the Names of Com- State of New Jersey, That Edwin A. Stevens, Edward Coles, Dudley S. Gregory, Abraham L. Van Boskerck, and John D. Ward, shall constitute a Board, to be known as the Water Commissioners for the aforesaid places. 2. And be it enacted , That it shall be the duty of the said To make exami- nations and esti- Commissioners to examine and consider all matters relative mates, to supplying the said townships of Hoboken, Van Vorst and Jersey City with a sufficient quantity of pure and wholesome water for the use of their inhabitants, and the amount of mo¬ ney necessary to effect that object. 3. And, be it enacted , That the said Commissioners shall Have power to ill employ survey- have power to employ engineers, surveyors, and such other ors,«s present a copy of the said report to the Town Committees of of Jersey City" 011 the said townships of Hoboken and Van Vorst, and to the Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City, on or before the first day of December, in the year eighteen hundred and fifty- one, and their said report shall be made and presented by them to the Legislature on the second Tuesday of January, eighteen hundred and fifty-two. Expenses by whom to be paid. 6. And be it enacted, That all reasonable expenses to be incurred under this act shall be paid by the aforesaid places equally, but no compensation to be paid or allowed to the said Commissioners for their services. t l 47 tate of ‘Nti d Jersey. ACT To authorize the construction of works for supplying Jersey City and places adjacent , with pure and wholesome water. Whereas, by an Act of the Legislature, passed eighteenth Preamble. March, eighteen hundred and fifty-one, certain Commissioners were appointed to examine and consider all matters relative to supplying Hoboken, Van Vorst and Jersey City, with a suf¬ ficient quantity of pure and wholesome water, for the use of their inhabitants, and the amount of money necessary to effect that object; and the said Commissioners having performed the duties assigned to them, and made a report of their examina¬ tions, together with an opinion, founded upon careful surveys and estimates, made by experienced engineers, that a sufficient quantity of pure and wholesome water for the use of the inha¬ bitants of Jersey City, and parts of the townships of Bergen, North Bergen and Hoboken, may be obtained at such reason¬ able cost as will render the acquisition thereof advantageous ; and the Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City, and sun¬ dry others interested therein, having petitioned for the passage of an act to authorize the construction of works for that pur¬ pose ; therefore, 1. Be it enacted by the Senate arid General Assembly of the common Council State of New Jersey , That the Mayor and Common Council [hoOzed 7 to t; take of Jersey City, be, and hereby are authorized, in the manner Denver* 11 PaS " hereinafter provided, to take and convey into and through Jer- 48 sey City, and such other places adjacent thereto, as may desire the same, such portion of the water of Passaic river flowing between the villages of Acquackanonk and Belleville, as may be required to furnish the inhabitants of the said city, and others residing adjacent thereto, with a sufficient quantity of pure and wholesome water for domestic and other purposes. To be done by 2. And be it enacted , That all authority granted or given by Board of Water Commissioners, this act, shall be exercised exclusively by and through a Board who may employ . ^ ° . engineers, sur- of Commissioners, to be appointed as hereinafter directed ; Yeyors, «&e. , ri and in pursuance of this authority, the said Commissioners may employ all proper engineers, surveyors, clerks, and other agents and assistants, necessary or convenient for accomplish¬ ing the purpose contemplated by this act, and may enter upon any land or water for the purpose of making surveys and exa¬ minations for the same. Land may be ta 3. And be it enacted , That the said Commissioners shall, for ken. Water may be distributed in jersey^city, Ber- City, and through such portions of the townships of Bergen, Hoboken, and North Bergen, Hoboken and other places, as the inhabitants <( other places." ° . r > thereof may desire. How disagree- 4. And be it enacted , That in case of any disagreement be- ment for land to . ~ . r* i i be ■ettied. tween the Commissioners and the owner ot any lands or water rights which may be required for the said purposes, or affected by any operation connected therewith, as to the amount of compensation to be paid to such owner, or in case any such owner shall be an infant or a married woman, or insane, or shall be absent from this State, the Circuit Court in and for the county of Hudson, shall, on the application of either party, nominate and appoint three disinterested persons, to examine and in the name' of “ The Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City,” take and hold any lands or other real estate, necessary for the construction of any canals, aqueducts, reser¬ voirs, or other works for conveying or containing water, or for the erection of any buildings or machinery, or for laying any pipes or conduits for conveying the water into or through the said places, or to secure and maintain any portion of the works; and in general to do any other act necessary or convenient for accomplishing the purposes contemplated by this act; and may distribute the water throughout the corporate limits of Jersey # 49 such property, and estimate the value thereof, or damage sus¬ tained thereby ; and who shall, after reasonable notice to the parties, of the time and place where they will be heard in rela¬ tion to the matter, proceed without delay, to make their report thereon, and deliver the same to the Court at the next session thereof, which shall be held in the said county. 5. And be it enacted. That whenever such report shall be Msney therefor . r . paid into Court. confirmed by the Court aforesaid, the Commissioners shall within two months thereafter, pay to the said owner or to such person or persons as the Court may direct, the sum mentioned in said report, in full compensation for the property so required, or for the damage sustained, as the case may be; and there¬ upon the Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City, shall become seized in fee of such property so required, and shall be discharged from all claim by reason of such damage ; but no claim shall be made or allowed after the expiration of three years from the time the land is taken, or the damage suffered. 6. And be it enacted , That the Commissioners, in behalf of p 'P es ma r be conveyed under the Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City, and all per- roads, sons acting under their authority, shall have the right to use the ground or soil under any road, railroad, highway, street, lane, alley or court, within this State, for the purpose of con¬ structing the w T orks contemplated by this act, on condition that they shall cause the surface of such road, railroad, highway, street, lane, alley or court, to be restored to its original state, and all damages done thereto to be repaired, and all damages to any company, by any interruption of travel while the work is constructing, to be paid unto them. 7. And be it enacted , That all contracts for materials, or for Contracts for the construction of the work, shall be made in writing, and of writing! be each contract three copies shall be taken, which shall be num- Three copies, bered with the same number and endorsed with the name of the contractor, and a summary of the work to be done or ma¬ terials furnished; one of such copies shall be deposited with the Comptroller of Jersey City, or such other officer as the Common Council may direct, and one shall be retained by the Commissioners. 50 Advertise for 8. And he it. enacted. That public notice shall be given of sealed proposals. t _ *" # the time and place at which sealed proposals will be received for entering into contracts, by publishing the same in all the newspapers published in the county of Hudson, and in one or more newspapers published in the city of New York, for at least twenty days; and all proposals for contracts shall be for a sum certain, as to the price to be paid or received ; and no proposition which is not thus definite and certain, or which contains any alternative, condition or limitation as to price, shall be received or acted upon; nor shall more than one pro¬ position be received from any one person for the same con¬ tract, directly or indirectly; and all the propositions of any persons offering more than one, shall be rejected; and every person or persons proposing as aforesaid, shall accompany such proposition with a bond, to be approved by the Commis¬ sioners, conditioned to faithfully carry into effect his or their proposition, if accepted. Contractors to give security. Commissioner not to be inter¬ ested. 9. And he it enacted, That every person who shall enter into any contract with the Commissioners, for the supply of mate¬ rials or the performance of any work or labor, shall give satis¬ factory security for the faithful performance of his contract, according to its terms; and no Commissioner shall be inte¬ rested, directly or indirectly, in any contract relating to said work. Materials to be 10. And he it enacted y That all materials procured or par- exempted from _ . ^ . X execution. tialiy procured, under contract with the Commissioners, shall be exempt from execution; but it shall be the duty of the How claim to be Commissioners to pay the moneys due to such contractor, for such materials, to the judgment creditor of the contractor, un¬ der whose execution such materials might otherwise have been sold, upon his producing to them due proof that his execution would have so attached, and such payment shall be held as valid payment on the contract. stock created for 11. And he it cnacted f That for the purpose of defraying all cost ei o S f "surveys the expenses and the cost of such lands as shall be taken or and providingwa- . , i • i r . „ ter, $ooo ; coo. purchased for the purposes of this act, and for constructing all works necessary to the full accomplishment thereof, and all expenses incidental thereto, and for the payment of all neces- / 5 i sary expenses incurred in making the examinations, directed by the act approved the eighteenth day of March, eighteen hundred and fifty-one, the said Board of Commissioners shall have authority to issue in the name of the said Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City, notes or scrip, or certificates of debt, to be denominated on the face, “Jersey City Water Scrip,” to an amount in the whole not exceeding six hundred thousand dollars, bearing an interest not exceeding six per interest 6 per ct. , . . , .. , , , . payable seini-an- cent, per annum, and said interest shall be payable semi-annu- nuaiiy. ally, and the principal of said debt shall be payable at periods Duration of debt not less than fifteen, or more than fifty years from date; and 7 the Commissioners may sell the same, at public or private sale, How to sell or at such times as the proceeds thereof may be required for the bame ' construction of the works, or may pledge fhe same, for money borrowed at a higher rate of inte»est, if in their opinion, the necessities of the work require such proceeding; and in addi- Additional scrip • . for interest. tion to the said sum of six hundred thousand dollars, the Com¬ missioners may issue and dispose of scrip in the manner here¬ inbefore provided, to meet all payments of interest accruing upon any scrip by them issued as aforesaid—Provided, how¬ ever, that no such scrip shall be issued by the Commissioners, after the expiration of one year from the time that the works are so far completed, as to furnish one million gallons of water per day; and the payment of all interest accruing after that time, beyond the amount which may be paid from the rents received for the use of the water, shall be provided for and paid by the Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City, who <- orporationafter are hereby authorized and required to raise and assess for that to^ax^for''defil -i . i . i i . i ciency of inter- purpose, by tax, such amount as may be necessary, above the es t. other taxes authorized by law; and Provided, also, that no notes or scrip, or certificates of debt, shall be sold at public or private sale, for less than the par value thereof, nor shall any higher rate of interest be paid for any sum of money borrow¬ ed on a pledge of said scrip, than at the rate of seven percent, per annum; and Provided, further, that the work authorized or contemplated by this act, shall not be commenced by the said Commissioners, until at least one half of the whole amount one-half of cost of money required for the said work, shall be first had or se- fore 6 contracted 6 cured ; all certificates issued as aforesaid, shall be signed by Commissioners . ~ n , -| . , and Mayor to sign the Commissioners, or a majority of them, and countersigned certificates. Record. 52 Money how de¬ posited and drawn. Commissioners to keep books. by the Mayor of Jersey City; and a record of all certificates issued or disposed of, shall be kept by the Commissioners, and copies of such record shall be made and delivered to the Trea¬ surer of Jersey City. All moneys received by the Commis¬ sioners, shall be deposited by them in some bank or banks of good credit in the State of New Jersey or in the city of New York, and be made payable to the joint order of the President, and at least two other members of the Board only. 12. And be it enacted , That the Commissioners shall keep regular books of accounts, and books for recording the whole They and clerks of their official proceedings ; and the said Commissioners, and to be sworn. ° the clerks employed in their service, shall be sworn to the faithful performance of their duties; and all such books shall be open to the examination of any person or persons appointed for that purpose by the Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City; the Commissioners shall also on the first Tuesday in Jr°y and 0 Juiy anU J anuar y> an d ^ ie fi rst Tuesday in July of every year, make a report to the said Mayor and Common Council, of the condition of the works under their charge, accompanied by a statement of their receipts and expenditures on account of the same. tcTre^ufaTe^useof 13. And, be it enacted , That the Board of Commissioners, price! and fiX f° r ti me being, shall regulate the distribution and use of the water in all places, and for all purposes where the same may be required, and from time to time shall fix the price for the use thereof, and the times of payment; and they may erect such number of public hydrants, and in such places as they shall see fit, and direct in what manner and for what purposes the same shhll be used ; all which they may change at their discretion—Provided that all hydrants, conduits, or other ap¬ pliances, required and furnished for the purpose of extinguish¬ ment of fires, shall be placed as the Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City shall direct, and shall be under their exclusive control and direction. 14. And be it enacted , That the owner and occupier of any house, tenement or lot, shall each be liable for the payment of the price or rent fixed by the Commissioners for the use of the water by such occupier, and such price or rent so fixed, shall be a lien upon said house, tenement or lot, in the same way and manner as other taxes, assessed on real estate in Jersey Who to pay wa¬ ter rent. A lien. 53 City, are liens, and shall be collected in like manner, if not previously paid to the Commissioners. 15. And be it enacted , That the said Commissioners shall No contract, for make no contracts for the price of using the water, for a three y ears - longer term than three years, and at the expiration of any term or lease, the price for the use thereof, shall be adjusted according to the regulations then established. 16. And be it enacted , That it shall be the duty of the said Commissioners to fix the price which shall be assessed updn ^ 1 t d 1 1 ^® and va * each house or other building, and upon vacant lots situated upon streets, lanes, alleys or courts, that have been actually opened, or parts thereof, through or into which, distributing pipes may be laid; and such prices shall be fixed with refer¬ ence to ultimately paying from the proceeds thereof, the inte¬ rest and principal of “ The Jersey City Water Scrip’’ afore¬ said, and the net proceeds of the water rents, after paying all expenses for maintaining the works and distributing the water, and salaries, wages and incidental charges, shall be applied How applied, first to the payment of the interest upon the debt created for constructing the works, and next to the purchase of the scrip issued therefor, if the same can be obtained at reasonable prices, or if that cannot be effected, then to be safely invested and allowed to remain as a sinking fund, to be applied to the |nkirw S fund be a redemption of the scrip at its maturity. 17. And be it enacted , That when the said Commissioners When works shall certify to the Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City, hveiy^of * 1 water, ...... r an assessment to that the works contemplated by this act, are so far completed be made annuai- that the inhabitants thereof may be regularly supplied with a on 100 square feet . . .of territory, until sufficient quantity of pure and wholesome water for domestic water rents pay , • interest. use, then the Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City shall instruct the assessors of the said city to assess annually upon all grounds within their limits, which are liable to taxation, a special tax, at the rate of two cents for each one hundred square feet of their surface; and the said special tax shall be a lien upon the lands so taxed, in the same manner as other taxes assessed on real estate in Jersey City are liens, and shall be collected in like manner—which amount shall be collected and applied to the payment of interest upon the water scrip, until the water rents authorized to be collected by this Act, 54 Disposal of sur plus. shall amount to a sum sufficient to pay such interest as it ac¬ crues ; after which the tax shall cease to be levied. 18. And be it enacted , That when the scrip shall all be paid and cancelled, so much of the income derived from the works as may be necessary therefor, shall be applied by the Commis¬ sioners to the payment of salaries, wages, the cost of repairs, and other current expenses required for keeping the whole in good order and .successful operation, and making such addi¬ tions thereto as the wants of the citizens may require; and all moneys remaining, after making the payments necessary for the purposes above mentioned, shall be paid on the first Tues¬ day of each and every month, to the Treasurer, of Jersey City ; and such payments shall be accompanied by written statements, showing the whole amount of money received during the pre¬ ceding month, specifying from whom and for what the same was received, and also an account of all moneys paid during the month, specifying to whom and for what they were paid, which statement shall be verified by the affidavit of the Clerk of the Board of Commissioners. 19. And be it enacted , That a majority of the said Commis¬ sioners shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of any bu¬ siness allowed or required by the powers or duties of their commission; and all contracts and engagements, acts and doings of the said Commissioners, within the scope of their duty or authority, shall be obligatory upon and be in law, con¬ sidered as done by the Mayor and Common Council of Jersey Ail estates, real, City: arid the said Mayor and Common Council, and all real bie for principal estate within Jersey City, and all goods and chattels within and interest. J J ° said city, belonging to residents thereof, shall be liable for the payment of the principal and interest that may become due on the scrip or bonds to be issued by virtue of this act. 20. And be it enacted , That the said Commissioners may prosecute or defend any action or process, at law or in equity, by the name of the “Water Commissioners of Jersey City,” against any person or persons, for money due for the use of the water; for the breach of any contract, express or implied, touching the execution or management of the works or the dis¬ tribution of the water, or of any promise or contract made to or with them; and also for any injury, or trespass or nuisance, A majority of Commissioners a quorum. Water Commis* sioners may sue 55 done or suffered to the water courses, pipes, machinery, or any apparatus belonging to or connected with any part of the works* or for any improper use or waste of the water; and any va¬ cancy, or the filling any vacancy in the Board of Commission¬ ers, either before or after any cause of action arises, or suit is commenced, shall not change the right of said Commissioners, as a body, to commence or maintain such action or process at law or in equity ; but in all such cases, they shall be consider¬ ed from the time of the organization of the Board, as a. corpo¬ ration. 21. And be it enacted , That if any person or persons shall injuring works or x < water, to be sub- maliciously or wilfully divert the water or any portion thereof, J ect to damages, J J * r t and to fine and from the said works, or shall corrupt or render the same im- imprisonment, pure, or shall destroy or injure any canal, aqueduct, pipe, conduit, machinery or other property, used or required for procuring or distributing the water, such person or persons, and their aiders and abettors, shall forfeit to the said Commis¬ sioners, to be recovered in an action of trespass, treble the amount of damages which shall appear on trial to have been sustained ; and all such acts are hereby declared to be misde¬ meanors, and the parties found guilty thereof, may be further punished by fine not exceeding one thousand dollars, or by im¬ prisonment not exceeding one year, or both, at the discretion of the Court. 22. And be it enacted , That the said Commissioners shall Commissioners to plan a general also cause such surveys and examinatie— to be made as niav systemofsewer ' be necessary to enable them to decide upon and recommend a suitable plan for a general system of sewers, for the whole dis¬ trict proposed to be supplied with water, and adapted for drain¬ ing streets, houses, yards, markets, and all other places requir¬ ing to be drained, and shall estimate the probable cost of such Estimate coat, sewers; and after such plan and estimates are made, copies thereof shall be furnished to the Town Committee of the town¬ ship of Hoboken, and to the Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City, for their consideration and approval ; and if said Plan to be ap- plan shall be approved, no sewer shall thereafter be construct¬ ed, either in Hoboken or Jersey City, except in conformity with the said plan, and under the superintendence of the said Commissioners r • . . . to superintend Commissioners, and their engineer or inspector ; but the cost works - 56 Assessment.to be made and collec¬ ted by Common Council. Works exempt from taxation. Land to be assess¬ ed wii bout refer¬ ence to improve¬ ments, by Water Commissioners. Ward, Gregory, Bramhall, Presi¬ dent of Common Council, and one person to be elec¬ ted, to be Water Commissioners. To hold office, one 3, one 4, one 5, and one 6 years Presid’t of Board ex officio. Election at expi¬ ration of term of office. , Vacancies filled by Common Council. Bonds to be givey of such sewers shall be assessed and collected in the same man¬ ner, and by the same authority, as the cost of sewers in those places has heretofore been assessed and collected, or in such other way as the Legislature may hereafter direct. 23. And be it enacted. That any lands or real estate in the county of Hudson, taken, held, or occupied or used for the Jersey City Water-works, or any of the purposes thereof, shall be assessed and taxed in the said county, in the manner pre¬ scribed by law, at the value of the land, exclusive of any pipes, buildings, machinery, or works of any kind placed thereon ; and the whole of the said works, exclusive of the land, shall be exempted from taxation. 24. And be it enacted, That John D. Ward, Dudley S. Gregory, Moses B. Bramhall, the President of the Board of Aldermen of Jersey City for the time being, and one person to be elected at the next charter election held in Jersey City, shall constitute the first Board of Water Commissioners. The said Commissioners shall elect annually one of their number to be President of the Board, and shall determine by lot or otherwise, the terms during which the four of their number, other than the President of the Board of Aldermen, shall hold their offices, and these shall be as follows : one of them shall remain in office three years, one four years, one five years, and one six years—all to be computed from the first day of May next ensuing; and the President of the Board of Aldermen for the time being, shall ex-officio always be one of said Board. 25. And be it enacted, That at the charter election to be held in said city, in the year eighteen hundred and fifty-five, and every year thereafter, there shall be elected one Commis¬ sioner, who shall hold his office for four years next ensuing such election; and any vacancies that shall occur in said com¬ mission, by death, resignation or otherwise, shall be filled by the Common Council of Jersey City; but the person or per¬ sons so appointed to fill such vancancy, shall hold his or their offices only for the residue of the term for which they may be appointed ; and each of said Commissioners, except the Presi¬ dent of the Board of Aldermen, who are appointed by this act, or who shall he elected or appointed under the provisions of this act, before entering upon the duties of his office, shall give a bond of twenty thousand dollars, with two good and suf- / 57 ficient sureties, to the Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City, and to be approved by said Mayor and Common Coun¬ cil, for the faithful performance of their duties as such Com- missioners. 26. And be it enacted , That the said Commissioners shall Pay of Commi«- . . . sioners, to he an- be entitled to take and receive out of any moneys raised and nuaiiy fixed by Common Council appropriated for the construction of the Jersey City Water¬ works, such sum as the Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City shall annually fix, in full for their services, and shall also be repaid all reasonable travelling expenses incurred while employed upon the works ; and they shall at their first meeting after the organization of the Board, fix and determine the pro¬ portions in which the said sum shall be paid to the several members thereof, and may at their discretion annually change such apportionment. 27. And be it enacted , That the Mayor and Common Coun- Commissioners . ‘ ~ . . may be removed. cil ot Jersey City, shall at any time remove any Commissioner, provided it shall satisfactorily appear, after reasonable notice to the parties, and hearing the causes of complaint and answers thereto, if any shall be offered, that the Commissioner whose removal is sought, has been guilty of such mal-administration, or such neglect of the duties of his office, that his removal will be right and proper; and two-thirds of all the members elect¬ ed to the said Common Council shall concur in such removal. 28. And be it enacted, That this act shall be deemed a public act, and shall take effect immediately. Approved March 25, 1852. The first Commissioners are— John D. Ward, President, M. B. Bramhall, D. S. Gregorv, Tho’s A. Alexander, With the President of the Board of Aldermen, ex officio. The distance from which the water is to be brought is as follows :— From Passaic river (pumping engine,) to Basin, on Barbadoes Neck, (an elevation of 150 feet,).. 2.600 ft. From Basin to Hackensack river, about..... 15,000 ” Across same......... 1,200 ” From East side of river to Reservoir on Bergen hill, (about 125 feet above tide at .Jersey City,). 11,000 ” From Bergen hill Reservoir to Jersey City Ferry,. 12,000 ” Total distance, (about 7 \ miles,). 41,800 ” 58 NAMES OF THE PRESIDENTS OF THE BOARDS OF SELECTMEN, OF JERSEY CITY: ALSO, OF THE CLERKS OF SAID BOARDS, From 1820 to the year 1837. Presidents of Board of Selectm en. Clerks. 1820, Joseph Lyon, Joseph Kissam, 1821, Joseph Lyon, Philip R. Earle, 1822, Joseph Lyon, Philip R. Earle, 1823, Joseph Lyon, Philip R. Earle, 1824, William Lyon, Philip R. Earle, 1825, Joseph Kissam, Aa. Ogden Dayton, 1826, George Duramer, Robert Gilchrist, 1827, George Dummer, Robert Gilchrist, 1828, George Dummer, Robert Gilchrist, 1829, George Dummer, Peter McMartin, 1830, George Dummer, Peter McMartin, 1831, David C. Colden, Peter McMartin, 1832, David C. Colden, Peter McMartin, 1833, William Glaze, Peter Bentley, 1834, John F. Ellis, Edmund D. Barry, Jr. 1835, Robert Gilchrist, William W. Munso, 1836, William Glaze, Henrv D. Holt, 1837, William Glaze, Henry D. Holt, 59 NAMES OF THE MAYORS AND CLERKS OF JERSEY CITY, TO THE YEAR 1850. Mayors. Clerks. 1838, Dudley S. Gregory, Henry D. Holt, 1839, Dudley S. Gregory, Thomas AV. James, 1840, Peter McMartin, Henry D. Holt, 1841, Dudley S. Gregory, Henry D. Holt, 1842, Thomas A. Alexander, Henry D. Holt, 1843, Peter Bentley, Henry D. Holt, 1844, Phineas C. Dummer, Henry D. Holt, 1845, Phineas C. Dummer, Edgar B. AVakeman, 1846, Phineas C. Dummer, Edgar B. AVakeman, 1847, Phineas C. Dummer, Edgar B. AVakeman, 1848, Henry J. Taylor, John H. Vorhees, 1849, Henry J. Taylor, John H. Vorhees, 1850, Robert Gilchrist, John H. Vorhees, and George AV. Cassedy. N A M E S OF THE fljaintmt nf tin 'Snmosjjip (Cnmmittns OP THE TOWNSHIP OP VAN VORST, From the organization of said Township in the year 1841. AND ALSO OF THE TOWN CLERKS OF SAID TOWNSHIP. 1841, 1842, 1843, 1844, 1845, 1846, 1847, 1848, 1849, 1850, Chairmen. Cornelius Van Vorst, Cornelius Van Vorst, Cornelius V. Traphagan, Andrew Anderson, Cornelius V. Traphagan, Andrew Anderson, Andrew Anderson, Barzillai AV. Ryder, Andrew Anderson, Joseph Kissam, Clerics. Stephen H. Lutkins, Stephen H. Lutkins, Andrew Anderson, Earl B. Sippell, E. W. Kingsland, E. W. Kingsland, E. W. Kingsland, E. W. Kingsland, E. W. Kingsland, E. AV. Kingsland, I / 60 Jersey City and the Township of Van Vorst, were united under a city charter, and by the name of the city of Jersey City, in the year 1850; and said city is composed of four wards, each ward electing four Aldermen, holding office for two years, and two to be elected in each year. The Mayors and Clerks of said city are as follows: Mayors. 1851, Robert Gilchrist, 1852, David S. Manners. Clerics. George W. Cassedy, George W. Cassedy. The names of the persons composing the Common Council of said city, are as follows: 1851. First Ward. James S. Davenport, George S. Gardner, Joseph W. Hancox, Alexander H. Wallis. Second Ward. Stephen D. Harrison, Alexander Wilson, Justus Slater, David S. Manners. 1853. First Ward. Alexander H. Wallis, George S. Gardner, James Narine, Frederick B. Betts. Second Ward. Stephen D. Harrison, Alexander Wilson, Joseph G. Edge, John H. Lyon. Third Ward. Cornelius P. Brokaw, Edmund W. Kingsland, George McLaughlin, Cornelius Van Vorst, Jr, Fourth Ward . William Gaul, Jonathan D. Miller, Louis B. Cobb, Samuel Wescott. m Third Ward. Cornelius P. Brokaw, John H. Low, Cornelius Van Vorst, George Ford. Fourth Ward. Jonathan D. Miller, Henry Barrow, Cornelius V. Traphagan, Richard R. Rappleyea. Cljiutei la tjje (fount anil /reetialkw of Bergen, Dated 22d day of September , A. D . 1668. This Deede Witnesseth of Charter granted to the Towne and Freeholders of Bergen, and to the Vilages and Plantations thereunto belonging, cituated and being in the Province of New Cesarea or New-Jersey: By Honble. Capt. Philip Carteret Esqr. Governour of the said Province, and his Counsil under the Right Honble. John Lord Berkeley Barron of Stratton, and Sr. George Carteret Knt. and Baronet, the absolute Lords Proprietors of the same, Containing the Limitts and bounds of the Juridiction of the said Towne together with the immu¬ nities and Priviledges thereunto belonging and appertaining as followeth— Iznprms. The Bounds and Limitts of the aforesaid Towne and Corporation of Bergen is to begin at the North end there¬ of, from a place called Mordavis Meadow, lying upon the West side of Hudson’s river, from thence to run upon a N. W. lyne by a Three rail fence that is now standing to a place called Espat.in, and from thence to a little Creek surrounding N. N. W. till it comes into Hackinsack river, containing in Bredth from the top of the Hill 1^ miles or 120 chains, from thence it runs along the said Hackinsack river upon S. S. W. lyne till it comes to the Point or neck of Land that is over against Stat- ten Island and Shooter’s Island in Arthur Cull Bay, contain¬ ing in length about 12 miles, from thence to run Eastward along the River called Kill Van Cull that parts Staten Island and the Maine to a point or neck of Land called Constable’s Point, or Constable’s houck, and from thence to run up North¬ ward all along the Bay up into Hudson’s river till it comes to Mordavis Meadow aforesaid ; So that the whole tract of upland and Meadow property belonging to the Juridiction of the said Town and Corporation of Bergen is bounded at The North end by a tract of Land belonging to Captn. Nicho. Verlett and Mr. Samuel Edsall. On the East side by Hudson’s river, on the South end by the Kill Van Cull, that parts 8 62 Staten Island and the Maine, and on the West side by Arthur Cull Bay and Hackinsack river, as it is more plainer demon¬ strated by a draught thereof, made by the Surveyor General, hereunto annexed : The whole, both of upland and Meadows, and Waist land, containing according to the Survey” 11520 Ares English measure; Which said Limitts and bounds, to¬ gether with all the Rivers, Ponds, Creeks, Islands, Inlets, Bays^ Fishing, Hawking, Hunting, and all other appurtenances what¬ soever thereunto belonging and appertaining. The half part of Gold© and Silver Mynes, and the Royaltie of the Lords Pro¬ prietors only Excepted, to continue and remain within the Juridiction, Corporation or Township of the said Towne of Bergen, from the day of the date hereof and forever : The said Corporation submitting themselves to the Authority of the Lords Proprietors and the Government of this Province. To be holden by them, the said Corporation or Towneship, their heirs and successors, as of the Manner of East Greenwich, in free and common Socage. 2dly. That all the Freeholders of said Corporation or Towneship are hereby jointly and severally obliged to Pay or Cause to be paid to the said Lords Proprietors, their heires and Successors, or to their Receivers General, within the said Province, on every 25th day of March, according to the English Accompt, the sum of Fifteen Pounds Sterling, of good and Lawful money of England, or the Value thereof, in good and Current pay of the Country, as a Quit rent due to them for the whole said tract of Land above mentioned, in lieu of the £d. Pr. acre, mentioned in the Concessions, which Payment is to begin on the 25th day of March, which shall be in the Year of our Lord 1670, and so to continue forever, without any charge to the said Lords Proprietors or their Agent; and that all Pattents for land herebefore Granted, or to be Granted within the said Limitts are to be accompted upon the aforesaid Rent of Fifteen Pounds Sterling pr. annum. 3dly. That all Freeholders living and Inhabiting, within the said Juridiction, Corporation or Towneship, wether within the said Towne of Bergen, Comunipau, Ahassimus, Minkacque, Prenbrepock, or upon any other Plantation within the said Limitts shall be deemed and accompted for Freeman of the 03 sai eofcourt 12 94 county, to administer to the officers elected or appointed under the authority of* this act, the oaths or affirmations required by this act to be taken and subscribed by such officers, and to file the same with the clerk of said city, when the vacancy of such , clerk’s office shall be supplied. Ordinances. § 13. And be it enacted , That it shall and may be lawful for the Common Council of the said city, or the majority of them votes° nCUnms i n C° mmon Council convened, to pass, by not less than six concurring votes, and enforce all such ordinances as they shall anrfside-wa'iks! j U( % e P ro P er for regulating, cleaning and keeping in repair the streets, highways and public alleys therein ; for preventing the encumbering or obstructing the streets, side-walks and public alleys in said city; and for preventing persons from riding, driving or passing over or upon the side-walks with horses or oxen, or with wagons, carts or carriages of any description ; Boundaries. f or ascertaining and establishing the boundaries of all streets Encroachments, and alleys in said city, and preventing and removing all en- Cattie, horses, croachments in or upon said streets or alleys ; for preventing dogs, swine; tax , r J r a on dogs. or regulating the running at large of cattle, horses, dogs and swine, or imposing a reasonable tax on the owners or possess- drivino erate ors ’ f° r preventing the immoderate riding or driving Nuisances. through or in any street of said city ; for abating or removing any nuisance in any street or wharf, or on any lot or lots, or Sewers, drains, enclosure, or other place or places in said city; and for caus- Vauits. ing common sewers and drains to be made ; and granting per- Paving streets, mission to construct vaults in any part thereof; for the paving, flagging, macadamizing or gravelling the streets of said city. Riots 3!nstreets ‘ ari< ^ f° r lighting 1 the same; for preventing or restraining riots, routs, disturbances, or disorderly assemblages in any street. Public grounds, house or place in said city ; for regulating, protecting, improv- Weiis, pumps, ing and reclaiming the public grounds in said city, and sink¬ ing and regulating wells, pumps and cisterns in the streets Lights in stables, thereof; for regulating the use of lights in stables ; for the pre¬ vention or suppression of fires; for regulating or preventing the carrying on manufactures dangerous in causing or promot- Gunpowder. ing fires, and for regulating the keeping and transporting of gunpowder or other combustible or dangerous materials ; and Fire wardens, it shall be lawful for the said Common Council, or the major¬ ity of them, to appoint and remove fire wardens, and by ordi- tiance to prescribe the powers and duties of such firewardens, and of the fire engineers and firemen ; which engineers and firemen shall be exempt from serving as jurors in the courts for the trial of small causes, or in the militia in time of peace ; and after serving ten years successively as firemen, shall be exempt from duty as firemen, and also remain thereafter ex¬ empted as serving as jurors in the courts.for the trial of small causes, or in the militia in time of peace ; to pass ordinances for protecting goods from being purloined at fires; for compel- ing the cleaning of chimneys, and licensing chimney sweeps ; for regulating the dimensions of chimneys hereafter to be built; for appointing watchmen, and prescribing their powers and duties; for regulating weights and measures, and the guaging of all casks of liquor and liquids ; for regulating petty grocers in the selling of liquors, ordinaries of victualling houses, and the vending of meats and vegetables ; for establishing and regulating public pounds ; for regulating hawkers, pedlars and petty chapmen within said city ; for restraining vagrants, men¬ dicants, and street beggars ; for regulating the setting up or fixing any pole or poles for fishing in the waters within the limits of this corporation, whereby the lives of persons may be endangered, or the navigation obstructed ; for regulating cartmen and cartage; for regulating the police of said city ; for erecting, maintaining and regulating, one or more pub¬ lic markets, and to change and alter the location of the same in said city, and to erect and maintain a city hall or town house, city prison and school houses, together with such other public buildings as may be necessary and convenient in said city; for regulating all wharves, docks and piers in and about said city, and the rates of wharfage, and to order and regulate the building of all docks, wharves, store houses and buildings thereon in and about said city; and the said Common Council shall and may from time to time pass ordi¬ nances for the more effectual suppression of vice and immor¬ ality, for preserving peace and good order, for the prevention of forestalling and regrating, for suppressing and restraining disorderly and gaming houses, and such other by-laws and ordinances for the peace and good order of the city, as they may deem expedient, not repugnant to the Constitution or Firemen Goods at fires. Cleaning chimneys. Building chimneys. Watchmen. Weights and iheasures, guaging. Retailers. Pound. Hawkers and pedlars. Beggars. Fish poles. Cartage. Police. Markets. City hall, city prison, school houses, and public buildings. Wharves, docks, piers, and build¬ ings thereon. Vice. Forestalling. Gaming houses. Peace and good order. 90 Imprisonment for offences. Fines Process of prose¬ cution. Commitment. Ordinances to be published. Ordinance when a law. Judicial proceed* mgs. Witnesses. City prison. laws of this State or of the United States, and to enforce the observance of all such laws or ordinances, by enacting penal¬ ties for the violation thereof, either by imprisonment not ex¬ ceeding seven days, or by fine not exceeding fifty dollars, recoverable with costs in an action of debt, and in the name of the treasurer of Jersey City, for the use of the corporation of said city, without specifying the individual name of the treasurer of said city for the time being, before any justice of the peace residing within said city; in which action the first process may be either by summons or warrant, and in which action it shall be lawful to declare generally in debt, for such penalty, and give the special matter in evidence; And further, it shall be lawful for such justice, before whom judgment of imprisonment shall he given, to carry such judgment into effect by warrant of commitment, under his hand and seal, directed to the keeper of the city prison : Provided always , That each and every ordinance so passed as aforesaid, shall be published for the space of twenty days, in at least one newspaper pub¬ lished or circulated in said city, before said ordinance shall go into effect: Provided also , that no ordinance or by-law shall be enacted or passed by the said Common Council, unless the same shall have been introduced before the said Common Council at a previous meeting. § 14. And be it enacted, That upon the trial of any issue, or upon the judicial investigation of any fact to which issue or investigation the Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City are a party, or in which they are interested, no person shall be deemed an incompetent witness or juror by reason of his being an inhabitant, freeholder or freeman of the said city; and that if any person shall be sued or impleaded by reason of any thing done by virtue of this act, it shall be lawful for such person to plead the general issue, and give this act and the special matter in evidence at the trial. § 15. And be it enacted , That the said Common Council shall have power to build and maintain a city prison, to be properly and securely made, for the detention and imprisonment of any person or persons who shall be arrested for any offence against any of the by-laws of the said Common Council, or for any breach of the peace, and for any offence committed against 97 any law of this State, within the limits of said city, provided no person shall be kept confined therein by any constable or other officer under a commitment or execution, directed to the keeper of the common jail of the county of Bergen, by any magistrate therein, for a longer time than seven days, for any offence committed against the laws of this State; when, if not liberated by bail or otherwise, they shall be removed by the proper officer, to the common jail of the county of Bergen. § 16. And be it enacted, That the said Common Council shall work houses, have power to erect, establish and maintain one or more work Almshouses, house or work houses, and one or more alms house or alms houses, for the relief of the poor; and the said Common Coun¬ cil shall have power to regulate, by their ordinance, the said house or houses, and to direct and order what persons shall be placed therein, and for what length of time, and the man¬ ner of ordering, placing and keeping persons therein ; and that the expenditure of all moneys raised for the maintenance p 00 r taxes, and relief of the poor of the said city, shall be under the direc¬ tion of the Common Council, and of such overseers of the poor and other officers as they shall for that purpose appoint; and , the overseers of the poor, appointed by the Common Council, overseers of th* shall possess the powers and perform the duties of the like pointed—dutie* officers of the townships of this State, so far as such powers and duties shall be consistent with the provision of this act. § 17. And be it enacted , That the said Common Council, or Licenses, a majority of them in council assembled, shall and may grant licenses annually, under the common seal of said city, to such and so many persons, for tavern-keepers, inn-keepers, victual¬ lers, and retailers of spirituous liquors, as they may think neces¬ sary within the said city, on such terms and under such regula¬ tions and penalties as the said Common Council shall by their ordinance impose ; and no other license for such purpose, with¬ in said city, granted by any other authority, shall be lawful. § 18. And be it enacted , That it shall be lawful for the Com- city taxeg for— mon Council of the said city, to raise by tax, from year to year, such sum or sums of money as they may deem expedient, for defraying the expenses of lighting the streets of said city, sup-Lamps in streets, Watch porting a night watch therein, supplying the said city with wa- water,’ ter for the extinguishment of fires and other purposes, for the 98 Public grounds, » Poor, Schools, Markets, Work houses, Alms houses, City hall, City prison, School houses, and all other purposes. Valuation of property. Tax four mills. To be paid into treasury. Loans. Stocks to he issued. How paid. Seven affirmative votes for every loan. City debt. State achool fund How applied. Bergen corpora¬ tion funds. repairing of the streets of said city, for improving the public grounds, maintaining and supporting the poor, maintaining public schools, erecting and maintaining one or more public market houses, work houses, and alms houses, and a city hall or town house, city prison, and school houses, and for defray¬ ing the contingent expenses of the said city, and for all other purposes and objects authorized by this act, to be assessed by the assessor upon the actual value of property, and collected by the collector of the said city ; but the said assessor shall not assess a greater tax than four mills upon the dollar, of such actual value, in any one year, for the use of the said city, or towards the payment of any loan : which taxes, when collect¬ ed, shall be paid into the hands of the treasurer of said city, to be subject to the order of the said Common Council: and it shall be lawful for the said Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City, to borrow money from time to time, for all pur¬ poses for which they are by this act authorized to raise money by tax, and to secure the payment thereof by bond or other instrument under their common seal and the signature of the said mayor, and to provide by tax for the payment thereof: Provided , That it shall not be lawful for the said Common Council to raise any sum by loan, whereby the payment of the said loan shall not be otherwise provided for than by tax upon the persons and property in said city, unless at least seven of the said aldermen in Common Council convened, shall approve the same, and then there shall not be a greater sum than ten thousand dollars raised by loan in any one year, and that the said city shall not owe over fifty thousand dollars at any one time. § 19. And be it enacted, That the said city shall be entitled to its just proportion of the annual appropriation of the school fund of this State, to be ascertained in the manner in which the quotas of the townships of this State now or hereafter shall be ascertained, which shall be from time to time paid over to the treasurer of the said city, and be applied under the direc¬ tion of the school committee, either to the support of common schools in said city, or to the schooling of poor children of said city, as the Common Council shall order and direct; and the said city shall also be entitled to its just and equitable propor- 99 tion of the principal money belonging to the freeholders, inha¬ bitants of the township of Bergen ; and the said Common Council shall have the charge and supervision of the propor¬ tion belonging to said city ; Provided always. That the said How U9ed ' Common Council use the said money and property for the purposes and in manner now authorized to be used by the said the trustees of the freeholders, inhabitants of said township ; And also, That the said city shall be entitled to receive its just Surplusrevenna. quota of the surplus revenue apportioned to, and received, or to be hereafter received by the State of New Jersey, to be ascertained according to the ratio of taxation in the county of Bergen ; and to be under the direction and supervision of the Liability therefor said Common Council, subject to the like restrictions, liabili¬ ties and responsibilities, as the Board of Chosen Freeholders of the county of Bergen now are or hereafter may be, in rela¬ tion to the safe keeping and return of said money to the State or General Government, when the same shall be required. § 20. And be it enacted, That it shall be the duty of the trea- Annual report of J treasurer to be surer of the said city, at least once in each year, to make out published, a full and true account of all the moneys raised by tax or loan for the use of said city since the last annual election, and of the application and expenditure of the same, and to deliver the said account to the clerk of the said city, at least ten days previous to the next annual election, to be by him filed in his office; and it shall be the duty of the said clerk to cause a copy of the said account to be published in one or more newspapers pub¬ lished or circulated in said city, at least five days previous to the day of the next annual election for city officers. § 21. And be it enacted, That it shall be lawful for the Com- Compensation to mon Council of the said city to pay unto the treasurer, clerk, officers ' and other officers and agents of said city, such compensation for their services as the Common Council shall deem reason¬ able and proper. § 22. And be it enacted, That the treasurer and collector of Treasurer and said city, before they enter upon the duties of their respective bonds. 0 ° glV8 offices, shall severally execute their respective bonds to the Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City, in such sums and with such sureties as the said Common Council shall approve, conditioned for the faithful execution of the duties of their re¬ spective offices. 100 Constables to make oath. Clerk to file same. Constables to give bonds. \ Clerk to file same. Misconduct of constables to be prosecuted. Aldermen ex- officio conserva¬ tors of the peace. Authority. § 23. And be it enacted , That every constable of the said city f before he enters upon the duties of his office, shall take and subscribe before the clerk of the said city, an oath or affirma¬ tion in the form prescribed for constables of townships, in the nineteenth section of the act of the Legislature, entitled an act incorporating the inhabitants of townships, designating their powers and regulating their meetings, using the word city in¬ stead of the word township; and the said clerk shall endorse on the said oath or affirmation, the day and year on which the same was subscribed and taken or made, and file the said oath or affirmation and endorsement thereon in his office: And fur¬ ther, That every constable of the said city, before he enters upon the execution of his office, shall repair to the Common Council of the said city, and enter into bond to the Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City, with one or more sureties, to be approved of by the said Common Council in such sum as the said Common Council shall direct, in the form as near as may be, prescribed in the fifty-eighth section of the act of the Legislature, entitled an act constituting courts for the trial of small causes, which bond shall be delivered to the clerk of the said city, who is hereby directed and required to record and file the same in his office; and the said Mayor and Common Council are hereby directed and required, if need be, to prose¬ cute the said bond, for and in behalf, and to the use of all and every person or persons whatever, who may have sustained loss by the neglect or misconduct of the said constable, and all suits on such bonds shall be prosecuted and conducted in the manner directed in the fifty-ninth section of the last mention¬ ed act, for prosecuting and conducting suits on constables* bonds. § 24. And be it enacted, That the aldermen elected by virtue of this act, shall be ex-officio conservators of the peace within the limits of said city, and for this purpose shall jointly and seve¬ rally have authority to cause any or all persons to be brought before them, or either of them, for any breach of the peace, or for disturbing the public tranquility; shall have power to cause any or all persons so offending, to be sent to the watch house or city prison for safe keeping, until he, she, or they can be brought before the mayor or any magistrate of the county for 101 further hearing:: and that the said mayor shall be, during: the Mayor rested time for which he is elected, vested with all the powers and func-J ustice - tions, and be bound by the same liabilities in criminal cases, that justices of the peace of the several counties of this State now are, or hereafter may be authorized to perform, and all officers and persons shall respect him as such. § 25. And be it enacted ’, That any street or streets, or parts streets already of streets, in said city, which now are or shall be regulated by altered!^’ h ° w curbing and guttering therein, by any grade now or hereafter to be established for said street or streets or parts of streets, the same shall not be changed or altered by the said Com¬ mon Council, unless at least seven members thereof shall as¬ sent to such change in Common Council convened : And fur¬ ther, That unless the said Common Council shall apply to the justices of the Supreme Court of this State, and a majority of the said justices shall approve the said alteration, and the said Common Council shall give at least thirty days notice of the time and place of said application, in at least one public news¬ paper printed or circulated in said city, and also by advertise¬ ment, put up in at least five public places in said city for the like space of time, and it shall be lawful, whenever the alter¬ ation of any such street or streets, or parts of streets, shall be authorized by the said Common Council, and the consent of the said justices obtained as aforesaid, for the said Common Council to appoint three disinterested freeholders of the said city, commissioners to make an estimate and assessment of the damages that any owner or owners of any lot or lots fronting on such street or streets, or parts of streets will sustain by ma¬ king such alterations, and in estimating and assessing such damages, the said commissioners shall have due regard, as well to the benefit as to the injury of the owner or owners thereof, by such alteration : Provided always , That any person or per¬ sons who may consider himself, herself or themselves injured or aggreived by such estimate or assessment, may at any time within thirty days after the making thereof, appeal therefrom to the said Supreme Court, who shall have power to confirm or set aside the said estimate and assessment, and to order a new assessment and estimate thereof to be made and reported to them for confirmation. 13 102 Vote of electors, March 20, 1838, on charter. Powers of for* mer corporation transferred. Supplement, March 8, 1836. Former acts repealed. § 26. And be it enacted, That this act shall not go into effect unless the assent of three-fifths of the electors of said city shall be first obtained ; and for this purpose a poll shall he opened on the twentieth day of March next, between the hours of twelve o’clock, noon, and six in the afternoon, under the direc¬ tion of the inspectors of the last election of the said city, and at the place where the last election was held for members of the Board of Selectmen, of which time and place the Board of Se¬ lectmen of said city shall give at least one week’s previous notice, in one of the newspapers published or circulated in the said city, and the electors entitled to vote for members of the Board of Selectmen of said city, as now constituted, shall express their assent or refusal of this act, by depositing their ballots in the box provided for this purpose in said city, and those electors who are in favor of the said law, shall each deposit a ballot containing the word “ alteration,” written or printed thereon, and those who are opposed shall each deposit a ballot with the words “no alteration” written or printed theieon, and a canvass and return of the votes shall be made by the said in¬ spectors, to the secretary of the Board of Selectmen of Jersey City ; and if three-fifths of those who vote at such election are found to be in favor of this act, it shall then, but not otherwise, go into effect. § 27. And be it enacted , That the said Common Council, hereby created, shall be invested with and exercise in their corporate name, all the rights, privileges, powers and duties, that the Board of Selectmen and inhabitants of Jersey City now are capable of exercising and performing, by and under an act of the Legislature of this State, passed March the eighth, eighteen hundred and thirty-six, entitled “ A supplement to the act, entitled an act to incorporate Jersey City in the county of Bergen,” passed January twenty-third, eighteen hundred and twenty-nine, and that it be taken and considered as a part of this act. § 28. And be it enacted , That the act entitled “ An act to in¬ corporate the city of Jersey, in the county of Bergen,” passed January twenty-eighth, eighteen hundred and twenty, be and the same is hereby repealed, and that such part or parts of the act entitled “ An act incorporating the city of Jersey, in the 1C3 county of Bergen, and to repeal a former act,” passed January twenty-third, eighteen hundred and twenty-nine, which are contrary to or inconsistent with the provisions of this act, shall be, and the same are hereby repealed, such repeal to take effect on and after the second Monday of April next: Provided never¬ theless, That such repeal shall not render ineffectual or void any act or thing lawfully done under said act; and it shall be lawful for the said Common Council to collect, enforce and settle, in their corporate name, as incorporated by this act, the payment of all assessments in arrear or other claims or de¬ mands whatever, that now are or hereafter may become due and owing to or from the said Board of Selectmen and inhabi¬ tants of Jersey City in their corporate capacity. § 29 And be it enactedl, That nothing herein contained shall Jersey Asso. . ..... ciates. be construed as in any wise to interfere with, or impair the vested rights and the privileges of the Associates of the Jersey Company : Provided, That this section shall not be construct¬ ed or adjudged as a repeal of any part of the proviso contain¬ ed in the second section of the act incorporating said Associ¬ ates : And providedfurther, That nothing herein contained shall be so construed as to prevent the Mayor and Common Coun¬ cil from exercising all the powers and privileges granted in and by the thirteenth section of this act. § 30. And be it enacted, That the Legislature may at any time hereafter, alter, modify, amend or repeal this act, when¬ ever in the judgment of the Legislature the public good may require the same ; and that it be taken and referred to as a public act in all courts, places, and by all persons; and also, that the supplement referred to in the twenty-seventh section be taken as a public act in like manner. House of Assembly, February 22, 1838. This re-engrossed bill having been three times read and compared in the House of Assembly, Resolved , That the same do pass. By order of the House of Assembly, LEWIS CONDICT, Speaker . J 04 Additional boundary. In Council, February 22, 1838. This re-engrossed bill having been three times read in Council, Resolved, That the same do pass. .By order of Council, A. PARSONS, Vice President, State of New-Jersey: I, James D. Westcott, Secretary of State of the State of New-Jersey , do hereby certify that the foregoing is a true copy of a law of said State, passed on the twenty-second day of Feb¬ ruary, Anno Domini, eighteen hundred and thirty-eight, en¬ titled “ An Act to incorporate Jersey City,” as taken from and compared with the original, now on file in my office. Given under my hand and seal of office, at the city [L. S.] of Trenton, in said State, this seventh day of March, Anno Domini, eighteen hundred and thirty-eight. JAMES D. WESTCOTT. State of New Jersey: i A SUPPLEMENT TO THE ACT, ENTITLED “in ict incorporating icrstg Cittp” § 1. Be it enacted by the Council and General Assembly of this State, and it is hereby enacted by the authority of the same. That all that part of the township of Bergen lying westerly of Jersey City, included within the following boundaries, viz : Beginning at a point where the said westerly boundary line of said city intersects the northerly line of Harsimus street, as said street is laid down on the map of the town of Jersey, made by Joseph F. Mangin for the Associates of the Jersey Company ; thence running westerly to and along the northerly line of South-Eighth street, as the same is laid down on the map made by Lucius F. Douglass, for the Commissioners ap¬ pointed to make partition of the estate late of John Van Vorst, deceased, to the middle of Grove street in Harsimus, as the same is now laid out and opened; thence southerly along the middle of the same, and through and along the middle of Kel¬ logg street and Beach street, as the same are laid down on the map made by Joseph F. Bridges, for Cornelius Van Vorst, into Communipaw bay, to a point which will be reached by the continuation, in a direct line, of the southerly boundary line of said city; thence easterly in a straight line to the inter¬ section of the westerly and southerly boundary lines of said city; thence northerly along the westerly line of said city, to the place of beginning; and all the inhabitants within the lim¬ its aforesaid, shall be, from time to time, and forever hereafter, a part of the body politic and corporate of “the Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City,” to all intents and purposes whatsoever, in as full and ample a manner as though the same had been included as, and declared to be, part of the said body politic and corporate by the act, entitled “An Act incorporat¬ ing Jersey City,” passed February 22, 1838. §2. And be it eriacted, -That all the ordinances, by-laws, Laws, &c., to ap- resolutions and regulations, which shall be in force at the time P ' l} m nPW linms of the passage of this act, in said city, shall be deemed and taken to apply and operate as effectually within that part of the township of Bergen which by this act is made a part of said city, as the same shall then apply and operate within the bounds of said city : Provided , however , that no ordinance, by- No street to be law, resolution or regulation, which shall then be in force in two years, with- said city, or which shall thereafter be ordained, passed, resolved or made, for regulating, laying out, widening, altering, grading, extending, filling up or excavating the streets, highways and public alleys in said city, or any of them, except for cleaning or keeping in repair such streets, highways and alleys, shall be deemed or taken to apply or operate within that part of the township of Bergen which by this act is made a part of said city, until after the expiration of two years next after the passing of this act, without the consent of the owner or owners of more than one half of the land within the same, to be given in writing; And provided also, that no tax, assessment or impo- 106 No street to be opened on Van Vorst property without consent Partition walls, ifcc. Excavating docks, filling sunken lots, . tions. the payment thereof, it shall and may be lawful for the Com¬ mon Council to cause such lands, tenements or real estate, to be sold at public auction for the shortest term for which any person will agree to take the same and pay such tax or assess¬ ment, or the balance thereof, remaining unpaid, with the inte¬ rest thereof, and all costs, charges and expenses, and to exe¬ cute, under the common seal of the said city, a declaration of such sale, and deliver the same to the said purchaser; and such purchaser, his executors, administrators or assigns, shall, by virtue thereof, lawfully hold and enjoy the said lands, tene¬ ments or real estate, for his and their own proper use, against the owner or owners thereof, and all persons claiming under him or them, until his said term shall be completed and ended: Provided, that the said Common Council shall first have caused Sp!2J| a £ B bJ otie ® such sale to be advertised for at least sixty days in at least one s iven - public newspaper printed and published in said city, and if no newspaper shall be printed and published in the said city, then in at least one public newspaper generally circulated in the said city, and also by advertisements put up in at least five public places in the said city, which advertisement shall des- Property^to be cribe the said lands, tenements or real estate, and specify the amount of the assessment: And provided also, that the lands, tenements or real estate so sold, may be redeemed by the owner or owners thereof, within two years from the day of the sale, on the payment of the amount of the purchase money, with interest, at the rate of twenty per cent, from tne day of sale, and all expenses necessarily incurred for the benefit of the purchaser. 103 Authentication of Mangin’s map, and map of new boundaries to be made. And Whereas, The said city was surveyed and plotted into blocks and lots by the Associates of the Jersey Company, who were incorporated on the tenth of November, one thousand eight hundred and four, and the lots were sold agreeably to a map thereof now existing, made by Joseph F. Mangin, bear¬ ing date the fifteenth of April, one thousand eight hundred and four, of which no record can be found—therefore, § 6. And he it enacted, That it shall and may be lawful for the said Common Council to authenticate the said map, by such proofs as they shall deem satisfactory, and to cause a certified copy thereof, under the seal of the said city, to be filed with their clerk, and a copy thereof to be duly recorded in the office of such clerk; and also to cause a map of the ad¬ ditional territory of the said city, annexed thereto by this act, and of the blocks, streets, docks and slips which may from time to time be made into the waters surrounding said city, to be filed with the clerk, and a copy thereof to be duly recorded. § 7. And he it enacted, That this act shall go into effect im¬ mediately after the passage thereof. Passed March 8, 1839. A SUPPLEMENT TO AN ACT, ENTITLED “ Stt Srt ta Sncnrjintate ftat} Cifij.” Passed the 22d of February, 1838. Part of former § 1. Be it enacted by the Council and General Assembly of this epeaied. State y an {i fa fa hereby enacted by the authority of the same , That so much of the act to which this is a supplement, as authorizes the Common Council of Jersey City to pass ordinances for regulating petty grocers in selling of liquors, or to grant licen¬ ses to victuallers and retailers of spirituous liquors, be, and the same is hereby repealed from and after the passage of this act. Passed March 11, 1841. 109 A SUPPLEMENT TO THE ACT, ENTITLED “In 5Ut Hktorjinrating Herstg Citg,” Passed 22d February , 1838. Sec. 1 . Be it enacted by the Council and General Assembly Part of former of this State , and it is hereby enacted by the authority of the same , repealed That so much of the fourth section of the act to which this is a supplement, as declares that “ no person shall be elected, or serve as Mayor, or Alderman, unless he be a bona fide free¬ holder within said city,” shall be, and the same is hereby re¬ pealed, and that nothing in the said act contained, shall be construed to prevent any free white male citizen of the United States, who shall have resided in said city for one whole year next preceding any election, at which such person may be a candidate, from being elected to, and holding either of the offices above mentioned, upon taking such oath, or giving such security, as is now required by existing laws. Sec. 2. And be it enacted , That this act be taken as a public Act when to takj effect. act, and shall take effect on the second Monday of April next. Passed March 1, 1844. A FURTHER SUPPLEMENT TO THE ACT, ENTITLED “Sn let Sncatportttiiig Ktrseg Citij," Passed the twenty-second of February , A. F), eighteen hundred and thirty-eight. Be it enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State part of former of New Jersey , That the second proviso in the second section " trepealed - of the act, entitled “ A supplement to the act, entitled ‘An act incorporating Jersey City,’ ” passed the eighth day of March, A. D. eighteen hundred and thirty-nine, be, and the same is hereby repealed. Approved February 27, 1847. 14 no 51 fitrtjw inpplrarat tn iljt 51rt, intitlii “3n Sri SECDipnrating %mti\ City,” Passed February twenty-second, eighteen hundred and thirty-eight , 1 . Be it enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey, That whenever within the said city, any tax shall remain unpaid at the time appointed by law for the collector of the said city to return a list of the delinquent tax payers, it shall be lawful for the constable authorized to col¬ lect such tax, to charge, receive, and collect, in addition to the amount of such tax, interest thereon, to be computed at the rate of twelve per cent, per annum from the twentieth day of December, in each year, until the payment of the same ; and such interest shall be paid over and accounted for, by the per¬ son receiving the same, to the Mayor and Common Cbuncil of said city, as a part of the tax collected by him. 8ix per cent, de- 2. And be it enacted, That if any person or persons from ducted in case of j r r payment before whom any tax shall hereafter be due and payable to the said return. J _ . Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City, for State, county, or city purposes, shall pay the same, or any part thereof, to the collector of said city before the time appointed by law for the said collector to return a list of delinquent tax payers, it shall be lawful for the said collector to allow and deduct from the amount of said tax so paid, interest thereon, to be com¬ puted at the rate of six per cent, per annum from the time when the said tax shall be received by the said collector, until the time appointed by law to make such return of the list of delinquents aforesaid ; Provided, that nothing herein contain¬ ed shall be so construed as to exempt the said Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City, or the collector of said city, from paying over to the treasurer of this State, or to the col¬ lector of the county of Hudson, the full quota of taxes required by law to be raised in said city for State and county purposes. Compensation to 3. And be it enacted , That it shall be lawful for the said i a eaor!° r andco1 ^'the Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City, or a majority Interest to be eharged on unpaid tax. ui of them, in Common Council convened, to declare by ordi¬ nance the compensation to be paid to the assessor and col¬ lector of said city, for assessing and collecting the State, coun¬ ty, and city taxes, and the same to alter and change from time to time, as to them may seem expedient; and the compensa¬ tion so declared by the said Mayor and Common Council, shall be the amount to which the said assessor and collector shall be entitled, any thing in the act entitled “ An act concerning taxes,” approved April fourteenth, eighteen hundred and forty- six, or the act entitled “ An act to incorporate the chosen free¬ holders in the respective counties of the State,” approved April the sixteenth, eighteen hundred and forty-six, to the contrary. 4. And be it enacted , That the book in which the said Com- Books of record mon Council have caused their ordinances and by-laws to be recorded, and such other book and books as shall be by them provided and kept for that purpose, shall be taken and receiv¬ ed in all Courts and places, as evidence of the due passage by said Common Council of all ordinances and by-laws recorded therein; and until the contrary be proved, all ordinances and by-laws recorded in said book or books, shall be presumed to have been introduced, passed, and published according to the requirements of the thirteenth section of the act to which this is a supplement. 5. And be it enacted , That penalties for the violation of any Penalties for i r . •in , violation of ordU ordinance or any by-law or the said Common Council, may nance, how re- covered. be sued for and recovered, in the Court for the trial of small causes, before any justice of the peace residing in the said county of Hudson. 6. And be it enacted , That from any judgment which may be Parties aggrieved obtained in the Court for the trial of small causes, in any ac- may appeal ' tion brought to recover a penalty for the violation of any ordi¬ nance or by-law of the said Common Council, except where judgment of imprisonment shall be rendered, either party may appeal, as in other cases, to The Court of Common Pleas of the county of Hudson, to be holden next after the rendering of such judgment; and when the treasurer of the said city shall be appellant, a bond executed by the Mayor, under the seal of said city, without other surety, shall be considered a suffi¬ cient appeal bond; and when the judgment shall be rendered Mayor and Com¬ mon Council to regulate and pave streets, Ac. Mayor and Com' mon Council to borrow money. upon the verdict of a jury, the oath required in such case may be made by the attorney or other person who prosecutes such action in behalf of the said Common Council, and shall state that the said appeal is not. intended for the purpose of delay, and that he verily believes the appellant hath a just and legal ground of appeal upon the merits of the case. 7. And be it enacted, That it shall be lawful hereafter for the said Mayor and Common Council to exercise the same right, power, and authority in and over the Newark turnpike or avenue, and all streets, lanes, and alleys now open, or that shall hereafter be opened, within the limits of said city; and to regulate, grade, pave, curb, gutter, and drain the same; and to charge, assess, collect, and receive the costs and expenses thereof, upon the property benefited thereby, in the same manner and to the same extent, as by law they may in and over any other of the streets within the said city; Provided always, that nothing in this act contained, shall be so construed as to subject the said Newark turnpike or avenue, to any tax assessment, or imposition by the said Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City. 8. And be it enacted. That this act shall take effect imme¬ diately. Approved February 25, 1848. ACT To auth orize the Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City to raise by loan for a term of years, fifteen thousand dollars . 1. Be it enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey, T hat it shall and may be lawful for the Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City to raise by loan, any sum of money not exceeding fifteen thousand dollars, for a term of years, for the purpose of paying temporary loans expended for permanent improvements, and to issue the bonds of said city therefor, payable within fifteen years from the passage of this act, with the interest thereon, not exceeding seven per centum per annum ; Provided however , that such loan, or any part thereof, shall not be raised unless ordered by a resolution of the said Mayor and Common Council, introduced at a regular meeting preceding its passage, and to be passed by at least seven concurring votes, at a regular meeting. 2. And be it enacted , That it shall be the duty of the said Redemption mo- ^ ney to he raised Mayor and Common Council, for the put pose of redeeming tax - the said loan, to raise annually, by tax, some part of said loan, so that, at the expiration of the said term of fifteen years, said loan shall be fully redeemed, and also, an annual tax, to pro¬ vide for the payment of the interest upon said loan ; Provided , that the sum raised each and every year, shall equal at least five hundred dollars. 3 And be it enacted , That this act shall take effect imme¬ diately. Approved February 24, 1849. Sit 5111 TO SET OFF T H E TOWNSHIP OF YAN VORST, IN THE COUNTY OF HUDSON. Sec. 1. Be it enacted by the Council and General Assembly Boundaries of of this State , and it is hereby enacted by the authority of the same , Van Vorst. That all that part of the district of the township of Bergen, lying within the following boundary: Beginning on the New York bay, or Hoboken cove, at a place where the Creek of the Woods, or Mill creek empties into the same ; thence, fol¬ lowing said creek till it comes to a sprout of said creek, which runs into Hoboken meadow ; thence, in a northwesterly direc¬ tion, till it meets the Hoboken bank; thence southwesterly, along said bank, till it comes to the upland at the foot of the hill; thence southerly, along the foot of the hill, in a straight line, till it intersects the aforesaid Creek of the Woods, or Mill creek ; thence, following the middle of said creel^, to its en¬ trance in the Cummunepau cove, or York bay ; thence, up to and along the line of Jersey City, to the place of beginning ; 114 Inhabitants Incorporated. Town meetings, when and where held. Elections, Ac., to be by ballot. Township Com¬ mittee to make report. Officers of elec* tion, how chosen^ be, and the same is hereby set off from the said township of Bergen, and erected into a separate township, to be known by the name of “ the township of Van Vorst, in the county of Hudson.” Sec. 2. And be it enacted , That the inhabitants of the said township of Van Vorst shall be, and they are hereby incorpo- porated by the name of “ the inhabitants of the township of Van Vorst, in the county of Hudson,” and vested with, and entitled to all the powei*, privileges, authorities and advan-, tages, and subject to the like regulations, duties and liabilities, as other townships in this State. Sec. 3. And be it enacted , That the inhabitants of the said township of Van Vorst shall hold their first annual town meet¬ ing at the house of David Bedford, innkeeper, at Harsimus, on the day appointed by law for holding the annual town meetings in the other townships in the county of Hudson. Sec. 4. And be it enacted , That the several township offi¬ cers, and the number of such officers, when not prescribed by law, and all appropriations of money which are or may be authorized by law to be elected and made, and the place or places of holding elections and town meetings, shall be elect¬ ed, determined, made, and appointed by a plurality of votes, by ballot, in any town meetings to be held in the said town¬ ship, and not otherwise. Sec. 5. And be it enacted , That it shall be the duty of the Township Committee of said township, at least eight days pre¬ vious to the annual town meeting in each and every year, to meet and make out a report, as directed in the twelfth section of the act, entitled “ An act incorporating the inhabitants of townships, designating their powers, and regulating their meetingsand it shall be the duty of the clerk of said town¬ ship to attend said meeting, and all other meetings of the Com¬ mittee, and to record their acts and proceedings in a book to be kept for that purpose, and to cause said report to be pub¬ lished in the form of handbills, or otherwise, as the said Com¬ mittee shall direct, for which the said clerk shall be allowed all reasonable charges, to be determined by said Committee. Sec. 6. And be it enacted , That at the first annual town meet¬ ing to be holden in pursuance of this act, the inhabitants of said 115 township entitled by law to vote at town meetings, present, shall, at the hour of ten o’clock in the forenoon, choose three reputable freeholders as inspectors, and one reputable free¬ holder to be clerk of said election ; and the said inspectors and clerk shall conduct the said election, and be governed in all things as is hereinafter prescribed for holding the annual town meetings in the said township. Sec. 7. And be it enacted , That the judge of election, the assessor and collector of said township of the preceding year, shall constitute a board of inspectors to conduct and regulate such election, who shall open the poll at ten o’clock in the fore¬ noon, and close the same at five o’clock in the afternoon, shall take the same oath, perform the same duties, be invested with the same power, liable to the same penalties, and conduct the said election in all respects as is or may be directed by the laws regulating State and county elections, so far as the same are applicable; and all persons who by law are or may be qualified to vote at town meetings, shall be entitled to vote at such election; and the votes and ballots shall be forthwith can¬ vassed, and a return thereof made to the township clerk, who shall record and file the same; and that the officers conduct¬ ing any township election, shall not be disqualified from being elected to, or holding any township office. Sec. 8. And be it enacted , That if the judge of election, assessor, or collector, or either of them, shall be absent or sick at the time and place of holding any town meeting, then the persons present at the time for opening the polls, entitled to vote, shall proceed to choose a person or persons to serve in the stead of him or them so absent or unable to serve, which person or persons so chosen, shall take the oath or affirmation herein before required, and shall in all respects perform the duties and services, and be entitled to the same compensation, and subject to the like penalties, as is specified for the said judge, assessor and collector. Sec 9. And be it enacted , That the judge of election, asses¬ sor, collector, and clerk, for holding any annual or special township election, shall severally be entitled to the sum of one dollar and fifty cents per day for their services, to be paid by the Township Committee. Boardofinspec- tora, their duties. Vacancies, how supplied. Compensation to certain officers. Committee to ap¬ portion pro| e*'ty, debts, Approved March 24, 1852. A FURTHER SUPPLEMENT TO THE ACT, ENTITLED "In Set tn Sntnqinrnte ^crseij Citij," Passed February twenty-second, eighteen hundred and thirty-eight. 1. Be it enacted by the Senate and General. Assembly of the Election of State of New Jersey , That the fourth section of the act to which ° lly ° this is a supplement, shall be so amended, that the annual elec¬ tion for the city officers, in said section named, shall hereafter be held on the second Wednesday of April, in each and every year ; and that the poll of such election shall hereafter be open¬ ed at eight o’clock in the morning, and shall be closed at seven o’clock in the evening. 2. And be it enacted , That this act shall take effect imme¬ diately. Approved March 5, 1850. State op New Jersey: A SUPPLEMENT TO AN ACT, ENTITLED “3u 3d in Uncaijiamb Scnset} Cittj,” Approved March eighteenth , eighteen hundred and fifty-one. 1. Be it enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey , That in all cases where the Mayor and Common Council of Jersey City are now authorized to make or levy any assessment, for any improvements in said city, they shall be authorized to borrow the amount of any such assess- * 142 merit, in anticipation of the collection therefor, anything con¬ tained in the act to which this is a supplement, to the contrary notwithstanding. 2. And be it enacted , That this act shall be deemed and taken as a public act, and take effect immediately. Passed February 25, 1853. State of'New Jersey : hundred and fifty-two , entitled “An act to authorize the con¬ struction of Works for supplying Jersey City and places ad¬ jacent with pure and wholesome water.” 1. Be it enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey, That in case the owners, or any of the owners of any lands, or water rights, which may be required for the purposes of the act to which this is an amendment, are unknown, or cannot be found, the Circuit Court of the county of Hudson may direct the manner in which notice of applica¬ tion for the appointment of commissioners to estimate the value of such property, or damage thereto, and of the meeting of such commissioners may be given, or published; and when notices are given, or published in the manner so directed, they shall have the same force and effect as if served upon the owners of such lands, or water rights ; and in all cases where the title, or interest, of any person or persons in lands required and taken for the purposes of this act is doubtful, or disputed, the value of or damage to such lands, awarded by the Commis¬ sioners appointed by said Circuit Court, may be paid into said Court upon affidavit made of such facts : and such payment shall have the same effect as if made to the owners thereof; and the said Court may proceed in a summary way, upon pe¬ tition of any person claiming to be the owner of said lands, or any part thereof, to ascertain to whom the title belonged, and to what person, or persons the said money shall be paid, and shall have power to distribute the same among the persons entitled thereto. 143 2. And be it enacted, That the eleventh section of the said act shall be amended by striking out the following words, “and provided also, that no notes, or scrip, or certificates of debt, shall be sold at public or private sale, for less than the par value thereof.” 3. And be it enacted, That the twenty-third section of the said act be amended, by striking out the words “ in the county of Hudson,” and also the words, “ in the said county,” con¬ tained in the said section. 4. And be it enacted, That this act shall take effect imme¬ diately. Passed January 18, 1853. State of New Jersey: a fratijir lnppliirat tn tjit M, intitlii “Sit Set tn autjwrije tjje hnstitess of Sankiitg.” Approved February twenty-seventh, eighteen hundred and fifty . 1. Be it enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey, That it shall be lawful for any association of persons, formed and organized under the act to which this is a supplement, to deposit in addition to the stocks mentioned in said act, and the supplement thereto, the bonds of the city of Newark, issued in accordance to law, by the Mayor and Common Council of said city, bearing interest not less than six per cent, as a basis or security for their circulating notes, subject to all the provisions and restrictions in said act author¬ izing the business of banking. 2. And be it enacted, That it shall be lawful for any associa¬ tion of persons formed and organized under the act to which this is a supplement, to deposit the “Jersey City Water Scrip,” bearing interest not less than six per cent., as a basis or secu¬ rity for their circulating notes, subject to all the provisions and restrictions in the act to which this is a supplement. 3. And be it enacted, That this act shall take effect imme¬ diately. Passed February 25, 1853. t H4 State op New Jersey : J9L O T To authorize so much of the records in the office of the clerk of the county of Bergen, as relate to the county of Hudson, to he transcribed and certified. 1. Be it enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Je?'sey, That it shall be lawful for the board of chosen freeholders of the county of Hudson, to have all such deeds and conveyances, now on record in the office of the clerk of the county of Bergen, as relate to or affect lands situ¬ ate in the county of Hudson, together with the acknowledge¬ ments or proofs of execution thereof, and the entry of the time when the same were brought or delivered to be recorded, transcribed, by the clerk of the county of Bergen, in a good fair hand, in suitable books, to be provided by them for that purpose; which books shall each be certified by the clerk of said county of Bergen, under his hand and seal, to contain true and complete copies from the records in his office of the deeds therein transcribed; and the last of said books shall contain a certificate of said clerk, under his hand and seal, that the said books contain transcripts of all deeds in the records of his county relating to or affecting lands in the county of Hudson. 2. And he it enacted , That it shall be lawful for the said board of chosen freeholders of the county of Hudson, to cause the registry of all mortgages registered in the office of the clerk of the county of Bergen, before April fourteenth, eigh¬ teen hundred and forty, which are uncancelled of record, and that relate to or affect lands in the county of Hudson, to be transcribed by the clerk of Bergen county, at length, with the entry of the time the same were lodged to be registered, in suitable books, to be provided by them for that purpose, each of which books shall be certified by the clerk of the said county of Bergen to be true copies of the registry of said mortgages so transcribed; and the last of said books shall contain a cer¬ tificate of said clerk, that said books contain transcripts of the 145 registry of all uncancelled mortgages on the records of his county, relating to or affecting lands in the county of Hudson; and the cancellation of any mortgage so transcribed, may be made and entered in such books by the clerk of the county of Hudson, as if it had been originally registered in his office. ♦ 3. And be it enacted, That it shall be lawful for the said board of chosen freeholders of the county of Hudson to cause a docket to be made, by the clerk of the county of Bergen, of the judg¬ ments unsatisfied, entered of record in the office of the clerks of the Courts of Common Pleas and of the Circuit Court, re¬ spectively, from the first day of January, eighteen hundred and thirty-three, until the fourteenth day of April, eighteen hund¬ red and forty, and all judgments entered in said courts since the said last mentioned day, on suits actually pending on the thirteenth day of April, eighteen hundred and forty; which docket shall contain the names of the plaintiff or plaintiffs and defendant or defendants in such judgment, the form of action, the amount recovered, and the date when the same was signed. 4. And, be it enacted , That said transcripts of deeds and mort¬ gages and said docket shall, when completed, be placed in the office and custody of the clerk of the county of Hudson, and, when so deposited, all persons shall be entitled, at proper times, to have access to the same, and shall be entitled to copies thereof, upon paying for searches and copies such fees as are allowed by law for the same services in searching and copying the records of deeds and mortgages and judgments recorded in said clerk’s office; and said books of deeds, and certified copies thereof, under the hand and seal of the clerk of the county of Hudson, shall be evidence in the same man¬ ner as the original books in the county of Bergen, or copies certified by such clerk of said county of Bergen now are. 5. Arid be it enacted , That said transcript of deeds and mort¬ gages and said docket of judgments shalf contain, in the margin opposite to such deed, mortgage, or judgment, the designation of the book in said clerk’s office of the county of Bergen, and of the page thereof, from which it shall be taken. 6. And be it enacted , That the clerk of the county of Hudson shall, at the expense of the said county, cause proper indexes to be made of such books of deeds and mortgages and docket of judgments. 146 7. And be it enacted , That the clerk of the county of Bergen shall, upon being required by the board of chosen freeholders of the county of Hudson, cause said transcripts and docket to be made, and sign and seal such certificates within twelve months after proper books shall be provided for that purpose by them, and shall be entitled to receive for such transcripts, from the said the board of chosen freeholders of the county of Hudson, the fees allowed by law for recording deeds left to be recorded in his office, and for docketing each judgement twelve cents, and for all the searches and certificates necessary for such purposes two hundred dollars. 8. And be it enacted ,, That this act shall take effect imme¬ diately. Passed March 9, 1853. State of New Jersey: an lit tn ugnlntt tip rata nf /ErringE at tip Inhnktn unit SEtSEg (tittj /eeiies. 1. And be it enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey , That from and after the first day of March next, it shall and may be lawful for the proprietors of the ferries at Hoboken and Jersey City, to charge the follow¬ ing tolls or rates of ferriage, and no more : Every person on foot, above ten years old, three cents; Under ten years and above five years old, two cents; Man and horse or horse only, nine cents; Ordinary four wheeled trucks, loaded, two horses and one person, thirty-seven and a-half cents ; Ordinary four wheeled truck, light, two horses and one per¬ son, twenty-five c#nts; Ordinary wagons, or market wagons including loads of green clover, or grass, two horses and one person, twenty-five cents; For every additional person, three cents; Ordinary wagons or market wagons, including loads of green clover or grass, one horse and one person, twelve and a-half cents; For every additional person, three cents; b r V * 147 * A coach, coachee, chariot, barouche, phaston, pleasure wag¬ on, or sleigh, with more than one seat, two horses, one person, thirty cents; For every additional person, three cents; A light pleasure carriage, barouche or pleasure wagon, two horses, one person, twenty-five cents; For every additional person, three cents ; A light pleasure carriage, barouche, or pleasure wagon, one horse, one person, twelve and a-half cents; For every additional person, three cents ; A cart with driver, one horse, loaded or empty, twelve and a-half'cents ; A wagon load of straw or hay, with two horses and one per¬ son, fifty cents; A wagon or cartload of hay or straw, with one horse and one person, thirty-seven and a-half cents ; Any kind of carriage or sleigh, without horse, half price; A wheelbarrow and one person, loaded or empty, six cents; , A hand-cart and one person, loaded or empty, eight cents; Cattle, single or in droves, each, fifteen cents; * Calves and hogs, dead or alive, each, three cents; . Sheep, lambs, and shoats, dead or alive, each, three cents; Sucking pigs do., each, two cents; Raw hides, each, three cents ; Skins, each, half a cent; Dry hides, each, one cent; Bundles of sole and upper leather, per side, each one cent; Bundles of hay, each, nine cents; Paper, in bundles, per ream, half a cent; Wheat, corn, arid other grain, per bushel, half a cent; Oats, green peas and beans, per bushel, one cent; Potatoes, per bushel, one and a-half cents; Barrels containing apples and vegetables, each, six and a quarter cents; Boxes of oranges and lemons, each, five cents; Baskets containing fruit or vegetables, each, three cents; Oysters, per bushel, three cents ; Horse feed, per bushel, one cent; Meal, flour or coffee, in bags, each, three cents; 148 Large boxes containing live fowls for markets, each, twelve and a half-cents; Small boxes and large baskets, containing live fowls, in pro¬ portion ; Salt in bags, per bushel, two cents ; Sugar, per cwt,., five cents; Pipe, hogshead of spirits or wine, each fifty cents; When empty, eight cents ; Tierce of spirits or wine, each thirty-seven and a-half cents ; When empty, six and a-quarter cents; Barrels of spirits or wine, each eighteen and three-quarter cents; When empty, three cents; Hogsheads of molasses or sugar, each thirty-seven and a-half cents; When empty, six and a-quarter cents; Tierce of molasses or sugar, each, twenty five cents : When empty, five cents; Barrels molasses, sugar, beer, beef, pork, and oil, each ten cents; Barrels of flour and lime, each, five cents; When empty, two cents each, except flour barrels, one cent; Baskets of wine, each, six and a-quarter cents; Crate, hogshead, tierce, &c., containing earthenware or glass, each, twelve and a-half cents; And when empty, tierce or crate, each, four cents; Large size firkins, each, five cents; Second size firkins, each, three cents; Pails of butter, each, one cent : Cheese, ham, codfish, &c.—per cwt., five cents; Chests of tea, each, four cents ; PIalf chests of tea, each, two cents; Tobacco, in kegs, each, four cents; Churns containing milk, each, six and a-quarter cents; Iron, steel, lead-paints and other metals, per cwt., five cents ; Boxes of window glass, each, two cents; Boxes of soap and candles, each, three cents; Kegs of nails, each, five cents ; Specie in large kegs or boxes, each, twenty-five cents ; M9 For less size, and for every one thousand dollars, twelve and a-half cents ; For fancy chairs, each, two cents; For common chairs, each, one cent; Sofas and pianos, each, twenty-five cents; Bureaus, each, twelve and a half cents; Bedsteads, beds, tables, writings and small bureaus, each, six and a-quarter cents ; Tool chests, ploughs, and corn machines, each, six and a- quarter cents ; Stoves, and grates, large size, each, twelve and a-half cents; Small size in proportion ; Joists and boards, each, one cent; Lumber and timber, per thousand feet, one dollar; And all animals and things not herein enumerated shall be charged proportionably to the foregoing rates. 2. And be it enacted , That the Legislature may at any time hereafter alter and modify the rates of ferriage at the ferries aforesaid, and that this act shall go into effect immediately ; and that nothing herein contained, shall be construed as to recognize any exclusive right of ferry from Jersey City to New York, in any person or corporation. Passed March 10, 1853. To Ratify and Confirm an Agreement made between the Com¬ missioners appointed by the Governor of the State of New York , and the Commissioners appointed by the Governor of the State of New Jersey , respecting the territorial limits and juris¬ diction between the said States. Passed the 2 6 th of February, 1834. 4 Whereas, commissioners duly appointed on the part of the State of New York, and commissioners duly appointed on the part of New Jersey, for the purpose of agreeing upon and settling the jurisdiction and territorial limits of the two States, 19 n • * v ]50 have executed certain articles, two copies for each State, which 1 are contained in the following words: Agreement made and entered into by and between Ben¬ jamin F. Butler, Peter Augustus Jay, and Henry Seymour, commissioners duly appointed on the part and behalf of the State of New York, in pursuance of an act of the Legislature of the said State, entitled “ An act concerning the territorial limits and jurisdiction of the State of New York and the State of New Jersey,” passed January 18th, 1833, of the one part, and Theodore Frelinghuysen, James Parker and Lucius Q,. C. Elmer, commissioners duly appointed on the part and behalf of the State of New Jersey, in pursuance of an act of the Legislature of the said j^tate, entitled “ An act for the settle¬ ment of the territorial limits and jurisdiction between the States of New Jersey and New York,” passed February 6th, 1833, of the other part. Article I. The boundary line between the two States of New York and New Jersey, from a point in the middle of Hudson river, opposite the point on the west shore thereof, in the forty-first degree of north latitude, as heretofore ascertain¬ ed and marked, to the main sea, shall be the middle of the said river, of the bay of New York, of the water between Staten Island and New Jersey, and of Raritan bay, to the main sea, except as hereinafter otherwise particularly mentioned. Art. I. The State of New York shall retain its present jurisdiction of and over Bedlow’s and Ellis’ Islands, and shall also retain exclusive jurisdiction of and over the other islands lying in the waters above mentioned, and now under the juris¬ diction of that State. Art. III. The State of New York shall have and enjoy exclusive jurisdiction of and over all the waters of the bay of New York, and of and over all the waters of Hudson river lying west of Manhattan Island, and’to the south of the mouth of Spuytenduyvel creek, and of and over the lands covered by the said waters to the low water mark on the westerly or New Jersey side thereof; subject to the following rights of property and of jurisdiction of the State of New Jersey, that is to say r 151 1. The State of New Jersey shall have the exclusive right of property in and to the land under water, lying west of the middle of the bay of New York, and west of the middle of that part of the Hudson river which lies between Manhattan Island and New Jersey. 2. The State of New Jersey shall have the exclusive juris¬ diction of and over the wharves, docks and improvements made and to be made on the shore of the said State, and of and over all vessels aground on said shore, or fastened to any such wharf or dock; except that the said vessel shall be subject to the quarantine or health laws, and lav/s in relation to passen¬ gers, of the State of New York, which now exist or which may hereafter be passed. 3. The State of New Jersey shall have the exclusive right of regulating the fisheries on the westerly side of the middle of the said waters: Provided , that the navigation be not ob¬ structed or hindered. Art. IV. The State of New York shall have exclusive juris¬ diction of and over the waters of the Kill Van Kull, between Staten Island and New Jersey, to the westermost end of Shooter’s Island, in respect to such quarantine laws and laws relating to passengers, as now exist or may hereafter be pass¬ ed under the authority of that State, and for executing the same; and the said State shall also have exclusive jurisdiction, for the like purposes, of and over the waters of the sound, from the westermost end of Shooter’s Island to Woodbridge creek, as to all vessels bound to any port in the said State of New York. Art. V. The State of New Jersey shall have and enjoy ex¬ clusive jurisdiction of and over all the waters of the sound, be¬ tween Staten Island and New Jersey, lying south of Wood- bridge creek, and of and over all the water of Raritan bay, lying westward of a line drawn from the light-house at Prince’s bay to the mouth of Matavan creek, subject to the following rights of property and of jurisdiction of the State of New York, that is to say:— I. The State of New York shall have the exclusive right of 152 property in and to the land under water, lying between the middle of the said waters and Staten Island. 2. The State of New York shall have the exclusive jurisdic¬ tion of and over the wharves, docks, and improvements made and to be made on the shore of Staten Island; and of and over all vessels aground on said shore, or fastened to any such wharf or dock, except that the said vessels shall be subject to the quarantine or health laws, and laws in relation to passengers of the State of New Jersey, which now exist, or which may hereafter be passed. 3. The State of New York shall have the exclusive right of regulating the fisheries between the shore of Staten Island and the middle of the said waters, provided that the navigation of the said waters be not obstructed or hindered. Art. VI. Criminal process, issued under the authority of the State of New Jersey, against any person accused of an offence committed within that State, or committed on board any ves¬ sel being under the exclusive jurisdiction of that State, as aforesaid, or committed against the regulations made or to be made by that State, in relation to the fisheries mentioned in the' third article; and also civil process issued under the authority of the State of New Jersey, against any person domiciled in that State, or against property taken out of that State, to evade the laws thereof, may be served upon any of the said waters within the exclusive jurisdiction of the State of New York, unless such person or property shall be on board a vessel aground upon, or fastened to the shore of the State of New York, or fastened to a wharf adjoining thereto; or unless such person shall be under arrest, or such property shall be under * seizure, by virtue of process or authority of the State of New York. Art. VII. Criminal process issued under the authority of the State of New York, against any person accused of an offence committed within that State, or committed on board of any vessel being under the exclusive jurisdiction of that State, as aforesaid, or committed against the regulations made or to be made by that State, in relation to the fisheries mentioned in the fifth article; and also civil process issued under the author- ] 53 ity of the State of New York, against any person domiciled in that Slate, or against property taken out of that State, to evade the laws thereof, may be served upon any of the said waters within the exclusive jurisdiction of the State of New Jersey* unless such person or property shall be on board a vessel aground upon, or fastened to the shore of the State of New Jersey, or fastened to a wharf adjoining thereto, or unless such person shall be under arrest, or such property shall be under seizure, by virtue of process or authority of the State of New Art. VIII. This agreement shall become binding on the two States when confirmed by the Legislatures thereof res¬ pectively, and when approved by the Congress of the United States. Done in four parts (two of which are retained by the com¬ missioners of New York, to be delivered to the Governor of that State, and the other two of which are retained by the com¬ missioners of New Jersey, to be delivered to the Governor of that State) at the city of New York, this sixteenth day of Sep¬ tember, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and thirty-three, and of the Independence of the United States, the fifty-eighth. THEO. FRELINGHUYSEN, B. F. BUTLER, JAMES PARKER, PETER A. JAY, LUCIUS Q. C. ELMER, HENRY SEYMOUR. Therefore: The aforesaid agreement, and every article, clause, matter and thing therein contained, shall be, and the same is hereby fully and amply ratified and confirmed, on the part of the State of New Jersey. (This agreement has been ratified and confirmed by the Legislature of New York, and approved by the Congress of the United States.) 154 5ln Itt tn nplafe tjjf Idling nf (grain. Passed February 16, 1838. Whereas, It is agreeable to equity and beneficial to com¬ merce, that a people who live in the same community shall have one equal and just, weight per bushel for the various kinds of grain, according to a true and perfect standard ; THEREFORE- § 1. From and after the fourth day of July next, the bushel shall consist of sixty pounds of wheat, fifty-six pounds of rye or Indian corn, fifty pounds of buckwheat, forty-eight pounds of barley, thirty pounds of oats, fifty-five pounds of flax seed, and sixty-four pounds of clover seed. att ad ta rrgtdatr tljr itankrii nf Wrigljte in tjjr Itnti nf Srwrtj. Passed the 19 th of February, 1835. Whereas, It is agreeable to equity and beneficial to com¬ merce, that a people who live in the same community shall have one equal and just weight, according to a true and per¬ fect standard; therefore— § 1. From and after the first day of July next, it shall be lawful and proper to calculate the standard of weights, within this State, in the following manner, to wit: sixteen drachms one ounce, sixteen ounces one pound, twenty-five pounds one quarter of an hundred, four quarters one hundred, and twenty hundred one ton, any usage or custom to the contrary thereof notwithstanding, except such as may be used in weight of coins and apothecary drugs. v £ % 155 DISTANCES Along the line of the Railroad, from the Jersey City Ferry land¬ ing, to the west side of Bergen hill. To Warren street, Jersey City, one'quarter of a mile. To Grove street, do. half a mile. To Jersey Avenue, do. three puarters of a mile. To Gilbert street, do. near the Starch Factory, one mile. To Fair Mount, or Point of Rocks, Bergen hill, orie mile and one-quarter. To second Point of Rocks, or Gilbert’s Grapery, one mile and a-half. To summit of Bergen Ridge, under Bridge, two miles. To junction of Newark and Paterson Railroad, two miles and a-half. Across Hudson river to Courtlandt street, New York, 1797 yards, or 1 1-47 of a mile, where a boat crosses in from five to eight minutes. Comparative Table of Distances, from the Merchants' Ex¬ change, in the city of Ne w York, to different points in New York, Jersey City, and Brooklyn. From the Exchange, it is In New York. In Jersey City, not including River. In Brooklyn, Not including River. £ mile to Courtlandt st. Ferry. Hudson street. Water street. 1 “ Canal street. Grove street. Nassau street. H “ Spring street. Jersey Avenue. City Hall. n “ Houston street. Gilbert street. Smith street. \% 11 Fourth street. Fair Mount. Bond street. 2 “ Ninth street. Gilbert’s Grapery, Powers street. n “ Nineteenth street. Bergen Bridge. Junction Fulton and Atlantic streets. 3 “ Twenty-ninth street. Paterson and Newark junction. Clinton Avenue.