r 
 
 NEW CHARTER FOR 
 
 KANSAS CITY, MISSO 
 
 \ , 1 i 
 
 FRAMED BY 
 
 J. V. C. KARNES, 
 
 WALTER J. BATES, 
 WIEI.IAM P. BORLAND, 
 CHARGES CAMPBEEE, 
 
 F. D. CRABBS, 
 
 ANDREW F. EVANS, 
 
 D. J. HAFF, 
 
 CHARGES J. HUBBARD, 
 
 R. J. INGRAHAM, 
 
 ROBERT B. MIDDEEBROOK, 
 JOHN H. MOORE, 
 
 JOHN H. THACHER, 
 
 F. W. TIITTEE, 
 
 BOARD OF THIRTEEN FREEHOLDERS ELECTED 
 THAT PURPOSE AT A GENERAL ELECTION 
 HELD APRIL 7TH, 1908. , 
 
 OFFICERS 
 J. V. C. KARNES, 
 
 PRESIDENT. 
 
 JAMES W. S. PETERS, 
 
 SECRETARY. 
 
 OFFICIAL STENOGRAPHER, 
 
 ANNA I,. DONAHUE- 
 
 CEINE PRINTING CO. 
 
 KANSAS CITY, MO. 
 
TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
 
 Article I. — Corporate Powers-Boundaries and Wards., i 
 
 Article II—.The Common Council... . 9 
 
 Article III.—Powers of the Common Council... . 14 
 
 Article IV.—Municipal Officers .. . . !.. 33 
 
 Article V.—Revenue and Taxation. 51 
 
 Article VI.—Condemning and Damaging Private Property 76 
 
 Article VII.—Grading. 100 
 
 Article VIII.—Public Improvements. . . no 
 
 Article IX.—Vacating Highways and Public Places.135 
 
 Article X.—Board of Public Works.139 
 
 Article XI.—Department of Fire and Water.148 
 
 Article XII.—Establishment and Maintenance of Eevee 
 
 Districts. . 155 
 
 Article XIII.—Department of Parks and Boulevards. ..166 
 
 Article XIV.—Hospital and Health Department. 202 
 
 Article XV. — Civil Service, .• ••. 207 
 
 % 
 
 Article XVI. —Franchises . ’..218 
 
 Article XVII. — Dramshops .V. 223 
 
 Article XVTII.—Miscellaneous Provisions . 225 
 
Summary of the Proposed Charter. 
 
 What Is the Charter? 
 
 The charter of the city is its fundamental local law, prescrib¬ 
 ing its form of government, fixing the powers and duties of its 
 officers and defining the authority of the City Council. Kansas 
 City has the right, under the constitution of the state, to frame 
 its own charter. It is one of the few cities of the United States 
 possessing this privilege. 
 
 What is the Matter With the Present Charter? 
 
 ‘ i 
 
 It was adopted in 1889, when Kansas City was a com¬ 
 paratively small town, both in number of inhabitants and in 
 territorial area. Amendments to the charter were made in 1890, 
 1892, 1895' and 1903. Some of its sections have been cut away 
 by decisions of the Supreme Court, others are so unsuited to 
 present condiSons that they are necessarily disregarded in the 
 daily discharge of the city’s business. Its limitations are such 
 that it is inadequate to meet the great problems that are con¬ 
 fronting the city today, such as the prevention of floods, the new 
 depot, the Twelfth Street Traffic-Way, and the efficient man¬ 
 agement and operation of the new city hospital. 
 
 The good features of the old charter have been constantly 
 kept in mind, and changes have only been made in those respects 
 in which the decisions of our courts and the practical solution 
 of new problems before the city have demanded changes in or 
 additions to the present city charter. 
 
 What is the Proposed New Charter? 
 
 It is a substantial reconstruction of the present charter 
 along modern progressive lines, conforming to the general laws 
 of the state, the decisions of the Supreme Court and the adminis¬ 
 trative changes which have been forced upon the city. It makes 
 such alterations as are necessary to conduct the affairs of the 
 
city in a businesslike way with the least expense to the tax payers 
 and the greatest degree of safety and protection to the body of 
 citizens who compose the Kansas City of 1908, as distinguished 
 from the Kansas City of twenty years ago. It insures a safe, 
 orderly and progressive municipal government. It provides for 
 the transaction of public business with the same promptness, 
 efficiency and common sense that a citizen would use in conduct¬ 
 ing his own private business. 
 
 ' 
 
 <# 
 
 Is It a Safe Charter or An Experimental One? 
 
 fhe proposed charter preserves every valuable feature of 
 the charter of 1889, and introduces such new methods or machin 
 ery as have been justified by the most careful and thorough tests 
 and such as are in line with the march of progress in other cities 
 of the country, and the value of which changes have been demon¬ 
 strated beyond question by experience and established usage. 
 It is a conservative charter and free from radical innovations 
 and experiments. It eliminates the features of the old charter 
 which are costly, extravagant or incapable of being carried out, 
 and adds such innovations as are necessary to meet the present 
 and future conditions of the city. 
 
 Powers of the City. 
 
 The powers of the city to preserve and protect the health 
 and property of citizens and promote the general v/elfare are 
 grgatly enlarged. Under the proposed charter the city may con¬ 
 struct and maintain dikes, revetments and levees for the purpose 
 of preventing floods and overflows; may acquire, maintain and 
 operate tunnels, tracks, depots, telephone and telegraph lines, 
 bridges and subways; may acquire and maintain quarantine 
 stations and make provision for the maintenance and support of 
 insane and indigent citizens. The city is given broader power 
 of condemnation for public purposes, necessary to meet the many 
 emergencies and novel conditions now confronting the city. 
 
 The Common Council. 
 
 The city council continues practically as at present, except 
 
Vll 
 
 that in the proposed charter the President of the Upper House 
 will be chosen by the members of that body from among their 
 own number. The qualification that members of the Common 
 Council should own real estate is eliminated, so as to conform to 
 the state law. Regular meetings of the Common Council are to 
 be held on Monday of each week instead of once a month as under 
 the present charter, so that the necessity of a special message and 
 the labor and expense incident to preparing and publishing what 
 is known as the “Budget" are dispensed with. The powers 
 of the Common Council are enlarged to correspond with the 
 enlarged powers of the city. The enumeration of the occupa¬ 
 tions, corporations, institutions, commodities and utilities sub¬ 
 ject to license tax and regulation has been enlarged to meet 
 the narrow limitations placed upon the present charter by the 
 courts. 
 
 The power is given to establish and maintain plants for pav¬ 
 ing, repaving and repairing streets; the city is given authority 
 to do such work and bid therefor in competition with contract¬ 
 ors. The power of the Common Council has been enlarged 
 in the matter of directing and controlling the laying and con¬ 
 struction of steam railroad tracks, bridges and switches in the 
 streets, the location of depot grounds and the protection of the 
 interests of the city and of its citizens in the construction and 
 maintenance of railroads, street crossings, viaducts and tunnels. 
 
 Power is given to the Common Council to regulate, control 
 or prohibit sign boards, bill boards and structures for advertising 
 purposes along or within view of the streets, highways or public 
 places within the city; to regulate the rates to be charged for 
 services of all persons or corporations owning or operating public 
 utilities within the city. 
 
 The proposed charter, while preserving to the Mayor and 
 Common Council the absolute control of the finances and reve¬ 
 nues of the city, and maintaining checks and safeguards against 
 reckless or unwise expenditures of public money, relieves the 
 Common Council of a large volume of routine work and of much 
 useless and cumbersome legislation necessitated by the terms 
 of the present charter. > 
 
 The Mayor and Other Municipal Officers. 
 
 The Mayor, under the proposed charter, is elected and quali- 
 
Vlll 
 
 ♦ 
 
 fied as at present; is made an ex officio member of all boards, and 
 is partially relieved of the onerous duty of hearing- complaints 
 and appeals for pardons and paroles; is charged with absolute 
 responsibility in the appointment of all boards having functions 
 of purely a business character. In case of vacancy in office, is 
 elected by the City Council for the unexpired term. (Special elec¬ 
 tions by the people at great expense required by present charter). 
 
 The Mayor has been made absolutely responsible for the 
 management and operation of the fire department and water 
 works of the city, and for the conduct of the hospital and main¬ 
 tenance of the public health, by placing in his hands the power 
 of appointment, without confirmation, of the boards governing 
 these functions, viz.: the Fire and Water Commissioners and 
 the Hospital and Health Board. 
 
 The right of confirmation of appointees given to councils 
 in municipal charters was originally intended to put a check upon 
 bad appointments by the Mayor. It has frequently failed of 
 this purpose because of the natural and inevitable conversion by 
 the Councils of the right of confirmation into an actual participa¬ 
 tion in the appointing power. It has been thought best to pre¬ 
 serve this check in the case of the Board of Public Works, whose 
 duties are so closely related to the functions of the Common 
 Council in making public improvements and levying special 
 taxes, but in the case of the Fire and Water Commissioners and 
 the Hospital and Health Board, the functions of which are of a 
 distinctly different character, it has been deemed advisable to 
 follow the experience of the best governed cities everywhere by 
 removing the right of confirmation and placing the responsibility 
 for the success and character of the administration exclusively 
 on the Mayor, thus eliminating the plausible excuse that incom¬ 
 petent appointments have been made, because the Council refused 
 to confirm better men. 
 
 A Much Needed Relief. 
 
 The Board of Public Works, under the present charter, is 
 
 % 
 
 overwhelmed with the detailed duties of managing and controll¬ 
 ing practically all of the departments of the city’s administra¬ 
 tive business. It has been a physical impossibility for any of 
 the boards of public works of the city to give adequate care and 
 
IX 
 
 attention to the manifold details of the business under their 
 supervision. The proposed charter relieves this board of the 
 great volume of business necessary for the effective handling of 
 the water works and fire department and the hospitals, and it is 
 thus enabled to devote its time to the protection of the city’s 
 interests, in the matter of the management and control of public 
 improvements. 
 
 A Protection From Floods. 
 
 One of the greatest problems now confronting the city is 
 the question of how to prevent the annual recurrence of floods 
 and inundations. This menace to the lives and property, and to 
 the business interests of the city, has become so serious a problem 
 that it can only be met by a radical addition to the present char¬ 
 ter. A simple, fair and effective method of remedying this evil 
 is provided in the proposed charter. The provision for a fail- 
 judicial hearing and a verdict by a jury in making assessments, 
 and the co-operation of the Board of Public Works in devising 
 plans for flood prevention, will enable the city to proceed immed¬ 
 iately to secure effective relief. Without such a measure as is 
 proposed by the new charter the city is exposed to the danger of 
 some legislative enactment on the subject which would be inimi¬ 
 cal to the interests of the city and which would invite a long and 
 tedious process of litigation and open the way to indiscriminate 
 an unjust taxation by a commission or such other board or body 
 as the legislature might designate. By thus forestalling any act 
 of the legislature on this subject and providing an adequate 
 method for immediate relief,, the proposed charter is worthy of 
 adoption for this one article, if for no other reason. 
 
 A Business System of Finance and Accounting. 
 
 In the proposed charter inconsistencies in the system of 
 finance and accounting have been eliminated. The City Comp¬ 
 troller. as the bulwark of the financial good name of the city, is 
 strengthened in his guardianship of the city treasury. He is 
 made an elective officer in order to give him the independence 
 and authority such an officer should have in the supervision of 
 the departments and persons under him. He countersigns all 
 warrants and supervises all branches of the city’s finances. The 
 
Auditor is made an appointive officer and is required to be a 
 competent accountant. He draws all warrants on the treasury 
 as under the present charter, keeps a full check on all receipts, 
 of money paid into the treasury and has full control of the 
 same. He audits all accounts of the city at least once a year. 
 The bookkeeping department of the city is greatly simplified and 
 made to conform to the methods advocated by the best national 
 municipal experts. The present complicated methods are changed 
 in such a way as to make them uniform with the modern, scien¬ 
 tific systems adopted by the larger and more progressive cities 
 of the country. In the method of expending money the treas¬ 
 ury is amply safe-guarded as in the present charter, but the 
 Common Council is relieved of all purposeless detail in its legis¬ 
 lative deliberations. In addition to the control exercised by the 
 City Council over the city funds, the following safe-guards are 
 provided: Every claim against the city for money must be 
 approved by the head of the department to which the claim 
 belongs, or by the Mayor, in case the claim is not chargeable 
 to any particular department; it must be approved by the officer 
 or agent who personally incurred the obligation; in case of the 
 purchase of goods or supplies of any sort the claim must bear 
 a certificate as to quantity and quality, signed by the person who 
 accuracy and also as to the fulfillment of the above provisions and 
 the claim must be examined and approved by the Auditor as to 
 accuracy and also as to fulfillment of the above provisions and 
 requirements, and upon warrant drawn by the Auditor, the 
 Comptroller countersigns the warrant, if he finds the claim justly 
 due from the city and that there is money enough in the treas¬ 
 ury for the purpose and not previously set aside for any other 
 purpose. It is believed that the greatest degree of efficiency 
 is obtained when an officer is thus called upon to affix his name 
 to a certificate that will fix upon him the full and final responsi¬ 
 bility as to the accuracy and correctness of the claim. Every 
 transaction, demanding the payment of money is thus brought 
 into the full light of day and made to pass under the eyes of those 
 officials who know most about it and who are best able to protect 
 the city’s interests. 
 
 A purchasing agent is provided for who will have power, 
 under proper restrictions, to make purchases of materials and 
 
XI 
 
 supplies at the lowest possible figure and with the greatest 
 economy to the city. 
 
 Revenue and Taxation. 
 
 The general plan of revenue and taxation remains the same 
 as in the old charter. The constitutional limit to general taxation 
 is 1% of the assessed valuation. The following improvements 
 have been made in the collection of these taxes: 
 
 First, the taxes become payable June 1st instead of May 
 10th, thus relieving to some extent the pressure on the City 
 Treasurer’s office, and saving the city considerable expense in 
 the hiring of extra clerks. 
 
 Second, the ward offices for the return of the Assessor’s lists 
 have been found by experience to be useless and have been abol¬ 
 ished, resulting in a material saving to the city. 
 
 Third, the rate of penalty on delinquent taxes has been 
 reduced from 2% a month to 1% a month. 
 
 Fourth, the sale of real estate for delinquent taxes will now 
 be made to the tax buyer who offers to carry the taxes at the 
 lowest rate of interest, not exceeding 12% per annum. The old 
 charter allowed the tax buyer to add 10% per annum immedi¬ 
 ately to the amount of his bill and then carry the whole amount 
 at 24% per annum. If the property owner paid off the delin¬ 
 quent taxes within a year after the sale he paid the enormous 
 rate of 34%. Now he will pay no more than 12%. 
 
 Fifth, delinquent taxes now run for five years after the 
 sale before deed is given to purchaser. Under the old charter 
 they ran but two years. 
 
 / 
 
 The Municipal Court. 
 
 If the proposed charter is adopted, the Police Court and the 
 Mayor’s Court will be superseded by the Municipal Court, which 
 will have jurisdiction over grading and condemnation cases, in 
 addition to the functions discharged by the Police Court under 
 the present charter. The Judge of the Municipal Court must 
 be an attorney at law of at least five years’ experience at the 
 bar. This court will effectually dispose of the great volume of 
 the city’s business pertaining to the opening, widening and grad¬ 
 ing of streets. The same rights of appeal are preserved that 
 
• • 
 
 Xll 
 
 exist under the present charter. It is estimated that three- 
 fourths of the city's grading cases can be disposed of in the 
 Municipal Court without appeal, thus insuring a large annual 
 saving to the city in court costs and legal expenses. 
 
 Twelfth Street Traffic-Way. 
 
 The peculiar topographical conditions surrounding such 
 public improvements as the Twelfth Street Traffic-Way necessi¬ 
 tate certain material modifications in the present charter. The 
 Utilities Commission appointed by the Mayor has reported to 
 him that a proper solution of this problem can be attained only 
 by certain important additions to the powers of condemnation 
 under the present charter, and certain changes in the procedure. 
 These changes and additions have been made in the proposed 
 charter. It is provided that when the grading of streets, build¬ 
 ing of viaducts and tunnels and the condemnation of private 
 property are all parts of one general improvement, that dam¬ 
 ages and benefits may be ascertained in a single proceeding. 
 Under the present charter, separate proceedings are necessary 
 for each of these improvements. The most ample and elastic 
 machinery is included in the proposed charter for meeting this 
 situation and similar problems that will arise in the process of the 
 city’s growth. 
 
 The New Depot. 
 
 It is the purpose of the proposed charter to place at the 
 disposal of the city all legislative tools and machinery necessary 
 for a speedy solution of the depot problem. It provides methods 
 by which damages to be caused by the vacation of streets and 
 the construction of bridges, viaducts, tunnels, overhead and 
 underground crossings and approaches can be speedily and fairly 
 ascertained. It gives the city broad powers for the protection 
 of its interests and rights of its citizens in its negotiations with 
 the Terminal Company or others. It provides methods by which 
 the proposed franchise can be submitted to the people without 
 necessitating an amendment to the charter. 
 
Xlll 
 
 Hospital and Health Department. 
 
 t 
 
 The Board of Freeholders considered this to be one of the 
 most important, if not the most important, matters to be con¬ 
 sidered fn framing the new charter. The advance of medical 
 science and the establishment of many schools of medicine neces¬ 
 sitated the adoption of liberal and advanced methods for the 
 
 protection of the public health. After much study of this subject 
 the conclusion was reached that it would be wise to provide for 
 
 the appointment of a Hospital and Health Board to be composed 
 of three high class business men, no one of whom shall be a 
 physician, but all to be chosen with a view to their special quali¬ 
 fications and fitness for such position. No more than two of 
 them shall be of one political party; they shall serve without 
 compensation and shalfbe placed in absolute control of the health 
 of the city, including the management of the hospitals. This 
 Board will be given authority to appoint a medical staff, which 
 shall likewise serve without compensation. The Board shall 
 engage such medical assistants and nurses as shall be needed by 
 them in the hospital and sanitary department of the city. They 
 
 shall direct the purchase of all supplies, keep books and make 
 
 • 
 
 regular reports to the City Comptroller. They shall adopt the 
 best means to protect and relieve the people from any form of 
 disease, contagious or otherwise, and any epidemic that may be 
 prevalent or imminent in the city. All sanitary measures shall 
 emanate from and be enforced by said Board, and the responsi¬ 
 bility therefor shall center in it. In these important matters 
 there will be no conflict of authority. The Board will be appoint¬ 
 ed by the Mayor and he may, at his pleasure, sit with them when 
 they are in session, but without voting. It is expected that this 
 Board will handle this department with the same efficiency that 
 our schools are managed by the Board of Education. A very 
 much needed power is granted to this department to compel 
 non-resident property owners and others to observe the health 
 regulations of the city. The Board is given power to abate 
 nuisances of all kinds and make contracts for the removal of 
 garbage, which cannot be done under the limitations of the 
 present charter. The Board is given power to act immediately 
 and effectively when great emergencies arise that affect or endan¬ 
 ger the public health. 
 
XIV 
 
 Dramshops. 
 
 The Board of Freeholders gave much consideration to the 
 liquor situation and the fullest opportunity was afforded for a 
 hearing to the exponents of both sides. It was thought wise, in 
 view of the unsettled state of the public mind on this subject, 
 and in view of the fact that no plan which gave promise of any 
 improvement over the present situation was submitted, to leave 
 the dramshop question in precisely the same situation as under 
 the present charter. 
 
 A 
 
 Public Improvements. 
 
 In the proposed charter an expeditious and logical method 
 is provided for the inauguration and construction of public 
 improvements. The Board of Public Works will initiate all pub¬ 
 lic work, provide for a hearing of interested property owners, 
 prepare all contracts, receive bids and award the work, subject 
 to the final approval or disapproval of the Common Council. 
 These provisions will save a large amount of routine work on the 
 part of the Council, and do away with practically all technical 
 defects in special tax bills, which will tend to reduce the price 
 of contract work to be done hereafter. The uncertainty and 
 litigation which arise from these technicalities have hitherto 
 imposed upon the property owner a great burden by reason of 
 the large discounts to which the contractors have been compelled 
 to submit in disposing of their bills, thus causing high bids for 
 public work. The right has, however, been carefully preserved 
 to the property owner to plead in defense of all tax bills that 
 the work has not been done in accordance with the contract, or 
 that errors have been made in the assessment of tax bills. 
 
 Power is given the city to acquire the necessary plants, 
 machinery and appliances for doing its own public work, thus 
 protecting the property owner against extortion, and enabling 
 the city to be independent of combinations to raise the price of 
 public work. Provisions are made by which a large amount of 
 land which has hitherto escaped taxation is made to bear its 
 just share of the public burdens. In cases where the grading 
 of a public highway, including the construction of bridges, via¬ 
 ducts and tunnels, occasions an expense of such magnitude as to 
 unduly burden the ordinary limited benefit districts, fixed by 
 
XV 
 
 the present charter, the proposed charter provides an adequate 
 remedy by vesting power in the Council to fix a larger benefit 
 district and provide for assessments and for submitting the legal¬ 
 ity of the proceedings to the determination of the Circuit Court 
 before any work is done or tax bills issued to pay for the pro¬ 
 posed improvement. 
 
 In a word, the procedure in the matter of public improve¬ 
 ments is simplified—the Common Council is relieved of a great 
 volume of routine business, rates of interest on tax bills are 
 reduced, and the cost of public improvements will be materially 
 lessened and genuine competition will be secured, while the inter¬ 
 est of the property owners will be materially safe-guarded and 
 protected. 
 
 Management of Fire Department and Water Works. 
 
 The necessity of co-operation between the Water Depart¬ 
 ment and Fire Department, in order to secure proper fire pro¬ 
 tection for the city and lower the rates of insurance, points to 
 the wisdom of placing the management of these two departments 
 under a single Board. In the proposed charter these two depart¬ 
 ments will be conducted by one Board, and will be free 
 from political domination. It is provided that this Board shall 
 be composed of three men, well known in the community for 
 their intelligence and integrity, who shall be named by the 
 Mayor and be personally responsible to him for the efficient 
 administration of these departments. Not more than two mem¬ 
 bers of this Board shall be of the same political party, and their 
 terms of office shall be so adjusted as to insure that the depart¬ 
 ment will always be under the control of experienced men. It 
 is intended that these important branches of the city's business 
 shall be conducted with the same simple and economical methods 
 that a private corporation would use in conducting its business. 
 
 Under the present charter the Board of Public Works is 
 greatly overworked. To relieve this situation, the Water 
 ments of the city’s business. To relieve this situation, the Water 
 Department is placed under the management of the Fire and 
 Water Commissioners, who will be enabled to devote the neces¬ 
 sary time and attention to the protection of the city’s water sup- 
 ply. 
 
XVI 
 
 Provision is also made by which the Common Council shall 
 appropriate twenty-five per cent of the total amount received by 
 the city from the tax on foreign insurance companies to aid in 
 the creation of a fund for the purpose of pensioning crippled 
 and disabled firemen and for the relief of widows and minor 
 children of deceased firemen. The hazardous nature of the duties 
 of firemen and the difficulty the members of this branch of the 
 city’s service encounter in securing the protection of life insur¬ 
 ance makes a provision of this kind necessary, humane and just. 
 
 Clean Streets. 
 
 Perhaps the darkest spot on the administration of our 
 municipal affairs has been the filthy condition of our public 
 thoroughfares. This has occurred through no fault of the offi¬ 
 cials in charge, but from the want of adequate means provided by 
 the law to that end. The new charter will remedy this crying 
 evil by annually setting apart seven per cent of the gross reve¬ 
 nues for that particular purpose, without increase of taxation. 
 It insures fair and equitable treatment to all sections of the city 
 by requiring the city to be divided into districts and spending 
 in these districts the amount of money so set aside in propor¬ 
 tion to the assessed value of the taxable property in each dis¬ 
 trict. In other words, the money contributed or raised for street 
 cleaning by any district must be spent in cleaning the streets of 
 that particular district. 
 
 Parks and Boulevards—Maintenance Tax. 
 
 Our parks and boulevards are a great source of joy and 
 pride to our citizens. To be of value they must be maintained, 
 but many have expressed apprehension of danger from the unre¬ 
 stricted power to levy the park maintenance tax. No such abuse 
 of power has thus far occurred, but the new charter removes 
 the danger and allays all such apprehension by limiting the tax¬ 
 ing power to 2\ mills on the $1 valuation. If the 2-J mills 
 should at any time prove insufficient for the maintenance of the 
 boulevards, a special assessment for that particular purpose may 
 be levied, but only against property which fronts the boulevard, 
 and can in no case exceed ten cents per f-ront foot. Furthermore, 
 
XVI1 
 
 the new charter lowers the rate of interest on park assessments 
 from seven per cent to six per cent per annum. Provision is 
 also made by which the proceeds from taxes on vehicles, automo¬ 
 biles', etc., are to be added to the park department funds. Power 
 is also given to the Council, as in the present charter, to 
 appropriate such further sums as may be necessary for park pur- 
 poses. 
 
 Civil Service. 
 
 Any city in the present state of municipal advancement and 
 progress which has no provision for Civil Service is as much 
 behind the times as a city without electric lights, telephones, or 
 
 street cars. 
 
 It has been the endeavor of the Board of Freeholders to 
 provide a Civil Service system which will be practical, fair and 
 efficient. This system, if it meets with popular approval, will 
 secure for the city the same kind of high class talent and 
 service from its army of employes as is enjoyed by the 
 many successfully managed private corporations of the land. 
 There is no calculating the monetary value to the city of the 
 introduction of this merit system, but the statement is believed 
 to be conservative, that the results attained from the expenditure 
 
 of the city’s jevenues, could be accomplished, under this merit 
 system, at not more than tw-o-thirds their present cost. It is 
 
 confidently believed that the only reasonable basis for a hope 
 for any reduction in the burdens of taxation is to be found in the 
 application of this merit system. The chief cities of the country 
 have adopted it with the most satisfactory results, and there is 
 no reason why Kansas City should be one whit behind them. 
 The Civil Service article as it has been drafted, neither legislates 
 any one out of office nor perpetuates any one in office. It shortens 
 no official’s term. It disturbs no employe in his place as it goes 
 into effect on the third Monday in April, 1910. No one political 
 party is either favored or injured by the change. The Civil 
 Service article, wffien reduced to its simplest terms, is a method 
 of securing to the city competent and efficient service from its 
 employes. The heads of departments and high officials are 
 exempt from examinations. They are given full power to dis¬ 
 charge as a necessary means of maintaining discipline 
 
XV111 
 
 in the service, but are strictly enjoined from making dis¬ 
 missals for political reasons or for any reason other than for the 
 good of the service, and all temptation to violate this injunction 
 is removed as far as possible by requiring the vacated place t;o be 
 filled by the appointment of the person standing first in point 
 of excellence on the eligible list. In the examination for the eli¬ 
 gible lists it is to be noted that the examination is divided into 
 grades, so that it is not mere book learning, but knowledge of 
 the actual duties to be discharged by the employs that will 
 count towards appointment to office. Further incentive is also 
 given to efficient service by providing for promotion as a reward 
 for diligence and ability. 
 
 The adoption of a charter with a Civil Service provision is 
 a distinct step in advance in the history of the city, and the 
 advantages to be reaped from the provisions of this article would 
 be felt by every citizen and tax payer. 
 
 Referendum and Recall. 
 
 The charter provides for the submission of franchise ordi¬ 
 nances to the people for final approval or rejection. The same 
 principle that is used for the adoption of the most important laws 
 of our country—our constitutions—can thus be used for the 
 consideration of questions of such grave importance as the grant- 
 
 o 
 
 ing of franchise rights to public utility corporations. 
 
 The referendum is a method of securing the highest degree 
 of self-government. It is the procedure by which the political 
 power in relation to the grant of the city’s most valuable privi¬ 
 leges is placed where it belongs—in the hands of the people. 
 The referendum has been adopted, tested and approved in many 
 of the states of the Union. The proposed charter provides that 
 no ordinance granting a franchise shall bcome valid within 
 sixty days after its enactment by the Common Council. If a peti¬ 
 tion signed by twenty per cent of the qualified voters of the city 
 shall be filed with the City Clerk during that time the franchise 
 must be submitted to the people for adoption or rejection. The 
 Common Council is also given power to submit to the people 
 without petition any franchise which in its discretion it may 
 consider of sufficient importance to necessitate the approval of 
 the citizens. It is further provided that no franchise for a period 
 
XIX 
 
 longer than thirty years can, under any circumstances, be granted 
 by the Common Council without first submitting such franchise 
 to a vote of the people. The powers of the Common Council are 
 not restricted or limited in making bargains in the city’s interest, 
 but the broadest power is given to the voters of the city and the 
 Common Council to secure the best possible terms for the city 
 in selling valuable rights and privileges. 
 
 A provision for the recall of elective officers by petition 
 signed by thirty per cent of the voters is submitted in the alter¬ 
 native. It is deemed necessary to have a separate expression of 
 the will of the people on this section without relation to the other 
 articles or sections in the charter. So great a divergence of opin¬ 
 ion exists as to the value and expediency of this provision that it 
 was thought only just that the people should have an opportunity 
 to decide for themselves as to whether this method of removal of 
 public officials shall be adopted as a part of the organic law of 
 the city. 
 
 \ 
 
 Parole and Pardon Board. 
 
 To relieve the Mayor of the burdens of hearing appeals for 
 pardons, and to secure the effective administration of justice in 
 cases of persons sentenced by the Municipal Court, a Parole and 
 Pardon Board is provided for in the new charter. This Board 
 will be charged with the duty of considering applications for 
 pardons and paroles, and of investigating the facts in connection 
 with such cases as come before them. A court sergeant will 
 be appointed by the Mayor, chosen because of his fitness for the 
 office, and irrespective of political affiliations. He will attend all 
 sessions of the Municipal Court and make sure that all parties 
 appearing for trial who are without attorney, shall have their 
 defense, if any, fairly presented to the Court. It is the 
 intent and purpose of this provision that all who are brought 
 before the Municipal Court charged with a violation of a city 
 ordinance shall have competent and just advice at the time of 
 their trial; that the full administration of the law in enforcing 
 obedience to the city shall be so had that justice shall be done, 
 and that in circumstances where it is possible, reformation may 
 be wrought in those who have been guilty of wrong-doing. 
 
XX 
 
 Other Extensions of the City’s Powers. 
 
 Under the present charter there is no power to make an 
 adequate contract for the disposition or removal of garbage. 
 Experience has demonstrated that this can only be done by 
 building extensive garbage reduction works. The best results 
 have been obtained by securing the removal of garbage by con¬ 
 tract, running for a sufficient length of time to warrant the con¬ 
 tractor in investing the necessary capital for the building and 
 operation of such plant or works. Consequently it has been 
 provided that such contracts may be made by the Common 
 Council and the Hospital and Health Board for periods of not 
 longer than ten years. By the exercise of this power, it is hoped 
 that in the near future Kansas City may be -enjoying the same 
 advantages as other cities that have adopted this system where 
 garbage is not only removed without cost, but at an actual profit 
 to the city. 
 
 Ample powers are given to the city to construct an ade¬ 
 quate sewer system, thus anticipating those limitations which 
 the government may impose upon the city in the disposition of 
 its sewage and garbage in navigable streams. 
 
 In the new charter the city is clothed with power to con¬ 
 struct a garbage reduction plant and sewer outlets and disposal 
 works and to acquire necessary land for same within or without 
 the limits of the city. 
 
 Without specifying any one particular method for the solu¬ 
 tion of these problems, the new charter confers the necessary 
 corporate powers upon the city and provides the proper machin¬ 
 ery for their exercise. 
 
 All Boards are made uniform in number and qualifications; 
 the terms of office are so arranged that each will be a continu¬ 
 ing Board, thus insuring at all times the services of experienced 
 men. 
 
 A day is set apart in each year to be known and observed 
 as “Charity Day,” on which appropriate measures may be taken 
 for alleviating the condition of the poor and needy. 
 
 In order that no stoppage may occur in public work by 
 the adoption of a new charter, provision is made that all such 
 work shall go on to completion under the old charter, when 
 such proceedings have been so begun. 
 
XXI 
 
 The New Charter in Brief. 
 
 The new charter enlarges and extends the powers given to 
 the city by the present charter, preserving all of the excellent 
 features of that instrument, which have been tested by time and 
 experience, and adding only such features as are necessary to 
 enable the city to meet the conditions and problems which are 
 before it. As framed, its purpose is to safe-guard the interests 
 of the citizens for whom it constitutes the local organic law, and 
 whose interests are vitally affected by it. 
 
 The members of the Board of Freeholders have spent three 
 months of continuous labor on the proposed new charter, and 
 now return it to the Mayor as required by law, to be accepted 
 or rejected by the people at a special election to be held on 
 August 4th, 1908. 
 
CHARTER 
 
 ARTICLE I. 
 
 ( ' . . S 
 
 Corporate Powers,—Boundaries and Wards. 
 
 r 
 
 Section 1. The municipal corporation known as “Kansas 
 City,” comprising the inhabitants of all that district of country 
 embraced within the limits prescribed in the next succeeding 
 section hereof, and any extension of said limits hereafter made, 
 shall be and continue a body politic and corporate by the name 
 and style of Kansas City, and by that name shall have perpetual 
 succession, may sue and be sued, implead and be impleaded, de¬ 
 fend and be defended in any courts of law or equity and in all 
 actions whatsoever: 
 
 May make and use a corporate seal and alter the same at 
 pleasure; may acquire by gift, devise, bequest, purchase, lease, 
 condemnation proceedings, or otherwise, and hold and use lands 
 or other property, either within or outside of the corporate limits 
 of the city, for water works to supply the city and its inhabit¬ 
 ants, or any person, firm or corporation, with water; for gas 
 works and other works and plants for the supplying of the city 
 and its inhabitants, or any person, firm or corporation, with 
 light, heat and power, refrigeration and cold storage, or any of 
 them; for public parks, cemeteries, crematories, penal and char¬ 
 itable institutions, or any of them; for hospitals, quarantine sta¬ 
 tions, markets, wharves, dikes, revetments, engine houses, fire 
 stations, depots, terminals, tracks, rights-of-way for sewers, sew¬ 
 age reduction plants and devices, conduits, pipe lines, pole lines, 
 telegraph or telephone lines, viaducts, bridges, tunnels and sub¬ 
 ways, or any other purpose within the class of public utilities, 
 or for the exercise of the powers herein granted or provided for, 
 and that may hereafter be granted or provided for, or for any 
 other public purpose: 
 
 May also acquire, in any manner aforesaid, and hold and 
 use lands or other property, whether specifically enumerated 
 herein or not, within or outside of the State of Missouri, when 
 deemed by the Common Council necessary, advantageous or ex¬ 
 pedient for any of the uses aforesaid, or for any municipal pur¬ 
 pose, when not prohibited by law: 
 
 May also acquire, in any manner aforesaid, take, hold, use 
 
2 
 
 and improve, any property, real, personal or mixed, either with ¬ 
 in, or outside of, the corporate limits of the city, for art gal¬ 
 leries, museums, or any educational, benevolent, charitable, or 
 other public purpose, whatsoever, and may do all acts necessary 
 to carry out the purposes of any such bequest, devise or gift, 
 and purposes for which said property shall have been acquired, 
 or be held: 
 
 May establish and maintain museums, art galleries, public 
 libraries, reading rooms and penal and charitable institutions: 
 
 May erect, construct and maintain public buildings, public 
 works and crematories, and may lay out, establish and maintain 
 public parks and cemeteries: 
 
 May construct and maintain sewers, drains, and all works 
 necessary for the disposition of sewage and garbage: 
 
 May lay out, open, extend, widen, improve, maintain, or 
 vacate streets and alleys, sidewalks and crossings and all public 
 highways,and regulate the use of same: 
 
 May sell, lease or otherwise dispose of any property, real, 
 personal or mixed, including any contract rights, of the city, 
 subject to the restrictions imposed by this charter, or the con¬ 
 stitution of the State: 
 
 May manage, control, operate, and improve any property 
 it may acquire, or hold, in any manner aforesaid, and may sell, 
 lease, or otherwise dispose of the products, use or service of any 
 public utilities now or hereafter under its control: 
 
 May exercise the powers of eminent domain and of taxa¬ 
 tion; also the power of enforcing payment for public improve¬ 
 ments by special assessments, or otherwise; and may, by amend¬ 
 ment of this charter, extend its limits as defined herein, so as 
 to include new and additional territory: ' 
 
 May protect the property of the city and the lives and prop¬ 
 erty of its inhabitants from floods and inundations and the dan¬ 
 ger thereof; and, 
 
 May exercise all municipal, incidental and business powers 
 necessary or which may be deemed expedient for the complete 
 and efficient management and control of the municipal prop¬ 
 erty and administration of the municipal government and neces¬ 
 sary to maintain the public peace, protect property and promote 
 the public welfare, and preserve the health of the inhabitants 
 of the city, whether such powers be expressly enumerated herein 
 or not; and may.have and exercise within the city limits and 
 over all property owned by the city, all governmental and police 
 powers, subject to the limitations prescribed by the constitution 
 and laws of this State and the United States: 
 
3 
 
 Sec. 2. The corporate limits of Kansas City shall include 
 all that district of country in the County of Jackson, State of 
 Missouri, described and bounded as follows: 
 
 Commencing at a point where the western boundary line 
 of the State of Missouri intersects the center line of the main 
 channel of the Missouri river; thence south and along said west¬ 
 ern boundary line of the State of Missouri to a point 180 feet 
 south of and at a right angle to the south line of section 19, 
 township forty-nine, range thirty-three; thence east on a line 
 parallel to the south line of section 19, township forty-nine, 
 range thirty-three, to a point 180 feet west of the north and 
 south center line of section 30, township forty-nine, range thirty- 
 three; thence south on a line parallel to the north and south cen¬ 
 ter line of section 30, township forty-nine, range thirty-three 
 to a point 180 |eet south of the east and west center line of sec¬ 
 tion 30, township forty-nine, range thirty-three; thence east on 
 a line parallel to the east and west center line of section 30, 
 township forty-nine, range thirty-three, to a point 180 feet west 
 of the east line of section 30, township forty-nine, range thirty- 
 three; thence south on a line parallel to the east line of section 
 30, township forty-nine, range thirty-three to a point on the 
 east and west center line of the south half of section 30, town¬ 
 ship forty-nine, range thirty-three; thence east along the center 
 lines of the south halves of sections 30, 29, 28 and 27, township 
 forty-nine, range thirty-three, to a point 160 feet east of the 
 west line of section 27, township forty-nine, range thirty-three; 
 thence north on a line parallel to the west lines of sections 27 
 and 22, township forty-nine, range thirty-three, to a point 160 
 feet south of the north line of section 22, township forty-nine, 
 range thirty-three; thence east on a line parallel to the north 
 line of section 22, township forty-nine, range thirty-three, to a 
 point 160 feet east of the north and south center line of section 
 22, township forty-nine, range thirty-three: thence north on a 
 line parallel to the north and south center lines of sections 22 
 and 15, township forty-nine, range thirty-three, to a point 160 
 feet south of the east and west center lines of section 15, town¬ 
 ship forty-nine, range thirty-three; thence east on a line parallel 
 to the east and west center line of section 15. township forty- 
 nine, range thirty-three, to a point 160 feet east of the north 
 and south center line of the east half of section 15, township 
 forty-nine, range thirty-three; thence north on a line parallel 
 to the north and south center line of the east half of section 15, 
 township forty-nine, range thirty-three, to a point 160 feet south 
 of the north line of section 15, township forty-nine, range thirty- 
 three ; thence east on a line parallel to the north lines of sections 
 15 and 14, township forty-nine, range thirty-three, to a point 
 
4 
 
 160 feet east of the north and south center lines of the east half 
 of section 14, township forty-nine, range thirty-three; thence 
 north on a line parallel to the center line of the east halves of 
 sections 14 and 11, township forty-nine, range thirty-three, to 
 a point 160 feet south of the north line of section 11, township 
 forty-nine, range thirty-three: thence east on a line parallel to 
 the north lines of sections 11 and 12, township forty-nine, range 
 thirty-three, and section 7, township forty-nine, range thirty- 
 two, to a point 160 feet east of the north and south center line 
 of section 7, township forty-nine, range thirty-two; thence north 
 and parallel to the center lines of sections 7 and 6, township 
 forty-nine, range thirty-two, to the north line of section 6, town¬ 
 ship forty-nine, range thirty-two; thence west along the north 
 line of section 6, township forty-nine, range thirty-two, to the 
 north and south center line of section 31, township fifty, range 
 thirty-two; thence north and along the north and south center 
 line of section 31, township fifty, range thirty-two, to the north 
 line of section 31, township fifty, range thirty-two; thence west 
 along the north line of section 31, township fifty, range thirty- 
 two, and the north lines of sections 36, 35 and 34, township 
 fifty/ range thirty-three, to a point 130 feet east of the north 
 and. south center line of the east half of section '27, township 
 fifty, range thirty-three; thence north on a line parallel to the 
 north and south center lines of the east halyes of sections 27 
 and 22, township fifty, range thirty-three, to the center line of 
 the main’channel of the Missouri river; thence westwardly with 
 the meanderings of the center line of the main channel of the 
 Missouri river to the place of beginning. 
 
 Sec. 3. Kansas City shall, until otherwise provided by 
 ordinance, be divided into fourteen wards, the respective num¬ 
 bers and boundaries of which shall be and remain as defined by 
 ordinances in force at the time this charter shall go into effect, 
 
 until changed or modified by ordinance.' 
 
 « 
 
 Sec. 4. Said city may, at any time or times, extend its 
 limits. Any extension of the city limits shall be made by amend¬ 
 ment of this charter, in the manner provided by this charter 
 and the constitution and laws of this State. The proposal there¬ 
 for shall be made by ordinance in the form of a proposed amend¬ 
 ment of the charter, specifying with accuracy the new line or 
 lines to which it is proposed to extend such limits. All courts 
 of this State shall take judicial notice of the limits of said city 
 when thus extended and of all the steps in the proceedings lead¬ 
 ing thereto; provided, that should said city by such extension 
 of its territorial limits include any portion of any incorporated 
 city, town or village, such extension shall be made to include 
 
5 
 
 the whale territory of such incorporated city, town or village, 
 and upon such extension being made, the corporate existence of 
 such incorporated city, town or village so included in such ex¬ 
 tension shall, ipso facto , cease, and all property and rights of 
 every kind and nature belonging to and vested in such incorpor¬ 
 ated city, town or village, shall, by operation of law, at once 
 pass to and vest in said Kansas City, and it shall be the duty 
 of all officers and employes of such incorporated city, town or 
 village, having custody or control thereof, to surrender and 
 deliver the same to said Kansas City, and said Kansas City 
 shall also, by operation of law, assume and become liable to pay 
 all debts and liabilities of such incorporated city, town or vil¬ 
 lage; provided, further, that before said Kansas City shall ex¬ 
 tend its limits so as to include any incorporated city, town or 
 village, four-sevenths of the qualified voters of the incorporated 
 city, town or village, so desired to be included within the limits 
 of said Kansas City, shall vote in favor of such proposition at 
 an election held for that purpose to be determined in the fol¬ 
 lowing manner, to-wit: Whenever said Kansas City shall de¬ 
 sire to include within its limits any incorporated city, town or 
 village, the Mayor of said Kansas City shall inform the Mayor, 
 or other chief officer, of the incoporated city, town or village 
 proposed to be so taken in, of the intention to include said city, 
 town or village within the limits; and the Mayor thereof shall 
 order a special election to determine the wishes of said city, 
 town or village, giving twenty days’ public notice of the time 
 and places of holding such election, and the purposes for which 
 it is to be held; said election to be governed by the general laws 
 governing said city, town or village in respect to the holding 
 of general elections, and if four-sevenths of the qualified voters 
 voting at such election shall vote in favor of the proposed ex¬ 
 tension, the Mayor or other chief officer of such incorporated 
 city, town or village shall certify the result to the Mayor of 
 said Kansas City, and said city may proceed to extend its limits 
 as provided in this charter, the constitution and laws of the 
 Statd 
 
 Sec. 5. Whenever, by extension of its territorial limits, 
 as aforesaid, new territory is annexed to the city, the Common 
 Council shall, by ordinance, and subject to the limitations of the 
 next succeeding section, organize the same into a new ward or 
 wards, or attach the same to some existing ward or wards, long 
 enough before the next ensuing general city election to enable 
 electors in such annexed territory to register, and all other 
 proper steps be taken according to law, so that the electors of 
 such annexed territory may have full opportunity to register 
 and vote at such election. Actual residents of any territory at 
 
the time of the annexation thereof as aforesaid, shall, if other¬ 
 wise qualified, be qualified electors of the city and be eligible to 
 any office therein at the next general city election following 
 such annexation. 
 
 Sec. 6. Whenever the corporate limits of the city shall 
 be so extended, and whenever and as often as the population of 
 the city, or any ward or wards thereof, have been, or may be 
 so increased or diminished as to render necessary, in the opinion 
 of the Common Council, a redivision or redistricting of the cor¬ 
 poration into wards, or a change in the boundary of any ward 
 or wards, the same may be done by ordinance, and the Common 
 Council shall, at least once in every five years after the adop¬ 
 tion of this charter, redistrict the city into wards, and establish 
 ward limits, which shall as nearly as practicable equalize the 
 population in each ward; provided, however, that the territory 
 within the city limits shall never, at any time, be so divided as 
 to consist of more than sixteen wards, until the city shall have 
 attained a population of more than four hundred thousand; and 
 thereafter, and as often as fifty thousand inhabitants shall be 
 added to said city, the number of said wards may be increased 
 by not more than two to each fifty thousand of increased popu¬ 
 lation. 
 
 Sec. 7. Upon the introduction of any ordinance either for 
 extending the limits of the city, or for making any change or 
 changes in the wards of the city, into either house of the Com¬ 
 mon Council, the Common Council shall, before the passage 
 thereof, by resolution, require the City Clerk to publish a copy 
 of the ordinance in at least one daily newspaper published in 
 the city, to be designated in the resolution, for at least three 
 weeks within the four weeks next after the passage of such reso¬ 
 lution. After such publication proof thereof shall be made and 
 filed with the City Clerk, and if the house into which said ordi¬ 
 nance may have been introduced shall be satisfied that such pub¬ 
 lication has been made, it shall by a vote so find, and the clerk 
 shall make a record of such finding in the book or record of the 
 current proceedings of that house, which record shall be con¬ 
 clusive evidence of the truth of the facts so found. Should said 
 ordinance be amended in either house after such publication, 
 then the ordinance as amended shall be again published for th£ 
 same time and proceeded with in all respects as in the case of 
 the original ordinance. If such ordinance is passed by the Com¬ 
 mon Council at the first or second regular meeting after such 
 last publication and finding, and not later, and duly approved 
 by the Mayor, the proceeding to extend such limits shall be 
 
I 
 
 7 
 
 r ‘ 1 
 
 completed in the manner herein provided, unless such ordinance 
 be repealed or altered. Before such proposed amendment to 
 the charter shall be of any force and effect, it shall be submitted 
 to and accepted by three-fifths of the qualified voters of Kansas 
 City at a general or special election provided by ordinance for 
 such purpose. The city shall have power to call and hold a 
 special election for such purpose at such time and in such man¬ 
 ner as may be provided by ordinance and the constitution and 
 laws of the State. The votes cast at such election shall be can¬ 
 vassed, the result ascertained and declared in such manner as 
 may be provided by ordinance and the laws of the State, and if 
 the proposed amendment to the charter be accepted and approved, 
 the same shall thereafter be in full force and effect. 
 
 i 
 
 Sec. 8. In case of a redistricting or division of the city 
 into wards, creation of any new ward or wards, or change of 
 boundary of any ward or wards, every qualified elector residing 
 in any ward at any general city election next thereafter, duly 
 registered, shall be a qualified voter of such ward, and nothing 
 in this charter contained shall be so construed as to prevent any 
 elector from voting or being eligible to any office by reason 
 merely of such redistricting or division, or creation of any new 
 ward or wards, or change in the boundary of any ward of wards. 
 
 Sec. 9. Territory shall not be annexed to the city within 
 four months next preceding any general city election, nor shall 
 there be a redistricting of the city into wards, or change of boun¬ 
 dary of any ward or wards, or creation of any new ward or 
 wards, within two months next preceding any general city elec¬ 
 tion. 
 
 Sec. 10. All wards which may be established by ordinance 
 as aforesaid shall be composed of adjacent and compact terri¬ 
 tory, and the several wards, at the time of redistricting, shall 
 contain as nearly an equal number of inhabitants as may be prac¬ 
 ticable. The wards shall be numbered consecutively from one 
 up to the highest number thus established. . 
 
 Sec. 11. Whenever any change in the number of wards, 
 or alteration in the boundaries of anv ward, shall be made, or 
 new wards shall be established, there shall be no election or 
 appointment of any member of either house of the Common 
 Council on account thereof until the next general city election. 
 
 Sec. 12. Nothing in this article contained shall be con¬ 
 strued to limit or abridge the term of office which any member 
 
8 
 
 of the Common Council of the city shall be elected to fill, and 
 every member of the lower house shall be deemed and taken for 
 the residue of the term for which he may have been elected a 
 member for that ward in which his actual residence and place of 
 abode may be at the time of any division of the city into wards, 
 the creation of any new ward or wards, or changing the boun¬ 
 daries of any ward or wards. 
 
 \ 
 
ARTICLE II. 
 
 The Common Council. 
 
 Section 1. There is hereby established in the city a Com¬ 
 mon Council which shall consist of two houses of legislation, 
 one to be called the upper, and the other the lower house. The 
 upper house shall consist at all times of as many members as 
 there are wards in the city, who shall be elected on a general 
 ticket by the qualified voters of the city. The lower house shall 
 consist of one member from each ward of the city. The mem¬ 
 bers of both houses shall be citizens of the United States, and 
 of the State of Missouri, and qualified voters of the city; shall 
 have paid city and county taxes for two years next before the 
 day of their election, and shall, before the day of election, have 
 attained the age of twenty-five years, and shall, at same date, 
 have resided for three years in the territory embraced within the 
 city limits. * 
 
 » » ' * . 
 
 Sec. 2. The members of the upper house of the Common 
 Council shall be elected for the term of four years. The mem¬ 
 bers of the upper house of the Common Council of said Kansas 
 City in office at the time this charter goes into effect, shall 
 become and constitute the first upper house of the Common Coun¬ 
 cil hereunder, and shall hold office until the expiration of the 
 term for which they were respectively elected. At the general 
 city election to be held in April, 1910, and at each general city 
 'election to be thereafter held, as in this charter provided, mem¬ 
 bers of the upper house shall be elected to succeed those whose 
 term of office will expire with the fiscal year in which such elec¬ 
 tion shall be held. Whenever the number of wards in the city 
 is increased, additional members shall be elected to the upper 
 house at the first general city election thereafter equal in num-< ' 
 ber to the additional number of wards. One-half of the addi¬ 
 tional number so elected, receiving the highest number of votes, 
 shall hold their office for four years, and the other half for two 
 years; provided, that if an odd number of wards be added at any 
 one time, the additional members first elected thereafter shall be 
 divided into two classes as nearly equal in number as may be 
 possible, and the larger class which shall contain those receiving 
 the highest number of votes, shall hold their office for four years 
 and the other class for two years; except that when only one 
 new ward is added at any one time, the additional member first 
 elected thereafter shall hold his office for four years. In case of 
 
10 
 
 a tie it shall be determined by lot in the presence of the upper 
 house which member or members shall hold for two years and 
 which for four years. The term “additional members” or “addi¬ 
 tional member” shall be construed to mean the number of new 
 members made necessary hereunder whenever the number of 
 wards in the city is increased, and shall refer to those members 
 of the upper house first elected thereafter, equal in number to 
 the number of additional wards, who shall receive the lowest 
 number of votes at said election. 
 
 Sec. 3. Each member of the lower house shall be elected 
 for a term of two years, and in addition to the other qualifica¬ 
 tions required by this charter, shall at the date of his election 
 have resided for one year in the ward which he may be chosen 
 to represent. Each member' shall be elected by the qualified vot¬ 
 ers of the ward which he may be chosen to represent, and if, 
 after his election he shall remove from such ward, his office shall 
 thereby be vacated. The members of the lower house of the 
 Common Council of said Kansas City in office at the time this 
 charter goes into effect shall become and constitute the first 
 lower house of the Common Council hereunder and shall hold 
 office until the expiration of the term for which they were respec¬ 
 tively elected. 
 
 Sec. 4. Every member of the Common Council shall also 
 possess the following qualifications: He shall not be directly or 
 indirectly interested in any contract with the city, or any depart¬ 
 ment or institution thereof, or in any petition or application for 
 any franchise from the city, or in furnishing any supplies to the 
 city, or any department thereof, or to any contractor under the 
 city, or in the sale or purchase of any property to or by the city, 
 nor shall he be an officer, stockholder or employe of any person, 
 firm or corporation so interested as aforesaid, nor of any per¬ 
 son or firm or corporation discharging a public or quasi-public 
 service under a franchise from the city, nor shall he be directly 
 or indirectly interested in the sale or purchase of supplies or 
 material, or insurance, or the making of bonds, to or by any per¬ 
 son, firm or corporation contracting with the city or applying 
 to the city for any permit or privilege requiring action by the 
 Common Council, and he shall not be indebted to the state, 
 county, or city on account of any tax. He shall not have been 
 convicted of malfeasance in office, bribery or other corrupt prac¬ 
 tices or crimes. Before any member of the Common Council 
 shall take his seat or perform the duties of his office, he shall take 
 and subscribe an oath before the City Clerk that he possesses all 
 the qualifications for the office to which he is chosen, and is not 
 
11 
 
 subject to any of the disqualifications in this charter named, and 
 that he will support the Constitution of the United States and 
 of this State and the provisions of this charter, and faithfully 
 discharge the duties of .his office. Any member who shall at any 
 time during his term cease to possess any of the qualifications 
 mentioned in this charter shall thereby forfeit his office, and the 
 same shall be filled as provided for in cases of other vacancies. 
 Such forfeiture may be determined and declared by any court 
 of competent jurisdiction, on information in the nature of quo 
 zvarranto at the relation of the city or of any one or more of the 
 tax payers or qualified voters thereof. 
 
 Sec. 5. Each member of the Common Council shall receive 
 for his services as councilman the sum of Five Dollars for each 
 meeting of the Council which he shall attend during his term 
 of office; provided, hozvever, that no extra compensation shall be 
 allowed to such councilman for serving on any committee, agency 
 or commission whatever, when appointed to perform such ser¬ 
 vices by either or both houses of the Common Council during 
 his term of office, and in no case shall the aggregate sum paid 
 to such councilman for services above enumerated exceed the 
 sum of Three Hundred Dollars per annum. 
 
 Sec. 6. The upper house shall choose one of its own mem¬ 
 bers to preside over its deliberations, who shall be known as 
 president. The lower house shall choose one of its own mem¬ 
 bers to preside over its deliberations, who shall be known as 
 speaker. Each house shall appoint a sergeant-at-arms and his 
 assistants. 
 
 Sec. 7. Each house shall be the judge of the election, 
 return and qualifications of its own members and shall determine 
 contested elections of its own members, subject to the limita¬ 
 tions prescribed by the constitution and laws of this State. Each 
 house shall determine the rules of its own proceedings, except 
 as herein provided; may arrest and punish by fine not exceed¬ 
 ing Fifty Dollars or imprisonment in the city prison not exceed¬ 
 ing three days, or both, any person not a member who shall be 
 quilty of disespect to such house by any disorderly or con¬ 
 temptuous behavior in its presence during its session; may pun¬ 
 ish its members for disorderly conduct, and by an affirmative 
 vote of two-thirds of its members elect, may suspend or expel 
 a member of such house for disorderly conduct, disqualification 
 as set forth in section four of this article, or for malfeasance in 
 office. A majority of all the members elect of each house shall 
 constitute a quorum to do business, but a smaller number may 
 
12 
 
 I 
 
 adjourn from day to day and may compel the attendance of 
 absent members in such manner and under such penalties as each 
 house may provide. 
 
 Sec. 8. Each house shall keep a jounal of its poceedings, 
 and the yeas and nays of its members on any question shall, at 
 the request of any two members, be entered therein, and the 
 yeas • and nays shall be recorded on the final passage of all 
 ordinances. 
 
 Sec. 9. A vote of the majority of all members elect of 
 each house shall be necessary to pass ordinances for public im¬ 
 provements, ordinances appropriating money for any purpose, 
 and ordinances in anywise increasing or diminishing the city 
 revenue. 
 
 Sec. 10. No member of the Common Council shall, during 
 the term for which he is elected, be appointed to any office under 
 the city, nor shall he, while such member, be an employe of the 
 city in any capacity whatever. 
 
 Sec. 11. All vacancies that may occur in the Common 
 Council from any cause shall be filled until the next general city 
 election thereafter, by a vote of the majority of a legal quorum 
 of the house in which such vacancy exists, at any regular meet¬ 
 ing thereof held after the meeting at which such vacancy shall 
 have been reported to such house. At the next general city 
 election thereafter such vacancies shall be filled by vote of the 
 people for the unexpired portion, if any, of the term of office in 
 which the vacancy exists. No member shall be elected to any 
 . vacancy who does not possess the qualifications required for 
 membership in the house in which such vacancy occurred. 
 
 Sec. 12. Whenever there shall be a tie in the election of 
 any member of either house, the officer or officers canvassing 
 the vote and authorized to certify the result of the election shall 
 certify the facts to such house, and the parties named in such 
 certificate shall immediately, in the presence of such house, deter¬ 
 mine by lot which shall be the member elect. 
 
 Sec. 13. A regular meeting of the Common Council shall 
 be held on Monday of each week, except legal holidays, at such 
 hour as may be fixed by ordinance, provided that an additional 
 regular meeting shall be held in the forenoon of the last day of 
 the fiscal year in which the Mayor’s term expires; and the Com¬ 
 mon Council may also be especially convened by the Mayor in 
 
13 
 
 pursuance of law. Any session of either house may be con¬ 
 tinued or adjourned from day to day or for more than one day, 
 but no adjournment of either house shall be for a longer period 
 than-until the next regular meeting thereafter, as provided in 
 this charter, and neither house shall, without the consent of the 
 other, adjourn to another place than that in which the two 
 houses shall be sitting. Petitions or remonstrances shall be pre¬ 
 sented to either or both houses of the Common Council in writ¬ 
 ing only. . * 
 
 • 
 
 < 
 
 Sec. 14. The Mayor shall call special sessions of the 
 Common Council by proclamation, which shall be published as 
 may be provided by ordinance. Whenever a special session of 
 the Common Council shall have been called by the Mayor, they 
 shall have the same powers to transact business as at a regular 
 meeting. 
 
 Sec. 15. The Common Council shall be a continuing body 
 for and contemporaneous with the term for which the members 
 of the lower house are elected, and all ordinances and resolutions 
 pending in either house'which shall not have been passed by the 
 Common Council before the end of the term for which the mem¬ 
 bers of the lower house are elected, as provided in this charter, 
 shall expire with said term, and be of no validity or effect for 
 any purpose whatsoever. 
 
 Sec. 16. Members of the Common Council shall at all 
 times for the purpose of inspecition, have free access to the 
 books, papers and records of the city in all public offices, and 
 any committee of the Common Council, or of either house there¬ 
 of, may investigate the transactions and accounts of all officers 
 having the collection, custody or disbursement of public money, 
 or having power to approve, allow or audit demands on the 
 treasury, and any such committee in making such investigation, 
 or in investigating any matter that may lawfully be referred to 
 it by said Common Council, or either house thereof, shall have 
 power to summon witnesses, administer oaths and affirmations, 
 and examine witnesses, and compeL their attendance before them 
 by subpoena, and any person appearing before any such com¬ 
 mittee shall have the right to be represented by counsel. 
 
ARTICLE III. 
 
 Powers of Common Council. 
 
 « 
 
 Section 1 . All powers conferred upon the city by the 
 charter or the general laws of the State of Missouri shall be 
 exercised by ordinance, except as otherwise provided in this char¬ 
 ter, and the Mayor and Common Council shall have power and 
 authority, by ordinance, not inconsistent with the constitution 
 and laws of this State, and subject to the limitations expressed 
 in this charter: 
 
 First : To provide for the management and control of the 
 finances and of all property, real, personal and mixed, belong¬ 
 ing to the city, and to appropriate money and to provide for the 
 payment of all debts and expenses of the city. 
 
 Second : To acquire for the city such property, real, per¬ 
 sonal and mixed, as may be needed for public use, when the 
 method for acquiring the same has not been otherwise provided 
 in this charter; to provide the manner and method of entering 
 into contracts by the city in all cases not in thi§ charter other¬ 
 wise provided; to accept or reject all property, real, personal and 
 mixed, given, conveyed, devised, or bequeathed, to the city, and to 
 provide for the execution of all trusts accepted by the city; to 
 provide for the purchase of property levied upon under execution 
 •in favor of the city; to provide for the purchase of personal 
 property when sold for delinquent taxes and assessments levied 
 or imposed under the charter of the city, and to sell and convey 
 the same, but the sum paid by the city for any piece or parcel 
 of property so sold on execution in favor of the city or for 
 delinquent taxes or assessment shall not exceed the amount of 
 such debt, tax or assessment, and the necessary costs and ex¬ 
 penses of the proceedings for the collection of the same; to pro¬ 
 vide for the sale at public auction of all personal property unfit 
 or unnecessary for the use of the city, and of all other property, 
 real, personal or mixed, which the city may lawfully sell. 
 
 Third : To provide for the payment of public work by 
 special assessments on real estate; for the levying and collection 
 of special assessments; and for the levying and collection of 
 taxes upon all property made taxable for city purposes within 
 the limits of the city and not exempted by general law from 
 municipal taxation. 
 
16 
 
 Fourth : To license, tax and regulate manufacturers, mer¬ 
 chants, commission merchants, dealers in second hand goods, 
 coal dealers, ice dealers, junk dealers, ice cream dealers, milk 
 dealers, live stock dealers, produce dealers, patent right dealers, 
 mercantile agencies, real estate agents, claim agents, adjusters 
 and collectors, real estate brokers, financial agents, loan agents, 
 rental agents, lightning rod agents, and other agents of what¬ 
 ever kind or character; cash register agencies, agents for cash 
 registers, advertising agents, railroad ticket agents, railway traf¬ 
 fic agents, typewriter agencies, private detectives, private detec¬ 
 tive agencies, agents and solicitors for nurseries, laundries, dye 
 houses, clothes pressers and cleaners, renovating and repair 
 establishments, sewing machine agents, brokers, pawn brokers, 
 railroad ticket brokers, produce brokers, merchandise brokers, 
 amusement ticket brokers, lumber brokers, lumber agents,* brew¬ 
 ers, beer depots or store rooms, distillers, brewers’ agents, brew¬ 
 ers* agencies, distillers’ agencies, malt dealers, insurance com¬ 
 panies of whatever class or character; insurance agents, agents 
 for co-operative insurance, insurance solicitors, insurance brok¬ 
 ers, and other brokers of whatever class or character; abstract¬ 
 ors of land titles, guarantors of land titles, bankers, banking cor¬ 
 porations, trust companies, investment companies,, building com¬ 
 panies, loan companies, surety companies, bonding companies 
 and agents or solicitors for any surety companies or bopding* 
 companies; brokerage companies, newspaper publishers, publish¬ 
 ing companies,, publishing houses, printing establishments, tele¬ 
 graph companies, telephone companies, electric light companies, 
 street railway companies, electric companies, gas companies, con¬ 
 duit companies, subway companies, heating companies, lighting 
 companies, cold storage or refrigeration companies, oil com¬ 
 panies, mining companies, express companies, automobile com¬ 
 panies, automobile agencies, public garages, electric charging 
 stations, automobile repair shops, bicycle repair shops, transfer 
 companies, manufacturing and other corporations, institutions 
 or establishments; poles and wires or conduits and wires of tele¬ 
 graph, telephone, electric light, street railway and electric and 
 power companies; agents and agencies for the sale of oil stock, 
 mining stock, and other stocks; lenders of money on chattels 
 and chattel mortgages; public lecturers, lawyers, doctors and 
 dentists, itinerant doctors, corn doctors, masseurs; venereal hos¬ 
 pitals, other private hospitals and similar institutions; veterin¬ 
 ary hospitals, veterinary surgeons and doctors; barber shops, hair 
 dressing establishments, bath houses, hotels, ordinaries, apart¬ 
 ment houses, confectioners, resfaurants, boarding houses, tene¬ 
 ment houses, office buildings, public halls, public grounds, pho¬ 
 tographers, artists, auctioneers, plumbers, stock yard and wagon 
 
10 
 
 yard proprietors, undertakers, meat shops, livery, board and 
 sales stable keepers, shows, circuses, parades, operatic, theatrical 
 v and other exhibitions; amusement^ concerts, theatres, theatrical 
 agents, amusement parks, cattle shows, horse shows, automobile 
 shows, dog shows, poultry shows, animal shows, menageries, 
 museums, sparring exhibitions, equestrian exhibitions, horoscopic 
 views, moving picture exhibitions, cycloramas, panoramas, skat¬ 
 ing rinks, wrestling exhibitions, boxing contests, public masquer¬ 
 ade balls, shooting galleries, dance halls, dance houses, fortune 
 tellers, clairvoyants, palmists, lung testers, muscle developers, 
 billiard parlors, billiard and pool tables and other tables and 
 instruments used for amusement; pin alleys, ball alleys, street 
 railway cars, omnibuses, hansom cabs, hackney coaches, drays, 
 job wagons, carts, carriages, barouches, buggies, wagons, auto¬ 
 mobiles, motorcycles, bicycles and all vehicles, private or public; 
 hawkers, hucksters, peddlers, auction house proprietors, run¬ 
 ners, drummers, keepers of knife and board and cane racks, 
 street stands; intelligence and employment agents and offices 
 and keepers thereof; bill posters, inspectors and gaugers; public 
 scales, grain elevators, storage and transfer houses; nurseries 
 and nurserymen; slot weighing machines, automatic scales ma¬ 
 chines, automatic selling machines or devices, slot machines, gift 
 enterprises, pool rooms, saloons, dramshops, beer houses, tippling 
 houses, wine gardens and beer gardens; sales of unclaimed goods 
 by express companies or common carriers; 
 
 And to license, tax and regulate all occupations, professions, 
 trades, pursuits, corporations and other institutions and estab¬ 
 lishments, articles, utilities and commodities, not heretofore enu¬ 
 merated, of whatever name or character, like or unlike, and to 
 fix the license tax to be paid thereon or therefor; and in the 
 exercise of the foregoing powers, to divide the various occupa¬ 
 tions, professions, trades, pursuits, corporations and other insti¬ 
 tutions and establishments, articles, utilities and commodities into 
 different classes. 
 
 The city may charge a separate license tax for each place of 
 business conducted or maintained by the same‘p er son, firm or 
 corporation. 
 
 t , 
 
 Fifth : To license, tax, and regulate hackmen, draymen, 
 omnibus drivers, chauffeurs, or automobile drivers, porters, ex¬ 
 press drivers and all other persons, firms or corporations pursu¬ 
 ing like occupations, with or without vehicles, and to fix and 
 prescribe uniform rates and charges for such service to the pub¬ 
 lic; and to regulate, license, tax, restrain and prohibit runners 
 for steamboats, cars, stages, hotels and public houses. 
 
 Sixth: To have exclusive power to license ferries, and to 
 
 i 
 
17 
 
 regulate the same, and the landing thereof within the limits of 
 the city, and to fix and prescribe the charges and fees for ferries, 
 and to regulate the charges for switching by or on any steam or 
 railway within the limits of the city. 
 
 Seventh : To provfde the manner of issuing and regulating 
 licenses, and the fees and charges to be paid therefor, and to 
 provide for the revoking of the same. No license shall be 
 granted for more than one year and not less than one dollar 
 shall be charged for any license under this charter or any ordi¬ 
 nance, and the fees for issuing same shall not exceed one dollar,- 
 and all such fees shall belong to the city. : 
 
 Eighth : To remove and prevent all obstructions from and 
 in the Missouri River within said city, and to widen, straighten 
 and deepen the same; to construct and maintain dikes and revet¬ 
 ments, and to erect, maintain and regulate wharves and docks, 
 and to regulate the rates of wharfage within the limits of the 
 city. 
 
 / 
 
 v Ninth : To provide the city with water, and to make, regu¬ 
 late and establish public wells, pumps, cisterns, hydrants and 
 reservoirs in or under the streets or other public places within 
 the city or beyond the limits thereof within or without the State 
 of Missouri, and to construct, maintain and operate waterworks 
 with all appurtenances necessary or convenient thereto. 
 
 Tenth : To provide for lighting the streets and erecting 
 lamps thereon and to regulate the price and quality of gas, gaso¬ 
 line, electricity and other means of lighting, and the manner and 
 means of lighting by electricity, and the power thereof, and to 
 compel any gas company, electric light company, heating com¬ 
 pany, refrigerating or cold storage company or other company, 
 individual or institution to change and re-locate any gas mains 
 or other mains, pipes, appliances, or any poles or conduits for 
 wires or other appliances, and to regulate the price and quality 
 of gas, oil or other means of heating furnished by any such cor¬ 
 poration or institution to the inhabitants of the city for heating 
 purposes, and the prices to be charged by any corporation, indi¬ 
 vidual or institution furnishing cold storage or refrigeration, 
 heat or power, to the inhabitants or institutions within the city. 
 
 Eleventh : To exercise conrtol over the streets, sidewalks, 
 alleys, landings, public grounds and highways of the city; to 
 establish, open, alter, widen, extend, vacate, grade, pave, repave, 
 block, reblock, sprinkle or otherwise improve and keep in repair 
 ' the same; to establish the grade and thereafter change and re¬ 
 establish the grade of the same; to put drains and sewers in the 
 same, and regulate or prohibit the building of vaults or areaways 
 
18 
 
 under the sidewalk; and permit the use of space under sidewalks, 
 streets and highways under such conditions as they may deem 
 best; to regulate the use of public streets, alleys and highways 
 of the city for telegraph, telephone, electric light, electric power 
 and other pole lines above the surface, and to compel all lines 
 and wires of every character within the city to be kept under 
 ground, and to regulate the use of streets, highways and alleys 
 for conduits, subways, mains, pipes and all structures beneath 
 the surface thereof, and to regulate and control for any and 
 every purpose the use of the streets, highways, alleys, sidewalks, 
 public highways and the grounds of the city; to prohibit racing or 
 fast or immoderate riding or driving of every kind of animal, 
 vehicle or machine on the streets, highways, public thorough¬ 
 fares and grounds of the city, and to authorize any person to 
 stop any such person immoderately riding or driving as afore¬ 
 said; 
 
 To prohibit and punish the abuse of animals, to compel per¬ 
 sons to fasten their animals while standing in the streets or in 
 any particular street or streets, and to prevent the hitching of 
 any animal on any particular street or streets; to prescribe the 
 manner and limit the time of standing animals and vehicles at¬ 
 tached to animals in any street or streets, and to forbid large or 
 » heavily loaded vehicles to pass along any particular street or 
 streets of any kind or class of public thoroughfare within the city; 
 
 To make all needful regulations to keep and maintain the 
 public streets, alleys, sidewalks and public places in a clean, 
 open and safe condition for public use; to prescribe and regulate 
 the width of the tires on and to regulate and limit the weight to 
 be carried by any and all vehicles used on the public streets and 
 thoroughfares of the city; and to prohibit the building and use of 
 barbed wire fences within the city limits; 
 
 To provide for the erection, establishment and maintenance 
 of works and plants for paving, repairing or maintaining the 
 streets, alleys and highways, or parts thereof, of the city, and to 
 provide all necessary machinery and appliances therefor. 
 
 Twelfth : To direct and control the laying and construction 
 of steam railroad tracks, bridges, turnouts and switches in the 
 streets and alleys; and the location of depot grounds within the 
 city; to require that railroad tracks, bridges turnouts and switches 
 shall be so constructed and reconstructed and laid as to interfere 
 as little as possible with ordinary travel and the use of the streets 
 and alleys, and so as to protect life and property from all danger 
 , arising from the operation of trains upon said tracks, and that 
 sufficient space should be left on either side of said tracks for the 
 safe and convenient passage of teams and persons; to require 
 the railroad companies to keep in repair the streets and alleys 
 
19 
 
 and highways through which their tracks may run, and to light, 
 patrol and guard the same; to require said railroad companies 
 to construct and keep in repair suitable crossings at the intersec¬ 
 tion of streets, alleys and highways, ditches, sewers and culverts, 
 and to light and guard the same; to require and compel railroad 
 companies to construct and maintain viaducts or overhead bridges, 
 together with the approaches therefor at such points where the 
 tracks of said railroads cross the public streets or highways of 
 the city and where the construction of such viaducts and bridges 
 is reasonably necessary for the convenience of the public or for 
 the protection of the people using such crossings; to require rail¬ 
 road companies, whose tracks cross the streets, alleys and high¬ 
 ways of the city, to build said tracks under said streets, alleys 
 and highways, at said crossings, and to construct tunnels there¬ 
 under for the use of said railroads, or viaducts over said rail¬ 
 road tracks for the use of the public, and to maintain the same; 
 to require the railroad companies whose tracks cross the streets, 
 alleys and highways of the city, to pay the damages to abutting 
 property caused by the construction of said viaducts or over¬ 
 head bridges and approaches thereto; and in cases where it is 
 necessary to procure a right-of-way for the construction of any 
 such viaduct or overhead bridge, or approaches or any part there¬ 
 of, the cost and expense of such procurement shall be borne by 
 the railroad company or companies whose tracks cross the high¬ 
 ways and render necessary the construction of said viaduct or 
 overhead bridge and approaches, and in cases where more than 
 one railroad company’s tracks cross a highway within the city, 
 to provide by ordinance the amount or proportionate part of 
 the cost which each of said companies shall pay or contribute 
 toward the cost and expense of construction or maintenance of 
 said viaducts, overhead bridges or approaches, including the 
 matter of rights-of-way for the construction of such viaducts, 
 overhead bridges or approaches, and the damages done to private 
 property by the construction of the same; and when the public 
 safety or convenience so demands, to designate that the roadway 
 of the street crossed by such railroad tracks shall either be carried 
 under the tracks by means of a tunnel, cut or subway to be con¬ 
 structed and maintained by said railroad company, or over said 
 railroad tracks by means of a viaduct or overhead bridge, as 
 aforesaid; and, in case the streets shall be placed beneath said 
 tracks, to require all the costs and expenses of the same, includ¬ 
 ing maintenance, right-of-way, and damages to private property 
 by the construction of the same, to be paid by the railroad com¬ 
 pany or companies whose tracks cross said street. And in cases 
 where necessary for the protection of traffic, or for the opening, 
 establishment, grading or change of grade of any street or high- 
 
20 
 
 way, pr for the construction or maintenance of any other public 
 improvement of any character to require any railroad com¬ 
 pany, at its own expense, to elevate or depress its tracks or any 
 part of the same within the city and to conform the grade of 
 .jsaid tracks to the plans of any public improvement authorized by 
 the Common Council. 
 
 ■ ’ Thirteenth : To establish, erect and keep in repair bridges, 
 culverts, sewers, sewer outlets within or outside the limits of the 
 city, plants for reduction and disposition of sewage and garbage, 
 and to regulate the use of the same; to inspect and regulate 
 house drainage and sewer connections, and plumbing, drainage 
 
 • and sewerage of buildings, and to prescribe the kind and quality 
 of material to be used for such purpose; to establish, alter, deepen 
 and change the channel of water courses and to wall them up and 
 cover them over; and to require houses to be connected with the 
 city sewers. 
 
 Fourteenth : To provide for the erection, establishment, 
 operation, maintenance and discontinuance of such prisons, jails, 
 police stations, work houses, houses of correction, houses of 
 refuge and all necessary penal and charitable institutions; art 
 galleries, market houses, hospitals, quarantine stations, and all 
 public buildings of every character required by the city, whether 
 herein specifically enumerated or not; and to make all needful 
 regulations for the care and government of the same; to provide 
 for the regulation and management of city markets and market 
 places and market houses, and to fix the rental charges therefor 
 and the amount of licenses to be paid for each and every kind 
 of business carried on therein; to purchase, condemn, rent, lease, 
 or otherwise acquire, within the limits of the city or elsewhere, 
 any real or personal property for any purpose herein enumerated 
 or referred to, and to control, managq, improve, sell, lease or 
 otherwise dispose of the same in such manner and upon such con¬ 
 sideration as the Mayor and the Common Council may deem 
 proper for the public welfare, subject to the limitations in this 
 charter elsewhere provided. 
 
 Fifteenth : To restrain and punish engrossing, forestalling 
 or regrating; to regulate and to provide for the inspection of, 
 weighing or measuring and vending of all articles of food or 
 provisions intended for human consumption, and places and 
 manner of inspecting the same; to establish and regulate the 
 standard of weights and measures to be used in the city, and to 
 provide for the inspection of all weights and measures and to 
 compel all dealers in coal to weigh the same on public scales; 
 
 • and to establish, license, tax and regulate public scales and 
 charges for use of the same; to make provision for the inspection, 
 
 
1 
 
 21 
 
 weighing or measuring of lumber and other building materia! 
 and for the inspection of engines, steam boilers and all steam 
 heating apparatus; to license engineers and others using steam 
 boilers or other steam heating or electrical apparatus in the city; 
 to provide for the inspection, weighing or measuring of oil, coal 
 oil, naptha, benzine and other burning fluids, beer, ale, wines, 
 whiskey, rum, brandy and other malt, vinous or spiritous liquors 
 in barrels or other vessels; to regulate the inspection, weigh¬ 
 ing or measuring of hay, corn, oats and all other products; 
 coal, charcoal, firewood and all other kinds of fuel to be used in 
 the city; to regulate the inspection, weight, quality and sale of 
 bread; to appoint weighers, gaugers and inspectors, and to pre¬ 
 scribe their duties and regulate their fees and compensation. 
 
 Sixteenth : To establish and enforce quarantine laws and 
 regulations to prevent the introduction and spread of contagious 
 or infectious diseases among men or animals of the city or within 
 two miles thereof; to provide for the destruction of all diseased 
 or deleterious articles of food or drink and of all animals sick 
 of a disease dangerous to health; to establish and regulate 
 hospitals and quarantine stations outside and inside the city? 
 limits; to secure the general health and safety of the inhabitants 
 by any necessary measure; to regulate stone quarries and the 
 quarrying of stone; to provide for the erection, management, 
 and regulation of slaughter houses and to regulate the slaughter¬ 
 ing of animals; to regulate or prohibit the driving of stock: 
 through the city or any part thereof; to prohibit, remove or 
 regulate the erection of soap factories, stock yards, slaughter 
 houses, pig pens,, stables, cow stables, livery stables, dairies, coal 
 oil and vitriol factories and all other factories which the Common 
 Council may, by ordinance, declare to be a nuisance, within 
 prescribed limits in the city, and within two miles thereof; to 
 regulate or prevent the carrying on of any business which may 
 be dangerous or detrimental to the public health, or the manu¬ 
 facture or vending of articles deleterious to the health of the 
 inhabitants; to declare, prevent and abate nuisances on public 
 or private property, and the causes thereof. 
 
 Seventeenth : To regulate the use of steam boilers, steam 
 generators, electric motors and machinery, and to provide for 
 the registration of plumbers and stationary engineers. 
 
 Eighteenth : To regulate the plans, materials and manner 
 of construction of all-buildings within the city, and maintenance, 
 care, management, operation of all tenement houses, lodging 
 houses, cellars, theatres, public halls, places of amusement and 
 other buildings used for public gatherings in the city, and to 
 regulate and prescribe the number, size and location of places of 
 
22 
 
 entrance and exit and the modes of hanging doors therein for 
 the better protection of the lives, health and morals of the inhabi¬ 
 tants of the city. 
 
 Nineteenth : To prohibit the erection, placing or repairing 
 of wooden buildings within such limits as may -be prescribed by 
 ordinance, and to direct that all buildings within the limits pre¬ 
 scribed shall be made or constructed of fireproof material, and 
 to declare all dilapidated buildings to be nuisances, and to direct 
 the same to be repaired, removed or abated, in such manner as 
 they shall prescribe and direct; and to declare all wooden build¬ 
 ings within the fire limits, which they may deem dangerous to 
 contiguous buildings, to be nuisances, and to require or cause 
 them to be removed or abated, in such manner and under such 
 
 penalties to the owners or proprietors thereof as they may direct. 
 
 % 
 
 Twentieth : To regulate or prohibit the construction and 
 maintenance of chimneys, stacks, flues, fireplaces, stove pipes, 
 ovens, boilers, or other apparatus used in or about any building 
 •or manufactories, and to cause the same to be removed or put in 
 a safe condition, when considered dangerous; to prevent the 
 deposit of ashes in unsafe places, and to provide for the inspec¬ 
 tion of all places within the city and of all property of the city 
 outside the limits thereof, for the better protection of the health, 
 lives, morals and property of the inhabitants of the city, 
 
 To regulate and prevent the carrying on of manufactories 
 and works dangerous in promoting or causing fires; to regulate, 
 prevent and prohibit the use of fireworks and firearms £ 
 
 To direct, regulate or prohibit the storage, manufacture, 
 sale and use of gun powder and all combustibles, explosives and 
 dangerous materials within the city, and to regulate or prohibit 
 the transportation of the same through the streets, alleys or 
 public highways of the city, and to regulate or prohibit the use 
 of candles or other lights in stables, outhouses, and other like 
 
 • • l ’ I 
 
 houses; .... 
 
 To regulate and prescribe the manner and order of building 
 
 and maintaining parapets, partition walls, fire walls, and parti¬ 
 tion fences; 
 
 To compel the owners, lessees or occupants of all buildings 
 to have scuttles on the roofs, and stairs or a ladder leading to the 
 same, and to provide such buildings with adequate fire escapes 
 and apparatus and appliances therein for protection against fire, 
 
 And generally to establish such regulations for the preven¬ 
 tion and extinguishment of fires as the Common Council may 
 deem expedient; 
 
 Twenty-first : To regulate, prohibit or surpress any act, 
 conduct, pursuit, employment, practice, game, sport, or contest, 
 
« 
 
 23 
 
 place or thing whatsoever, which may be injurious to the public 
 morals or to the health or dangerous to the lives or property of 
 the inhabitants of the city, or detrimental to the peace or reputa¬ 
 tion of any neighborhood therein; and in exercise of such police 
 powers, to prevent and suppress bawdy houses, houses of ill fame 
 and fornication, prize fights, dog fighting, cock fighting, gaming 
 and gambling houses, and to authorize destruction of instruments 
 for gaming, and to prevent and suppress mock auction houses, 
 dance halls, public dances, fortune tellers, clairvoyants and 
 palmists, pool rooms and betting rooms, lotteries or places where 
 any game in which chance predominates is played for anything 
 of value, and to punish any and all persons who nuiv engage in 
 such game or games or who keep or frequent such houses or 
 places, or set up or permit the same, or lotteries, or sell lottery 
 tickets; and to prohibit the sale, distribution or giving away, 
 directly or indirectly, of lottery tickets, notices, certificates, and 
 advertisements of lotteries and lottery drawings, and to sup¬ 
 press places where lottery tickets, notices, circulars, and adver¬ 
 tisements of lotteries and lottery drawings are kept, sold, distri¬ 
 buted or given away; to prevent and suppress opium smoking 
 and houses or places kept therefor, and to punish the keeper of 
 such house or place, or any persons who smoke opium therein 
 or frequent the same; and to regulate the sale of opium, cocaine 
 and other similar drugs, cigarettes, cigars and tobacco, and to 
 prohibit the sale of the same to minors. 
 
 Twenty-second : To prevent~the sale, circulation and dis¬ 
 position of obscene literature, including books, papers, prints,, 
 pictures and the like, and to punish any person who sells or offers 
 for sale, or who circulates or disposes of such literature, books, 
 papers, prints, pictures and the like. 
 
 Twenty-third : To regulate, prevent or prohibit the erec¬ 
 tion, maintenance or display of sign boards and bill boards and 
 all signs, posters or other advertisements or of advertising matter 
 which are offensive, improper, unsightly, indecent, lascivious or 
 obscene, upon, along or near the sidewalk, streets, or public 
 places or within view thereof; and to declare any such sign board, 
 poster or other advertising matter to be a public nuisance, and 
 provide for the abatement thereof; 
 
 To acquire by condemnation or otherwise the right to re¬ 
 gulate and control bill boards and sign boards and other struc¬ 
 tures for advertising purposes, upon, along or near sidewalks, 
 streets, alleys, highways or public places or within view thereof, 
 within the city, and to provide for the regulation of the same. 
 
 Twenty-fourth : To restrain and prevent any riot, rout, 
 noise, disturbance or disorderly assemblage; to prohibit the play- 
 
24 
 
 ing of ball, the rolling of hoops, flying of kites, or any other 
 amusement or practice dangerous or annoying to persons or 
 property or tending to frighten horses in any street or place in 
 the city; and to regulate or prohibit the running at large of cat¬ 
 tle, cows, hogs, goats, chickens, geese, ducks, and all poultry, 
 and all other animals or fowls, within the limits of the city, 
 and to authorize the impounding and sale of the same; to restrain 
 and prohibit the ringing of bells, blowing of horns, bugles and 
 steam whistles, crying of goods, and all other noises; and all 
 unreasonable or unnecessary noises made in the operation of 
 street cars or other public vehicles, and to restrain and prohibit 
 performances and practices tending to the collection of persons 
 on the streets and sidewalks, by auctioneers and others, for the 
 purpose of business, amusement or otherwise; to prevent and 
 remove all obstructions and encroachments upon the sidewalks, 
 curb stones, carriageways, streets, avenues and alleys, at the 
 expense of the owners or occupants of the ground fronting there¬ 
 in. 
 
 Twenty-fifth : To license, tax, regulate or restrain and 
 prohibit the running at large of dogs and cats, and to authorize 
 their destruction when at large contrary to ordinance, and to im¬ 
 pose penalties on the owners or keepers thereof. 
 
 Twenty-sixth : To restrain and punish vagrants, mendi¬ 
 cants, street beggars, gamblers and prostitutes, and to define who 
 shall be considered and treated as vagrants. 
 
 Twenty-seventh : To require all railways and railroads to 
 provide proper fenders and other safety appliances and the most 
 approved machinery and methods for their cars and tracks and 
 the operation thereof, for the protection of human life and the 
 lessening of danger thereto, and to make all needful regulations 
 for the operation of the same, and to enforce all such regulations 
 by such fines and penalties as may be prescribed by ordinance, 
 subject to the limitations of this article. 
 
 Twenty-eighth: To regulate the rates to be charged for 
 service by all persons, firms and corporations owning or operat¬ 
 ing any telephone or telegraph lines, systems or exchanges, street 
 railway lines and systems, tunnels, subways, conduits, bridges or 
 viaducts, or engaged in furnishing gas, steam or electricity for 
 lighting, heating or power, or engaged in furnishing light, heat, 
 power or refrigeration, or engaged in any other public utility 
 . under any franchise granted by the State of Missouri or the 
 City of Kansas City; and to require any of such persons, firms 
 and corporations to put and keep their wires, pipes and appliances 
 under ground; and to regulate the use of the streets, alleys and 
 pubiic highways of the city by any such person, firm or corpora¬ 
 tion; 
 
\ 
 
 25 
 
 To sell, rent, lease or otherwise dispose of the products, use 
 or service of any land, property, public utility or convenience, 
 plants or w^orks of any kind, the ownership, use or control of 
 which is or shall be in the city. > 
 
 Twenty-ninth : To control, regulate or prohibit the emis¬ 
 sion of dense smoke from chimneys and chimney stacks of-build¬ 
 ings, manufactories, locomotives or engines or in any manner 
 
 within the city. ' 
 
 Thirtieth : To prohibit and prevent cruelty to children; to 
 appropriate such sums as may be paid into the treasury from 
 fines collected on conviction of persons charged with cruelty to 
 children or animals, and to authorize the payment of the same, 
 or any part thereof, to any society organized and maintained for 
 the prevention of such cruelty. 
 
 Thirty-first : To restrain, regulate and prohibit the selling 
 or giving away of any wines, intoxicating or malt liquors, by 
 any person withip the city, other than those duly licensed; to for¬ 
 bid and punish the giving away of any wines, intoxicating or 
 malt liquors to any woman, minor or habitual drunkard; 
 
 To pass any ordinance touching dramshops, beer houses, 
 tippling houses or saloons, and the granting or revoking of 
 the license for the same, not in conflict with this Charter and 
 the constitution and laws of this State. 
 
 Thirty-second : To provide for the support, maintenance 
 and confinement of insane persons, and to make suitable pro¬ 
 visions for the maintenance and support of poor persons, and 
 to make suitable provisions for the care and maintenance of sick 
 and injured persons. 
 
 Thirty-third: To provide for the enumeration of the 
 inhabitants of the city for any purpose whatever. 
 
 Thirty-fourth : To take all needful steps in and out of the 
 State to protect the rights of the city in any corporation in which 
 the city may have or acquire an interest. 
 
 Thirty-fifth: To establish, create and prescribe the term of 
 office, salaries and duties of all officers and the compensation and 
 duties of all employes and agents necessary or proper in carry¬ 
 ing into effect any of the powers of the city, in all cases not other¬ 
 wise provided for by this Charter, and to establish the compensa¬ 
 tion of jurors and witnesses, respectively, for their services, 
 except as is otherwise provided in this charter; provided, that the 
 salary, fee or compensation of any officer shall not be changed 
 during the term for which he is elected or appointed, and that 
 no officer receiving a salary shall receive any fees or other com¬ 
 pensation for his services. 
 
26 
 
 \ 
 
 Thirty-sixth : To locate and establish as many voting pre¬ 
 cincts in each ward as may be necessary to accommodate the 
 voters therein, and to guard and protect the same, and to appoint 
 all necessary judges and clerks for the same; provided, that a 
 sufficient number of precincts be established in each ward so that 
 not more than five hundred voters shall be compelled to \ote at 
 
 any one precinct. 
 
 Thirty-seventh: To pass all needful ordinances for pre¬ 
 serving order, securing persons and property from violance, dan¬ 
 ger and destruction, protecting public and private property, and 
 for promoting the general interest and insuring the good govern- 
 
 ment of the city. 
 
 Thirty-eighth : To create, establish and maintain fire pa- , 
 trols, and salvage corps, and to provide by ordinance the officers 
 and members thereof, and the rules and regulations which shall 
 govern the same, and may by ordinance contract with any indi¬ 
 vidual, association or corporation for the establishment and main¬ 
 tenance of fire patrols and salvage corps upon such terms and 
 subject to such rules and regulations as the city may, in such 
 ordinance, prescribe, and may set aside and appropriate money 
 for the maintenance or employment thereof, or to carry out 
 
 such contract. 
 
 Thirty-ninth : To provide for or contribute to the support 
 and maintenance of such organizations of the National Guard ot 
 Missouri as may be stationed or located in the city, and to ac¬ 
 quire, by lease, purchase or otherwise, and hold land and build¬ 
 ings for such purposes. 
 
 Fortieth: To purchase and acquire lands or rights-of-way 
 beyond the city limits and outside the State of Missouri for the 
 construction of levees, dikes and other works for the protection 
 from floods and overflow of lands within the city limits, and 
 shall have authority to appropriate funds for that purpose ana 
 for the purpose of constructing in whole or in part such levees, 
 dikes and other work outside the State of Missouri for the pro- 
 tection from floods and overflow of lands inside the limi s o 
 said citv. To establish levee districts within the city, to con¬ 
 struct and maintain levees, dikes, drains and other wor s, an 
 levy and collect special assessments to pay therefor. 
 
 Forty-first: The foregoing enumeration of particular 
 powers granted to the Common Council in this charter shall not 
 be construed to impair any general grant of power herein or in 
 this charter contained, nor to limit any such general gran, to 
 powers of the same class or classes as those so enumerated; ana 
 the Common Council shall have power to pass, publish, amend, 
 
27 
 
 and repeal all such ordinances, rules and regulations not incon- 
 bistent with the provisions of this charter or contrary to the laws 
 of the State or of the United States as it may deem to be expedi- 
 ent or necessary in maintaining the peace, order, good govern¬ 
 ment, health and welfare of the city, its trade, commerce, manu¬ 
 factures, or that may be necessary and proper to carry into effect 
 the provisions of this charter. 
 
 Nothing- in this article contained shall be construed to im¬ 
 pair the powers conferred by this charter upon the various boards 
 and departments of the city government or head thereof or to 
 
 remove any requirements or restrictions in this charter elsewhere 
 contained. 
 
 Forty-second: And the Common Council shall have power 
 to impose, enforce and collect fines, forfeitures and penalties for 
 the breach of any provision of this charter or of any ordinance; 
 to punish the violation of any provision of this charter or anv 
 oidinance of the city by fine or imprisonment, or by both fine and 
 imprisonment; but no fine shall exceed five hundred dollars nor 
 imprisonment exceed twelve months for any one offense. Anv 
 person upon whom any fine is imposed shall stand committed 
 until the Payment of the same, with costs, and in default of such 
 payment shall be imprisoned in the city prison, the workhouse 
 house of correction or house of refuge, hereinbefore provided’ 
 or in case of women or minors, in such other place as may be 
 provided for them at public or private expense, to be designated 
 by the court before whom conviction is had. 
 
 Every person so imprisoned in the city prison, the work- 
 house, house of correction or house of refpge, or other place as 
 herein provided, shall be required to work for the city at such 
 labor as his or her health and strength will permit, within or 
 without said prison, workhouse, house of correction, house of 
 re uge, or ot er place, not exceeding ten hours each working 
 day and for such work such person shall be allowed, exclusive 
 ot his or her board, fifty cents per day for each day’s work on 
 ccount of said fine and costs. No city prisoner shall be required 
 to labor outside the prison walls while in manacles. 
 
 this paragraph shall not be construed as limiting the city 
 to any particular mode or method of enforcing its ordinances, as 
 aforesaid; but the city shall have the right to enforce the same 
 y any appropriate method, which is not inconsistent with or in 
 violation of the constitution or laws of the State of Missouri. 
 
 ■Sec. 2. No appropriation, or payment, shall be made from 
 
 a "iL r . e a enUe .°- r ft ! nd account in excess of the amount actually 
 collected and in the treasury and unappropriated. Within the 
 
 first month of each fiscal year the Mayor and Common Council 
 
28 
 
 shall, by ordinance, as far as practicable, make an apportionment 
 of the revenue to be raised for such year to the expenses of the 
 several departments, and for all public works under proper head¬ 
 ings, and for such other objects as it may be necessary to provide 
 for; and the money then in the treasury, subject to apportion¬ 
 ment and municipal revenues as collected, shall be distributed 
 into different funds accordingly. At the" time, or after making 
 such apportionment, the Mayor and Common Council may, from 
 time to time, by ordinance, appropriate money to the use of a 
 department, and the same may be paid out by such department, 
 subject to limitations in this charter specified, without further 
 action by ordinance; and any balance at any time standing to the 
 credit of a department, unexpended and hot set apart by a depart¬ 
 ment for a specific contract, shall be subject to withdrawal, by 
 ordinance, and reappropriation to other uses. All ordinances 
 that contemplate the appropriation or payment of any money, 
 shall, upon their second reading, be referred to the appropriate 
 committee of the house in which such ordinances are introduced, 
 and the committee shall obtain the endorsement thereon of the 
 
 t 
 
 comptroller to the effect that sufficient unappropriated money 
 stands to the credit of the fund or revenue account therein men¬ 
 tioned, to meet the requirements of such ordinances and that the 
 same is in the treasury, or it shall not be lawful to pass the said 
 ordinances. 
 
 Sec. 3. The city, through its Mayor, or through its offi-_ 
 cers and agents, may at all reasonable times, within the city and 
 within two miles of the city limits, enter into and examine all 
 dwellings, lots, yards, inclosures and buildings, cars, boats and 
 vehicles of every description, to ascertain their condition for 
 health, cleanliness and safety; take down and remove buildings, 
 walls or superstructures that are or may become dangerous, or 
 require owners to remove or put them in a safe and secure con¬ 
 dition, at their own expense; shall provide for the safe con¬ 
 struction, inspection and repair of all private or public buildings 
 within the city; compel persons to aid in extinguishing fires, or in 
 the preservation of property liable to be destrdyed or stolen. 
 
 Sec. 4. The style of ordinance passed in pursuance of this 
 charter shall be “BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COMMON 
 COUNCIL OF KANSAS CITY.” Ordinances may originate 
 in either house, and may be amended or rejected by either house. 
 
 Sec. 5. No ordinance shall be deemed passed by either 
 house until it is signed by the presiding officer thereof, and he 
 shall immediately sign it in open session, and the clerk shall, 
 as soon as possible, transmit the same to the other house; and 
 
29 
 
 I- 
 
 if the ordinance shall be passed by such other house without 
 amendment, it shall be immediately signed in open session by the 
 presiding officer thereof and be thereafter presented to the 
 Mayor. If it be amended in such other house, it shall be 
 immediately signed by the presiding officer thereof in open ses¬ 
 sion and returned to the house from which it came, and if the 
 amendment is there concurred in, it shall be immediately signed 
 by the presiding officer of the house so concurring and be there¬ 
 after presented to the Mayor. If the Mayor approve any ordi¬ 
 nance, he shall sign it; if not, he shall return it to the City Clerk 
 with his objections, and the City Clerk shall, at the next session 
 of the house in which it originated, return it to such house. If 
 in either house any member shall object that any substitution, 
 omission or insertion has occurred, so that the ordinance pro¬ 
 posed to be signed is not the same in substance and form as when 
 considered and passed by the house, such objection shall be 
 passed upon by the house, and, if sustained, the presiding officer 
 shall withhold his signature until the proper correction is made: 
 
 Sec. 6 . If any ordinance presented to the Mayor contains 
 several items of appropriation, he may object to one or more 
 items while approving the other portions of the ordinance. In 
 such case he shall append to the ordinance, at the time of signing 
 it, a statement of the items to which he objects, and his reasons 
 therefor, and return the same to the City Clerk within the same 
 time and manner, with the same effect, as to the items so objected 
 to, and for the purpose of taking the same action in relation to 
 each item of appropriation so objected to as provided for ordi¬ 
 nances returned without the approval of the Mayor. But the 
 portions of the ordinance not so objected to shall take effect upon 
 the approval thereof. 
 
 • 
 
 Sec. 7. Every ordinance presented as aforesaid, but re¬ 
 turned without the approval of the Mayor, and with his objec¬ 
 tions thereto, shall stand as reconsidered in the house to which it 
 is returned. Such house shall cause the objections of the Mayor 
 to be entered at large upon the journal, and proceed at its con¬ 
 venience to consider the question pending, which shall be in this 
 form: “Shall the ordinance pass, the objections of the Mayor 
 thereto notwithstanding?” The vote upon this question shall 
 be taken by yeas and nays, and the names entered upon the 
 journal; and if two-thirds of all the members elected to such 
 house vote in the affirmative, except when in this charter a larger 
 vote is required, the presiding officer of such house shall certify 
 that fact upon the ordinance, attesting the same by his signature, 
 and send the ordinance, with the objections of the Mayor, to 
 the other house, in which like proceedings shall be had in rela- 
 
30 
 
 1 . 
 
 tion thereto, and if the ordinance receive a like majority of the 
 votes of all members elected to such other house, except when 
 in this charter a larger vote is required, the vote being taken 
 by yeas and nays, the presiding officer thereof shall in like man¬ 
 ner certify the fact upon the ordinance; and said ordinance shall 
 then be and become a law, and shall further be authenticated as 
 having become a law, by certificate signed by the City Clerk, 
 endorsed thereon, as follows: “This ordinance, having been 
 returned by the Mayor, with his objections thereto, and, after 
 reconsideration, having passed both houses of the Common 
 Council by a vote of two-thirds of the members elect of each 
 
 house, has become a law this.day of.. 
 
 19.. . ., ., City Clerk.” 
 
 And such ordinance shall be filed, recorded and preserved in the 
 office of the City Clerk as other ordinances. 
 
 Sec. 8. If any ordinance shall not be returned by the 
 Mayor within ten days (Sundays excepted), after it shall have 
 been presented to him for his approval, the same shall become 
 a law in the same manner as if he had approved and signed it; 
 and said ordinance shall be authenticated as having become a 
 law, by certificate signec} by the City Clerk, endorsed thereon, 
 as follows: “This ordinance, having remained with the Mayor 
 
 ten days (Sundays excepted), has become a law this. 
 
 day of.. 19., 
 
 City Clerk.” And said ordinance shall be filed, recorded and 
 preserved in the office of the City Clerk as other ordinances. 
 
 Sec. 9. No ordinance shall be revived or re-enacted by 
 mere reference to the title thereof, but the same shall be set forth 
 at length as if it were an original ordinance. 
 
 Sec. 10. No ordinance shall be amended by providing 
 that designated words thereof be stricken out and others inserted 
 in lieu thereof, but the ordinance, or section amended, shall be 
 set forth in full as amended. 
 
 Sec. 11. When an ordinance is put upon its final passage 
 in either house, and, failing to pass, a motion is made to recon¬ 
 sider the vote by which it was defeated, the vote upon such 
 motion to reconsider shall be immediately taken and the subject 
 finally disposed of before the house proceeds to other business. 
 
 * , , 
 
 Sec. 12. All ordinances of the city may be proved by the 
 seal of the city. When printed or published by authority of the 
 city, the same shall be received in evidence in all courts and 
 places without further proof. 
 
31 
 
 Sec. 13. The City Clerk shall cause a correct abstract of 
 the proceedings of the Common Council to be made out and 
 published in at least one newspaper in the city. This abstract 
 shall present in brief the substance of all petitions, memorials 
 and remonstrances, of all motions and propositions, and all 
 ordinances, resolutions and orders, so as to exhibit their nature 
 and import, and shall also present a brief and accurate state¬ 
 ment of all proceedings in relation thereto. The communications 
 of the Mayor and other city officers shall be published in full 
 when the Common Council shall so direct; but it shall be so 
 ordered that the expense of publishing the same document the 
 second time shall not be incurred. 
 
 Sec. 14. Immediately after the adjournment of any ses¬ 
 sion of either house, the City Clerk shall file in his office all the 
 original ordinances and all resolutions which may have become 
 law's thereat, and shall record the same in well bound books 
 provided for that purpose by the city; provided, that no 
 ordinance shall be recorded until it shall have become a law. 
 He shall also' make a written index of the subject of each ordi¬ 
 nance and resolution, its number and date of becoming a law', 
 together with the record and page where found, and shall pre¬ 
 serve the file and records in his office. 
 
 Sec. 15. No person or property shall be exempted or re¬ 
 leased from any burden imposed by or according to law'. No 
 general or special tax or assessment, or interest or penalty there¬ 
 on, shall be remitted or abated, or the right to enforce payment 
 thereon be released, except in correction of clerical errors. After 
 the levy of any tax, neither the amount thereof nor the valua¬ 
 tion of any property for the levy shall be reduced except only in 
 the correction of clerical errors. 
 
 Sec. 16. The owners of real property may be required, 
 under rules and regulations to be prescribed by this charter and 
 by ordinance, to make repairs of sidewalks, curbing and gutter¬ 
 ing, or any of them, in front of their property, and on the ad¬ 
 joining side of the street or avenue, and of alleys in the rear or 
 on the adjoining side thereof, and owners, occupants or ten¬ 
 ants may be required to keep sidewalks clean and free from 
 ice, snow, earth or other substances, and sprinkle the street in 
 front of property owned or occupied by them and on the ad¬ 
 joining side of the street or avenue, and also to clean the alleys in 
 the rear of such property or adjoining the same, and to keep 
 such streets, avenues and alleys free from filth, dirt and rubbish; 
 such rules and regulations shall be deemed police regulations, 
 and violations thereof may be punished by fine or imprisonment 
 
82 
 
 
 * 
 
 or both; and any such owners, occupants or tenants, or any per¬ 
 son having control of any land or ground, who shall allow or 
 maintain thereon weeds or any rank vegetable growth, may be 
 required to cut, trim and remove the same. 
 
 The Common Council may, by ordinance, declare any such 
 weeds or other rank vegetable growth to be a nuisance, and 
 provide for the abatement of the same at the expense of the 
 owner of such property, in any manner prescribed in this char¬ 
 ter or ordinance passed pursuant thereto, for the abatement of 
 nuisances. Such rules and regulations shall be deemed police 
 regulations, and violations thereof may be punished accordingly 
 by fine or imprisonment, or both. 
 
 » 
 
 \ 
 
 
 t 
 
 \ 
 
 \ 
 
ARTICLE IV. 
 
 Municipal Officers. 
 
 Section 1. The chief executive officer of the city shall * 
 be the Mayor, who shall bq elected by the qualified voters of the 
 city and shall hold his office for a term of two years and until 
 his successor shall have been duly elected and qualified. The 
 executive and administrative authority of the city shall be vested 
 in him, excepting only the authority by this Charter vested in or 
 allowed by ordinance to be conferred upon other officers or the 
 various departments. 
 
 i 
 
 Sec. 2. No person shall be Mayor who has not resided in 
 the territory embraced within the city limits for the five years 
 next preceding the date of his election, and who does not possess 
 the qualifications of a member of the Upper House of the Com¬ 
 mon Council as hereinbefore defined; nor shall any person con¬ 
 tinue in the office of Mayor who shall have ceased to possess 
 any of the said qualifications. 
 
 Sec. 3. The Mayor may be removed from office for any 
 misdemeanor or other offense, by a concurrent vote of two- 
 thirds of both houses of the Common Council elect, and the yeas 
 and nays shall be entered upon the journal of each house. 
 
 Sec. 4. The Mayor shall take care that the laws of the 
 State, the provisions of this charter and the ordinances of the 
 city are enforced. He shall, from time to time, give the Council 
 information relative to the state of the city and shall recommend 
 to their consideration such measures as he shall deem expedient 
 and for the advantage of the city. He shall have power to ap¬ 
 point, in the manner provided by this charter, all city officers, 
 agents and employes not elected by the people or otherwise ap¬ 
 pointed. In all cases where by this charter, or any ordinance of 
 the city, the Mayor is authorized to appoint any officer, and such 
 appointment is required to be confirmed by the Upper House of 
 the Common Council, it is hereby made his duty to make such 
 nomination within such time as may be prescribed by ordinance. 
 If the Upper House of the Common Council shall refuse its con¬ 
 sent to any such nomination made by the Mayor, he shall, with- 
 * in five days, nominate another person to fill such office. If he 
 fail to make a nomination within that time, his power of appoint¬ 
 ment shall cease during the remainder of the term for which 
 
34 
 
 such officer is to be appointed,, and the said Upper House of the 
 Common Council shall appoint a suitable person to fill the office 
 during the term. 
 
 The Mayor may, upon good cause shown, and subject to 
 the provisions of this charter in reference to the Board of 
 Pardons and Parole, remit fines, forfeitures and penalties accru¬ 
 ing from or imposed for the violation of any city ordinance, but 
 such remission shall be effective only upon report of the same to 
 the City Comptroller. 
 
 When the consent of the Upper House of the Common 
 Council is required by this charter to the appointment of any 
 officer, such consent can only be given by a majority of the Upper 
 House of the Common Council elect, voting for such appoint¬ 
 ment. 
 
 Sec. 5. The President of the Upper House of the Common 
 Council shall perform the duties of Mayor whenever and so long 
 as the Mayor is absent from the city, or from any cause is unable 
 to perform his official duties. If the Mayor and President of the 
 Upper House are both absent from the city, or otherwise dis¬ 
 abled from performing the duties of Mayor, the Speaker of the 
 Lower House of the Common Council shall, for the time being, 
 discharge the duties of such office, and the compensation of the 
 # President or Speaker, while acting as Mayor, shall be fixed by 
 ordinance. 
 
 0 - < I 6 
 
 Sec: 6. The Mayor shall have power, when he deems it 
 necessary, to require any officer of the city to exhibit his ac¬ 
 counts or other papers, and to make report in writing touching 
 any subject he may require pertaining to his office. He shall 
 ex-officio be a member of all appointive boards, but without the 
 right to vote therein. 
 
 Sec. 7. There shall be a City Counselor and City Auditor 
 who shall be appointed by the Mayor. There shall be a City 
 Clerk who shall be elected by the two houses of the Common 
 Council in joint session. There shall be a City Assessor and a ’ 
 > Purchasing Agent who shall be appointed by the Mayor, by and 
 with the advice and consent of the Upper House of the Com¬ 
 mon Council. All of said officers mentioned in this section, shall 
 hold their offices for a term of two years, unless sooner removed, 
 and in all cases until their successors are appointed and qualified. 
 All of the officers mentioned in this section shall perform such 
 duties as may be prescribed by this charter, or any ordinance 
 of the city, pursuant thereto; provided , however, that the City 
 Counselor, City Clerk and City Assessor in office at the time this 
 
85 
 
 charter goes into effect shall continue in office until the third 
 Monday in April of the year 1909, in all respects as though ap¬ 
 pointed hereunder, and the first appointment of the City Coun¬ 
 selor shall be for a term ending on the third Monday in April 
 of the year 1910. The City Auditor in office at the time this 
 charter goes- into effect shall hold office hereunder until the third 
 Monday in April of the year 1910, subject to the terms of this 
 charter in every respect as though he were appointed to such 
 office hereunder, and the first appointment of a City Auditor for 
 the term beginning the third Monday in April, 1910, shall be 
 for one year only. 
 
 In case the Mayor fails to make any appointment provided 
 for by this charter for ten days after it becomes his duty to make 
 such appointment, the office shall be filled by a majority vote of 
 the members elect of the Upper House of the Common Council. 
 
 Sec. 8 . There shall be a Comptroller and a Treasurer, and 
 a Judge of the Municipal Court, who shall be elected by the 
 qualified voters of the city, who shall hold their offices for a term 
 of two years, and in all cases until their successors have been 
 duly elected and qualified, and who shall, in addition to the duties 
 prescribed in this charter, perform such other duties as may be 
 provided by ordinance, pursuant thereto. 
 
 Sec. 9. Whenever a vacancy shall occur in any office pro¬ 
 vided by law to be filled by election by the qualified voters of the 
 city, except members of the Common Council, it shall, except 
 as otherwise provided in this charter, be filled for the remainder 
 of the term by election by joint ballot of the two houses of the 
 Common Council sitting in joint session, but no member of either 
 house of the Common Council shall be eligible for election. 
 Within five days after such vacancy occurs it shall be the duty 
 of the President of the Upper House to convene said joint assem¬ 
 bly. Any such vacancy, except in the office of Mayor, may be 
 filled temporarily by appointment by the Mayor until a successor 
 has been duly elected as last aforesaid, and qualified. 
 
 The City Comptroller in office at the time this charter goes 
 into effect, shall be the first Comptroller, as if elected hereunder, 
 to hold office, however, until the third Monday in April, 1909, 
 and his successor shall be appointed by the Mayor for the term 
 ending the third Monday in April, 1910. At the general city 
 election to be held in 1910 a comptroller shall be elected to 
 serve for two years. The Treasurer of Kansas City in office 
 the time this charter goes into effect, shall be the first Treas¬ 
 urer as if elected hereunder, for the term ending on the third 
 Monday of April, 1910. 
 
36 
 
 The Police Judge of Kansas City in office at the time tffis 
 
 Sm aII?h?H in , to 'f d “ a" «« P°wm ZZ- 
 
 r u l h , n d t ,eS Jud ^ e ? f tbe Municipal Court as if elected 
 hereunder, until a judge of the Municipal Court shall be elected 
 at the general city election held in April, 1910. 
 
 tn h t EC ' 10 ‘ T he [® is herel> y created a court not of record 
 t £ nown as ‘ he Municipal Court of Kansas City. Such court 
 
 election havt h °T by , a jud ^ e who shall > at the time of his 
 nf K, h r r b ? n fo ^ five y ears a member in good standing 
 of the bar of Jackson County, Missouri. The city may by or¬ 
 dinance, divide the Municipal Court into two or more divisions 
 prescribe the time and place of holding each of such divisions 
 e territorial district of the city within which each division shall 
 exercise jurisdiction, and provide for the election, at any general 
 
 tionaTffi^ addlt 'm Judge ° r J ud £ es to preside over such addi¬ 
 tional division. When such Municipal Court is divided into 
 
 divisions each of such divisions shall possess the same powers 
 and jurisdictions, except as to territorial limits; and any judqe 
 of any division may preside in any other division when required 
 by ordinance so to do. Such court, or each division thereof, 
 shall have a c erk appointed in accordance with the Civil Service 
 rules in this charter provided, whose duty shall be to file all pro¬ 
 ceedings therein, issue all process and perform such duties as 
 may be required by ordinance. The Municipal Court and each 
 division thereof, shall have jurisdiction of all cases arising under 
 P I ? vls ! on of this charter or any ordinance of the city, and 
 , ha likewise exercise sqch jurisdiction as may be delegated to 
 it the general law of the State of Missouri. 
 
 c™ - 1 ! 1 ? UIt lm r the co | lec ti°n of taxes, or for the enforcement of 
 special tax bills, and in proceedings for taking and damaging 
 
 private property, for the establishment of bill board restrictions 
 and other easements, and for ascertaining damages caused by 
 c ange o grade, or other exercise of the power of eminent 
 
 l 'tu J“ ri ! dicti ? n of the Municipal Court shall be con- 
 .urrent: with the Circuit Court of Jackson County, Missouri. In ' 
 
 exclusive CaS6S ’ ^ Jl ’ nsdiction of the Municipal Court shall be 
 
 Whenever a person shall be arrested by a policeman for an 
 offense^gainst the city, which is also an offense against the State, 
 ne shall be tried in the Municipal Court. 
 
 . Appeals may be taken from the Municipal Court to the Cir¬ 
 cuit Court of Jackson County, Missouri, in all cases, except the 
 imposition of fines or penalties for the breach of any city or¬ 
 dinance, in which case the appeal shall be to the Criminal Court 
 of Jackson County. The Municipal Court shall have and exer¬ 
 cise the powers of a Circuit Court for the preservation of order 
 
i 
 
 3T 
 
 and enforcing process issued in the course of proceedings may 
 summon and compel the attendance of witnesses, and when, by 
 this charter, a jury is allowed, may summon and compel the 
 attendance of jurors, pass on the competency of evidence, and 
 instruct the jury on questions of law. The Common Council of 
 the city may, by ordinance, regulate the practice in said court 
 in a manner not inconsistent with this charter or the constitution 
 and laws of the State of Missouri. The judge or judges of the 
 Municipal Court shall be ex-officio Justices of the Peace, and 
 have and exercise in addition to any jurisdiction conferred by 
 this charter, such powers and jurisdiction as may be delegated to 
 them by any law of the State of Missouri. 
 
 The Municipal Court, or the Clerk thereof, shall pay over 
 to the City Treasurer, daily, all money collected from fines, 
 penalties or other source. 
 
 Sec. 11. It shall be the duty of the Comptroller to exer¬ 
 cise a general supervision over the collection and return into 
 the city treasury and disbursement of all the revenues and other 
 moneys of the city, and over the proceedings therefor; over all 
 property, assets and claims, and over the custody, sale or other 
 disposition thereof. He shall see that all proper and legal pro¬ 
 ceedings are had to recover, keep and manage such property and 
 other interests, and that all proper rules and regulations are 
 prescribed and observed in relation to all accounts, settlements 
 and reports regarding the fiscal concerns of the city. He shall 
 see that no appropriation of funds is overdrawn or misapplied, 
 and that no liability is incurred, nor money or property of the 
 city disbursed or disposed of contrary to the letter and spirit of 
 law. He shall have charge of all the general accounts of the 
 city, and prescribe the method and manner of keeping books 
 of general as well as of subsidiary accounts in all of the offices 
 and departments, and the form of receipts and vouchers. He 
 shall have general supervision and direction over all accounting 
 officers, and shall have access to all books and records of the de¬ 
 positaries and fiscal agents of the city. He shall promptly report 
 in writing to the Mayor, and to the Common Council, any de¬ 
 fault or delinquency he may discover. 
 
 Whenever it shall be found that any officer, clerk or employe 
 shall have refused or failed to keep any of the books or records, 
 or shall have refused or failed to transmit vouchers or papers 
 pertaining to or in support of accounts, in the manner prescribed 
 by charter, or ordinance, or in manner necessary to support or 
 verify accounts as the same may have been required by the 
 Comptroller to be kept, such refusal or failure shall constitute a 
 misdemeanor, punishable by fine of not less than One Hundred 
 nor more than Five Hundred Dollars, or by imprisonment "for 
 not less than thirty nor more than ninety days, or by both such 
 
38 
 
 \ 
 
 fine and imprisonment. The Comptroller may administer oaths 
 and may require all settlements, returns, reports and claims to be 
 verified by affidavit. A complete double-entry system of general 
 accounts shall be devised and installed, which shall contain a 
 complete classification%nd summary, (1) of all current revenues 
 accrued to the city, (2) of all expenses incurred by the city, 
 (3) of all resources and liabilities of the city, and the accounts of 
 resources and liabilities shall be so classified that at any time the 
 city may know (a) what liabilities are current (due or to become 
 due within the fiscal period), and what assets may be made avail¬ 
 able to meet said current liabilities, and (b) what liabilities have 
 been incurred and appropriations made for permanent properties 
 and improvements, and the fund on hand for permanent proper¬ 
 ties and improvements, and properties acquired for continuous 
 use, and also (4) of every levy of special taxes and assessments 
 and the collections and disbursements on account thereof, and 
 other payments and discharges thereof, showing at all times the 
 condition of every account arising from such taxes and assess¬ 
 ments. 
 
 Sec. 12. After money shall have been duly appropriated 
 by ordinance, whether generally to the use of a department or 
 for a special purpose, the same may be paid out by the officer 
 or department having charge of the expenditure by requisition 
 upon the Auditor for warrants upon the Treasurer, without 
 further action of the Common Council, provided, however, that 
 in the case of the Board of Fire and Water Commissioners, no 
 contract shall be made binding the city when the consideration or 
 total liability is more than Five Thousand Dollars, unless such 
 contract be approved by the Common Council, and in case of 
 all other departments, contracts may not be made when the con¬ 
 sideration or total liability is more than Twenty-five Hundred 
 Dollars, without such approval. 
 
 Claims against the city shall, before payment, be approved 
 by the head of the department, or the President of the Board to 
 which the expense is chargeable, and if not chargeable to any 
 department, they shall be approved by the Mayor, and shall also 
 be approved by the officer or agent who incurred the obligation, 
 and when the claim is for materials, goods or supplies, shall bear 
 a certificate as to quantity and quality signed by the person who 
 first received such materials, goods or supplies on behalf of the 
 city. The City Auditor shall examine such claims and see that 
 they are arithmatically correct, are in proper form, and that they 
 bear the approval of the persons required by law, and when cor¬ 
 rect and in form and duly approved, he shall, upon the requisi¬ 
 tion of the department or the Mayor, as the case may be, draw 
 warrants on the City Treasurer in payment of the same. 
 
39 
 
 It shall be the duty of the Comptroller to countersign war¬ 
 rants for all claims justly due and owing from the city, but he 
 shall not countersign any warrant unless there be, at the time, 
 money in the treasury duly appropriated by ordinance and proper¬ 
 ly applicable to the payment thereof. Money in the treasury, 
 standing in. a sinking fund or resulting from a levy of taxes 
 for the payment of bonds or interest, shall be considered duly 
 appropriated for the payment of the particular bonds or interest 
 for which levied or accumulated, without further ordinance to 
 that effect, and money in special trusts paid into the treasury 
 pursuant to condemnation proceedings or resulting from special 
 taxes or assessments, shall be considered duly appropriated to the 
 purpose for which collected, received or held, and may be paid 
 out accordingly. For the payment of bonds of the city or interest 
 thereon, or for any money in special trusts as aforesaid, the 
 Comptroller shall, with the written approval of the Mayor, make 
 a requisition upon the Auditor for a warrant on the Treasurer 
 for that purpose. 
 
 Sec. 13. Neither the Common Council nor any depart¬ 
 ment or officer of the city, except the Comptroller, in a single 
 instance in this charter provided, shall have authority to make 
 any contract or do any act binding the city, or imposing upon 
 the city any liability to pay money until a difinite amount of 
 money shall first have been appropriated, or set aside by a depart¬ 
 ment out of money already appropriated for the liquidation of 
 all pecuniary liability of said city under said contract, or in conse¬ 
 quence of said act; and the amount of said appropriation or 
 money so set aside, shall be the maximum limit of the liability of 
 the city under any such contract or in consequence of such act, 
 and said contract or act shall be ab initio null and void as to the 
 city for any other or further liability; provided, however, that 
 nothing in this charter contained' shall preclude the city from 
 making contracts for the period not exceeding ten years for the 
 disposition of garbage or offal, under the regulation contained in 
 Article XIV of this charter, nor from making contracts for the 
 cleaning and sprinkling of streets, alleys and public places, or 
 any part thereof, for periods not exceeding five years, nor from 
 making contracts for repairing or maintaining streets for periods 
 not exceeding three years. Money shall be considered as so set 
 aside by a department only when upon order of the department 
 the Comptroller shall transfer the amount to a special account 
 for the purpose of the special contract, and shall give his state¬ 
 ment in writing to that effect. Any member of the Common 
 Council, who shall knowingly vote for any appropriation of 
 money or the making of any contract in violation of this charter, 
 or any officer of the city who shall knowingly do any act to 
 
40 
 
 impose upon the city any pecuniary liability in excess of the 
 authority in the charter limited, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor 
 and, upon conviction, shall be punished by a fine of not less than 
 One Hundred nor more than One Thousand Dollars or impris¬ 
 onment in the county jail not less than one month nor more than 
 one year, or by both such fine and imprisonment. / 
 
 Sec. 14. The Comptroller is specially charged with the 
 preservation of the credit and faith of the city in relation to its 
 bonded indebtedness. At the first meeting of the Common Coun¬ 
 cil in each fiscal year, he shall certify to the Lower House the 
 amount of money necessary to be raised by taxation for the pay¬ 
 ment of bonds and interest maturing, during the current fiscal 
 year, and also the amount necessary to meet all obligations of 
 H!f_ cl l y account of sinking funds for bonds outstanding, set- 
 
 fU y , m ■ d , etai the condition of the entire bonded 
 indebtedness and sinking funds and showing the amount of 
 
 money needed for each series, or issue of bonds, for interest, 
 or principal, and for sinking fund. If necessary to preserve the 
 pub ic credit, the Comptroller may anticipate any part of the 
 annual revenue levied for the purpose of paying bonds and inter- 
 
 the CrfLi 7 fh , th< : Wal of the Mayor, obtain loans on 
 fall due 3 ^ and felth ° f thC C ' ty t0 meet bonds interes t about to 
 
 Sec. 15. Sinking funds for bonds .of the city mav be 
 invested by the Comptroller in bonds of the United States, of 
 the State of Missouri, of the County of Jackson, of the School 
 District of Kansas City or of Kansas City, on the best terms 
 obtainable, and he shall at all times keep a full and accurate 
 description and account of all bonds outstanding in each and 
 every sinking fund. The Comptroller, by and with the consent 
 of a majority of the members-elect of the Upper House of the 
 Common Council, shall sell the securities belonging to a sinking 
 fund, or any part of them, on the best terms obtainable, when 
 e pioceeds thereof may be needed for the payment of bonds, 
 and he may, with such consent, exchange any bonds belonging 
 .o a sinking fund for bonds of the city whenever such exchange 
 is advantageous to the city. Any moneys remaining in a sinking 
 fund after payment of the entire bonded debt for which it was 
 accumulated, shall be paid into the general fund. 
 
 Whenever any bonds, interest coupons or other written or 
 pnnted evidences of debt of the city shall be paid and discharged 
 they shall be cancelled by the Comptroller in the presence of a 
 committee of the Lower House of the Common Council and 
 such committee shall report to such House a full and detailed 
 descnptjon of said bonds so cancelled and burned, which report 
 s ia be entered upon the minutes of the Lower House in full. 
 
41 
 
 Sec. 16. All departments of the city and all officers keep¬ 
 ing accounts shall, within ten days after the close of each fiscal 
 year, make reports to the Comptroller showing the financial 
 transactions for such year, in such form and detail as may be 
 required by ordinance, and shall make such other reports as he, 
 or either House of the Common Council may, from time to time, 
 require. The Comptroller shall make annual reports to the Com¬ 
 mon Council covering the financial affairs of the city for each 
 fiscal year, within fifteen days after the close thereof, transmit¬ 
 ting with such report the reports for the year of all departments 
 and officers; shall make regular intermediary reports as may be 
 prescribed by ordinance, and shall make special reports when¬ 
 ever requested by the Mayor or by either House of the Common 
 Council, on the financial condition of the city. The Comptroller’s 
 report and such portions or summaries of the other reports as 
 may be required by ordinance, shall be printed within thirty days 
 for distribution. He shall provide and keep in his office reliable 
 and complete tables of all property and assets of the city, all con¬ 
 tracts, names of contractors, and names of employes, in such 
 manner as to show the department in which they are employed, 
 their salaries, powers and duties, and how appointed. - He may, 
 subject to the Civil Service laws, rules and regulations con¬ 
 tained in or provided for by this charter, appoint such deputies 
 and clerks as may be provided for by ordinance. No person shall 
 be elected to the office of Comptroller who has not resided in the 
 city five years next before his election, and shall not have attained 
 the age of thirty years. 
 
 Sec. 17. It shall be the duty of the Treasurer to receive 
 and keep the money of the city and pay out the same on war¬ 
 rants drawn by the Auditor and countersigned by the Comp¬ 
 troller and not otherwise. He shall collect all taxes and licenses 
 levied or charged by the city, and all moneys due the city from 
 any source, except as otherwise provided by law, pursuant to 
 this charter, for collection by others; he may, subject to the Civil 
 Service rules, laws and regulations contained in or provided by 
 this charter, appoint such deputies and clerks as may be provided 
 for by ordinance, and he shall be responsible for all the acts of 
 his deputies and clerks. All moneys belonging to the city and 
 received by any officer or agent thereof shall promptly be depos¬ 
 ited in the treasury and the Treasurer shall daily deposit all 
 moneys received by him in the depository banks of the city. For 
 all moneys received the Treasurer shall give a duplicate receipt, 
 one of which shall be countersigned by the Auditor before deliv¬ 
 ery to the party paying, and the other shall be delivered to and 
 retained by the Auditor. Both the Treasure and Auditor shall 
 
? 
 
 42 
 
 * 
 
 daily report to the Comptroller the amount of money received 
 into the treasury and from what source. 
 
 Sec. 18. Immediately after the third Monday in April fol¬ 
 lowing each general election, and whenever occasion may require, 
 the Mayor, Comptroller and City Counselor shall select banks or 
 banking institutions in the city, which will give a satisfactory 
 rate of interest for a period beginning on the first day of August 
 next ensuing and ending in one or two years, for the current 
 deposit of the city funds estimated on daily balances and paid 
 monthly on the first day of each calendar month; and the city 
 Treasurer shall keep the city’s funds in the banks or banking 
 institutions so selected; provided, however, that before any bank 
 or banking institution shall be so selected or deposits made 
 therein by the Treasurer, such bank or banking institution shall 
 give bond in such amount as shall, from time to time, be pre¬ 
 scribed by ordinance, wdth good and sufficient sureties to be 
 approved by the Mayor and a two-thirds vote of the members- 
 elect of the Upper House of the Common Council, for the safe¬ 
 keeping and prompt payment w'hen demanded by the Treasurer 
 of said funds and every part thereof deposited in such bank or 
 banking institution, and shall at all times keep the sureties on 
 the bonds satisfactory to the Mayor and Upper House of the 
 Common Council, and the amount of such bonds may from time 
 to time be increased by the Mayor and Upper House of the Com¬ 
 mon Council. It shall be the duty of the Treasurer, whenever 
 requested by the Mayor, to send a circular letter to each bank 
 and banking institution in the city, soliciting bids for keeping 
 the funds of the city for the term herein specified and until a 
 new selection shall be made and the funds removed. The Treas¬ 
 urer shall divide said funds into three or more equal parts as 
 near as may be practicable, as may be determined by the Comp¬ 
 troller, and the bids may be for one or more of such parts. The 
 circular shall state the conditions to be. complied with by the 
 bidders and what each bid shall set forth and what security, if 
 any, is required to accompany each bid; and that the bidder will 
 comply with the terms thereof if accepted. Bids sent to the city 
 Treasurer shall be sealed and marked, “Bids for City Funds,” 
 and the Treasurer shall endorse thereon the time of the receipt 
 of the same, and he shall open the bids on the day named in the 
 circular letter in the presence of the Mayor, Comptroller and 
 City Counselor, who shall select and designate three or more of 
 such banks or banking institutions as depositaries of the city 
 funds. The Mayor, Comptroller and City Counselor may accept 
 the highest and best bids for any of said parts of said funds, 
 except that no one bid may be accepted for more than one-third 
 of the whole funds, or they may reject all bids or accept a bid 
 or bids for one or more of said parts, and reject the other bids; 
 
43 
 
 if the bid or bids for all of said funds are not accepted they shall 
 immediately direct the Treasurer to invite new bids, in the man¬ 
 ner hereinbefore provided, for the parts of said funds for which 
 no bid is accepted. Interest on city funds paid by banks or bank¬ 
 ing institutions shall be credited by the Treasurer into the general 
 fund of the city. The Treasurer shall not be responsible for any 
 ' loss from any failure or default of such bank or banking institu¬ 
 tion. The Treasurer, as full compensation for his services, shall 
 receive such salary as may be prescribed by ordinance, and shall 
 receive no fee whatever for any services performed by him. 
 
 Sec. 19. The Treasurer shall have the custody and care of 
 all bonds and other securities belonging to sinking funds, and he, 
 and the sureties on his bond, shall be liable for any loss or mis¬ 
 appropriation of the bonds or securities or the proceeds thereof, 
 the same as for any money of the city for which he is liable. 
 The City Comptroller shall turn over to the City Treasurer, as 
 soon as obtained, all bonds and securities purchased for sinking 
 funds, taking the Treasurer’s receipt therefor, ‘which he shall 
 carefully preserve in his office, and the fact of such delivery 
 shall relieve the Comptroller of responsibility for any loss or mis¬ 
 appropriation of the bonds and securities. The Treasurer shall 
 collect said bonds and securities and the interest thereon as the 
 same or any part thereof may become due, and shall report the 
 collection of the same to the Comptroller. When it becomes 
 necessary to sell or exchange bonds or securities as provided in 
 this charter, the Comptroller may make his requisition in writing 
 on the Treasurer, with the written approval of the Mayor 
 endorsed thereon, for such of the bonds and securities as he may 
 require, and on such requisition so approved, the Treasurer shall 
 deliver the bonds and securities to the Comptroller, taking his 
 recipt therefor, and the fact of such delivery shall relieve the 
 Treasurer from any responsibility on account of the bonds and 
 securities so delivered, and transfer the same to the Comptroller 
 and his sureties. 
 
 Sec. 20. At least once in each fiscal year, and oftener if 
 necessary, the Lower House of the Common Council, by com¬ 
 mittee, shall, without notice given, inspect and count the bonds 
 and other securities in the custody of the Treasurer belonging to 
 the sinking funds. Such committee shall make a detailed report 
 to the Lower House of the Common Council of the result of the 
 inspection and count, giving the number and amount of the bonds 
 and other securities and their description, and such report shall 
 be spread in full on the minutes of the Lower House of the Com¬ 
 mon Council. 
 
I 
 
 44 
 
 Sec. 21. The City Counselor shall, in person or by his 
 assistants, appear in the Municipal Court and attend to all cases ' 
 of criminal or civil nature arising- therein in which the city may 
 be a party or in any wise interested, and he shall in person, or 
 by his assistants, appear for the city in all courts in this state 
 wherein the city may be a party plaintiff or defendant, or a 
 party in interest, and shall perform such other duties as may be 
 perscribed in this charter, or by ordinance. He shall, subject to 
 the Civil Service rules, laws and regulations contained in or pro¬ 
 vided for in this charter, appoint such assistants, claim agents 
 and persons to assist him in the legal business of the city as' may 
 be provided by ordinance. 
 
 Sec. 22. It shall be the duty of the City Clerk, in person or 
 by deputy, to attend all meetings of each House of the Common 
 Council, and to keep a true record of its proceedings and also to 
 keep a record of all official acts of the Mayor, and when necessary 
 to attest them; he shall also keep and preserve in his office the 
 corporate seal of the city, and all records, public papers and doc¬ 
 uments of the city not belonging to any other officer. He shall 
 be authorized to administer oaths; and copies of all papers filed in 
 his 1 office and transcripts from the records of the proceedings of 
 the Common Council duly certified by him under the corporate 
 seal of the city shall be taken as evidence in all courts of this 
 state; and he shall perform such other duties as may be pre¬ 
 scribed by ordinance. He shall, subject to the Civil Service laws, 
 rules and regulations contained in or provided for by this char¬ 
 ter, appoint such deputies and assistants as may be provided by 
 ordinance. He may be removed for any cause specified in this 
 charter by a two-thirds vote of both Houses of the Common 
 Council in joint session. Any vacancy in the office of the City 
 Clerk shall be filled by election by the two Houses of the Com¬ 
 mon Council in joint session. 
 
 Sec. 23. The City Auditor shall be a competent accountant. 
 He shall draw warrants upon the treasury for all payments 
 authorized or required to be made by this charter, or by any 
 ordinance passed in pursuance thereof; shall countersign all 
 receipts given by the Treasurer for money, retaining a duplicate 
 thereof and shall keep accounts showing at all times the condition 
 of every fund in the treasury. He shall extend all taxes, and 
 shall at least once in every year audit, examine, verify and prove 
 the accounts and all documents and vouchers pertaining thereto 
 in all departments and offices of the city where books of account 
 are kept, and count cash on hand, and make reports immediately 
 after such examination and proof to the City Comptroller. He 
 shall, for such purposes, have access to all books of account and 
 
45 
 
 
 documents and vouchers pertaining to accounts in all departments 
 and offices at such reasonable times as may be necessary to his 
 duties. He shall perform such other duties as may be prescribed 
 by ordinance not inconsistent with this Article. He shall, sub- 
 ect to Civil Service laws, rules and regulations contained in or 
 provided for by this charter, appoint a deputy and such assistants 
 as may be provided by ordinance. 
 
 Sec. 24. There is hereby established a department to be 
 known as the Purchasing Department, which shall be in charge 
 of the Purchasing Agent. Subject to the Civil Service laws, 
 rules and regulations contained in or provided for by this charter, 
 he may appoint such assistants as may be allowed by ordinance. 
 
 The department shall, subject to such rules and regulations 
 as may be prescribed by ordinance, or the terms of this charter, 
 purchase all goods, supplies; machinery. and materials, and all 
 things whatsoever required by the city or any department thereof, 
 except such purchases as may, by this charter, be authorized to 
 be made by others. The various departments of the city shall, 
 from time to time, make requisition upon the Purchasing Agent 
 for such supplies, goods, materials, machinery and other things 
 as they may need, ad shall exhibit to the Purchasing Agent the 
 statement of the Comptroller that the necesary funds have been 
 appropriated and set aside to pay for the same.. It shall be the 
 duty of the Purchasing Agent, promptly and expeditiously, to 
 purchase all the supplies, goods, materials and machinery, and 
 other things required by the various departments, and so far as 
 may be done and whenever the interests of the city will be thus 
 promoted, to purchase goods, supplies and materials at wholesale 
 or in bulk and pay for the same out of any funds appropriated 
 to this department for that purpose. Whenever any goods, sup¬ 
 plies or materials shall be required by any department, the same 
 may be supplied, so far as possible, out of the general stores of 
 the purchasing department, and when so supplied they shall be 
 paid for by the department using them in every respect as to 
 form and method of procedure as though the same had been pur¬ 
 chased specially, except that the warrant in payment shall be 
 payable to the credit of the purchasing department and shall be 
 deposited in the treasury and credited to the funds of the pur¬ 
 chasing department and shall be considered as duly appropriated 
 to the uses of such department. The Purchasing Agent, upon 
 the last day of each month, shall make full inventory and report 
 of all goods, supplies and materials on hand and all funds remain¬ 
 ing appropriated and unexpended in the department, and shall 
 deliver one copy of such report to each House of the Comon 
 Council and one copy to the Mayor; and the Common Council 
 may, from time to time, direct that any portion of funds appro- 
 
priated to the purchasing department and standing to its credit, 
 be deducted and transferred to the general fund of the city. 
 
 Sec. 25. Any officer elected by the people (not intending 
 here to include members of the Common Council) may be sus¬ 
 pended by the Mayor and removed by the Lower House of the 
 Common Council for cause. Whenever the Mayor shall suspend 
 any elected officer he shall immediately notify the Lower House 
 of the Common Council of such suspension and cause therefor. 
 If the same be not in session, then he shall immediately call a 
 special session thereof in such manner as is provided for calling 
 special sessions of the Common Council. The Mayor shall pre¬ 
 sent charges against such suspended officer, who shall have the 
 right to appear with a legal adviser for his defense, hear all 
 
 • proof, and make defense thereto, offering proof in his own 
 behalf. If two-thirds of all the members-elect of such House 
 shall, by resolution, sanction the action of the Mayor, then the 
 suspended officer shall thereby be removed from office, but unless 
 such action of the Mayor is sanctioned by such two-thirds vote, 
 then such officer shall be immediately reinstated. Any officer, 
 or the incumbent of any Board appointed by the Mayor, whether 
 appointed with or without confirmation, may be suspended by the 
 Mayor. The Mayor shall immediately notify the Upper House 
 of the Common Council of any such suspension and unless said 
 Upper House shall, not later than the second session thereafter, 
 by a two-thirds vote of the members-elect therof, declare that 
 such officer ought to be reinstated, the said officer shall be con¬ 
 sidered to be removed, and the Mayor shall notify him o£ such 
 removal. But such officer shall be reinstated if within said time 
 the Upper House of the Common Council shall, by a two-thirds 
 vote, declare that he ought to be reinstated. In all cases of sus¬ 
 pension in any such office, the Mayor may temporarily fill the 
 office by appointment and the temporary appointee shall hold the 
 office until the reinstatement of the suspended officer or until his 
 final removal. In all cases of a vacancy in any such office, the 
 Mayor shall at once appoint a proper person to fill such vacancy, 
 and if the appointment to such office is required by this charter 
 
 • to be confirmed by the Upper House of the Common Council, 
 the Mayor shall report the name of such person to the Upper 
 House of the Common Council in all respects as when the 
 appointment was first made. Appointments to fill vacancies shall 
 be for the unexpired term only. 
 
 If any officer or employe of the city shall, knowingly, be 
 directly or indirectly interested in any contract under the city, or 
 in any work done by the city, or in furnishing any supplies for 
 the city or any of its institutions, or in the sale of any property 
 to or for the city, he shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and be 
 
47 
 
 punished upon conviction by a fine of not less than one hundred 
 nor more than five hundred dollars., or imprisonment in the 
 county jail for not less than one month nor more than one year, 
 or both such fine and imprisonment. 
 
 All officers of the corporation shall reside within the city 
 limits during their continuance in office, and if any of them shall 
 cease to reside within the city limits, his office shall be thereby 
 vacant. No officer shall hold two appontments under the city 
 government. 
 
 Sec. 26. All Boards, except as herein otherwise provided, 
 shall be composed of three members appointed by the Mayor for 
 the terms in this charter provided, and the appointees shall, in all 
 cases, serve until their successors are appointed and qualified. 
 Not more than two voting members of any Board shall be adher¬ 
 ents of the same political party. All members of Boards shall 
 be resident taxpayers and qualified voters of the city, and shall 
 have resided within the territory embraced within the city five 
 years next before their appointment. No member of any Board 
 shall hold any other office or employment under the United 
 States, the State of Missouri, or any municipal corporation or 
 political division thereof. If any member of any Board shall 
 remove from the city, or shall accept any appointment to or 
 nomination for or become a candidate for any political office, 
 he shall be deemed to have resigned as a member of said Board. 
 
 Every member of a Board, before entering upon the duties 
 of his office, shall take and subscribe before the City Clerk the 
 oath that he will support the Constitution of the United States 
 and of the State of Misouri, and the provisions of this charter, 
 and faithfully discharge the duties of his office, which oath shall 
 be endorsed upon or attached to his certificate of appointment 
 and filed with the City Clerk. 
 
 Sec. 27. It shall be the duty of each Board at the beginning 
 of the fiscal year to estimate what sums of money may be neces¬ 
 sary for the current fiscal year to enable such Board to discharge 
 / the duties imposed upon it. The Board shall certify the same to 
 the City Comptroller, and the Common Council is hereby 
 required, in the first apportionment ordinace of the fiscal year, to 
 set apart and apportion for each of such departments the amount 
 the Common Council may deem necessary, payable out of the 
 annual revenue of the city, and each Board shall have power, 
 subject to the provisions of this Article, by requisition upon the 
 Auditor for warrants, signed by the President, countersigned by 
 its Secretary, to expend money after the same has been duly 
 appropriated to the expense and use of the department. 
 
48 
 
 Each Board shall, with the concurrence of the Common 
 Council, fix a general schedule of the number, grade and com¬ 
 pensation of all agents and employes in the department under its 
 supervision and control. Provided, that this section shall not 
 limit the power of the Boards and heads of departments, as given 
 elsewhere in this charter, to employ day laborers or temporary 
 employes in emergencies without previous authority by ordinance. 
 
 Sec. 26. The President of each Board, and in his absence 
 or disability, any other member of the Board appointed president 
 pro tempore by resolution of the Board, is authorized to sign, 
 execute and acknowledge in the name of the Board all contracts 
 and documents of any character, required or authorized by this 
 Article and by resolution of the Board and to sign requisitions 
 upon the City Auditor for funds under control of, and to be 
 expended by the Board. All requisitions shall be countersigned 
 by the Secretary, and in his absence or disability by some member 
 of the Board other than .President or President pro tempore. 
 Each Board shall have power and' it shall be its duty to make 
 by-laws, rules and regulations for the orderly transaction and con¬ 
 duct of its business, and to make and enforce contracts in the 
 name of the city to carry out the purposes expressed in this 
 Article. 
 
 Sec. 29. Every officer of the city, before entering upon 
 the duties of his office, shall take the same oath provided for 
 members of the Common Council by Section four of Article II 
 of this charter, which said oath shall be endorsed upon or 
 attached to his certificate of election or appointment, and he shall 
 deliver the same to the City Clerk. The City Comptroller, before 
 entering upon the duties of his office, shall give bond to the city, 
 conditioned upon the faithful performance of his duties, and the 
 faithful handling of all money and property of the city that may 
 come into his hands, in the sum of One Hundred and Fifty 
 Thousand Dollars, which sum may be increased by ordinance, 
 with good and sufficient sureties to be approved by the Mayor and 
 Upper House of the Common Council. The City Treasurer, 
 before entering upon the duties of his office, shall give bond to 
 the city, conditioned upon the faithful discharge of his duties, 
 and the safe-keeping and faithful accounting for all moneys and 
 property of the city that may come into his hands, in the sum of 
 not less than One Hundred and Fifty Thousand Dollars, with 
 good and sufficient sureties, to be approved by the Mayor, City 
 Counselor, and City Comptroller. The City Purchasing Agent, 
 and all other officers, employes and agents of the city receiving, 
 collecting or handling money of the city, shall similarly give bond 
 in such sums and upon such conditions as may be required by 
 
49 
 
 ordinance. And the Common Council may, by ordinance, pre¬ 
 scribe and fix bonds for any officers, employes or agents of the 
 city. All bonds required by this Charter or provided for by ord¬ 
 inance shall be approved as to form by the City Counselor, and 
 as to sureties by the City Comptroller, except the Jbond of the 
 City Comptroller, which shall be approved as in this charter pro¬ 
 vided. 
 
 For any breach of the condition of any bond herein provided 
 for, suit may be instituted theron by the city or by any person or 
 persons claiming to have been injured by reason of any such 
 breach, in the name of the city and to the use of such person or 
 persons. If any officer fails to deliver to the City Clerk his cer¬ 
 tificate and oath of affirmation, as herein required, within twenty 
 days after his election or appointment, the office to which he may 
 have been elected or appointed shall be deemed vacated. The 
 City Clerk shall make out and certify copies of all certificates of 
 election and appointment and deliver the same to the Comptroller. 
 The Comptroller shall have the custody of all bonds given for 
 the faithful discharge of duties, except that the City Clerk shall 
 keep and hold the bond of the Comptroller. Corporations duly 
 authorized and empowered by the laws of the State of Missouri 
 to sign as sureties or give bohds for the faithful discharge of 
 duty by public officers and others, and regularly engaged in such 
 business, may be accepted in whole or in part as sureties upon 
 bonds required by this charter of any officer, agent or employe 
 or depository of the city funds, at the discretion of the authority 
 required to pass on the sufficiency of such bonds. 
 
 The city shall pay any premium necessary to be paid for 
 bonds required by ordinance to be given by any member of any 
 Board. 
 
 It shall be the duty of the City Clerk to record certificates of 
 election or appointment with the oath thereto attached or thereon 
 endorsed, within five days after the same is delivered to him. 
 It shall be the duty of the Mayor to sign and deliver such certifi¬ 
 cate at the time of appointing any officer. 
 
 If any financial officer of the city shall buy or sell, for the 
 purpose of speculation, any indebtedness of the city, or deal 
 therein during his term of office, he shall be guilty of a misde¬ 
 meanor, and be punished upon conviction by a fine of not less 
 than One Hundred Dollars nor more than Five Hundred Dol¬ 
 lars, or imprisonment in the county jail for not less than one 
 month nor more than one year, or by both such fine and imprison¬ 
 ment. 
 
 The sale, . encumbrance, or assignment by officers and 
 employes of the city of the salary, wages or compensation paid 
 or to be paid them by the city is prohibited, and shall convey no 
 
right to the \end£e, assignee, or mortgagee thereof wtwhp a 
 salary, wages, or compensation be earned or unearned SaK ' 
 
 may be increased during his continuance • Purchasing Agent 
 without term ' t,nuance >n office, as he serves 
 
ARTICLE V. 
 
 i Revenue—Taxation. 
 
 Section 1. The city shall have power, by ordinance, to 
 levy and collect a general tax of not exceeding one per centum 
 for each fiscal year upon all property in the city not by general 
 law exempt from municipal taxation. And the city may, under 
 the authority of any provision of the constitution or general 
 laws of this State, now and hereafter existing, exempt any 
 class of property within its jurisdiction from taxation, either 
 wholly or by reduction of the rate thereon; provided, that any 
 taxation or exemption from taxation shall be uniform upon the 
 same class of subjects within the city. 
 
 Sec. 2. 'For the purpose of erecting public buildings the 
 Common Council may in any fiscal year increase the one per 
 cent heretofore authorized in section one of this article, not to 
 exceed two and one-half mills on the dollar. But such increase 
 shall not be made unless an ordinance authorizing such increase 
 and defining the purpose thereof shall have first been submitted 
 to a vote of the people by a proclamation of the Mayor at a 
 general or special election, and two-thirds of the qualified voters 
 of the city voting at such election shall vote therefor. No such 
 submission shall be deemed legal and effective unless there shall 
 have been published for fifteen successive days immediately pre¬ 
 ceding such election, in at least two daily newspapers published 
 in Kansas City, a full verbatim copy of such ordinance and such 
 proclamation of the Mayor. 
 
 Sec. 3. Every person owning or holding property subject 
 to taxation for municipal purposes on the first day of January 
 of any calendar year, including all property purchased on that 
 day, shall be liable for taxes thereon for the fiscal year begin¬ 
 ning on the third Monday in April next thereafter. 
 
 Sec. 4. The Assessor may, subject to the Civil Service 
 laws, rules and regulations contained in or provided for by this 
 charter, appoint one or more competent deputies, not exceeding 
 the number that may be limited by ordinance, who shall have 
 and exercise, under the supervision of the Assessor, any and all 
 of the powers and duties of the Assessor, and he may remove 
 such deputies at his pleasure. 
 
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 Sec. 5. The Assessor shall, at least ten days before the 
 first day of January in each year, give public notice by adver¬ 
 tisement in some daily newspaper published in the city, that all 
 persons owning or having in their possession, or under their 
 control, whether as owner or agent of another, on the first day 
 of January next ensuing, personal property subject to municipal 
 taxation, are required to deliver to him, at his office, on or before 
 the fifteenth day of February next, lists of all such property, 
 classified as required by law, with the true value thereof; and 
 that every merchant doing business in the city is required within 
 the same time to furnish to him, at his office, a true statement 
 verified by oath or affidavit of such merchant or his agent, of 
 the highest amount in value of all goods, wares and merchandise 
 owned or kept? on hand for sale by such merchant during the 
 three months next preceding such first day of January. 
 
 Sec. 6. It shall be the duty of the City Assessor on or 
 before the fifteenth day of March of each year to make and 
 return to the City Clerk a full and complete assessment of all 
 property, real and personal, in the said city on the first day of 
 January next preceding, and not exempt from municipal taxa¬ 
 tion, excepting the goods, wares and merchandise kept on hand 
 for sale by merchants, and excepting the property of corpora¬ 
 tions whose capital stock is liable to taxation, at the cash value 
 of such property; also a list of all merchants doing business in 
 the city, with the cash value of the highest amount of goods, 
 wares and merchandise so owned or kept on hand for sale by 
 each during the three months next before the first day of Jan¬ 
 uary next preceding; also a list of all corporations whose capital 
 stock is liable to taxation, with the cash value of shares of stock 
 of each of said corporations. All real estate assessed shall be 
 returned in one book, and all other lists in one book under sep¬ 
 arate headings; provided, that the Assessor may make each of 
 said tax books in as many volumes as may be necessary for con¬ 
 venient handling. Such books shall contain appropriate blank 
 columns for the extension of all taxes therein, and shall be cer¬ 
 tified, verified and returned as hereafter provided. 
 
 Sec. 7. It shall be the duty of the City Asse§so£^^mk- 
 tclegraph and other property owned by corporations \jflHHthe 
 ing and returning assessments provided by secnoi^WxoFthis 
 article, to include therein all railroad, street railroad, telephone, 
 limits of the city, which is not assessable by the State Board of 
 Equalization. He shall each year procure copies of returns made 
 by such corporations to the Clerk of the County Court of Jackson 
 County, Missouri, in pursuance of Article VIII, Chapter 149, 
 Revised Statutes 1399, and all amendments thereto, and copies 
 
53 
 
 cl the certificates of the County Court of said County to the 
 State Board of Equalization, showing the valuation and assess¬ 
 ment made by said Court upon property to be assessed and 
 equalized by said Board of Equalization. He shall keep said 
 copies in the files of his office, and deliver same to his successor. 
 He shall, each year, at least sixty days prior to the date fixed for 
 the first meeting of the State Board of Equalization, make a 
 careful comparison of said certificate of the County Court, with 
 the property of such corporations assessable by the State Board 
 of Equalization, and make a tabulated, detail report of all errors, 
 omissions or under valuations thereof to the Mayor; and keep 
 a copy of said report in the files of his office. It shall be the duty 
 of the City Engineer, City Counselor, and all other city officials, 
 when requested by the Assessor to do so, to aid the Assessor in 
 making such comparisons. If it appears by said report that the 
 rights of the city have been substantially affected by any mis¬ 
 takes, omissions or undervaluations, it shall be the duty of the 
 Mayor, City Assessor and City Counselor to appear before the 
 State Board of Equalization and make a showdng of such errors. 
 Copies of all plats, papers and arguments filed by said officials 
 with the State Board of Equalization shall be kept on file in the 
 office of the City Assessor, and delivered to his successor. Copies 
 of the annual proceedings of the State Board of Equalization 
 shall also be kept in good order in the files of the City Assessor, 
 and shall be delivered to his successor. It shall be the dutv of the 
 City Assessor to examine the findings of the State Board of 
 Equalization, and, if he ascertains that the pity has not been 
 allowed its pro rata share of the total valuation, he shall report 
 same to the Mayor, and it shall be the duly of the Mayor to 
 cause such facts to be presented to the State Board of Equaliza¬ 
 tion for correction. v 
 
 Sec. 8 . It shall be the duty of every person owning or hav¬ 
 ing under his control any personal property subject to municipal 
 taxation for any fiscal year, to deliver to the City Assessor, at 
 his office, On or before the fifteenth day of February next pre¬ 
 ceding such fiscal year, a true and complete list thereof, with the 
 actual cash value of such property. On and after the first day of 
 January the Assessor shall attend in person or by deputy at his 
 office, on every week day up to and including the fifteenth da^y 
 of February following, from the hour of eight o'clock in the 
 forenoon until six o’clock .in the afternoon, for the purpose of 
 receiving the lists of property and statements of merchants and 
 others by this charter required to be delivered to him, and shall 
 at all times keep on hand and furnish to persons lawfully requir¬ 
 ing the same, all necessary blanks and forms for lists and state¬ 
 ments required by this charter. 
 
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 Sec. 9. The Assessor and his deputies shall be authorized 
 to administer oaths and affirmations, and may examine on oath 
 any person touching the personal property for which he is liable 
 to be assessed, or the value thereof, or the amount of goods, 
 wares and merchandise owned or kept by him as a merchant; 
 and may, by a notice delivered to any person or left at his resi¬ 
 dence, office or place of business, require such person within five 
 days to deliver to him at the Assessor’s office any list or state¬ 
 ment necessary for the purpose of making the assessment, and to 
 verify the same by affidavit; and any person failing or refusing 
 to verify such list, when thereto requested by the Assessor, or 
 to be examined, or answer on oath, regarding his property and 
 merchandise, when thereto requested by the Assesspr, or to deliver 
 and verify such list and statement when notified' by the Assessor 
 so to do, shall forfeit to the city the sum of one hundred dollars, 
 to be recovered in an action therefor in the name of the city, to 
 be instituted under the direction of the Comptroller before the 
 Municipal Court or any court of competent jurisdiction, and the 
 Assessor shall assess such person according to the best informa¬ 
 tion he can get. 
 
 Sec. 10. The property of all corporations and companies 
 within the city, except incorporated banks and such other cor¬ 
 porations as are excepted by State law, shall be assessed and 
 taxed as the property of individuals is assessed and taxed. All 
 shares of stock in foreign corporations, or in corporations whose 
 property is liable to municipal taxation, but the assessment of 
 which is not otherwise provided for, shall be assessed to the 
 holder of such shares. The stock of incorporated banks and 
 other corporations taxable in the same manner as incorporated 
 banks, whether organized under the laws of this State or of the 
 United States, shall be assessed and taxed in the following man¬ 
 ner: The president or other chief officer of any such bank or 
 other corporation shall each year, within the time prescribed by 
 law for listing personal property, under oath, deliver to the 
 Assessor a list of all shares of stock held therein, and the names 
 of the persons holding the same on the first day of January of 
 each year, together with a list of all real estate belonging to such 
 corporation and lying within the limits of the city (which said 
 real estate shall be omitted by the Assessor from his assessment 
 of taxable real estate), and shall also state the actual cash value 
 of such stock; and such stock shall be taxed at its actual cash 
 value to the owners thereof as other personal property is taxed, 
 in one list by itself on the personal property tax book of the 
 Assessor, in a column headed by the name of the corporation 
 whose stock is thus assessed and taxed. The taxes assessed on 
 shares of stock embraced in such list shall be paid by the corpor- 
 
56 
 
 ations respectively as agents or shareholders, and shall be a lien 
 upon such shares .from the first day of January before the fiscal 
 year for which the same are assessed, and these corporations 
 may respectively recover from the owners of such shares the 
 amount so paid, or deduct the same from the dividends accruing 
 on such shares; and the amount so paid shall be a lien on such 
 shares respectively from the date aforesaid, and shall be paid 
 before a transfer thereof shall be made. If any president or 
 other chief officer of any such corporation fail to comply with 
 the provisions of this section, he shall forfeit to the city the sum 
 of one thousand dollars, to be recovered by the city as plaintiff 
 in any court of competent jurisdiction, and the Assessor shall 
 proceed to assess the stock of such corporation as nearly correct 
 as he may be able to do. 
 
 Sec. 11 . The Assessor shall return on his assessment book 
 of real property, in tabular form, each parcel of real estate sub¬ 
 ject to taxation, with the description and value thereof, in numer¬ 
 ical order as to the lots and blocks or sections, or subdivisions 
 thereof, and in a separate column the value attached by the 
 Assessor to each parcel or description; but shall not be required 
 to give the name of the owner of any land except as hereinafter 
 specified. When any property is not laid off in lots or blocks, the 
 Assessor shall describe the same by any pertinent description, 
 and for the purpose of such description he may require the owner 
 thereof to. furnish such description. It shall be the duty of all 
 owners of property not so laid off in lots or blocks to furnish to 
 the Assessor a sufficient description thereof, and in case of the 
 failure of any such owner to furnish such description at least 
 fifteen days before the time fixed for the return of the assess¬ 
 ment, the Assessor may require the City Engineer to make and 
 return to him a survey of such property, and the expenses of 
 such survey shall be returned by the Assessor, together with his 
 assessment of the property, and shall be added to the tax to be 
 levied upon the property and collected as a part thereof. The 
 owner of any undivided interest in any parcel of land may fur¬ 
 nish to the Assessor at any time before his assessment is returned 
 a description of such parcel, with the amount of his interest 
 therein, and the Assessor shall then assess such undivided inter- 
 est with the name of the owner thereof as a separate parcel; but 
 unless such description and statement are so furnished, the 
 Assessor shall not be required to make such separate assessment. 
 The Assessor shall number each parcel of land assessed in the 
 order of the same upon the assessment book. If the Assessor 
 shall discover that any real or personal property subject to tax¬ 
 ation for any previous year was not assessed, or for any c^use 
 has escaped taxation for such year, it shall be the duty of the 
 
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 Assessor, in addition to the assessment for the then ensuing year, 
 to assess such property for the year or years in which the same 
 was untaxed. 
 
 Sec. 12. Upon the completion of his assessment, the 
 Assessor ’ shall endorse upon each of his assessment books his 
 certificate that he has made diligent efforts to ascertain all tax¬ 
 able property of the class or kind assessed in such book, for the 
 fiscal year, being or situate in the city, and that so far as he has 
 been able to ascertain, the same is correctly set forth in the 
 book, which certificate shall be verified by his affidavit, and then 
 return the assessment to the Common Council by delivering the 
 same to the City Clerk at his office. 
 
 Sec. 13. The Mayor, the Comptroller, the Assessor, the 
 President of the Upper House and the Speaker of the Lower 
 House of the Common Council shall constitute a Board of Ap¬ 
 peals for the hearing of appeals and complaints of any party 
 aggrieved by the assessment as made by the Assessor. Said 
 board shall hold two sessions in each year, and a majority of the 
 members shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of busi¬ 
 ness. The first session shall be held for six consecutive days, 
 beginning on the third Monday of March in each year, and the 
 second session shall be held for six successive days, beginning 
 on the first Monday in April of each year. 
 
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 Sec. 14. The City Clerk shall cause to be published, in 
 at least one newspaper published in said city, and for at least 
 five days before the day fixed by law for the first sitting of the 
 Board of Appeals, a notice to all taxpayers of the city that the 
 Board of Appeals will hold its annual session on the days pre¬ 
 scribed by law, and stating the dates and the place where such 
 board will hold its sessions, and that in the meantime the assess¬ 
 ment for the ensuing fiscal year will be open to the inspection 
 of the public, at the office of the City Clerk. 
 
 Sec. 15. The City Clerk shall deliver the assessment to 
 the Board of Appeals orf the first day of the first session of said 
 board, and shall act as clerk of said board. Any person aggrieved 
 by any error in the assessment may make his complaint or appeal 
 orally or in writing on account of such error. If the board shall 
 find any error in the assessment, they shall order the same to be 
 changed and corrected, and for the purpose of making the same 
 fair and just may increase or diminish the valuation of any 
 property so as to make the same correspond with the valuation 
 of other property of like character, and may permit the Assessor 
 
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67 
 
 
 to add to his assessment taxable property omitted from the orig¬ 
 inal assessment; but the said board shall have no power to change 
 the rate or standard of valuation adopted by the Assessor. When¬ 
 ever tl\e Board of Appeals, during the first session, shall raise 
 the assessment of any person or add any omitted property, notice 
 shall be given by publication, for three successive days next fol¬ 
 lowing the adjournment of the first session of said board, in the 
 paper doing the city printing, of the names of all such person* 
 and the facts of such raise or addition, and said board shall at 
 the second session hear and act upon complaints against such 
 corrections. Any person aggrieved by any such error in the 
 assessment, addition of other property, or raised assessment, may 
 make his complaint or appeal orally or in writing. The board 
 shall hear and determine summarily all appeals and complaints 
 herein provided, and may examine the person appealing, and any 
 other person, on oath, touching the matter complained of, and 
 may compel the attendance of witnesses and the production c-f 
 books and papers. The Assessor shall constantly attend upon 
 the sessions of the board, and make such corrections on the 
 assessment as may be ordered by the board. Such corrections 
 on the assessment shall not be made by any erasure or any inter¬ 
 lineation, but by a separate memorandum thereof in brief form, 
 to be entered on the assessment by the Assessor. 
 
 Sec. 16. At the first meeting of the Common Council for 
 each fiscal year, the City Clerk shall present to the lower house 
 of the Common Council the assessment and an abstract of the 
 gro^s amount of the valuation of real estate, personal property, 
 goods, wares and merchandise of merchants, and shares of stock 
 of corporations required to be assessed, and the Common Coun¬ 
 cil shall thereupon proceed by ordinance to levy and cause to 
 be collected the taxes for the fiscal year according to law for the 
 general revenue, and for such an amount as may be certified to 
 them by the Comptroller to be raised by taxation for the pay¬ 
 ment of bonds and coupons maturing during the fiscal year. 
 
 Sec. 17. On the day next after the passage and approval 
 of an ordinance levying the taxes of any fiscal year, the City 
 Clerk shall deliver to the City Auditor the assessment for such 
 year, and also a certified copy of such ordinance levying the taxes 
 for that year. .The Auditor shall forthwith proceed to extend 
 the taxes for the year upon the assessment books, in appropriate 
 columns therein to be left for that purpose, and shall also enter 
 opposite each parcel of real estate in a column for that purpose 
 any delinquent tax upon such parcel required by law to be so 
 entered, and shall also extend upon said book, against any par- 
 
58 
 
 cel returned by the Assessor as untaxed for any year or years, 
 the amount of tax for such year or years for which the same 
 was untaxed, according to the rate of taxation as prescribed by 
 ordinance for such year. All taxes due and unpaid for any 
 previous fiscal year shall be entered in proper columns headed 
 “Delinquent Taxes,” opposite the description of each lot or tract 
 of land, stating in figures the gross amount of such taxes and 
 the fiscal year for which levied. In extending the taxes upon 
 personal property it shall only be necessary for the Auditor to 
 extend the same upon the gross amount assessed against each 
 person. After so extending such taxes and entering the delin- 
 qunt taxes required to be entered, the Auditor shall foot up the 
 gross amount of all taxes as shown by the books upon real estate, 
 the amount of all taxes upon personal property, taxes upon 
 shares of stock of corporations, and merchants’ license taxes, 
 for the fiscal year; and also the gross amount of said several 
 kinds of taxes as shown by the books, and also of all taxes for 
 previous years for which property was untaxed, and finally shall 
 foot up the gross amounts of all taxes of whatever nature for 
 the fiscal year and prior years, and delinquent taxes, and shall 
 enter such footings in said books in their appropriate places, and 
 shall also make an abstract tnereof at the end of the personal 
 tax book. He shall then append to said books his certificate to 
 the effect that the taxes therein contained are truly and correctly 
 extended and entered according to the assessment of the prop¬ 
 erty, the ordinance levying the taxes for the fiscal year, and all 
 laws and ordinances regulating such entries. The book contain-) 
 ing the assessment upon real estate when so extended and certi¬ 
 fied shall be entitled and called “Land Book of.,*| 
 
 and the book containing the assessment of taxes upon personal 
 property, merchants’ license, and incorporated companies, shall 
 
 be entitled and called “Personal Tax Book of. 
 
 The Auditor shall also make out license for each merchant taxed 
 as such for the fiscal year, in such form as may be prescribed by 
 ordinance. The Auditor shall, on or before the first day of June 
 in each year, deliver the tax books and merchants’ licenses for 
 each year to the City Treasurer, taking therefor his receipt in 
 duplicate, which receipt shall state the gross amount of all such 
 taxes contained in said book, and also the amount of each sep¬ 
 arate class of taxes, as shown by the footings of the Auditor of 
 the same, one of which receipts the Auditor shall keep in his 
 office, and the other he shall deliver to the Comptroller. 
 
 Sec. 18. The tax to be levied upon the merchants shall be 
 levied at the same time and at the same rate as that levied upon 
 real estate for the same fiscal year, and shall be collected by way 
 of a license tax, and shall be assessed, levied and collected in the 
 
7 
 
 59 
 
 manner now or hereafter to be prescribed by ordinance not incon¬ 
 sistent with this charter, and the Common Council shall ha^e 
 power to pass such other ordinances fQr the assessing - , levying 
 and collecting and enforcing the payment of such license tax, not 
 inconsistent with this charter, as they may deem necessary. 
 
 Sec. 19. No demand of taxes shall be necessary, but it is 
 the duty of every person subject to taxation to attend at the 
 j| office of the City Treasurer, unless otherwise provided by ordi¬ 
 nance, at some time between the first day of June and the first 
 I day of October in each year, and pay his taxes; and if anyone 
 neglects to pay them before the first day of October following 
 the levy of the tax, the same shall be delinquent and shall there¬ 
 after bear a penalty of one per cent per month; and in comput¬ 
 ing said additional tax or penalty, a fractional part of a month 
 shall be counted as a whole month. Taxes upon real property 
 are hereby declared a perpetual lien thereon against all persons. 
 The Treasurer shall continue to receive taxes after they nav& 
 become delinquent and until sale. 
 
 Sec. 20. Any person may pay the taxes for any fiscal year 
 upon part of any lot or tract of land, or upon any undivided 
 interest therein, but not for part of a fiscal year. Before the 
 Cit} Treasurer shall receive the taxes on a fractional or undi¬ 
 vided interest in a tract, the person so offering to pav shall obtain 
 from the Assessor a certificate of the apportionment of the assess¬ 
 ment between the fractional undivided interests. The City Treas¬ 
 urer shall briefly note the apportionment on the tax book and 
 
 apportion the total tax in like manner and shall file the certifi¬ 
 cate in his office. 
 
 % 
 
 Sec. 21. Any person paying taxes for any fiscal year in 
 the year for which such taxes are levied shall be entitled to 
 receive, and it is hereby made the duty of the City Treasurer to 
 allow such person, a rebate on such taxes so paid, as follows: 
 On all taxes paid in the month of June; a rebate of six (6) per 
 cent, and on all such taxes paid in the month of July a rebate 
 of four (4) per cent; and on all such taxes paid in the month 
 of August a rebate of two (2) per cent; but no .rebate shall be 
 fallowed on any such taxes paid after the month of August. The 
 City Treasurer shall not allow any person under any circum¬ 
 stances whatever the benefit of the rebate allowed for payment 
 in any month after the last day of said month. 
 
 ;t Sec - 22- When an y person shall pay any tax on real estate 
 P r personal property, it shall be the duty of the City Treasurer 
 
I 
 
 60 
 
 to sign duplicate receipts therefor, giving separate receipts for 
 real estate taxes and personal property taxes. It shall be suffi¬ 
 cient for the personal property receipt and the duplicate real 
 estate receipts to state the name of the person for whom paid, 
 date of payment, the total amount of the assessment, the total 
 amount of the tax, amount of rebate, amount of penalty or inter¬ 
 est and costs, if any, and the year paid for. The duplicate real 
 estate receipt shall also stare the tract number of all tracts of land 
 included in this receipt. The original real estate or land tax 
 receipt shall in addition set forth the assessed valuation and tax 
 on each tract or parcel of real property paid for, and shall also 
 show, under the heading of “Delinquent Taxes Unpaid/’ all 
 taxes against the tract of land described therein remaining due 
 and unpaid, as shown by the land tax book in the City Treas¬ 
 urer’s office, giving simply the amount thereof and what year. 
 If there are no taxes delinquent that fact should be noted by the 
 Treasurer on said original receipt. The^ City Treasurer shall 
 also note on the original land tax receipt whether or not there 
 are unpaid special and park taxes on record in his office against 
 the property described in said receipt. The City Treasurer shall 
 immediately deliver all such receipts to the City Auditor, yvhose 
 duty it shall be to countersign and deliver the orginal receipt to 
 the payor and retain the duplicate, from which he shall from day 
 to day make a permanent record and account, showing all the 
 facts required to be stated in such duplicate receipt as aforesaid, 
 so that such record shall show the amount collected by the City 
 Treasurer each day, and the penalty or interest and costs, if any, 
 on the same. The City Treasurer, upon receiving any tax, before 
 delivering the receipt to the payor, shall mark the same paid and 
 the date of payment in the proper tax book. If the City Treas¬ 
 urer shall hold over any tax receipt from one month to another 
 or date back any tax receipt into the previous month or do any 
 other act for the purpose of permitting any person to obtain any 
 rebate or evade the payment of any penalty or interest or costs 
 herein provided, he shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanoi, 
 and shall be punished by a fine of not less than One Hundred 
 Dollars nor more than Five Hundred Dollars. If the City Treas¬ 
 urer or City Auditor shall fail or neglect to perform any of his 
 duties as prescribed in this section, he shall be deemed guilty of 
 a misdemeanor, and upon conviction shall be punished by a fine 
 of not less than One Hundred Dollars or by imprisonment in 
 the county jail not exceeding one year, or by both such fine and 
 imprisonment. 
 
 Sec. 23. If any one against whom a personal tax is 
 assessed and which is due and unpaid, whether the same be delin¬ 
 quent or not, shall have removed out of the city or shall be about 
 
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 61 
 
 to remove out of the city, or shall have removed or be about to 
 remove his personal property out of the city, it shall be the duty 
 of the City Treasurer to at once proceed to collect such personal 
 tax by distress and sale of any personal property of such person 
 that shall be found in Kansas City, and the personal tax book 
 shall alone be sufficient warrant for such distress. The City 
 Treasurer may, in his discretion, in any other case exercise the 
 same power. When the City Treasurer distrains goods he shall 
 keep them at the expense of the owner, and shall give notice of 
 the time and place of the sale of the same within five days after 
 the taking, in the manner constables are required to give notice 
 of the sale of personal property taken under execution, and the 
 time of sale shall not be more than twenty days from the day of 
 taking. He shall enter upon the personal tax book a brief descrip- , 
 tion of the property 7 taken and the amount for which the same 
 was sold. The City Treasurer shall on demand render an account 
 in w T riting of the sale and charges to the owner, and pay any 
 surplus in his hands to such owner. 
 
 Sec. 24. If any tax, interest or costs shall remain unpaid 
 on the first day of October on any share or shares of stock of 
 any corporation, the shares of which are taxable under this char¬ 
 ter or any ordinance of Kansas City, it shall be the duty of the 
 City Treasurer to sell such share or shares to the highest bidder 
 at public vendue, at his office in said city, at the same time and 
 place and under the same notice as real estate is required to be 
 sold, describing in such notice the share or shares to be sold, 
 substantially the same as they are described in the personal tax 
 book, with the name of the person or persons in whose name or 
 names such share or shares are assessed. It shall be the duty 
 of such Treasurer to give the purchaser of any such share or 
 shares a certificate stating the fact that the person therein named 
 purchased the share or shares therein described, describing them 
 substantially in such certificate as they are described in the per¬ 
 sonal tax book. Any person or persons purchasing any share or 
 shares of stock in any such corporation at such sale shall be 
 entitled to have such share or shares so purchased entered upon 
 the books of such corporation as the share or shares of such pur¬ 
 chaser, and he shall be deemed in law and equity as the absolute 
 owner of such share or shares. Nothing in this section shall be 
 so construed as to prevent an action in the name of the city, 
 before any court of competent jurisdiction, against such corpor¬ 
 ation, or any of the stockholders, to recover any tax, interest and 
 costs remaining unpaid on any share or shares of stock of such 
 corporation, on or after October first. 
 
 Sec. 25. It shall be the duty of the City Treasurer, >n the 
 
f 
 
 62 
 
 first Monday in December in each year, to deliver to the Comp- 
 troller a complete itemized statement of all taxes on personal 
 property remaining unpaid for that fiscal year, which statement 
 may be in alphabetical or other convenient order, and verified 
 
 by the following affidavit: “I. f 
 
 City Treasurer of Kansas City, do solemnly swear (or affirm) 
 that the foregoing is a true and correct statement of all delii> 
 quent taxes on personal property remaining due and unpaid for 
 
 the fiscal year.” The personal tax books shall be 
 
 returned to the Comptroller with such statement, and if found to 
 be correct the Comptroller shall give the Treasurer credit for 
 the total amount delinquent. On the first Monday in January 
 each year the Comptroller shall turn over the personal tax books 
 to the. City Counselor and instruct the City Counselor to cause 
 the said tax to be collected by an action or attachment thereon, 
 or other process of law, in the name of Kansas City, in an> 
 court of competent jurisdiction. The City Counselor may ap¬ 
 point an assistant to collect such tax, who shall receive ten per 
 cent of all sums collected on such delinquent personal taxes, which 
 shall be taxed up as costs in the case and collected as other costs, 
 except that in no event shall the city be liable for the same. 
 
 Sec. 26. The City Treasurer is hereby authorized and 
 directed to collect the delinquent taxes by the sale of the real 
 property upon which the taxes are levied. Such sale shall be 
 begun and publicly held at the office of the City Treasurer in 
 Kansas City on the first Monday in November in each year, be¬ 
 ginning at the hour of ten o’clock in the forenoon and continu¬ 
 ing until five o clock in the afternoon, and continuing on each 
 successi\ e secular day, between the same hours, as long as there 
 are bidders or until all of the tracts have been offered for sale. 
 
 Sec. 27. Notice shall be given for the sale of real prop¬ 
 erty for delinquent taxes, which shall state the time and place 
 thereof, and contain a description, substantially the same as in 
 the land tax book, of the several parcels of real property to be 
 sold, and all delinquent taxes thereon, and such real property as 
 has not been advertised and sold for the taxes of any previous 
 year or years, and on which taxes remain due and delinquent, and 
 the amount of the taxes, penalty and costs, against each parcel 
 of real property. The City Treasurer shall cause such notice to 
 be published once in the daily edition of some newspaper of- gen¬ 
 eral circulation published in Kansas City, at least ten days before 
 the day of sale. The newspaper to which the contract for mak¬ 
 ing such publication as may be awarded shall, for the period of 
 ten days immediately following such publication, and without 
 
9S 
 
 extra charge, cause a notice to be inserted in large type, at the 
 head of one of the columns upon its local page, stating the day 
 and date upon which said publication was made; and said news¬ 
 paper shall likewise, without extra charge, furnish to the City 
 Treasurer one thousand copies of the edition containing such 
 original notice of sale of real property for delinquent taxes. The 
 City Treasurer shall charge and collect, in addition to the taxes 
 and penalty on each tract of real property advertised for sale, a 
 sum representing the proportional cost of publishing such notice 
 of the sale of said tract. The City Treasurer shall obtain a copy 
 of said advertisement, together with a certificate of the due publi¬ 
 cation thereof, from the printer, publisher or business manager 
 of the newspaper in which the same shall have been published, 
 and shall file the same in the office of the City Auditor, and such 
 certificate shall be substantially in the form that may be pre¬ 
 scribed by ordinance of Kansas City or by the Comptroller. 
 
 ? • 
 
 Sec. 28. At such sale the City Treasurer shall offer sep¬ 
 arately for sale each tract or parcel of real property advertised 
 for sale on which the taxes, penalty and costs have not been paid, 
 
 . and no bid shall be accepted for less than the total amount of 
 taxes, penalties and costs then remaining due and unpaid on said 
 property. The person who offers to pay the amount of the taxes, 
 penalty and costs due on any tract or parcel of real property for 
 the lowest rate of interest thereon per annum shall be the' pur¬ 
 chaser of such tract or lot; provided . that no bid shall be accepted 
 for a rate of interest exceeding twelve per cent per annum. The 
 person purchasing any tract or parcel of real property, or part 
 thereof, shall forthwith pay to the City Treasurer the amount 
 of taxes, penalty and costs charged thereon, and on a failure to 
 do so, the said tract or parcel of real property shall at once be 
 again offered as if no sale had been made. 
 
 Sec. 29. The City Auditor shall attend all sales of real 
 property for taxes, made by the City Treasurer, and make a 
 record thereof in a book to be kept by him for that purpose and 
 designated “Book of Sales,” therein describing the several tracts 
 or parcels of real property on which the taxes, penalty and costs 
 were paid by the purchaser, as they are described in the adver¬ 
 tisement on file in his office, and substantially the same as they 
 are described in the land tax book, stating in separate columns 
 the amount, as obtained from the land tax book, of each kind of 
 tax, penalty and costs for each tract or parcel of real property, 
 to whom sold, and date of sale and the amount of interest speci¬ 
 fied in the bid by the purchaser. The City Treasurer shall also 
 note in the land tax book, opposite the tract or parcel of real 
 
I 
 
 64 
 
 property sold, the fact and date of such sale, and to whom sold, 
 and the amount of interest specified in t}ie bid by the purchaser 
 at the tax sale. 
 
 Sec. 30. When all of the tracts upon which there are 
 delinquent taxes have been offered for sale, the City Treasurer 
 may, in his discretion or at the request of any person, re-offer 
 any tract or tracts that have been passed for want of bidders. 
 If any tract or parcel of real property cannot be sold for the 
 amount of taxes, penalty and costs thereon, the City Auditor 
 shall bid it off for the city for such amount; provided , that all 
 sales made to the city and certificates issued thereon shall draw 
 interest at the rate of twelve per cent per annum. Whenever 
 any person shall pay the City Treasurer a sum of money equal 
 to the amount of all taxes, penalty, interest and costs, including 
 cost of any suit that may be commenced thereon, on such parcel 
 or parcels of real property at the time of such payment, the City 
 Treasurer shall give to such person a certificate dated the day 
 when it was issued, describing the real property bid off for the 
 city as the same is described in the land tax book, stating the 
 amount of each kind of tax, penalty and costs for which it was 
 bid off to the city; also the cost of any proceedings thereon, if 
 any; the amount paid to the City Treasurer by such person for 
 such real property, the time when the owner of such certificate 
 shall be entitled to a deed, and shall number said certificate to 
 correspond with the number of the parcel of real property in the 
 land tax book, which certificate, before- it shall be of any valid¬ 
 ity, shall be assigned to such person by the City Auditor, who 
 shall note the same on his book of sales, and said certificate so 
 assigned by the City Auditor shall vest all the interest of the 
 city in and to such real property in such person, and such certifi¬ 
 cate shall be assignable to the Same extent and in like manner as 
 certificates given to purchasers at tax sales, and shall entitle sucfi 
 person to the same rights and privileges thereunder as if he had 
 purchased the same at the tax sale. 
 
 Sec. 31. If the City Treasurer or his deputy shall sell or 
 assist in selling any real property on which the taxes for which 
 the same is sold have been paid, or shall execute and deliver 
 a deed for real property which .has been redeemed in accordance 
 with the provisions of this charter or any ordinance of Kansas 
 City, or for real property for which the amount required ha» 
 been duly tendered him before the execution and delivery of the 
 deed for same, the City Treasurer through whose negligenc 
 in the discharge of his official duties such injured party is dam¬ 
 aged, and his bondsmen, shall be liable to such injured part> 
 to the amount of any judgment that may be rendered against 
 
 * 
 
66 
 
 him under the provisions of this charter, in any action by or 
 against sudi injured party, involving or in any manner calling 
 in question the sale of such real property for taxes, or the title 
 thereby conveyed or purporting to be conveyed to the purchaser 
 at such tax sale, his heirs or assigns, in any court in this State, 
 and for any and all amounts such injured party may be com¬ 
 pelled to pay to redeem such real property so sold, together with 
 the interest at the rate of one per cent a month on the amoant 
 such injured party pays on such judgment or to redeem such 
 real property so sold from the time of such payment, and such 
 injured party shall be entitled to recover reasonable attorneys’ 
 fees for prosecuting any action against such treasurer and his 
 bondsmen, in case where such injured party recovers judgment. 
 
 Sec. 32. The City Treasurer shall make out, sign and 
 deliver to the purchaser of any real property sold for the pay¬ 
 ment of taxes as herein provided a certificate of purchase, in 
 substantially the following form: 
 
 "city treasurer’s certificate of tax sale. 
 
 "I, ., Treasurer of Kansas City, 
 
 County of Jackson, State of Missouri, do hereby certify that the 
 
 following described real property, viz.: .. 
 
 situate in Kansas City, Missouri: was on the . day oi 
 
 ., A.D., duly sold by me at public 
 
 sale, at my office in Kansas City, Missouri, in the manner pro¬ 
 vided by law, for the delinquent city taxes thereon for the years 
 
 (or year) A.D., amounting to the sum of. 
 
 Dollars, including penalty and costs thereon, to : .. 
 
 . for said sum of. Dollars, he 
 
 having publicly bid in said real property for.per cent 
 
 per annum, which was the lowest rate of interest obtainable. 
 
 "And I further certify that unless said real property above 
 described is redeemed from said sale in manner provided in 
 Article V of the City Charter of Kansas City, Missouri, the 
 
 said . v . or assigns will be entitled 
 
 to a deed therefor on and after the.day of . . .., 
 
 A.D., on surrender of this certificate. 
 
 "In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand 
 
 this . day of ., A.D. 
 
 * ({ 
 
 "City Treasurer!’ 
 
 % 
 
 Such certificate of purchase shall be assignable, and an 
 assignment thereof shall vest in the assignee all the right, title 
 and interest of the original purchaser. 
 
30 
 
 Every certificate of purchase shall be acknowledged ana 
 recorded in the same manner that deeds of real property are 
 required to be acknowledged and recorded by the laws of this 
 State, and any such certificate not recorded within six months 
 shall be void. 
 
 Sec. 33. The purchaser of any real property sold for 
 taxes may pay subsequent taxes thereon, including penalties and 
 costs, if any, and shall receive from the City Treasurer, or other 
 officer to whom the same is paid, duplicate receipts therefor. 
 In like manner he may pay any state or county tax, whether 
 levied before or after the date of his certificate of purchase, 
 together with any interest, penalties or costs thereon, and receive 
 from the officer to whom the same is paid duplicate receipts 
 therefor. In like manner such purchaser may pay any special 
 tax or assessment, tax bill, park tax, grading, condemnation or 
 other special benefit levied against such tract by authority oi 
 this charter, including interest, penalties and costs, if any. 
 
 It shall be the duty of the auditor, upon the presentation to 
 him of such duplicate receipts, or of any receipt or vouchei 
 showing the payment of any special tax or assessment, tax bill, 
 park tax, grading, condemnation or other special benefit, tu 
 file the same in his office and enter a memorandum thereof upon 
 the book of sales. He shall also endorse upon the certificate of 
 purchase the amount of such city, state or county tax, special tax 
 or assessment, tax bill, park tax, grading, condemnation or 
 other special benefit, including interest, penalties and costs, il 
 any. No state or county tax, special tax or assessment, tax bill, 
 park tax, grading, condemnation, or other special benefit, shall 
 be so paid or entered up unless the same be delinquent or be In 
 default. 
 
 Sec. 34. Real property sold under the provisions of this 
 article, including any real property bid off by the City, or any 
 interest in such real property, may be redeemed by the owner, 
 or his agent or attorney, at any time within five years from 
 the first day on which the annual tax sale began, or at any 
 time before the execution and delivery of the tax deed to the 
 purchaser at the tax sale, his heirs or assigns, by the payment 
 to the City Treasurer of the amount for which such real property 
 was sold, together with interest thereon at the rate per cent bid 
 per annum from the date of purchase, together with all other 
 taxes, assessments or benefits subsequently paid by the pur¬ 
 chaser, his heirs, or assigns, as authorized by this charter 
 whether state, county, park, municipal, general or special, 
 together with interest thereon at the same rate from date of 
 payment; provided, however, that if redemption be made within 
 
67 
 
 six months after the date of sale, the person redeeming shall 
 be required to pay interest on said amounts for the full period 
 of six months from the date of sale. 
 
 Sec. 35. . The City Auditor shall, upon application of any 
 person wishing to redeem any real property sold for taxes under 
 the provisions of this article or any ordinance of Kansas City, 
 give to such person a statement setting forth the amount re¬ 
 quired to redeem each tract or parcel of real property described 
 in such statement. Upon filing such statement with the City 
 Treasurer and paying to such Treasurer the amount therein 
 named, it shall be the duty of the City Treasurer to give such 
 person duplicate certificates of redemption therefor, one of which 
 shall be countersigned by and the other filed with the City Audi¬ 
 tor, whose duty it shall be to make an entry opposite the tract 
 or parcel of real property redeemed, on the proper book of sales 
 in his office, showing the amount paid to redeem the same, 
 the time when, and by whom such redemption was made, and 
 he shall charge the City Treasurer with such amount. Th^ 
 City Treasurer shall make like entries in the land tax book in 
 his office. No certificate of redemption shall be valid or received 
 in evidence without being countersigned by the City Auditor as 
 aforesaid. 
 
 Sec. 36. All moneys received by the City Treasurer for 
 the redemption of real property shall at once be paid into the 
 city treasury to be paid out to the purchaser of such real prop¬ 
 erty, his heirs or assigns, on the delivery of the certificate of pur¬ 
 chase to the City Auditor, who shall file the same in his office 
 and draw a warrant upon the City Treasurer in favor of the 
 party entitled to such redemption money for the amount thereof. 
 If no person entitled to such redemption money shall, within 
 two years after the same is paid to the City Treasurer, appear 
 and claim the same, all such moneys not so claimed shall be 
 forfeited to the City and placed to the credit of the general 
 fund. 
 
 N 
 
 Sec. 37. The City Treasurer, at least four months before 
 the expiration of the time limited for redeeming real property, 
 as provided for in this article, shall cause to be published in the 
 newspaper doing the city printing at the time, for at least 
 twenty consecutive days, Sundays excepted, a list of all unre¬ 
 deemed real property, describing each tract or lot substantially 
 the same as it was described in the land tax book, stating the 
 amount of taxes, penalty, charges, interest and costs, calculated 
 to the last day of redemption, due on each tract or lot, together 
 
88 
 
 with a notice that unless such property be redeemed on or before 
 the day limited therefor, such real property will be conveyed 
 to the purchaser, his heirs or assigns. The cost of such adver¬ 
 tisement shall be charged to the party redeeming, or, if not re¬ 
 deemed, shall be charged to the person receiving the deed. 
 
 Sec. 38. The City Treasurer shall obtain a copy of the 
 advertisement required in the last section, together with the 
 certificate of the due publication thereof, from the printer, pub¬ 
 lisher or manager of the newspaper in which the same shall 
 have been published, and shall file the same in the office of the 
 City Auditor; and such certificate shall be substantially in the 
 form to be prescribed by ordinance of Kansas City; provided , 
 that no informality or defect in such advertisement, or any 
 failure to make such advertisement or certificate, shall in any 
 manner invalidate the sale made for taxes, or the deed made 
 for any real property sold for taxes. 
 
 Sec. 39. If any real property sold for taxes under the 
 provisions of this Article shall not be redeemed within five years 
 from the day on which the annual tax sale began at which it was 
 sold, it shall be the duty of the City Treasurer, on presentation 
 to him of the certificate of purchase, to execute in the name of 
 Kansas City, under his hand and the seal of Kansas City, to the 
 purchaser, his heirs or assigns, a deed of the real property de¬ 
 scribed in such certificate of purchase, remaining unredeemed, 
 as shown by the records of his office, and shall acknowledge such 
 deed and deliver the same to th£ grantee, which deed shall vest 
 in the grantee an absolute estate in fee simple in the real prop¬ 
 erty described therein, and shall convey all the right, title and 
 estate of the former owner or owners, free from any and all 
 incumbrances of whatsoever kind or nature, subject, however, 
 to all unpaid state, county and city taxes, general and special 
 taxes or assessments which are a lien thereon. The deed exe¬ 
 cuted under this Article shall be called a tax deed, and shall b* 
 acknowledged and recorded in the same manner that other 
 deeds and conveyances of real property are required to be 
 acknowledged and recorded by the laws of the State; provided , 
 that unless such tax deed shall be filed for record in the office 
 of the Recorder of Deeds at Kansas City within twenty days 
 after delivery of the same to the purchaser, his heirs or assigns, 
 it shall be void. The City Treasurer shall collect from the 
 grantee in such deed a fee of one dollar, which fee shall fficlude 
 the cost of acknowledgement of the same. Any number of 
 parcels or lots of real property bought by the same person may 
 be included in one deed, if so required by the purchaser; pro - 
 
69 
 
 ♦ 
 
 vided, however, that the City Treasurer shall collect an acldir 
 tional fee of ten cents for each parcel of real property included 
 in such tax deed exceeding one in number. All fee£ : collected by 
 the City Treasurer under this section, less costs of acknowledge¬ 
 ment, shall be paid by him into the city treasury to the credit of 
 the general fund. 
 
 Sec. 40. Tax deeds executed by the City Treasurer shall 
 be substantially in the following form: 
 
 “Know All Men by These Presents, That, whereas 
 
 the following described real property, viz.: ..’.. 
 
 situated in Kansas City, in the County of Jackson and State of 
 Missouri, was subject to taxation for the year (or years) A.D. 
 .; and whereas, the taxes assessed upon said real prop¬ 
 erty for the year (or years) aforesaid remained due and unpaid 
 at the date of the sale hereinafter mentioned; and whereas, the 
 
 City Treasurer of said Kansas City did, on the.day 
 
 of., A.D., by virtue of authority in him 
 
 vested by law, at the sale begun and publicly held on the first 
 
 Monday of ., A.D., the first day on 
 
 which the annual tax sale began, expose to public sale at the 
 office of the City Treasurer in Kansas City aforesaid, between 
 the hours of ten o’clock in the forenoon and five o’clock in the 
 afternoon, in conformity with all requirments of the law in 
 such case made and provided, the real property above described, 
 for the payment of taxes, penalty and costs then due and unpaid 
 upon said real property; and whereas, at the place aforesaid, 
 
 A., B., of the County of . 
 
 and State of .. . ., having offered to pay the sum of 
 
 .Dollars and.Cents, being the whole 
 
 amount of taxes, penalty and costs then due and remaining 
 unpaid on said real property for (here insert a description of 
 the property sold, describing each tract or parcel separately), 
 and payment of said sum having been by him made to said 
 City Treasurer, the said property was stricken off to him at that 
 
 price; and whereas, the said A.B.did, on 
 
 the . day of ., A.D., duly 
 
 assign the certificate of purchase of the property as aforesaid, 
 and all his rights, title and interest to said real property, to 
 
 E. F. . .., of the County of .and 
 
 State of .; and whereas, five years have elapsed 
 
 since the first day on which the annual tax sale began and the 
 said property has not been redeemed therefrom as provided By 
 law; and whereas, the City Treasurer of Kansas City aforesaid 
 did, at least four months before the expiration of the time lim¬ 
 ited for redeeming said real property, publish a notice as re- 
 
70 
 
 quired by law in such case made and provided, that unless said 
 real property was redeemed on or before the day limited there¬ 
 for, it would be conveyed to the purchaser or his heirs or 
 assigns; 
 
 “Now, Therefore, I, ., City Treas¬ 
 
 urer of Kansas City, County and State aforesaid, for and in 
 
 consideration of .Dollars and .Cents, 
 
 taxes, penalty and costs due on said real property for the year 
 
 (or years) ., to the City Treasurer of said Kansas 
 
 City paid as aforesaid, and by virtue of law in such case made 
 and provided, have granted, bargained and sold, and by these 
 
 presents do grant, 'bargain and sell unto the said A. 
 
 B. (or E.F.), his heirs and assigns, 
 
 the real property last hereinbefore described, to have and to 
 
 hold unto him, the said A.B... (or E. 
 
 F.). his heirs and assigns, forever, subject, however, 
 
 to all rights of redemption provided by law. 
 
 “In Witness Whereof, I, ., City Treas¬ 
 
 urer of Kansas City, as aforesaid, have hereunto subscribed my 
 
 name and affixed the corporate seal of Kansas City, this. 
 
 day of ., A.D. 
 
 “(seal) City Treasurer of Kansas City” 
 
 Said deed shall be signed by the City Treasurer in his offi¬ 
 cial capacity, with the seal of the City affixed, and acknowl¬ 
 edged by him before some officer authorized to take acknowledg¬ 
 ment of deeds, and when substantially thus executed and record¬ 
 ed shall be prima facie evidence in all courts of the State, in all 
 controversies and suits in relation to the rights of the grantee in 
 said deed, his heirs or assigns, to the real property thereby con¬ 
 veyed or purporting to be conveyed, that the taxes were not paid 
 at any time before the sale; that the real property conveyed was 
 subject to taxation for the year or years stated in the deed; 
 that the real property conveyed had not been redeemed from 
 the sale at the date of the deed; that tender of redemption money 
 had not been made to the City Treasurer before the execution 
 and delivery of the deed; that the real property conveyed had 
 been duly assessed for the year or years named in the deed; 
 that the taxes were levied according to law : that the real prop¬ 
 erty conveyed was duly advertised for sale; that the real prop¬ 
 erty was duly sold for taxes as stated in the deed; that the man¬ 
 ner in which the assessment, levy, notice and sale were con¬ 
 ducted was, in all respects, regular and as the law directed; 
 that the grantee named in the deed was the purchaser, or that 
 the certificate of purchase had been duly assigned to the grantee; 
 
71 
 
 that all the prerequisites of the law and ordinances of Kansas 
 City were complied with by all the officers who had or whose 
 duty it was to have had any part or action in any transaction 
 relating to or affecting the title conveyed or purporting to be 
 be conveyed, from the assessment of the real property up to the 
 execution of the deed, both inclusive; and that all things what¬ 
 soever required by law to make a good and valid sale and to 
 vest the title in the purchaser, were done. 
 
 * 
 
 Sec. 41. In any suit or proceeding involving or in any 
 manner calling in question the title or right of the grantee in a 
 tax deed, or those claiming under lien of, to or in the real prop¬ 
 erty conveyed or purporting to be conveyed by such tax deed, 
 executed substantially as provided in the preceding section, the 
 person claiming title adverse to the title conveyed or purporting 
 to be conveyed by such tax deed shall be required to prove, in 
 order to defeat said tax deed, either that the taxes, interest and 
 costs were paid before the sale; that the real property therein 
 dscribed was not subject to taxation for the year or years stated 
 in the deed; that the real property therein described had been 
 redeemed from the sale at the date of the deed or the tender 
 of the redemption money had been made to the City Treasurer 
 before the execution and delivery of the deed, in accordance 
 with the provisions of this Article; and that such redemption 
 was had or attempted to be had for the use and benefit of the 
 person having the right of redemption under this Article; and 
 if any person claiming title under a tax deed, executed substan¬ 
 tially as provided for in the preceding section, shall be defeated 
 in any suit or proceeding by or against him for the recovery 
 of the real property conveyed or purporting to be conveyed by 
 such tax deed, the successful claimant shall be adjudged to pay 
 such person claiming under such tax deed the full amount of all 
 money paid by the purchaser at the tax sale of such real prop¬ 
 erty, together with interest at the rate per cent per annurfi bid 
 by the purchaser at the tax sale; and also the amount of all 
 taxes, assessments and benefits, state, county, park, municipal, 
 general or special, paid by the purchaser, his heirs or assigns, 
 after the date of the certificate of purchase, and entered on the 
 book of sales, with the same rate of interest per annum, together 
 with the costs of tax deed and/ fees for recording the same, also 
 the total cost of all improvements made thereon, and all costs 
 in the case, which judgment shall be a lien upon the real prop¬ 
 erty in controversy and shall bear interest at the same rate per 
 annum, and may be enforced by execution as in other cases of 
 judgments and decrees of such court against the land in con¬ 
 troversy. 
 
72 
 
 Sec.* 42. Any person putting on record a tax deed, exe¬ 
 cuted substantially as provided for in this Article, shall be 
 deeme’cT to have set up such a title to the real property described 
 in such deed as will enable the party claiming to own such real 
 property to maintain an action for the recovery of the possession 
 thereof against any person claiming under the tax deed, whether 
 such person is in actual possession of the land or not; and such 
 tax deed shall be received in evidence without further evidence 
 to sustain such conveyance or the title thereby acquired. 
 
 i 
 
 Sec. 43. Any suit or proceeding by or against the pur¬ 
 chaser at a tax sale, his heirs or assigns, for the recovery of the 
 real property, or any interest therein, sold for taxes, or any 
 suit or proceeding* to defeat or avoid a sale or conveyance of 
 real property sold for taxes under the provisions of this Article, 
 shall be commenced within three years from the time of record¬ 
 ing the tax deed, and not thereafter. 
 
 Sec. 44. Any person entitled to redeem real property sold 
 for taxes under the provisions of this Article, after the execution 
 and delivery of the deed for the same, shall redeem the same by 
 an equitable action, in which all persons claiming an interest 
 in the land desired to be redeemed from the tax sale as shown 
 by the records shall be made defendants, and the court shall 
 determine the rights, claims and interests of the several parties, 
 including all liens for taxes and special assessments, interest 
 and costs as provided in this Article, and claims for improve¬ 
 ments made on the real property by any person or persons 
 claiming under the tax title; provided, that any person seeking 
 to redeem shall, before he shall s be permitted to commence or 
 prosecute his action, deposit with the Clerk of the Court in 
 which the action or proceeding is commenced an amount suffi¬ 
 cient to pay the party claiming under the tax deed the amount 
 paid at the tax sale for the real property in controversy, also 
 the amount or amounts of all taxes, state, county or municipal, 
 general or special, paid by the purchaser at the tax sale, or those 
 claiming under or through him, after the date of the certificate 
 of purchase, with penalty added as provided 1 in this Article, and 
 interest on all said amounts at the rate of twelve per cent per 
 annum from the date or dates of such payments. 
 
 Sec. 45. Unless the holders or owners of certificates of 
 purchase for real estate purchased at any tax sale under this 
 Article take out deed or deeds, as permitted or contemplated 
 by this Article, within two years from and after the time for 
 redemption expires, the said certificates or deeds and the sales 
 
73 
 
 on which they are based shall, from and after the expiration of 
 such two years, be absolutely null, and shall constitute no basis 
 of title, and shall cease to be a cloud on the title to the real 
 estate to which such certificates refer. 
 
 Sec. 46. No certificate of purchase or tax deed issued by 
 authority of this charter shall be defeated or annulled by proof 
 that part only of the taxes, assessments or benefits included in 
 such certificate of purchase or tax deed are invalid or irregular, 
 but such certificate of purchase or tax deed shall be binding and 
 effective as to the valid taxes, assessments or benefits included 
 therein, and no further; and in any redemption or proceeding- 
 permitted by this charter the amount of invalid taxes, assess¬ 
 ments or benefits may be deducted from the amount necessary 
 to redeem. 
 
 Sec. 47. The Comptroller may, at any time prior to the 
 sale of any lot or tract of land for delinquent taxes, or suit 
 brought for personal tax, abate any particular tax because the 
 same has been paid, or for mistake in entering it against the 
 wrong lot or tract, or in case of any personal tax against the 
 wrong person, and correct any mistake in computing or extend¬ 
 ing any tax so entered. He shall in each case make a perma¬ 
 nent record of his action in making such abatements and cor¬ 
 rections, and shall at once certify the same to the proper cus¬ 
 todian of the books, who shall at once note such action on the 
 proper land tax book and other proper records of the city, in 
 such a way as to show clearly what has been done, and when, 
 but without erasing or altering the prior entries of taxes on the 
 book or record. 
 
 Sec. 48. In addition to any and all remedies by sale or 
 otherwise, provided in this charter, the city shall have the power 
 to enforce the collection of delinquent taxes, with all interest, 
 costs and penalties thereon, by suit brought in the name of Kan¬ 
 sas City in any court of competent jurisdiction. In suits for 
 the co^ection of taxes on personal property, and in suits to col¬ 
 lect the taxes on the property of railroads and other public 
 service corporations, it shall be sufficient to state the amount 
 of tax, interest, costs and penalty claimed, the year or years 
 for. which it was levied, the owner or person liable, and that the 
 tax has not been paid, and in such suits a personal judgment 
 may be rendered against the person or corporation whose prop- 
 ertv has been taxed. 
 
 Sec. 49. In suits for the collection of taxes which are 
 
74 
 
 a lien upon any specific property except as in the preceding sec¬ 
 tion provided for, no personal judgment shall be rendered, but 
 the judgment shall be that the amount found due shall be levied 
 on the real estate or property upoh which the tax is a lien, which 
 judgment shall have priority over all other liens and incum¬ 
 brances, as to all parties to such suit. Judgments for taxes shall 
 bear the same rate of interest as did the tax sued on, and a sale 
 under execution thereon shall be free from any redemption. The 
 city may purchase such property at execution sale and take deed 
 to itself and acquire the same title as any other purchaser. 
 
 Sec. 50. When the taxes for more than one year are due 
 the city upon any parcel of property, they may all be included 
 in one suit, and when taxes on more than one parcel of land 
 owned by the same person or persons are due, all such parcels 
 may be included in one suit. Owners of undivided interests 
 may be sued jointly or severally, and each, together with his 
 interests, charged with the proper portion of the tax, though 
 such tax may have been assessed as a whole. When any parcel 
 of land has been included in the assessment in a larger parcel 
 or tract, such smaller parcel shall be charged with its fair and 
 just proportion of the tax, which shall be determined by the 
 court. The owners of the whole of the larger parcel may be 
 made defendants, and each parcel charged with a proper share 
 of the tax or the owners of any one or more of the smaller 
 parcels may be sued separately. In all such cases, the several 
 taxes and parcels of land may be set out in one cause of action, 
 and judgment entered against each parcel for the tax, interest, 
 costs and penalties found due thereon. 
 
 Sec. 51. The municipal court of Kansas City shall have 
 jurisdiction in all cases for the collection of taxes due the city 
 when the amount does not exceed the sum of three hundred 
 dollars. Defendants shall be served with summons, and the 
 judgment shall be as hereinbefore prescribed. In case of a 
 judgment for delinquent' taxes upon real property no execution 
 shall be issued by the municipal court, but upon filing a tran- * 
 script of such judgment in the ofifjee of the Clerk of the Circuit 
 Court of Jackson County, at Kansas City, such Clerk shall 
 record the same in the book kept for recording transcripts of 
 judgment before Justices of the Peace, and shall also enter such 
 judgment on the judgment docket of such court, and execution 
 shall issue thereon in conformity with such transcript of judg¬ 
 ment. In the case of judgments for personal taxes, execution 
 may be issued by the municipal court and the same may be 
 enforced in the same manner as judgments of Justices of the 
 
75 
 
 Peace. In such suits all process and executions shall be directed 
 to, served and returned by any police officer of Kansas City or 
 any constable of Jackson County. 
 
 Sec. 52. The proceedings in such suits for the collection 
 of taxes shall, in all respects not herein provided for, conform 
 as near as may be to the practice and procedure in civil cases, 
 including the sale under execution and making deed to pur¬ 
 chaser. ' 
 
 I Erai. t ' 
 
 ’Sec. 53. The tax book and all other books and papers 
 made or kept by the Auditor, Treasurer, Assessor or other offi¬ 
 cer of the City, in any manner relating to any tax, shall be 
 received in all courts as evidence of all the facts stated therein, 
 and of the validity of the tax, costs, interest and penalty therein 
 appearing, and a copy of so much of any of the aforesaid books 
 and papers as relates to the tax in question, certified to by the 
 Auditor or any other officer of, said. City having the same in 
 charge, shall be received in evidence in like manner and with 
 like effect. 
 
 Sec. 54. An attorney’s fee of ..ten per centum on the 
 amount of the judgment shall be taxed up as costs in every 
 proceeding for the collection of delinquent taxes under this Arti¬ 
 cle. Such amount of ten per centum shall be taxed and collected 
 as other costs in the case; provided, that no such fee shall be 
 paid until the judgment and other costs in the case are paid. 
 
 I 
 
ARTICLE VI. 
 
 Condemning and Damaging Private Property. 
 
 Section 1. Whenever the city shall, by ordinance provide 
 for establishing, constructing and maintaining for public use 
 any viaduct or bridge or any approach thereof, or right-of-way 
 therefor, or any tunnel, cut or subway and approaches, or right- 
 of-way therefor or for establishing, opening, widening, extend¬ 
 ing or altering for public use any street, avenue, alley, levee, 
 wharf, market place, public square, site or lands for hospital, 
 fire department, building, public museum or gallery of art, police 
 station, water department, workhouse, morgue, sewage or 
 garbage reduction plant, route for sewer of any kind, water 
 or gas mains or for altering the channel of any water-course, 
 or for the right to use any stream or right-of-way for drainage’ 
 purposes, or for the vacating of any street, or whenever any 
 private property is taken or damaged for any other public pur¬ 
 pose whatsoever; and not herein specifically enumerated, and 
 it becomes necessary to take or damage any private property 
 for such public use, just compensation shall be paid to the 
 owner, or owners of such private property taken or damaged 
 which shall be ascertained and assessed by a jury of six disinter¬ 
 ested freeholders of the city by proceedings prescribed by ordi¬ 
 nance, and as in ttys charter provided, or as otherwise provided 
 by law. 
 
 Unless otherwise specified by ordinance, and except as else¬ 
 where in this charter prescribed, such proceedings shall be con¬ 
 ducted in the municipal court of the city which shall, while in 
 the discharge of such duty, have and exercise the powers of the 
 circuit court for the preservation of order and enforcing process 
 issued in the course of the proceedings, and may summon and 
 compel by attachment or otherwise, the attendance of witnesses 
 and jurors, and fine and commit any person guilty of misde¬ 
 meanor or contempt, and the judge of such court shall pass on 
 the competency of evidence, and instruct the jury on questions 
 of law arising. The Clerk of such court shall issue process and 
 record orders made by said court. 
 
 Sec. 2 .When any ordinance shall provide for taking or 
 damaging private property for any public use specified in the 
 preceding section, the city shall by ordinance describe the private 
 property to be taken or damaged, and, if the same is to be paid 
 for wholly or in part by special assessments, shall prescribe the 
 limits within which private property shall be deemed benefited 
 
77 
 
 by the proposed improvement, and be assessed and charged to 
 pay compensation therefor; and thereupon the City Engineer 
 or one of his assistants shall make out and deliver to the Clerk 
 of the Municipal Court a statement by plat, map or otherwise; 
 containing a correct description of the several lots or parcels 
 of private property to be taken or damaged, with the respective 
 names of the owners and parties interested therein so far as 
 known, who may be such at the time said ordinance takes effect. 
 Said court shall thereupon, by order, appoint a day and place 
 for empaneling a jury to ascertain the compensation for the 
 property to be taken or damaged and to make assessments to pay 
 for the same, which order shall recite the number and title ot 
 said ordinance with the date when it took effect, and contain 
 a description of the property proposed to be taken or damaged 
 as contained in said ordinance and also a description of the 
 property contained in the benefit district as described in said 
 ordinance, and naming the day and place fixed by said court for 
 impaneling a jury to ascertain the compensation for the property 
 to be taken or damaged and to make assessments to pay for the 
 same v which order shall be. directed to all persons whom it may 
 concern, without naming them. 
 
 A copy of such order shall be published in a newspaper 
 at the time doing the city printing, for four successive weeks, 
 the last insertion to be not more than one week prior to the day 
 set for said hearing. The parties owning 'or having an interest 
 in the real estate proposed to be taken or damaged, shall be 
 served with a copy of said order, either by delivering to each 
 of such owners or parties interested at any time before the day 
 fixed therein for the hearing, a copy of the order or by leaving 
 such copy at their usual place of abode with some member of 
 their respective families over the age of fifteen years, and in 
 case of corporations, by delivering a copy to the president, sec¬ 
 retary or some managing officer thereof, or to any agent of such 
 corporation in charge of any office or place of business of such 
 corporation in Jackson County, Missouri. 
 
 - If service of such notice cannot be made on any or all of 
 such parties as above described, within said city, the return on 
 such notice shall so state, and thereupon an alias order specify¬ 
 ing a different date may be made bv said court, if deemed advis¬ 
 able, notifying such unserved parties of the facts as in case of 
 the original notice above provided. Said cause may be contin¬ 
 ued or postponed from time to time. It shall not be required in 
 any case to bring in any person other than the owners of the 
 property or those interested therein who were such at the time 
 of the taking effect of such ordinance; and the parties claiming 
 or holding through or under such owners or parties interested 
 
7b 
 
 or any of them, shall be bound by the proceedings as fully as if 
 they were brought in; but any person having an interest in the 
 real estate to be affected by the proceedings may, upon applica¬ 
 tion and entering their appearance, be made parties thereto; but 
 no notice of said proceedings shall, in any case, be necessary to 
 the validity thereof, except the publication of the order as herein 
 provided. Notice so given by publication shall be sufficient to 
 authorize the court to hear and determine the cause and to make 
 any finding or order or render any judgment therein as fully as 
 though all the parties interested at the time of the taking effect 
 of such ordinance, or at any time thereafter, had been sued by 
 their proper names and had been personally served. 
 
 Affidavit by the publisher, manager or any person con¬ 
 nected with the newspaper in which such order was published, 
 accompanied with a printed copy of the notice, shall be prima 
 facie evidence of the publication of such order as herein re¬ 
 quired. 
 
 The service of any notice, process or order, required by 
 this Article, may be made by a policeman of the city, or by any 
 constable or officer authorized to serve judicial writs; and any 
 return of service by a policeman, constable or other officer shall 
 be evidence of the facts therein stated. After notice has been 
 given as herein provided and upon the day fixed for impaneling 
 a jury, or upon a day to which such hearing has been adjourned, 
 the Municipal Court shall appoint and cause to be impaneled a 
 jury composed of six men who shall be disinterested freeholders 
 of the city, who shall receive such compensation as shall be pro¬ 
 vided by ordinance, which jury shall hear the evidence and view 
 the property to be taken and damaged, or assessed with benefits. 
 
 The term “disinterested freeholder ' as used in this charter 
 shall not be so construed or defined as to exclude or disqualify 
 any person interested in property by reason of the fact that he 
 is a trustee in a deed of trust upon property taken or damaged 
 or within the benefit district. 
 
 Sec. 3. The jury impaneled under the provisions of this 
 Article shall ascertain the just compensation to be paid as fol¬ 
 lows : 
 
 First : For each piece of private property taken when the 
 public use thereof shall be such that the city must have the exclu¬ 
 sive possession and control thereof, the actual value of the prop¬ 
 erty taken. 
 
 Second : For each piece of private property taken where 
 the public use thereof may be such that the city need only have 
 such possession and control as will not wholly exclude the pos- 
 
79 
 
 session and beneficial use thereof by the owner or owners, the 
 actual damage from the public use specified in the ordinance. 
 
 Third: For all damages to each piece of private property 
 not actually taken so as to give the city the possession or con¬ 
 trol of the same, the actual amount of the damages such prop¬ 
 erty may sustain from the use of the private property taken for 
 the public use for which it may be taken, including all that the 
 city from time to time may do or cause to be done in, with, or 
 upon the private property so taken. 
 
 • _ 
 
 To pay such compensation the jury shall assess against the 
 city the amount of benefit to the city and public generally, in¬ 
 clusive of benefit to any property of the qty, and the balance 
 of such compensation they shall assess against the several lots 
 and parcels of private property within the benefit district, ex¬ 
 clusive of the improvements thereon, deemed benefited by the 
 proposed improvement as determined according to the preceding 
 section; each lot or parcel of ground to be assessed with an 
 amount bearing the same ratio to such balance as the benefit 
 to each lot or parcel bears to the whole benefit to all the private 
 property assessed. Parties interested may submit evidence to 
 the jury and the latter shall examine personally the property to 
 be taken, damaged and assessed. The party owning any prop¬ 
 erty taken may remove any improvements thereon, and the jury 
 may consider this fact in determining their verdict. The verdict 
 of the jury shall be signed by each juror and delivered to the 
 Municipal Court and shall contain a correct description of each 
 lot or parcel of private property to be taken and the value 
 thereof, and of each lot or parcel of private property damaged 
 and the amount of injury thereto, and also the amount assessed 
 against the city, together with a correct description of each lot 
 or parcel of private property assessed and the amount assessed 
 against the same. The City Engineer and City Assessor or 
 their assistants shall, when required, aid the jury to put their 
 verdict in proper form, and the jury shall not be discharged 
 until the Municipal Court is satisfied that the verdict is correct 
 in form. 
 
 The Municipal Court may adjourn proceedings from time 
 to time until the matter be completed. If any jury cannot agree 
 the Municipal Court may discharge them and may order the 
 impaneling of another jury to perform the duty devolving upon 
 the jury by this Article, and no new notice to parties interested 
 shall be necessary beyond such order, which order must be made 
 on the day of discharging any jury and shall fix the time and 
 place for impaneling a new jury, or nothing further shall be 
 done under the ordinance and all the proceedings shall be void. 
 
80 
 
 Said order shall be duly recorded by the Clerk of the Municipal 
 Court. 
 
 If in any proceeding any juror becomes disabled,, or, for 
 any reason, unable to act as a juror in the case, the Court shall 
 have power to fill the vacancy by selecting another juror, and 
 the case shall be tried before the entire jury de novo, or the 
 Court may discharge the jury and empanel a new jury as in 
 this article provided. ■ 
 
 Sec. 4. The Clerk of the Municipal Court shall, after 
 the rendition of the verdict of the jury, report the same to the 
 Common Council; and if the same be not confirmed by the Com¬ 
 mon Council within sixty days from the making of such report, 
 the proceedings and verdict shall be void. If the verdict and 
 proceedings be confirmed by ordinance within sixty days from 
 the report of the Clerk of the Municipal Court, an appropriation 
 shall be made to pay such sum as has been assessed against the 
 city and the city shall have and hold the property sought to be 
 taken for the purpose specified in the ordinance providing for 
 the improvement, and the City Clerk shall give notice in writing 
 of the fact of such confirmation to the Clerk of the Municipal 
 Court; and the several amounts assessed by The jury against 
 private property shall be a lien on the several lots and parcels 
 of private property charged, from the date of the enactment of 
 the ordinance providing for the improvement until paid; and 
 if not paid within sixty days after the confirmation of the ver¬ 
 dict, shall bear interest at the rate of seven per cent per annum, 
 from the confirmation thereof, except as hereinafter provided, 
 and shall be collected by the city as by ordinance provided, by 
 suit or otherwise, as any other special taxes, or by»special execu¬ 
 tion, as follows, namely: A special tax bill against any lot or 
 parcel of property assessed may be issued by the Clerk of the 
 Municipal Court, under his hand, and his signature thereto 
 shall be attested by the City Clerk under the seal of the City, 
 which tax bill shall contain a description of such lot or parcel of 
 property, and the amount assessed against the same as fixed 
 bv the verdict, and state that the assessment has been made to 
 pay compensation for private property taken or damaged, or 
 both, as the case may be', for the purpose specified in the ordi¬ 
 nance providing for the improvement, giving the title of and 
 date when the ordinance took effect, and that such assessment 
 has been confirmed by ordinance, giving also its title and date 
 when the ordinance took effect, and that such assessment shall 
 bear interest as herein provided. Each tax bill, so issued, shall 
 be filed in the office of the Clerk of the Circuit Court of Jack- 
 son County, at Kansas City, and by such Clerk recorded and 
 indexed as a judgment in favor of the city, against the prop- 
 
81 
 
 erty described in the tax bill. At any time after the filing and 
 % recording of any such tax bill, as aforesaid, a special execution 
 may be issued thereon out of the said Circuit Court in vacation 
 or term time, as on a judgment of the Court in favor of the 
 city, which execution shall recite the tax bill or the record 
 thereof and state when the tax bill was filed and be directed to 
 the sheriff of Jackson County, and command him, in case the 
 assessment, interest and costs be not paid to him, to sell the 
 property therein described, or so much thereof as may be neces¬ 
 sary to pay such assessment, interest and costs. The proceed¬ 
 ings under such special execution shall, as far as practicable, 
 conform to the proceedings on special executions on ordinary n 
 judgments foreclosing liens on land. 
 
 Any sale, including the making of a deed by the sheriff to 
 the purchaser, made as aforesaid, shall vest in the purchaser, all 
 the right, title and interest and estate in the land of the parties 
 owning and interested in the same, who shall not have paid 
 their share of the assessment, and all parties claiming through 
 or under them, or any of them, by operation of law or other¬ 
 wise, subsequent to the taking effect of such ordinance shall 
 be bound thereby. 
 
 / 
 
 Tax bills filed afid recorded as aforesaid shall be subject 
 to the order of the Court, and may be set aside 01^ the amount 
 of assessment reduced on motion of any party interested in the 
 property assessed, the city having reasonable notice of the filing 
 of such motion and the object thereof. If no title can be acquired 
 under the proceedings to any of the property sought to be taken, 
 the court shall set aside any bill and assessment on motion. If 
 by reason of any defect or omission in the proceedings the city 
 cannot acquire title or right to any particular parcel of property, 
 or to any interest in any parcel of property sought to be taken, 
 the court shall, on the fact being made to appear, reduce the 
 assessment by deducting therefrom so much thereof as was 
 assessed on account of the property or interest in the property 
 sought to be taken, but not acquired, to be determined as far as 
 practicable from the verdict of the jury making the assessment, 
 and award execution for the residue. No assessment shall be 
 affected or interfered with for the reason that any other assess¬ 
 ment or assessments made in the same procedings may be invalid 
 in whole or in part. Executions and proceedings thereon shall 
 be under the control of the court or judge, as in ordinary civil 
 cases. The owner of any divided or undivided interest in any 
 lot or parcel of the property assessed, whether acquired prior or 
 subsequent to the date of the taking effect of the ordinance, 
 may pay his share separately. 
 
82 
 
 In the case of divided interest the benefits shall be divided 
 in proportion to the area of the lot or tract assessed. No sale 
 on execution on any tax bill shall be affected or invalidated be¬ 
 cause there may have been ground to set aside or reduce the 
 tax bill. In case of the death of any property owner or claimant 
 pending any proceedings under this Article, it shall not be 
 necessary to bring in his representative, or to revive against such 
 representative by any further notice, though it may be done 
 by the city if deemed advisable. The city may resort to any 
 or all of the modes of collecting such assessments at the same 
 time, but shall have only one satisfaction. Money collected on 
 such assessments shall be used only to pay such compensation 
 and whatever interest shall be collected, and no more, shall be 
 apportioned and paid equitably to the owners of the property 
 taken. 
 
 Sec. 5. If any incorporated company which may be inter¬ 
 ested in the whole or any part of the land to be taken or dam¬ 
 aged by the said proceedings, be entitled under the laws of the 
 land to trial of its claim for compensation therefor by common 
 law jury of twelve men, it may at any time prior to the day 
 fixed as herein provided for impaneling a jury, file in the office 
 of the Clerk of the Municipal Court, a petition in which it shall 
 state the description of the property owned or claimed by it so 
 to be taken or damaged and the amount and nature of its claim 
 therefore, and may further state that it demands a trial before 
 a common law jury of twelve men of its claim for compensation 
 therefor; and if any such incorporated company shall not so 
 file such petition before such date, it shall be deemed and taken 
 to have waived its right to trial by a jury as aforesaid of such 
 issue. And if any incorporated company, which may under ths 
 law of the land be entitled to a trial by jury as aforesaid, shall 
 file such a petition, then the Municipal Court shall make an 
 order transferring said cause to the Circuit Court for further 
 proceedings therein and the Clerk of the Municipal Court shall 
 within thirty days after such order certify and file with the 
 Clerk of said court a transcript of the proceedings and all papers 
 filed therein, or a copy thereof, and thereupon said court shall 
 become possessed of said cause and the Circuit Court shall cause 
 such common law jury to be impaneled at a time to be fixed 
 by it and the issue to be tried by such jury shall be the actual 
 value of the land of such claimant taken, if any, and the amount 
 of damage to the land of such claimant not taken, by the public 
 use thereof and by the use of the land taken for the purpose for 
 which it is taken, including all the city may, from time to time, 
 do or cause to be done in, with or upon the private property su 
 taken or damaged. If two or more such incorporated companies 
 
33 
 
 interested in the land to be taken or damaged as aforesaid be 
 entitled to trial by a common law jury as aforesaid, and shall 
 make demand therefor as aforesaid, the court may, in its dis¬ 
 cretion, as may appear expedient, order that all such claims 
 shall be tried at the samevtime before one jury; and said cause 
 or further proceedings in the same shall be continued from time 
 to time by the court until such issue or issues shall have been 
 determined by the verdict of said jury; provided , that any party 
 to such issue which may feel aggrieved by the verdict of said 
 jury may, within four days after the rendition of the same, file 
 its motion for a new trial and in arrest of judgment, and said 
 motion or motions shall be heard without delay, and after hear¬ 
 ing the same, the court may overrule the same or may order a 
 new trial of such issue or issues on good cause shown; but no 
 appeal from the judgment of the court overruling such motion 
 shall be had therein until the final judgment of confirmation of 
 the entire proceedings by the said court as hereinafter provided. 
 
 After the rendition of the verdict,of such comrfion law jury 
 of twelve men, and after the hearing of the exceptions thereto 
 on the motions for a new trial or in arrest of judgment, if any 
 there be, the court shall, on any day thereafter to which said 
 cause may have been continued as aforesaid, impanel a jury 
 of six freeholders and the cause shall proceed before such jury 
 of six freeholders impaneled to try the same as set forth in sec¬ 
 tion six, in this Article; provided, that in case any claim for 
 compensation shall have been tried and ascertained by a common 
 law jury as herein provided, any jury of freeholders in said pro¬ 
 ceedings shall accept and adopt the valuation or assessment of 
 damages for any land taken or damaged as assessed by said 
 common law jury, and shall so recite the same in and as a part 
 of any verdict thereafter rendered by any such jury of free- 
 * holders. 
 
 Sec. 6 . In case the city, or any person affected by the pro¬ 
 ceedings, either as the owner thereof or interested in any of the 
 property taken or damaged, or as the owner of, or interested in 
 any of the property assessed, shall feel aggrieved by the verdict 
 of the jury, such party so aggrieved may, within twenty days 
 from the time the verdict of the jury is confirmed, appeal to the 
 Circuit Court of Jackson County, Missouri, at Kansas City. 
 If an appeal is taken, the same shall be perfected by the filing 
 with the Clerk of the Municipal Court within the time afore¬ 
 said, by some party in interest as aforesaid, such an affidavit as 
 is required by law in appealing from the judgment of a Justice 
 of the Peace, and in which affidavit the party appealing or his 
 agent, shall state what interest the party appealing has in the 
 proceedings. The party appealing may, however, discontinue 
 
84 
 
 sitch appeal at any time before the transcript has been filed in the 
 office of the Clerk of the said court, by filing a statement in 
 writing to that effect with the Clerk of said Municipal Court. 
 
 If an appeal is so taken it shall be the duty of the Clerk 
 of the Municipal Court within sixty days from the taking of 
 such an appeal, unless the appeal be so discontinued, to certify 
 and file with the Clerk of the Circuit Court of Jackson County, 
 at Kansas City, a transcript of the proceedings and all papers 
 filed and used in the trial, or a copy thereof, except the verdict 
 of the jury, but the certificate to said transcript shall state that 
 a verdict was rendered in the proceeding from which the appeal 
 is taken ; and thereupon the said Circuit Court shall become pos¬ 
 sessed of the cause, and said cause unless dismissed, shall be 
 tried de novo in said Circuit Court and have precedence over all 
 other causes for trial; and if necessary to a final determination 
 of any question arising in said cause, the Circuit Couft shall 
 have the power to make and bring in other parties to such pro¬ 
 ceedings on service of notice upon them to be made in the maiv- 
 ner required by section two of this Article; and if such appeal is 
 taken preceding any term of said Court it shall stand for trial 
 at such term; and if such appeal is taken during the sitting of 
 said court, the cause shall be immediately docketed upon the 
 filing of the transcript and stand for trial, but for good cause, in 
 the discretion of the court, any such proceeding may be post- 
 . poned or continued, and such proceedings shall not be affected 
 by any postponement or continuance, or want thereof. Such 
 trials on appeals are to be conducted in all respects and subject 
 to the same rules and the same laws as other trials had in the 
 Circuit Court as fully as may be and the same record thereof 
 made and kept. The verdict of the jury or finding of the court, 
 sitting as a jury, shall conform in all respects to the require¬ 
 ments of section three of this Article, and shall have the same 
 force and effect as therein specified, and provided for verdicts 
 of the jury in the Municipal Court, and shall be binding and 
 conclusive upon all persons and parties concerned or interested 
 in the proceedings, and no confirmation thereof by the Common 
 Council shall be required. The assessments against private 
 property shall be paid within the same time, and until paid, 
 bear the same rate of interest as provided in section four of this 
 Article, and the amounts assessed against private property by 
 the finding or verdict shall stand as a judgment, and be a lien 
 on the several parcels of property charged, from the date the 
 ordinance for the improvement takes effect, until paid, and if 
 such assessments are not paid within sixty days from the judg¬ 
 ment of the court on the finding or verdict, special execution or 
 executions, as required, may issue against the several lots or 
 
85 
 
 parcels of property against which assessments for benefits are 
 made, and the execution shall be in favor of Kansas City, Mis¬ 
 souri, and show the description of the lot or parcel of ground 
 and the amount assessed against the same as shown by the ver¬ 
 dict, and show the rate of interest upon assessments, with the 
 date when the same began to accrue, and state that the assess¬ 
 ment has been made to pay compensation for private property 
 taken.or damaged for the purpose specified in the ordinance pro¬ 
 viding for the improvement, giving the title and date of ap¬ 
 proval of the ordinance; which execution shall conform to the 
 proceedings on special executions provided by section four of 
 this Article, and the said proceedings, sale and deed shall have 
 the same force and effect as Stated in said section. Provided y 
 however, that the city shall have power to bid in such property at 
 such sales and have and hold the same as any other purchaser. 
 
 On appeal under this section the jury shall consist of six 
 men who shall be disinterested freeholders of the citv and be 
 chosen by the judge of the court. They shall, before making 
 their verdict, examine personally the property taken or dam¬ 
 aged and that to be assessed with benefits, and upon the finding 
 or verdict, judgment shall be entered thereon that the city have 
 and hold the property sought to be taken for the purpose sped- . 
 fied in the ordinance providing for the improvement, and pay 
 therefore the amount assessed against the city, and full com¬ 
 pensation assessed therefore, and that the several lots and par¬ 
 cels of private property assessed to pay compensation by the ver¬ 
 dict or finding stand charged, and be bound, respectively, for the 
 payment of assessments, with interest as provided in this Article, 
 and that such judgment be enforced by special execution 01 
 executions to collect assessments as aforesaid, without special 
 tax bills, and the court may, by execution or otherwise, put the 
 city in possession of the property taken, or any part thereof, the 
 full compensation therefor having been paid to the owner cr 
 party damaged, or into court for him. 
 
 The court shall tax and charge the costs in appeals accord¬ 
 ing to equity. 
 
 Sec. 7. When any proceeding is appealed to the Circuit 
 Court and none of the appellants appear at the time of said hear¬ 
 ing of said proceeding/the court shall dismiss the appeal; and 
 any party appealing may, at any time before the jury has ren¬ 
 dered a verdict, dismiss his appeal to the Circuit Court; and 
 should the party appealing not appear, and his appeal be dis¬ 
 missed, or when all parties who may have appealed shall have 
 dismissed their appeals, the verdict rendered on the hearing 
 before the Municipal Court shall remain in full force and be bind¬ 
 ing on all parties interested in said proceedings, and be enforced 
 
86 
 
 / 
 
 as if no appeal had been taken. In case of such dismissal of the 
 appeal or appeals to the Circuit Court, the several amounts 
 assessed against the property deemed benefited shall bear interest 
 as hereinbefore provided only from date of the dismissal of such, 
 appeal or appeals. Any party or parties may appeal from the 
 judgment of the Circuit Court in such manner as appeals are 
 taken in other civil causes, but the only bond required of the 
 party appealing shall be one, conditioned that should the judg¬ 
 ment of the Circuit Court be affirmed by the Appellate Court, or 
 should such appeal be dismissed, he will pay all costs of such 
 appeal. When an appeal shall be taken from the Circuit Court, 
 the amounts assessed upon the property deemed benefited shall 
 bear interest only from the affirmance of the judgment in the 
 Appellate Court, or from the dismissal of the appeal or appeals; 
 provided however, that if the party or parties appealing shall be 
 the owner or owners of thfe property assessed with benefits, then 
 such party or parties appealing shall, unless the judgment be 
 reversed in the Appellate Court, pay interest at the rate of eight 
 per cent per annum on the amount or amounts of the judgment 
 in the Circuit Court charged from date judgment is rendered 
 until paid. 
 
 Sec. 8 . When recommended by the Board of Public Works, 
 the city may, by ordinance, appropriate out of any funds in the 
 treasury an amount sufficient to pay the whole, or any part, of 
 the damage allowed in any proceedings under this article, or 
 under Article VII of this charter, and the benefits or assessments 
 charged against private property in such proceedings shall be 
 collected by the Treasurer and reported to the Comptroller, and 
 shall be credited to the fund of the city from which such pay¬ 
 ment was made, unless otherwise provided by ordinance. In any 
 proceeding contemplated by this Article where the city shall pay 
 or cause to be paid to the Clerk of the Court in which said pro¬ 
 ceeding is pending, the amount of the damages awarded for the 
 use of the persons entitled to the same, the city shall have the 
 right to enter upon and take possession of the property so taken 
 or condemned notwithstanding any exceptions to such award or 
 appeals therefrom and any subsequent proceedings in said case 
 shall only affect the compensation to be allowed. 
 
 % 
 
 Sec. 9. The city may sell, assign or transfer, without 
 recourse, in any manner provided by ordinance, the whole, or 
 any pa*t of the unpaid assessments for benefits assessed against 
 private property in pursuance of this Article, or of Article VII 
 of this charter, as shown by the verdict in such proceedings, and 
 the proceeds thereof shall be used for the payment of damages 
 allowed in such proceedings, and the benefits and interest thereon 
 
87 
 
 shall be collected by the city and paid to the purchaser or his 
 assigns thereof, but in no event shall the city be liable on account 
 of failure to collect any assessment; and all the rights of the city 
 shall by such assignment pass to and vest in such purchaser. 
 
 Sec. 10. Upon the final determination of any proceedings 
 under this Article, the City Treasurer and'Comptroller shall each 
 enter in a suitable record a reference to the proceeding and a 
 description of the lots or parcels of land, taken or damaged, 
 giving the names of the owners or claimants thereof respectively, 
 the amounts of damages and benefits as shown by the verdict, 
 and the date of the confirmation of the verdict, and the Treasurer 
 shall collect said assessments, and, when requested by any owner 
 of property taken or damaged, may make offsets in whole or in 
 part, against any unpaid benefits charged against the property of 
 such owner in the verdict, and make proper entry opposite each 
 tract of the amount of principal and interest collected or offset, 
 and the date thereof, and report the same to the Comptroller. 
 When the amount of such damages shall be in the city treasury,, 
 the Comptroller shall, by warrant, and without the necessity of 
 any action or appropriation by the Common Council, pay to the 
 person or persons entitled thereto, or into court for their use, the 
 amount of damages as set out in the verdict and the proportion 
 of interest thereon, if any, and take a receipt therefor. 
 
 The city, in no event, shall be liable for any interest on 
 account of any proceedings under this Article. The payment to 
 the City Treasurer, and the entry thereof on his records opposite 
 the description of such tract, or parcel of land, and the date of 
 such payment, and by whom paid, shall be a sufficient satisfaction 
 of any lien, assessment or judgment against such tract, or parcel, 
 created under this Article. 
 
 Sec. 11. The city shall not be entitled to the possession 
 of any lot or parcel of property taken or damaged until full pay¬ 
 ment of the compensation therefor be made or paid into court as 
 herein provided. If the title to any property taken or damaged 
 be in controversy, or there be any dispute as to what party or 
 parties are entitled to such compensation, nothing shall be 
 paid therefor to any party until the right to the com¬ 
 pensation be determined by the Circuit Court of Jack- 
 son County, Missouri, at Kansas City, in an appropri¬ 
 ate suit between the city and the parties claiming the same,, 
 in which none of the costs of the litigation shall be borne by the 
 city, unless the city be one of the claimants, and which suit may 
 be brought by the city or any party making claim to said com¬ 
 pensation ; and during such controversy or dispute the money 
 shall remain in the city treasury, and pending such litigation, the 
 
88 
 
 s 
 
 city may, after having in the city treasury the compensation to 
 be paid for the property; with leave of the court in which the suit 
 is pending, or judge of such court in vacation, by order made in 
 the action, take possession of the property, bringing the money 
 into court, if required, and the couft or judge may enforce such 
 order by execution or otherwise. If any party entitled to such 
 compensation be absent, or unable or unwilling to receive the 
 same, the city shall have the right to apply to said court, or the 
 judge thereof in vacation, for an order directing said compensa¬ 
 tion to be paid to the Clerk of said Court for the use of said party, 
 which order shall be entered of record by said Clerk as the pro¬ 
 ceedings of said court, and when the amount has thus been paid 
 into court, the rights of the city in said property shall be the same 
 in all respects as if such compensation had been paid directly to 
 the party entitled thereto. 
 
 Sec. 12. The city shall provide suitable books, of such form 
 as may be prescribed by ordinance, to be kept by the Clerk of the 
 Municipal Court or the Clerk of the Circuit Court, or both, as 
 may be necessary, showing what pieces of property have been 
 taken or damaged by such proposed improvement, and the amount 
 assessed against each piece of property in the district deemed 
 benefited to make compensation therefor, with indexes to such 
 books, so that the exact condition of each piece of property 
 affected by said proceedings can at any time be definitely ascer¬ 
 tained, and such index shall be the only docket of such cases 
 required to be kept by the Clerk of said court. 
 
 Sec. 13. As soon as practicable after confirmation of any 
 verdict by the Common Council, the Clerk of the Municipal Court 
 shall make a full record in a book provided for the purpose of 
 such proceedings, which record shall coritain correct copies of all 
 ordinances constituting part of the proceedings, notices to the 
 parties to the proceedings and returns thereon, all notices pub¬ 
 lished and the proofs thereof, all orders by the Municipal Court, 
 the names of the jurors and when impaneled, and the verdict of 
 the jury and such other documents and matters as the ordinances 
 of the city may require. The judge of the Municipal Court shall 
 examine such final record of such proceedings, and, if it be cor¬ 
 rect, sign the same; and thereafter such record, or copy thereof, 
 certified by the Clerk of the Municipal Court, shall be competent 
 evidence in all courts of this state of the facts stated therein. 
 The original papers shall be carefully preserved by the Clerk of 
 the Municipal Court. The city shall pay all costs of proceedings 
 to take or damage private property except costs of proceedings 
 to collect assessments, which shall be taxed and paid as costs in 
 ordinary cases, and except the costs upon appeal as hereinbefore 
 
% 
 
 89 
 
 provided. If the city fails to collect any assessment in whole or 
 in part, it may pay the amount not so collected out of the city 
 treasury. 
 
 Sec. 14. In all cases where private property is taken or 
 damaged for any of the purposes set forth in this Article, the 
 Common Council is hereby authorized by the same ordinance, or 
 by separate ordinances, both to condemn private property under 
 the provisions of Section two of this Article for the opening or 
 establishing-of any thoroughfare, and also by the same ordinance, 
 or by separate ^ordinances, to establish the grade or change the 
 grade of the same street or thoroughfare at such points as it may 
 deem advisable and to provide for the grading of the same to 
 such established grade. ' In such case the notice required to be 
 givn, as aforesaid, shall state that benefits and damages, if any, 
 arising from the condemnation and grading of the street or thor¬ 
 oughfare to the established grade shall be assessed by the jury 
 in said condemnation proceedings. 
 
 In case the owner of any tract of land shall not file with the 
 said Clerk a claim for damages on account of the proposed grad¬ 
 ing of the street or thoroughfare, he shall be deemed to have 
 waived the same. Such claim shall be filed on or prior to the 
 day when the jury is empaneled to assess the damages. The 
 jury shall find the amount of damages, if any, to any tract of pri¬ 
 vate property for which damages are claimed on account of the 
 propesed grading, as provided in Article VII of this charter, and 
 in assessing the benefits, shall consider benefits caused by the 
 opening of the street or thoroughfare as provided in this Article, 
 and the benefits arising from the grading of the street to the pro¬ 
 posed grade, as provided in Article VII of this charter. 
 
 Sec. 15. The Common Council shall have the power, in 
 any proceeding provided for in this Article, at any time before 
 any of the parties assessed with the benefits shall have paid the 
 amount so assessed to repeal the ordinance ordering the proposed 
 improvement, if such repeal be deemed for the best interests of 
 the city, and in such event the judgment for compensation and 
 benefits shall be void. 
 
 " ■ > 
 
 Sec. 16. When the grading or regrading of any public 
 highway, or the grading or regrading of any highway and high¬ 
 way or highways intersecting therewith, or the construction of 
 tunnels, subways or viaducts in, under or upon said public high¬ 
 way or highways, or the taking of private property by condemna¬ 
 tion for widening, opening or extending any such public high¬ 
 way or highways, or any or all of said improvements, shall be 
 deemed by the Common Council to be part or parts of one gen- 
 
 ; 
 
80 
 
 V 
 
 eral public improvement, the Common Council shall have the 
 power to provide for the same in one and the same ordinance or 
 by separate ordinances. Said ordinance or ordinances may pro¬ 
 vide for establishing or re-establishing the grade of such public 
 highway or intersecting highway or highways or part or parts 
 thereof, and may provide for such grading or regrading by means 
 of cuts, fills or viaducts, and may provide for building subways 
 or tunnels, and may, in the same ordinance and as a part of the 
 same general public improvement, provide also for the condemna¬ 
 tion of private property taken or damaged by such proceeding. 
 Such ordinance or ordinances shall in such* case provide 
 also for the payment of compensation for private property 
 so taken or damaged either out of the generaV fund of 
 the city or by special assessments upon a benefit district, 
 or both; the damages, if any, caused by such public im¬ 
 provement may be ascertained in one court proceeding or by sep¬ 
 arate court proceedings in the Circuit Court of Jackson County, 
 Missouri, at Kansas City, as may be provided by ordinance, 
 and all procedure for the ascertainment of damages, the serv¬ 
 ice of notice, and the making of special assessments shall be con¬ 
 ducted under such section or sections of this Article or of Article 
 VII of this charter, as the ordinance or ordinances shall provide. 
 Such ordinance or ordinances shall provide the method by which 
 the damages awarded in such proceeding or proceedings shall be 
 paid, and if said damages are to be paid by special assessment 
 upon a benefit district, said ordinance or ordinances shall fix the 
 boundaries of said district. 
 
 When proceedings are conducted under the provisions of 
 such ordinance or ordinances, the Board of Public Works shall 
 cause plans to be prepared, which said plans shall be identified in 
 the ordinance or ordinances, and shall show the location and 
 description of the proposed public improvement as a whole, and 
 such plans shall be filed with the Clerk of the Circuit Court with 
 a certified copy of said ordinance or ordinances. Any special 
 assessment against property deemed benefited shall be collected in 
 the manner provided in this Article. 
 
 Whenever the grading or regrading of any public highway 
 or intersecting highway, or the construction of tunnels, subways 
 or viaducts in, under or upon such highway or highways, or the 
 taking of any private property for the widening, opening or 
 extending of such highway or highways or any or all of such 
 improvements shall be a part of one general public improvement, 
 and shall be provided for in separate ordinances, all of said ord¬ 
 inances or as many as may be necessary to show said proceeding 
 in its entirety may be introduced in evidence, and may be con¬ 
 sidered by the jury or juries in assessing the damages and ben¬ 
 efits, if any, to arise in any one of said proceedings. 
 
01 
 
 Sec. 17. Whenever it is necessary to condemn any land for 
 the purpose of constructing a viaduct thereon or to condemn an 
 easement or right-of-way over any land for such purpose, or to 
 widen a street, avenue, alley, boulevard, or other public highway, 
 for the purpose of constructing a viaduct thereon, or to construct 
 a viaduct upon a street, avenue, alley ,boulevard, highway or 
 other public property, or to change the grade of a highway for 
 any purpose, and such construction or change may cause a dam¬ 
 age to private property ,the ordinance providing therefor, before 
 its passage, shall be approved by the Board of Public Works, 
 except that in case of boulevards under the Board of Park Com¬ 
 missioners, said ordinance shall be approved by the Board of 
 Park Commissioners. The Board of Public Works, or Board of 
 Park Commissioners, as the case may be, shall cause plans to be 
 prepared, which said plans shall show the location, length, width 
 and heighth of the proposed viaduct, manner of construction 
 thereof, and the dimensions, character and grade of the 
 approaches thereto. The Board of Public Works, or the Board of 
 Park Commissioners, shall then recommend to the Common 
 Council the passage of an ordinance providing for the construc¬ 
 tion of such viaduct, making a reference in said ordinance to said 
 plans. Such ordinance .shall establish the grade of said viaduct 
 and of the approaches thereto. In case a part or whole of the 
 damages are to be paid for by special assessments, the ordinance 
 shall prescribe a benefit district within which private property is 
 deemed to be benefited, and such private property within such dis¬ 
 trict may be assessed with the benefits, and proceedings therefor 
 shall be begun in the Circuit Court of Jackson County, Missouri, 
 by filing with the Clerk of said court a certified copy of said 
 ordinance, together with a certified copy of the plans of said 
 viaduct; the court shall require service of notice and publication 
 thereof to be given as provided in this Article where condemna¬ 
 tion cases are begun before the Municipal Court. Subsequent 
 proceedings in the Circuit Court shall be conducted in the same 
 manner and with the same effect as in cases of appeals taken in 
 condemnation cases begun in the Municipal Court, and in such 
 cases a jury shall determine the damage and assess the benefits 
 as provided by Section three of this Article, and Section seven 
 of Article VII of this charter, so far as applicable. 
 
 Whenever it is deemed necessary by the city to condemn a 
 right-of-way for a subway, tunnel or cut, or to condemn an ease¬ 
 ment for the construction of the same under private property, 
 or to construct the same under any street, avenue, alley, high¬ 
 way or other public grounds, and private property may be dam¬ 
 aged thereby, said proceedings may be originated and conducted 
 in the same manner and with like effect as herein provided in 
 regard to viaducts so far as the same may be applicable. 
 
92 
 
 Sec. 18. The Common Council may, by ordinance, pro¬ 
 hibit the construction or maintenance of bill boards or advertis¬ 
 ing boards or structures for the posting, painting or printing of 
 signs or advertisements on private property within any prescribed 
 limits. Such ordinance shall prescribe the size, character and loca¬ 
 tion of such advertising boards and structures so prohibited, and 
 in case any private property shall be so damaged by such prohi¬ 
 bition as to entitle the owners thereof to remuneration or dam¬ 
 ages under the constitution of the State of Missouri, such pro¬ 
 hibition and the proceeding to enforce the same shall be treated 
 as a public improvement, and unless the consent of the owner or 
 owners damaged by such prohibition be first obtained, the same 
 procedure for the ascertainment and assessment of just compen¬ 
 sation to be paid to the owner or owners of such private property 
 and the manner of payment of such damages shall be adopted as 
 is prescribed by Sections two, three and four of this Article 
 relating to proceedings for condemning and damaging private 
 property. Provided, however, that if, within four days after the 
 rendition of the verdict in said proceedings, there shall be tiled 
 with the Clerk of the court in which said proceedings are pend¬ 
 ing a petition asking for the dismissal of said proceedings signed 
 by"the owners of a majority of the front feet of the property in 
 the benefit district fixed by the ordinance instituting such pio- 
 ceedings, then the Common Council shall not have power to con¬ 
 firm said verdict and said proceedings shall be dismissed on behalf 
 of the city and no judgment shall be rendered therein. 
 
 Sec. 19. In addition to the methods heretofore provided in 
 this Article for the condemning and damaging of private prop¬ 
 erty whenever the city shall deem it necessary and by ordinance 
 determine to take or damage any private property for public use 
 of said city, it may adopt the same procedure for such taking and 
 damaging as is prescribed in the general laws of the State for t e 
 appropriation and valuation of lands taken for telegraph, tele¬ 
 phone, gravel and plank or railroad purposes, being Chapter 12, 
 Artice VII, of the Revised Statutes of Missouri, 1899. Upon 
 paying to the Clerk of the Circuit Court the amount of damages 
 awarded, the city shall have the right, notwithstanding the filing 
 of exceptions to such award, or appeals therefrom, to enter upon 
 and take possession of the property so taken and condemned, and 
 to proceed with the public improvement, or in the case of damage 
 onlv to proceed with the public improvement, and any subsequent 
 proceeding shall only affect the amount of compensation to be 
 
 allowed. 
 
 Sec. 20. The city may, whenever it is deemed necessary, 
 and in the manner provided by ordinance, institute and prosecute, 
 
 m 
 
93 
 
 within the State of Kansas, when permitted by and in accordance 
 with the laws of that state, proceedings for the taking and dam¬ 
 aging of private property for any of the public uses specified in 
 this charter. 
 
 Sec. 21. Whenever deemed advisable by the Common 
 Council, and upon ordinance therfor, the proceedings provided 
 for in this Article, may be commenced in the first instance and 
 maintained and determined in the Circuit Court of Jackson Coun¬ 
 ty, Missouri, at Kansas City, and such court shall have original, 
 full and complete control and jurisdiction thereof, and of the 
 parties thereto, and such proceedings may be commenced, main¬ 
 tained and determined, as near as may be, in similar manner, with 
 similar procedure and like process and service thereof, as pro¬ 
 vided for in Sections two and three of this Article, and whenever 
 in such event, the Mayor of the city shall file, or cause to be filed, 
 in said court a duly certified copy of an ordin'ance of said city, 
 with the statement by map or plat as provided in Sections two 
 and three of this Article, for similar proceedings, the court shall 
 become fully possessed of the proceedings with full power therein 
 and have complete and sole control and jurisdiction thereof. In 
 such case the court shall, upon application of the city, make the 
 order provided for in Section two of this Article, and service and 
 publication thereof shall be made as provided for in said section. 
 
 Sec. 22. Whenever the Common Council shall so deter¬ 
 mine, the assessments to pay for property taken or damaged shall 
 be paid in such number of annual installments as may be deter¬ 
 mined by ordinance upon the recommendation of the Board of 
 Public Works. In such case the proceedings shall be begun and 
 prosecuted to judgment in the Circuit Court of Jackson County, 
 Missouri, at Kansas City. The assessments shall bear interest at 
 the rate to be specified in the ordinance not exceeding seven per 
 cent, per annum. In such case the provisions of Sections twenty- 
 two, twenty-three and twenty-four of Article XIII shall apply 
 as to the payment and collection of the amounts and the penalties 
 thereon and the disposition of the money so collected. 
 
 The Common Council, upon recommendation of the Board 
 of Public Works, may, by ordinance, provide that the City Treas¬ 
 urer shall issue certificates equal in amount to the unpaid assess¬ 
 ments as provided in Section twenty-five of Article XIII of,this 
 charter. Such certificates shall be known as condemnation fund 
 certificates and all the provisions of Sections twenty-five, twenty- 
 six and twenty-seven of Article XIII shall apply to the issue, 
 sale and payment of such certificates so far as applicable, except 
 that all the rights, powers and duties in said sections conferred 
 upon the Board of Park Commissioners are hereby conferred 
 
94 
 
 upon and vested in the Board of Public Works, provided that any 
 sums received from the collection of assessments or the sale of 
 condemnation fund certificates as authorized by this section, more 
 than are required to pay for the property taken or damaged in 
 any proceeding, shall be credited to the general fund of the city. 
 
 Sec. 23. When by reason of any error, defect, or omission 
 in any proceedings, or in the verdict or judgment therein that 
 may be instituted under the provisions of this Article, a portion 
 of the private property sought to be taken, or some interest there¬ 
 in, cannot be acquired, or an assessment is made against private 
 property which cannot be enforced or collected, or when, by rea¬ 
 son of any such defect, private property in the benefit district is 
 omitted, the city may, by ordinance, institute, carry on and main¬ 
 tain supplemental proceedings to acquire the right and title to 
 such property or interest therein intended to be taken by the first 
 proceeding, but which cannot on account of such defect, error or 
 omission, be acquired thereunder, or to properly assess against 
 any piece or parcel of private property against which an assess¬ 
 ment was in the first proceeding erroneously made or omitted to 
 be made, the proper amount such private property, exclusive of 
 the improvements thereon, is benefited by the proposed improve¬ 
 ment to be determined by the verdict of the jury in such supple¬ 
 mental proceedings; and the original assessments may be revived, 
 corrected, increased or diminished as may be necessary or equit¬ 
 able under the provisions of this Article for the original proceed¬ 
 ings. Such supplemental proceedings shall be instituted and con¬ 
 ducted as to the particular piece of pieces of private property 
 sought to be acquired or assessed in like manner and with like 
 effect as in the original proceedings, and shall be known and 
 described as supplemental proceedings for the purposes specified 
 in the original ordinance; and a supplemental verdict and assess¬ 
 ment shall be made, confirmed and copies of the original verdict 
 certified in every particular as in the original proceedings; and 
 the assessments as established and corrected by such supplemental 
 verdict shall be collected by the City Treasurer in the same man¬ 
 ner and under like conditions and restrictions, powers and duties 
 as in the case of original proceedings. 
 
 Sec. 24. Within six months after the confirmation of the 
 verdict of a jury in the Municipal Court or within six months 
 after the rendition of a final judgment vesting in the city the jtitle 
 of any land as provided by this Article, the city shall cause to be 
 filed in the office of the Recorder of Deeds of Jackson County, at 
 Kansas City, a certified copy of said confirmtaion ordinance, or 
 certified copy of such judgment, as the case may be. 
 
95 
 
 Sec. 25. Whenever the city shall propose to acquire outside 
 the corporate boundaries of the city and within the territorial 
 limits of Jackson County, any right-of-way for sewers or any 
 lands for use for or in connection with sewer purposes or the 
 right to make use of any natural course of drainage or water 
 course or any part thereof as a public drain or sewer route, by 
 purchase or by the exercise of the power of eminent domain for 
 public use as an outlet or appurtenance to any sewers built or to 
 be built within the corporate boundaries of the city, the Common 
 Council shall, by ordinance, describe sufficiently for identifica- * 
 tion the right-of-way, lands and natural course of drainage or 
 water course or part thereof to be made use of proposed to be 
 acquired as^aforesaid and shall designate the sewer district or 
 districts within the corporate boundaries of the city which shall 
 be deemed benefited by the acquisition thereof and by the con¬ 
 struction of such outlet and all appurtenances which may be 
 constructed or used in connection with such outlet; thereupon 
 the city may proceed to acquire such right-of-way, lands and right 
 to use such natural course of drainage or water course, or part 
 thereof, by gift, purchase or condemnation proceedings in the 
 manner herein provided, and the whole cost of so acquiring the 
 same, less such sum as may be appropriated by the city for that 
 purpose or otherwise paid, shall be collected by special tax from 
 all lands exclusive of highways, streets and alleys embraced with¬ 
 in the said district or districts declared to be so deemed bene¬ 
 fited, in the manner hereinafter provided. The cost of construct¬ 
 ing such outlet and all appurtenances which may be constructed in 
 connection with'such outlets, less such sum as may be appro¬ 
 priated by the city for that purpose or otherwise paid, shall be 
 paid for in special tax bills, as hereinafter provided, against all 
 lands, exclusive of highways, streets and alleys embraced within 
 the said district or districts. 
 
 Sec. 26. The city may acquire any part of such right-of- 
 way, lands and naturar course of drainage or water course, as 
 aforesaid, in the same condemnation proceedings or by separate 
 condemnation proceedings, and may proceed against each owner 
 separately or any number of owners may be joined in one pro¬ 
 ceeding, but in all cases the damages to each shall be separately 
 assessed. 
 
 * 
 
 Sec. 27. In case the city shall desire to acquire any such 
 right-of-way or lands or the right to so make use of any such 
 natural course of drainage or water course or part thereof for 
 public use, as aforesaid, and the riparian owners of any such 
 water course or owners of such course of drainage or of any of 
 such lands or of the property through which such right-of-way 
 
96 
 
 runs and the city cannot agree upon the proper compensation to 
 be paid therefor, or in case the owner is incapable of contracting, 
 be unknown or be a non-resident of the State, the city may apply 
 to the Circuit Court of Jackson County or to any judge thereof 
 in vacation, by petition, setting forth a general description of 
 such natural water course or course of drainage or describing the 
 route of the right-of-way so sought to be acquired over or 
 through any lands and describing the lands so sought to be ac¬ 
 quired, the names of the owners thereof if known or if unknown, 
 a pertinent description of the property whose owners are un¬ 
 known, and praying the appointment of three disinterested free¬ 
 holders of the County as commissioners or for a jury to assess 
 the damages which such owners may severally sustain in con¬ 
 sequence of the use of such natural water course or courses of 
 drainage for the purposes aforesaid, or for the use of such right- 
 of-way for the purposes aforesaid or by the taking of such lands. 
 The owners or those having any right, title or interest in such 
 land or natural water course or course of drainage or part thereof 
 or land through which such right-of-way runs is sought to be 
 appropriated, shall be made parties defendant by name if the 
 names are known, and by description of the unknown owners of 
 the same if their names are unknown. It shall not be necessary 
 ♦ to make any persons defendant in respect to their ownership un¬ 
 less they are either in actual possession of the premises to be af¬ 
 fected, claiming title, or have a title to the’premises appearing of 
 record upon the proper records of the county. 
 
 Sec. 28. Upon the filing of the petition a summons shall 
 be issued giving such owner at least ten days' notice of the time 
 when' said petition will be heard, which summons shall be served 
 by the sheriff of the county in the same manner as writs of sum¬ 
 mons are or may be by law required to be served. If the name 
 or the residence of the owner be unknown or if the owners or 
 any of them do not reside within the State, notice of the time 
 of hearing the petition reciting the substance of the petition and 
 the day fixed for the hearing thereof shall be given by publication 
 for three weeks successively prior to the time of hearing the peti¬ 
 tion, in a newspaper published in the county. 
 
 i 
 
 See. 29. The court, or judge thereof in vacation, after 
 being satisfied that due notice of the pendency of the petition has 
 been given, shall appoint three disinterested commissioners who 
 shall be freeholders, residents of the county, to assess the dam¬ 
 ages which the owners may severally sustain by reason of such 
 appropriation, who, after having viewed the property shall forth¬ 
 with return under oath such assessment of damages to the clerk 
 of such court setting forth the amount of damages, and the clerk 
 
97 
 
 shall file such report and record the same in the order book of 
 the court. In estimating damages the commissioners shall al¬ 
 ways take into consideration the advantage as well as the dis¬ 
 advantage resulting from the establishment of the said sewer 
 route or sewer to the lands through or over which the same may 
 run. 
 
 Sec. 30. Upon the filing of such report of said commis¬ 
 sioners, the clerk of the court wherein the same is filed shall duly 
 notify the party whose property is affected of the filing thereof. 
 Such report may be reviewed by the court in which the proceed¬ 
 ings are had and on written exceptions filed by either party in 
 the clerk’s office within ten days after the service of the notice 
 aforesaid, the court shall make such order therein as right and 
 justice may require, and may order a new appraisement upon 
 good cause shown. Such new appraisement shall at the request 
 of either party be made by a jury under the supervision of the 
 court as in ordinary cases of inquiry of damages. In all cases, 
 the report of the commissioners when signed by a majority of 
 them shall be taken and considered as the report of all. 
 
 Sec. 31. The cost of the proceedings shall be paid by the 
 city up to and including the filing and copying of the report of 
 the commissioners, and the court, as to any costs made by subse¬ 
 quent litigation, may make such order as in its discretion may be 
 deemed just. The court shall allow the commissioners a reason¬ 
 able allowance for their services, which shall be taxed as costs in 
 the proceedings. 
 
 Sec. 32. Upon the payment to the clerk of said court of the 
 amount so assessed or if a verdict of a jury shall have been ren- * 
 dered of the amount awarded by such jury for the party in whose 
 favor the same has been assessed or awarded, the city may pro¬ 
 ceed to use such natural course of drainage or water course and 
 construct such sewer and appurtenances and to take possession 
 of such lands, and all further and subsequent proceedings shall 
 only affect the amount of compensation to be allowed. 
 
 Sec. 33. The whole cost of acquiring such lands and the 
 use of such course of drainage or water course and of such right- 
 of-way, less such sum as may have been appropriated by the city 
 for that purpose or otherwise paid as aforesaid, shall constitute a 
 lien on all the lands within said district or districts, exclusive of 
 public highways, streets and alleys so declared to be deemed bene¬ 
 fited in proportion to the area of each tract, and shall be collected 
 by a special tax. Such cost shall be computed and apportioned 
 *by the Board of Public Works and set down in a book pro* 
 
98 
 
 vided for that purpose and by said board certified to be correct, 
 and such book, and certificate or a copy thereof, or of any part 
 thereof, certified by said board shall be received in all courts in 
 this state as prima facie evidence of the validity and equality of 
 such special tax and of all steps and proceedings necessary to the 
 validity and collection of such special tax.. Said book, when so 
 certified shall be forthwith turned over to the city treasurer, 
 whose duty it shall be to collect such special tax at the same time 
 the general city taxes are collected. , Such special tax shall bear 
 interest at the rate of seven per cent per annum from the date 
 of such certificate, unless paid within sixty days after such date, 
 and such special tax may be paid to the city treasurer at any time. 
 The city may also collect such special tax by suit foreclosing 
 the lien thereof, before any justice of the peace or municipal 
 court or other court having jurisdiction of the amount sued for. 
 and in any such suit it shall only be necessary for the plaintiff 
 to allege the certification and delivery of such book and the 
 amount and non-payment of the special tax sued for, together 
 with a description of the particular tract of land charged there¬ 
 with. 
 
 Sec. 34. It shall be lawful for any person to advance to the 
 city for the use and benefit of such district or districts so de¬ 
 clared to be deemed benefited the whole or any part of such 
 special tax, the amount advanced to bear interest at the rate of 
 seven per cent per annum until colletced from such special tax. 
 
 A certificate of such advance shall be issued to such person by the 
 Mayor and Comptroller and all sums thereafter collected on such 
 special tax shall be paid over to such person on demand as of the 
 day on which the same was collected until the whole amount so 
 * advanced and interest as aforesaid shall have been duly paid; 
 but the city shall in no event be liable to such person in any man¬ 
 ner whatever for the amount so advanced or any part thereof, 
 but the collections from such special tax shall constitute the only 
 resource for the payment of the same. 
 
 Sec. 35. The cost of constructing any outlet sewer, appur¬ 
 tenances and works in connection therewith or to be used in con¬ 
 nection therewith on or alnog said right-of-way course or drain¬ 
 age or water course or on said land or any part thereof, less such 
 sum as may have been appropriated by the city for that purpose 
 or otherwise paid as aforesaid, shall be paid for wholly or in part 
 in special tax bills against all lands embraced within said dis- . 
 trict or districts, exclusive of public highways, streets, and alleys, 
 in proportion to the area of each tract, the work to be done and 
 the special tax bills to be issued in accordance with the provisions 
 of this charter concerning the construction of district sewers and 
 
99 
 
 the issuing of special tax bills therefor so far as tht same may be 
 applicable. » 
 
 Sec. 36. The Common Council shall have power to ap¬ 
 propriate money for the purposes aforesaid and to pass all or¬ 
 dinances not inconsistent with this charter or the constitution 
 or laws of the State, which may be deemed necessary or expedi¬ 
 ent to further carry out the purpose and intent of this Article. 
 
 i 
 
 Sec. 37. In all cases where the city shall provide by or¬ 
 dinance for the condemnation of land beyond the city limits in 
 the State of Missouri for any purposes specified in this charter 
 where the same is to be paid for by the city out of the general 
 fund, or by the sale of bonds, or in any manner except the 
 assessment of benefits, the proceedings for the condemnation 
 of such land shall be begun and conducted in the Circuit Court 
 of the County where said land to be acquired is situated, and 
 the compensation or damages for the taking of said land shall 
 be ascertained in the same manner provided for acquiring land 
 in Jackson County, as set forth in sections 27, 28, 29, 30, 31 
 and 32 of this Article. 
 
 r 
 
 r 
 
i 
 
 ARTICLE VII. 
 
 Grading. 
 
 Section 1. The Common Council shall have at all times 
 the power to establish the grade and to change the grade already 
 established of any street, alley, avenue, public highway or part 
 thereof, as often as it may be deemed best for the public in¬ 
 terest, and to cause the same or any part thereof to be graded 
 to the established grade or to any change thereof; provided, 
 however, that when a change is proposed to be made in the 
 grade of any street, alley, avenue, public highway or part there¬ 
 of, which has once been established, the Common Council shall 
 by resolution declare the work of improvement to be necessary, 
 and cause such resolution, or the substance thereof, to be pub¬ 
 lished in the newspaper doing the city printing, for ten days 
 (Sundays included), and unless the resident owners of the city 
 who shall own the majority in front feet of all the lands bb 
 longing to such resident owners fronting on the street, alley,, 
 avenue, public highway or part thereof to be improved, shall,, 
 within thirty days after the first day of the publication of such 
 resolution, file with the City Clerk their remonstrance against 
 the proposed change, then the Common Council shall have power 
 by ordinance to cause the proposed change to be made; pro¬ 
 vided, further, however, that no such resolution or ordinance 
 shall be passed by the Common Council, except upon the recom¬ 
 mendation of the Board of Public Works endorsed thereon. If 
 the remonstrance of the resident property owners above men¬ 
 tioned shall be filed with the City Clerk, as herein provided, the- 
 power of the Common Council to make the proposed change in 
 the grade of such street, alley, avenue, public highway or part 
 thereof, shall cease until a sufficient number of persons so re¬ 
 monstrating, or their grantees, shall, in writing, withdraw their 
 names or the property represented by them from such remon¬ 
 strance, so that said remonstrance shall cease to represent a ma¬ 
 jority of the resident owners as above provided, or until the pro¬ 
 posed ordinance establishing or re-establishing such grade shall 
 have been approved by the qualified voters of the city voting- 
 at a general election or at a special election to be held for such 1 
 purpose, whereupon the Council shall have the power to pass^ 
 said proposed ordinance and cause said improvement to be made. 
 
 Sec. 2. When the property owners to be disturbed 01 
 damaged by the grading, or re-grading of any street, alley, ave- 
 
101 
 
 
 nue, public highway or part thereof are lawfully entitled to re¬ 
 muneration or damages under the constitution of the State of 
 Missouri, and shall not have waived any right or claim thereto, 
 the ordinance which shall order the grading or re-grading of 
 any street, avenue, alley, public highway or part thereof, shall 
 also prescribe and determine the limits within which private 
 property is deemed benefited by the proposed grading or re¬ 
 grading. . ‘ 
 
 Sec. 3. Within thirty days after the taking effect of the 
 ordinance, the City Engineer shall furnish the Mayor a map 
 or plat containing a correct description of the several lots qr 
 parcels of private property in the benefit limits prescribed tn 
 said ordinance, but a failure to furnish the map or plat within 
 the specified time shall not invalidate the proceedings. 
 
 Sec. 4. The proceedings hereinafter provided for shall 
 be heard and determined by the Circuit Court of Jackson County, 
 Missouri, at Kansas City, or if not in session, by a judge there¬ 
 of, and when they are had in vacation the same record thereof 
 shall be made and kept as if such proceedings had been had in 
 term time; provided, however, that whenever it is deemed ad¬ 
 visable by the Common Council, and upon ordinance therefor, 
 the proceedings hereinafter provided for in this Article may be 
 commenced in the first instance and maintained and determined 
 in the Municipal Court of the City, and such court shall have 
 original, full and complete control and jurisdiction thereof, and 
 of the parties thereto, and such proceedings may be commenced, 
 maintained and determined as near as may be in similar manner, 
 with similar procedure and like process and service thereof as 
 is hereinafter provided for the procedure in the Circuit Court of 
 Jackson County, Missouri, at Kansas City; and whenever, in 
 such event, the Mayor of the City shall file, or cause to be filed, 
 in the Municipal Court a duly certified copy of the ordinance of 
 the city providing for such grading or re-grading with the state¬ 
 ment by map or plat above provided for, the Municipal Court 
 shall become fully possessed of the proceedings with full power 
 therein, and have complete and full control and jurisdiction 
 thereof. In such case the Municipal Court shall, upon applica¬ 
 tion of the city, make all orders and take such steps and follow 
 such procedure as is hereinafter provided for the Circuit Court 
 of Jackson County, Missouri, at Kansas City, or the judge 
 thereof. 
 
 In case the city or any person affected by the proceedings 
 shall feel aggrieved by the verdict of the jury in the Municipal 
 Court, he may, within twenty days of the filing of the verdict* 
 
102 
 
 appeal to the Circuit Court of Jackson County, Missouri, at 
 Kansas City. Such appeal shall be perfected in the manner 
 provided in Section 6 of Article VI of this charter, and upon 
 the perfection of such appeal, said cause shall be tried de novo 
 in the said Circuit Court. If said cause be so tried in the Mu¬ 
 nicipal Court and be not appealed, as above provided, the sev¬ 
 eral lots or parcels .of private property assessed to pay compen¬ 
 sation shall stand charged and be bound respectively for the 
 payment of such assessments, with the lien thereof charged from 
 the date of enactment of the ordinance for the improvement, 
 until paid. If such assessment be not paid within sixty days 
 after the rendition of the verdict, the same shall bear interest 
 at the rate, and shall be collected in the manner provided by 
 Section 4 of Article VI of this charter. 
 
 Sec. 5. When the Mayor shall file or cause to be filed, a 
 certified copy of said ordinance, with a copy of the map or plat 
 provided for in Section 3 of this Article, in the Circuit Court, 
 or with the clerk thereof, such court, or the judge thereof, shall 
 fix a day and place for assessing the damages and benefits to 
 arise from the proposed grading or re-grading, and shall make 
 an order reciting the title of the ordinance and stating the gen¬ 
 eral object and nature of the ordinance; and also stating the 
 limits within which private property is benefited by the pro¬ 
 posed grading or re-grading, as determined and prescribed by 
 the ordinance, and said order shall be directed to all whom it 
 may concern, without naming them, notifying them of the day 
 and place fixed for the ascertaining of damages and benefits to 
 arise from said grading or re-grading, and that unless they file 
 their claim for damages as herein required they - shall there¬ 
 after be precluded from making any claim on account thereof, 
 which order may be substantially in the following form, to-wit: 
 
 “Kansas City, Missouri. 
 
 TO ALL WHOM IT MAY CONCERN: Notice is here¬ 
 by given that a certified copy of an ordinance of Kansas City, 
 
 Missouri, No., approved on the . day of 
 
 .. 19_, entitled “.,” has been duly 
 
 filed and presented to this Division No. ........ of the Circuit 
 
 Court of Jackson County, Missouri, at Kansas City, which or¬ 
 dinance provides for the grading (or re-grading) of . .•. 
 
 street in said city, from.street to.street 
 
 as specified therein; that private property may be disturbed or 
 damaged by said proposed grading and that the owner or owners 
 thereof and parties interested may be entitled to remuneration; 
 that the limits prescribed and determined by said ordinance 
 within which private property is deemed benefited and may be 
 
103 
 
 assessed to pay said remuneration are as follows: ‘Commencing 
 
 .to beginning’; that the.day of. 
 
 19...., is the day, and the court room of said court in the 
 county court house in Kansas City, Missouri, is the place fixed 
 by the court for the ascertaining and assessing of the damages 
 and benefits to arise from said proposed grading; that unless 
 claimants for damages file claim therefor before the day fixed - 
 aforesaid, or before the day to which said proceedings may be 
 postponed or continued, they will thereafter be precluded from 
 making any claim for remuneration and that property assessed 
 with benefits to pay remuneration will be sold if assessment is 
 not paid. 
 
 Attest: 
 
 A copy of such order shall be published in each issue of a 
 newspaper at the time doing the city printing, for ten days 
 (Sundays included), the last insertion to be not more than one 
 week prior to the day so fixed for said hearing. The court, or 
 judge thereof, may, at the time of making said order, further 
 order that all or any portion of the residents of the city owning 
 or having an interest in real estate fronting on the street, alle>, 
 avenue, public highway or part thereof, proposed to be graded 
 or re-graded, or in the real estate within the limits of the dis¬ 
 trict prescribed by the ordinance within which private property 
 is deemed benefited by the proposed grading or re-grading be 
 served with a copy of said order, either by delivering to each 
 of such owners a copy of the order or leaving such copy at their 
 usual place of abode with some member of their respective fam¬ 
 ilies over the age of fifteen years, and in the case of resident 
 corporations, by service of said order in like manner as with 
 summons in ordinary civil causes. If service of such notice 
 cannot be made on any or all of such parties as above described, 
 within the city limits, when personal service is ordered by said 
 court, or judge, the return on such notice shall so state. There¬ 
 upon an alias order, specifying a different date, may be made 
 by said court, or judge, if deemed advisable, notifying such un¬ 
 served parties of the facts, as in case of original notice above 
 provided. Said cause may be continued or postponed from time 
 to time. It shall not be required in any case to bring in any per¬ 
 son other than the owners of the property or those interested 
 therein, who were such at the time of the taking effect of the 
 ordinance providing for the improvement, and the parties claim¬ 
 ing or holding through or under such owners or parties inter¬ 
 ested, or any of them, shall be bound by the proceedings as fully 
 as if they were brought in; but any person having any interest 
 
104 
 
 in the real estate liable to be affected by said proceeding may, 
 upon application and entering his appearance, be made a party 
 thereto; but no notice of said proceedings shall be necessary, to 
 the validity thereof, except the publication of the order, as here¬ 
 in provided. Notice so given by publication shall be sufficient 
 to authorize the court, or the judge thereof in vacation, to hear 
 .and determine the cause and to make any finding or order there¬ 
 in as though all the parties had been sued by their proper names 
 and had been personally served. Affidavit by the publisher, 
 manager, or any person connected with the newspaper in which 
 such order was published/ accompanied with a copy of the no¬ 
 tice, shall be evidence of the fact of the publication of the notice 
 or order as stated therein. At any time before the day set for 
 the hearing or before the day to which said cause may have been 
 postponed or continued as designated in either of aforesaid no¬ 
 tices, any person claiming damages by reason of the aforesaid 
 grading or re-grading, may file, or cause to be filed, with the 
 clerk of said court, a description of the property claimed to be 
 damaged and the interest of the claimant therein. The clerk 
 shall note the filing of such claim a6 a part of the record of said 
 cause. If no claim be filed before the day set for the hearing 
 ■of said cause, or the day to which said cause has been postponed 
 or continued, as above provided, the court, or judge thereof, in 
 vacation, shall make an order finding that no such claim has 
 been filed, and thereupon the grading or re-grading may then 
 l>e done, or made, and no claim for damages therefor shall 
 thereafter be made or considered. The service of any notice or 
 process required by this article or ordered by the court, or judge 
 thereof in vacation, may be made by a policeman of the city, or 
 by any constable or other officer authorized to serve or return 
 notices, and any return of service by a policeman, constable or 
 other officer shall be evidence of the facfs therein stated. 
 
 Sec. 6. On the day set for hearing, if notice has been 
 given as hereinbefore required, the court, or judge, shall appoint 
 and cause to be empaneled a board of commissioners composed 
 of six men, who shall be disinterested freeholders of the city, 
 and such commissioners shall be allowed the same fee that jurors 
 are allowed for their services. The term “disinterested free¬ 
 holder/’ as used in this article, shall not be so construed or de¬ 
 fined as to exclude or disqualify any person interested in prop¬ 
 erty by reason of the fact that he is trustee in a deed of trust 
 upon property taken or damaged or within the benefit limits. 
 
 • ... 
 
 Sec. 7. The commissioners provided for in the preceding 
 section shall be sworn to ascertain and report the actual dam- 
 
105 
 
 ages, or just compensation, to be paid in each case separately,, 
 as well as the benefits to be assessed, under such instructions as 
 shall, after hearing the parties, be given them by the court or 
 judge. The parties interested may submit evidence to the com¬ 
 missioners, and the commissioners shall examine personally each 
 piece of property described on such map or plat, and all prop¬ 
 erty claimed to be damaged by such proposed grading or re¬ 
 grading. The commissioners shall ascertain and state in the 
 report or verdict: 
 
 First : The amount of actual damage to each piece of pri¬ 
 vate property that will be damaged by reason of the proposed 
 grading or re-grading, making just allowance for all special 
 benefits to such piece of property from such .grading or re-grad¬ 
 ing, and when the damages to any piece of property do not ex¬ 
 ceed the benefits thereto from the proposed improvement, the 
 commissioners shall not report any allowance or damages to 
 such piece. 
 
 Second : If the commissioners shall find that private prop¬ 
 erty is actually damaged by reason of the proposed improvement,, 
 to pay the total amount of such damages allowed, they shall 
 first assess against the city such sum as is equal to the amount 
 of benefits the city at large will receive from the proposed, im¬ 
 provement, and the balance of the sum so awarded as damages 
 and not assessed against the city the commissioners shall assess 
 against the private property within the benefit limits prescribed 
 in the ordinance, but excluding from such assessment any piece 
 of private property to which damages are awarded on account 
 of the proposed improvement, when the damages allowed exceed 
 the benefits assessed against such piece of private property; and 
 no piece of private property shall be assessed with benefits in 
 any amount in excess of the actual benefits which the same will 
 receive by reason of the proposed improvement; and in deter¬ 
 mining such actual benefits to any piece of private property, the 
 damages which it may have sustained, but for which no claim 
 was made, shall be taken into consideration by the commission¬ 
 ers. If the commissioners cannot agree the court may discharge 
 them, and may proceed to empanel another board; but the order 
 to empanel a new board of commissioners must be made on the 
 day of discharging any board of commissioners and must name 
 the time and place of empaneling the new board. 
 
 Sec. 8 . The verdict of the board of commissioners shall 
 be signed by each commissioner, and delivered to the court or 
 judge on the day fixed for such report at the hearing of the same 
 unless said commissioners are granted further time by the court 
 or judge. Such report or verdict shall contain a .correct de- 
 
106 
 
 scription of each lot or parcel of property damaged, the names 
 of the claimants, and the amount of damages thereto; also the 
 amount of benefits assessed against the city, together with a 
 correct description of each lot or parcel of private property as¬ 
 sessed with benefits and the amount assessed against the same. 
 The city engineer, or his assistant shall, when requested by the 
 court or judge, put the verdict or report in proper form. The 
 court or judge may, on its or his own motion, or on the motion 
 of the city, or of any party interested in the proceedings, for 
 good cause, set aside the verdict or report of any board of com¬ 
 missioners, and thereupon appoint a new board to perform the 
 duties in this article prescribed, and fix a time and place for 
 empaneling such other board and a rehearing of the whole mat¬ 
 ter. The court costs, up to and including the judgment, and 
 costs of giving the notices herein, shall be paid by the city. 
 
 Sec. 9. The verdict and report shall, unless set aside, be 
 confirmed by the court or judge thereof, and judgment entered 
 thereon that the city pay the damages assessed therein, and that 
 the city recover the respective amounts assessed against private 
 property, and that the several lots or parcels of private prop¬ 
 erty, so assessed to pay compensation by the verdict or report, 
 stand severally charged and be bound for the payment of the 
 respective assessments, also the interest and costs that may ac¬ 
 crue thereon. Such judgment shall be by the clerk docketed 
 and indexed in the books used for that purpose, as provided for 
 in Section 12, Article VI, of this charter. Such judgment may 
 be enforced by a special execution if the same is not paid, or as 
 to the portion not paid. The judgment as to the benefits as¬ 
 sessed against private property shall bear interest at the rate 
 of seven per cent per annum from the date of such judgment, 
 unless appealed from; but in case of an appeal, interest shall 
 be charged only from date of affirmance or dismissal of the 
 appeal in the Appellate Court. The execution herein authorized 
 shall be deemed sufficient if it recites the date of the judgment, 
 the amount assessed against each tract described therein, the 
 rate of interest thereon, and the date when it begins to accrue 
 and state that such tract or tracts were assessed to pay com¬ 
 pensation for damages to private property for grading or re¬ 
 grading of a street, alley, avenue, public highway or part there¬ 
 of, as the same may be, giving the title and date of approval of 
 the ordinance ordering such grading or re-grading, and com¬ 
 mand the officer to whom such execution is directed to sell each 
 tract or parcel of property therein described, or so much thereof 
 as may be necessary to satisfy the assessment and interest and 
 costs due thereon. 
 
107 
 
 Sec. 10. In all cases where the grading or re-grading of 
 a street, alley, avenue, boulevard or public highway or part 
 thereof, would cause an embankment or fill to be made, leaving 
 any abutting property below the proposed grade of the street, 
 the common council shall have authority in the ordinance for 
 such grading to provide for the condemnation of an easement 
 in said abutting property, or a right to support said embank¬ 
 ment or fill so far as may be necessary to bring the street to the 
 required grade, and by allowing the material of which said em¬ 
 bankment is made to fall upon the abutting land at the natural 
 slope so that the surface of said street may be graded the full 
 width thereof. In such case the Board of Public Works shall 
 prepare a plat showing a profile of the portion of the street, 
 avenue, alley, boulevard or other public highway proposed to 
 be graded, and indicate thereon approximately the amount of 
 the encroachment of the embankment upon the abutting prop¬ 
 erty. Said plat shall be referred to and identified in said or¬ 
 dinance. In such cases the notice to be given shall state that 
 such easement is sought to be acquired in said proceedings. 
 
 Such easement acquired by the city shall not prevent the 
 use of property to the line of the street by the owner or occu¬ 
 pant thereof, provided that if he shall remove the support of 
 an embankment he shall support the same by a sufficient wall, 
 or by some other method satisfactory to the city engineer. In 
 all cases where an easement shall be condemned as herein pro¬ 
 vided, any person interested in any property affected thereby 
 who makes claim for damages therefor as provided in case of 
 damages on account of such grading, shall be entitled to have 
 the commissioners determine the damages caused by said ease¬ 
 ment in addition to the damages provided for in Section 7 of 
 this Article. 
 
 Any person interested in any property affected by such 
 proceedings, who fails to file a claim for damages within the 
 time and in the manner herein provided for the filing of a 
 claim for damages on account of the proposed grading shall be 
 deemed to have waived the same. 
 
 Sec. 11. Any party aggrieved by the judgment may take 
 an appeal therefrom by filing such affidavit as is required in 
 appealing civil cases, and filing a bond in such sum and with 
 such security as may be approved by the Circuit Court, or the 
 judge thereof in vacation, conditioned that the party appeal¬ 
 ing, should the judgment be affirmed by the Appellate Court, 
 or if such appeal should be dismissed, shall pay all costs of 
 such appeal. The bond or affidavit for such appeal, however, 
 shall be filed within twenty days from the date of the judgment, 
 and the appeal shall be perfected within sixty days from the 
 
108 
 
 date of the judgment, unless further time be granted by the 
 court. In case of appeal, the judgment shall stand suspended 
 until the appeal is disposed of, and no interest shall be collected 
 on assessments until such appeal be affirmed or dismissed; pro¬ 
 vided, however, that the party appealing shall pay interest at 
 the rate of seven per cent, per annum on his assessment unless 
 such appeal is reversed. No writ of error shall be allowed. The 
 clerk of the Appellate Court shall put such case upon the docket 
 for hearing at the next term of that court, if the appeal is 
 allowed. No error or defect not affecting the rights of the 
 appellant shall work a reversal of the judgment. 
 
 Sec. 12. The proceedings herein shall in all respects not 
 herein provided for conform as near as may be to the practice 
 and procedure in civil cases, including the sale under execution 
 and the making of deeds to purchasers. The city shall have 
 power to purchase at such sales. 
 
 Sec. 13. Should no claim for damages be filed at any 
 time before the day set for hearing as provided in this article, 
 or if the verdict or report of the commissioners shall declare 
 that no damages will result to private property from the pro¬ 
 posed grading or re-grading, or if damages assessed by said 
 verdict or report shall be paid to the owners, or into court for 
 them, the city may proceed to cause the grading or re-grading 
 to be done according to the ordinance. Payment to the clerk 
 of the court for the owner shall be deemed a payment into 
 court of any damages assessed. 
 
 i 
 
 Sec. 14. The proceedings herein prescribed for ascertain¬ 
 ing the damages or compensation to private property from* grad¬ 
 ing or re-grading of streets, avenues, alleys, public highways 
 or parts thereof, shall be taken and held by the courts as ex¬ 
 cluding every other method or remedy for such ascertainment. 
 Any person failing to receive an award of damages in the pro¬ 
 ceedings herein authorized shall be held concluded by the ver¬ 
 dict or report of the commissioners and the judgment thereon; 
 and such verdict or report shall in every other proceeding, legal 
 and equitable, be taken and held as conclusive as to what pri¬ 
 vate property will be damaged and benefited,, or either, and 
 the extent thereof, by the proposed grading or re-grading, sub¬ 
 ject to review only as herein allowed: Provided, however, that 
 should the court or judge upon evidence find that the benefit 
 district prescribed by the common council is unreasonable, it or 
 he can so declare and cause an entry of such finding to be placed 
 on record in the cause; and such finding shall cause all the pro- 
 ceedmgs had under such ordinance to be null and void; and an 
 
109 
 
 appeal from such finding of the court or judge may be taken 
 in the same manner as in any ordinary civil case. The inquiry 
 as to the reasonableness or unreasonableness of the ordinance 
 in the matter mentioned may be heard and determined by the 
 court or judge before the submission of any other testimony 
 in the case, or it may be submitted and disposed of' by the court 
 at any time before the verdict or report of the commissioners. 
 
 Sec. 15. When damages are assessed to any piece or par¬ 
 cel of private property and paid into court, the right to such 
 damages, if there be more than one claimant, may be deter¬ 
 mined by the court on motion of any party claiming an interest 
 therein, but the costs resulting from such motion shall not be 
 assessed against the city. The court may require the claimant 
 to interplead for the fund according to equity. 
 
 Sec. 16. The city shall have the power at any time before 
 any of the parties assessed with benefits shall have paid the 
 amount so assessed, to repeal the ordinance ordering the pro¬ 
 posed grading or re-grading, if such repeal be deemed for the 
 best interests of the city, and in such event the judgment for 
 damages and benefits shall become void. 
 
 Sec. 17. It shall be the duty of the city treasurer to re¬ 
 ceive the benefit assessments, on private property at any time 
 after the conclusion of the proceedings before the issuance of 
 execution. Payment of the benefits to the city treasurer as pro¬ 
 vided in this section shall operate as a satisfaction of the judg¬ 
 ment therefor and the lien on the land charged therewith. 
 
 Sec. 18. In addition to the method hereinbefore provided 
 in this article for ascertaining the damages, if any, arising frorfi 
 proposed grading or re-grading, of any street, avenue, alley 
 o^ public highway or part thereof, whenever the city shall deem 
 it necessary, and by ordinance so determine, it may adopt the 
 same procedure for ascertaining the damages caused by such 
 grading or re-grading as is prescribed in the general laws of 
 the State for the appropriation and valuation of lands taken for 
 telegraph, telephone, gravel and plank or railroad purposes, 
 being Chapter 12 of Article VII of the Revised Statutes of 
 Missouri of 1899. Upon paying to the clerk of the Circuit 
 Court the amount of damages awarded, the city shall have the 
 right to proceed with such grading or re-grading, notwith¬ 
 standing the filing of exceptions to such award, and any sub¬ 
 sequent proceedings shall only effect the amount of compensa¬ 
 tion to be paid. 
 
ARTICLE VIII. 
 
 Public Improvements. 
 
 Section 1. The city shall have power to acquire and 
 cause to be made, all public improvements designated in this 
 article, to pay therefor, in whole or in part, out of the general 
 fund, or in whole or in part by special assessments, and to make 
 and levy, assess and collect special assessments to pay therefor, 
 and to issue special tax bills to evidence such assessments, 
 t 
 
 Sec. 2. All ordinances and contracts for all work au¬ 
 thorized to be done by this article shall specify how the same 
 is to be paid for, and in case payment is to be made to the con¬ 
 tractor in special tax bills, the city shall in no event, nor in 
 any manner, be liable for or on account of the work. All city 
 improvements of whatever kind or character, made or to be 
 constructed at the expense of the city, including all work to 
 be paid for in special tax bills, except as in this charter pro¬ 
 vided otherwise, shall be let by contract to the lowest and best 
 bidder; provided, however, that nothing in this section shall 
 be so construed as to prevent repair by day’s work of streets, 
 alleys and other public places, curbing, sewers, culverts, build¬ 
 ings or other city property so far as may be necessary under 
 the direction of the Board of Public Works. 
 
 In specifying the character of the materials 1 for, or mode 
 of construction of the pavements or roadways, or the construc¬ 
 tion of curbing or sidewalks, the city shall not limit the ma¬ 
 terials to be used to those taken from any specific place, mine 
 or quarry, or to the material of any particular owner or manu¬ 
 facturer, or to any patented process or material, but the Board 
 of Public Works may arrange plans and specifications for bids 
 in such manner as to permit any such materials to enter into 
 competition, and any contract made with the lowest and best 
 bidder under such p^ans and specifications, if confirmed by or¬ 
 dinance, shall be valid. 
 
 The boad may reject any and all bids. 
 
 Sec. 3. All proceedings to improve streets, avenues, alleys, 
 sidewalks and public highways of every character, and parts 
 thereof, within the city, by grading, re-grading the same, pav¬ 
 ing or re-paving the same, with any material, macadamizing 
 or re-macadamizing or oiling the same, constructing or recon¬ 
 structing the same, curbing or re-curbing the same, guttering 
 
Ill 
 
 or re-guttering the same, or repairing the same, constructing 
 bridges, viaducts, tunnels, subways or cuts on or along oir 
 under the same and the maintenance and repair of any or all 
 of such improvements during a stated term of years, and by 
 -sodding, re-sodding and the planting or re-planting of trees and 
 maintaining them for a term of years along the same, or along 
 any part thereof, excepting boulevards under park commission¬ 
 ers, or a proceeding for constructing or reconstructing public, 
 district or joint district sewers, shall be begun by the adoption 
 of a resolution by the Board of Public Works, which resolution 
 shall state the nature of the improvement and when the same 
 is to be paid for in whole or in part in special tax bills, the 
 method of making assessments to pay therefor. 
 
 After the adoption of any such resolution the Board of 
 Public Works shall, by order, fix a day upon which a hearing 
 in respect to such improvement shall be had, which day shall 
 be within thirty days after the date when such order is made, 
 and shall cause to be published for ten days in the newspaper 
 at the time doing the city printing, and if there be no such 
 paper, then in any other newspaper published in the city, a 
 notice directed to the property owners interested in the im¬ 
 provement without naming them, which notice shall recite the 
 substance of the resolution and that a hearing will be had by 
 the said board at their office concerning the proposed improve¬ 
 ment, and the date upon which the hearing shall be had. 
 
 On the date fixed for such hearing any and all property 
 owners interested in such improvement may, by written peti¬ 
 tion, or otherwise, present their views in respect to the pro¬ 
 posed improvement to the said board, and the said board may 
 adjourn the hearing from time to time. After such hearing, 
 if the said board shall determine that it is not for the public 
 interest that the proposed improvement, or a part thereof, be 
 made and paid for, either out of the general fund or by any 
 method of assessment, they shall make an order to that effect, 
 and thereupon the proceeding for the improvement, or part 
 thereof determined against by such order, shall stop and shall 
 not be begun again until the adoption of a new resolution. 
 
 In case the improvement or part thereof consists of pav¬ 
 ing or re-paving, macadamizing or re-macadamizing the road¬ 
 way of a street, avenue, alley or part thereof, which shall not 
 have been found and declared to be used and occupied for busi¬ 
 ness purposes, as hereinafter specified, and the resident owners 
 of the city owning a majority of the front feet of all the lands 
 belonging to such residents and fronting on the street, avenue, 
 alley or part thereof to be paved or macadamized, shall file 
 with the said board, on or before the day fixed for such hearing, 
 
112 
 
 a remonstrance against such paving or macadamizing, the power 
 of the board to make the improvement shall cease for the period 
 of six months from the date of the filing of such remonstrance, 
 after the lapse of which period the proceeding may be begun 
 by the adoption of a new resolution. 
 
 In case the proposed improvement consists of paving or 
 re-paving, macadamizing or re-macadamizing as aforesaid, then, 
 in that event, upon the unanimous recommendation of the Board 
 of Public Works, if each house of the common council shall, 
 by ordinance, find and declare by a vote of two-thirds of the 
 members-elect of each house that the street, avenue, alley, pub¬ 
 lic highway, or part thereof on which the proposed improve¬ 
 ment is to be made is used or occupied for business purposes, 
 and that the improvement has been unanimously recommended 
 by the Board of Public Works, such finding and declaration 
 shall be final and conclusive for all purposes, and no special 
 tax bills that may be issued to pay for the work shall be held 
 invalid or affected for the reason that the work for which they 
 may have been issued was not unanimously recommended by 
 the Board of Public Works, or that such street, avenue, alley, 
 public highway or part thereof was not in fact used or occu¬ 
 pied for business purposes, and the improvement shall proceed 
 regardless of any remonstrance. 
 
 After the expiration of the respective periods during which 
 an improvement may be arrested, as aforesaid, a proceeding 
 may be begun and carried forward for the improvement so de¬ 
 termined against or remonstrated against as though no former 
 proceedings had been begun. If no such determination against 
 the improvement is made, or if only a part of the proposed im¬ 
 provement be determined against by said board, the said board 
 shall adopt and perfect plans and specifications for the proposed 
 improvement not determined against, or for an improvement 
 of the same general nature, including, if they deem proper, 
 provisions for the maintenance thereof for a stated period, and 
 in case a macadam or gravel street roadway pavement is pro¬ 
 vided for, there may be included as an essential part of the main¬ 
 tenance thereof specifications for the rolling and oiling of such 
 pavement at intervals during a stated period. 
 
 After the passing of such resolution and the adoption of 
 such plans and specifications, the Board of Public Works shall 
 advertise for. bids for the doing of the work by publication for 
 not less than five days, and shall let the contract to the lowest 
 and best bidder therefor, and shall cause the contract so let to 
 be formally executed by the contractor and by said board on 
 behalf' of the city, and the same, before it shall be binding and 
 effective, shall be ratified, approved and confirmed by an or- 
 
113 
 
 dinance of the said city, as hereinafter specified, and when so 
 ratified, approved and confirmed shall in all respects be consid¬ 
 ered and held to have been authorized by the city. 
 
 The Board of Public Works, at any time before any con¬ 
 tract is so ratified, approved and confirmed, may rescind by an 
 order entered on the records of said board, the action of said 
 board in signing said contract in behalf of the city, and there¬ 
 upon all proceedings had in relation to such proposed improve¬ 
 ment shall be null and void. The city shall have power, by or¬ 
 dinance, for any good cause, to extend the time of the begin¬ 
 ning or of the completion of the work under any such contract, 
 and an ordinance of the city purporting to extend the time 
 therefor, shall be conclusive evidence of the existence of good 
 cause for such extension. But all such ordinances for exten¬ 
 sions must have endorsed thereon the approval of the Board 
 of Public Works; and said board shall not endorse said ap¬ 
 proval until the city engineer shall file with said board his veri¬ 
 fied certificate stating the reasons for granting such extension, 
 and that said extension is made in good faith for the reason 
 therein specified, and for none other. 
 
 The ordinance ratifying, approving and confirming the con¬ 
 tract as above provided for, shall also provide for and author¬ 
 ize the improvement, and shall state the nature of the improve¬ 
 ment, and this may be done by a reference to the plans and 
 specifications therefor, and such ordinance shall state how the 
 cost thereof shall be paid; that is, whether the cost thereof is 
 to be paid by the issuance of special tax bills, or out of the 
 general fund, or whether by one method or the other, in whole 
 or in part, and if by the issuance of special tax bills, how the 
 assessments therefor shall be made and levied. The said board 
 shall endorse their approval on the ordinance. The common 
 council may amend such ordinance by altering the limits of a 
 proposed benefit district in all cases where the dimensions and 
 boundaries of such district are not specifically defined by this 
 charter, but may not make any other amendment, and shall pass 
 or reject the same. 
 
 When the cost of the whole or any part of the improve¬ 
 ments referred to in this section is to be paid by special tax bills 
 evidencing assessments against lands, such assessments shall be 
 made, levied and assessed according to one of the methods in 
 this article prescribed. Such method shall be specified in the 
 resolution of the Board of Public Works and also in the or¬ 
 dinance confirming the contract for doing the work. In mak¬ 
 ing assessments to pay for work other than for grading or re¬ 
 grading, and other than for constructing district sewers and 
 joint district sewers, the Board of Public Works shall compute 
 
114 
 
 the. cost thereof and apportion the same among the several 
 tracts or parcels of land to be charged therewith, and charge 
 each lot or parcel of land with its proper share of such cost 
 according to the frontage of such land on the street, avenue, 
 alley or highway, or part thereof, named in the contract for the 
 doing of the work. In making assessments for special tax bills 
 to pay for grading or re-grading any street, sidewalk, avenue, 
 or public highway, or part thereof, the city assessor shall, on 
 demand of the Board of Public Works, cause an assessment 
 to be made of the value of all the lands to be charged with the 
 cost of such grading or re-grading, exclusive of the improve¬ 
 ments thereon, and shall deliver such assessment to the Board 
 of Public Works, who shall compute the cost of such grading 
 or re-grading and apportion such cost among the several lots 
 or parcels of land to be charged, according to the value thereof, 
 fixed by the city assessor as aforesaid, and charge each lot or 
 parcel of land with its proper share of such cost. 
 
 When the work of grading or re-grading streets, avenues 
 or public highways is to be paid for in special tax bills, the cost 
 shall be apportioned and paid as follows: The cost of all 
 grading, including the grading of sidewalks, shall be charged 
 as a special tax on all lands on both sides of the street, avenue 
 alley or public highway, or part thereof, graded, with in the fol¬ 
 lowing limits, viz.: In case the land fronting on the street, avenue 
 or public highway, or part thereof, graded, be laid off in lots 
 or blocks, property so laid off from the line of the street, ave¬ 
 nue or public highway, or part thereof, graded, back to the cen¬ 
 ter line of the block or blocks, shall be so charged, whether 
 fronting on the street, avenue or public highway or not; never¬ 
 theless, the common council shall have power by ordinance to 
 prescribe that such lands shall not be charged beyond the alleys 
 in such blocks, if deemed just and equitable, and in case any 
 land fronting on such street, avenue or 'public highway, or part 
 thereof, graded, be not laid off into lots or blocks, then the 
 land not so laid off, and the land in the rear thereof on the 
 line of the street, avenue or public highway, or part thereof, 
 graded, back one hundred and fifty feet, shall be so charged, 
 whether fronting on the street or not; and land liable for such 
 * grading shall be charged according to the value thereof, ex¬ 
 clusive of improvements thereon, as herein provided; and in 
 case of question on the part of the assessor or Board of Public 
 Works as to whether any lands fronting on the street, avenue 
 or public highway, or part thereof, be laid off into lots or blocks, 
 or not, within the meaning of this section, the common council 
 shall, on the request of the assessor or Board of Public Works, 
 in making out special tax bills and charging the lands for such 
 
 & 
 
115 
 
 grading, determine whether or not any particular land or lands 
 fronting on the street, avenue, public highway, or part thereof, 
 graded, be laid off or not into lots or blocks within the mean¬ 
 ing of this section, and such determination shall be conclusive 
 on all parties interested for all purposes. The cost of all work 
 on any sidewalk, including curbing and guttering along the side 
 thereof, exclusive of the grading of the same, shall be charged 
 as a special tax upon the adjoining lands according to the front¬ 
 age thereof on the sidewalk. The cost of all work mentioned 
 in this section of this article done on spaces fronting on any 
 other street, avenue, alley or public highway, shall be deemed 
 part of the costs of work done on other spaces under the same 
 ordinance and contract, and be charged and paid for accord- 
 ingly. _ 
 
 In making out special tax bills against corner lots for work 
 on sidewalks, other than grading, and for work of curbing, 
 they shall be charged for work on both fronts and on the out¬ 
 side corners. A single contract may be let and entered into 
 to do various kinds of work when payment is to be made there¬ 
 for in special tax bills, and when any kind of work shall be 
 fully completed, tax bills therefor may be issued; but in case 
 of a general contract for repairs, as provided in Section 16 of 
 this article, tax bills may be issued from time to time as sep¬ 
 arate jobs of repairing may be done. 
 
 Sec. 4. The Board of Public Works is invested with 
 power to determine whether any improvement constructed un¬ 
 der a contract with the city has been completed in accordance 
 with the terms of the contract therefor, and to accept such im¬ 
 provement on the part of the city, and to determine the amount 
 of the liquidated damages, if any, to be paid by the contractor 
 in accordance with the terms of the contract therefor, for fail¬ 
 ure to comply with the contract, and to ascertain, in case the 
 cost or part thereof is to be paid in special tax bills, the amount 
 that each tract of land shall be assessed or charged for the pay¬ 
 ment of the cost of such work. 
 
 The board shall at the time of accepting any improvement 
 on the part of the city, make an order or orders, by which they 
 shall accept such improvement and determine the price thereof 
 to be paid the contractor, and make and levy an assessment 
 against the tracts of land, exclusive of improvements, to be as¬ 
 sessed to pay therefor, the aggregate of which assessments shall 
 equal the amount of the cost of such Work to be paid in special 
 tax bills; and said board shall issue and deliver to the con¬ 
 tractor, or to his assignee, tax bills to be dated the day when 
 such tax bills and apportionment are certified to the city treas- 
 
116 
 
 urer in payment of the price of such improvement to be paid 
 for by special tax bills. 
 
 Sec. 5. The general sewer system of the city shall be 
 divided into four classes, to-wit: Public, district, joint district 
 and private sewers. The city may, by ordinance, find and de¬ 
 termine the class to which any sewer belongs, and the finding 
 and determination of the city in that respect shall be final and 
 conclusive. 
 
 Sec. 6. Public sewers shall be established and constructed 
 at such times, to such extent, and of such dimensions and ma¬ 
 terials as may be approved by the Board of Public Works, and 
 under such regulations as may be provided by ordinance, and 
 these may be extensions or branches of sewers already con¬ 
 structed, or to be constructed, or entirely new throughout, as 
 may be deemed expedient. Public sewers shall be paid for out 
 of the general fund of the city; provided, however, that if in 
 the construction of any public, district, or joint district sewer 
 the bed or channel of any natural stream or water course is re¬ 
 claimed and made valuable to the owners thereof, or real prop¬ 
 erty subject to overflow is reclaimed therefrom, in whole or 
 in part, and made valuable to the owners thereof, or real prop¬ 
 erty adjoining such public sewer is otherwise specially bene¬ 
 fited, then the common council may provide that such real prop¬ 
 erty, or any of it, shall be assessed for such special benefits, and 
 the funds derived therefrom shall be used and applied toward 
 the cost and construction of such public, district or joint dis¬ 
 trict sewer. Such proceeding and assessment may be made and 
 collected in such manner as may be provided by ordinance. 
 
 Sec. 7. District sewers shall be constructed or recon¬ 
 structed within the limits of the districts heretofore or here¬ 
 after established by ordinance, as the case may be. Any sewer 
 district heretofore or hereafter established may be subdivided, 
 enlarged or changed by ordinance at any time previous to the 
 construction of any district sewer therein. But no such dis¬ 
 trict shall be subdivided, enlarged or changed after a district 
 sewer shall have been constructed therein. The city may, with 
 the approval of the Board of Public Works, from time to time, 
 cause a district sewer or sewers to be constructed or recon¬ 
 structed in any sewer district heretofore or hereafter estab¬ 
 lished, and such sewer or sewers shall be as shall be prescribed 
 by the Board of Public Works and confirmed as herein re¬ 
 quired by ordinance. Any district sewer heretofore or here¬ 
 after constructed, may be changed, diminished, enlarged or ex¬ 
 tended. and shall have such laterals, inlets and other appurte- 
 
117 
 
 nances as may be prescribed by the Board of Public Works and 
 confirmed by ordinance. As soon as the work of constructing, 
 changing, diminishing, enlarging or extending any district 
 sewer shall have been completed under a contract let for the 
 purpose, the Board of Public Works shall compute the whole 
 cost thereof, and apportion and charge the same as a special 
 tax against the lots of land in the district, exclusive of the im¬ 
 provements, and in the proportion that their respective areas 
 bear to the area of the whole district, exclusive of the streets, ave¬ 
 nues, alleys and public highways, and shall, except as in this 
 article provided, make out and certify in favor of the contractor or 
 contractors to be pa : d, special tax bills for the amount of the 
 special tax against each lot or parcel of land in the district. The 
 city shall in no event, nor in any manner whatever, be liable 
 for or on account of the cost of work done in constructing, 
 changing, diminishing, enlarging or extending any district 
 sewer, except as in this article provided. 
 
 Sec. 8. Whenever the city may deem it necessary that a 
 sewer should be constructed or reconstructed in any part of 
 the city containing two or more sewer districts it may, by or¬ 
 dinance, unite such sewer districts into a joint sewer district 
 and cause a sewer to be constructed therein in like manner in 
 all respects as is provided in Section seven (7) of this article 
 in cases of district sewers-, except in cases of joint district sew¬ 
 ers the city may, if deemed proper, provide in the ordinance 
 creating such joint district sewer that the city shall pay a cer¬ 
 tain sum to be specified in said ordinance, toward the payment 
 of the cost of such joint district sewer; and should the common 
 council, by ordinance, unite two or more sewer districts into a 
 joint sewer district for the purpose of constructing a joint dis¬ 
 trict sewer therein, the action of the common council shall be 
 conclusive for all purposes, and no special tax bills shall be 
 held invalid or be affected on account of the included drainage 
 area thereof, or the size, character and purpose of such sewer; 
 provided, however, that no sewer district shall be included in 
 such joint district which is not included in the natural drainage* 
 area of the valley or water course in which the joint district 
 sewer is proposed to be constructed. The contract for the con¬ 
 struction of such sewer shall specify that the city shall be liable 
 for the sum so specified to be paid by the city, and that the re¬ 
 mainder of the cost thereof shall be paid in special tax bills, to 
 be issued in any manner that is or may be provided for the 
 issuing of tax bills for the construction of sewers. 
 
 Sec. 9. Private sewers may -be constructed under such reg¬ 
 ulations, specifications and restrictions as may be provided by 
 
118 
 
 the board of public works, but the city shall be at no expense 
 in the construction or repairing of the same. Whenever land 
 outside of the city limits is occupied, the board of public works 
 may allow such property to be connected with a sewer inside the 
 city limits under such regulations and upon such compensation 
 as it may determine, and all such compensation shall be expended 
 only for the benefit of the district or districts which have con¬ 
 tributed to the cost of the sewer with which such connection shall 
 have been made. * 
 
 Sec. 10. Whenever the city shall deem it necessary it may, 
 by ordinance, provide for the construction within or without the 
 limits of the city for septic sewer tanks or other sewer reduction 
 devices for the purpose of purifying the discharge from any pub¬ 
 lic, district or joint district sewer, or outlet thereof; the cost 
 of such septic sewer tanks or devices may be paid for in part or 
 in whole out of the general fund, or in case of a district or 
 joint district sewer, or outlet therefor, in part or in whole, in 
 special tax bills, as a part of the cost of constructing or extend¬ 
 ing the district or joint district sewer, or outlet therefor, as may 
 be designated by ordinance providing therefor. 
 
 In grading or constructing any street, avenue, boulevard, 
 alley or public highway, or part thereof, the work may be pro¬ 
 tected from running or surface water by drains or culverts upon 
 the order of the board of public works, or by the board of park 
 commissioners, as the case may be, as may be provided by ordi¬ 
 nance, and the same may be closed, removed, or altered at will. 
 
 Sec. 11. All special tax bills provided for by this charter, 
 shall be made out in favor of the contractor to be paid, or his 
 assignee, or to the city, as the case may be, and shall be certified by 
 the president of the board of public works, or in his name, by any 
 person or persons by the said board thereto authorized by reso¬ 
 lution recorded on the records of said board; and said board shall 
 deliver such tax bills to the party in whose favor made out, or 
 his assignee, and take the receipt of such party therefor in full 
 of all claims against the city on account of the work for which 
 such tax bills have been made out. 
 
 Sec. 12. All computations, apportionments or assessments 
 required by this article to be made by the board of public works 
 shall be held to be properly made when the same are approved 
 by said board. 
 
 Sec. 13. After any contract for a public improvement has 
 become binding upon the parties thereto, the city shall have 
 
119 
 
 power, without regard to whether the cost of the improvement 
 contracted for is to be paid out of the general fund or in special 
 tax bills, to provide by ordinance on recommendation of the 
 board of public works that a certain part of the improvement 
 contracted for may be omitted and that the contract for the 
 improvement be modified to that extent, which ordinance shall 
 provide a reasonable deduction in the price of the improvement 
 by reason of such omission, but no such ordinance shall be ap¬ 
 proved by the Mayor or become a law until the contractor and 
 his sureties consent in writing to the terms of such ordinance. 
 Such omission shall not affect the validity of the assessments or 
 the special tax bills issued for the work actually performed. 
 
 Sec. 14. The city is hereby authorized, by ordinance to 
 provide, that the board of public works may construct or recon¬ 
 struct the paving, sidewalks, guttering, or curbing, or may maim 
 tain and repair the same, or may grade or regrade any portion of 
 a street, avenue, alley or other public highway, within the city, 
 without letting a contract for the same. In case of gravel or 
 macadem roadway, maintenance and repair as used in this sec¬ 
 tion, may include rolling and oiling the street. A resolution shall 
 be adopted and published, as provided in section three of this 
 article, and the provisions of section three of this article shall 
 apply so far as the same may be applicable. The cost of said 
 work* may be assessed according to the method provided in this 
 article applicable to the class of improvement made, and the 
 assessments therefor may be made payable as provided in section 
 twenty-four hereof, or in installments as provided in section 
 twenty-five hereof, and shall bear the same rate of interest pre¬ 
 scribed in the respective cases. The city is authorized to cause 
 the issue of special tax bills for such work in favor of Kansas 
 City, the same as if such work had been done by contract, and 
 may authorize the city comptroller to sell and assign such assess¬ 
 ments of such special tax bills without recourse, upon such terms 
 and in such manner as may be provided by ordinance, and when 
 such sale is made, the city comptroller shall assign and deliver 
 said tax bills to the purchaser of the same. The city is hereby 
 authorized to acquire such plant, machinery, and equipment and 
 to purchase such materials as may be necessary to perform the 
 work specified in this section. 
 
 Sec. 15. When any sidewalk, curb or gutter on any street 
 or avenue is out of repair, the board of public works may cause 
 the same to be put in good and substantial repair and pay the 
 cost thereof out of the fund apportioned to said board, and shall 
 keep an accurate account of the cost of making such repairs in 
 front of and adjacent to each tract of land; and shall, at the 
 
120 
 
 end of each fiscal year, assess and charge against the tract of 
 land in front of which any and all such repairs shall have been 
 made during such fiscal year, the cost thereof, and shall certify 
 to the city comptroller the cost of the repairs made in front of 
 and adjacent to each tract of land fronting or abutting upon 
 the sides of the street or avenue on which such repairs were made, 
 giving a description of each tract of land so charged, with suffi¬ 
 cient accuracy to identify the same, and the amount of the assess¬ 
 ment against the same, and thereupon the city comptroller shall 
 place the amount so charged on the land tax book for the next 
 fiscal year, which assessment shall be a lien upon the property so 
 charged from the date of the receipt of such land tax book by the 
 city treasurer, which assessment shall be subject to the same 
 penalties and shall be collected by the City Treasurer in the same 
 manner as general taxes are collected, except that no rebate shall 
 be deducted' or allowed from said assessments in case the same 
 are paid before the time fixed in this charter when general city 
 taxes become due. 
 
 And such assessments shall become delinquent and bear the 
 same rate of interest and penalties and in default of payment of 
 such assessments against any tract of land, a sale thereof shall 
 be made by the same officers and with the same powers and in 
 similar manner and on similar notice and at such times, as 
 though such assessment was a duly assessed and levied general 
 city tax against real estate; and all provisions of this charter 
 relative to the redemption, sale and conveyance of lands for city 
 taxes and the rights of purchasers thereof, and the powers of 
 city officers shall apply so far as applicable to the redemption, 
 sale and conveyance of lands to enforce the collection of such 
 assessment. Such assessments when collected by the City Treas¬ 
 urer, shall be credited to the fund from which the money was- 
 paid by said board. 
 
 Sec. 16. The city may cause the driveway portions of any 
 street, avenue, alley, public highway, or part thereof, to be main¬ 
 tained and kept in repair, and may contract therefor for a period 
 of time not to exceed three years, and pay therefor out of the 
 general fund, or by issuing special tax bills as herein provided. 
 When it is proposed to pay for such work by the issue of special 
 tax bills a proceeding therefor shall be begun and conducted to a 
 final conclusion, from the adoption of a resolution therefor to the 
 acceptance and payment of the cost of the work by the issuance 
 and collection of special tax bills in the same manner as is pro¬ 
 vided in regard to similar improvements mentioned in section 
 three of this article. In case the highway to be maintained and 
 repaired is a macadem or gravel roadway, the specifications there¬ 
 for may include the rolling and oiling of such street at 
 
121 
 
 intervals as an essential part of the maintenance and repair there¬ 
 of. The cost of such work, when not to be paid for out of the 
 general fund, shall be assessed and levied against the tracts of 
 land abutting on the highway or part thereof required by the 
 contract to be maintained or repaired according to the frontage 
 of the property on the highway or part thereof, named ,in the 
 contract for doing the work, and tax bills shall be issued against 
 each tract of land for its proportionate share of the cost, which 
 tax bills, unless otherwise provided by ordinance, shall be issued 
 within sixty days after the end of each calendar year during the 
 continuance of such contract as payment'in full for all work done 
 under the contract during such calendar year, and shall be pay¬ 
 able within thirty days after the date of issue thereof without 
 interest, and if not so paid, shall bear interest at the rate of seven 
 per cent per annum for the first year, and eight per cent per 
 annum thereafter until paid. Every such tax bill shall be a lien 
 on the lands against which it is issued, and the provisions of this 
 article relating to special tax bills, except the section relating to 
 special tax bills, payable in installments, shall so far as appli¬ 
 cable, and not in conflict with the provisions herein contained, 
 apply to tax bills issued under this section. 
 
 Sec. 17. Any notice, advertisement, or publication required 
 by this charter to be published, shall be held to be well given, 
 made and published, when the same is published for the required 
 number of days in the newspaper doing the city printing on the 
 day of the first publication of said notice. In computing the 
 number of days during which the publication is made, Sundays 
 and legal holidays and all calendar days between the first 2 nd 
 last publication, shall be included and counted whether or not the 
 paper is published on such days. 
 
 Sec. 18. Unless otherwise heretofore or hereafter specifi¬ 
 cally provided by ordinance, the width of every sidwalk, includ¬ 
 ing the top of curb, shall be one-fifth of the entire width of the 
 street or avenue of which it is a part, and on each side of every 
 street or avenue in the city a sidewalk of that width is hereby 
 established. The one-third of that width adjoining the curb 
 line between such line and the property line on all sidewalks 
 hereafter improved, unless differently provided by ordinance, 
 shall be used as a tree planting area. But the city may, by ordi¬ 
 nance, establish a different width of sidewalk on any highway at 
 any time and may, by ordinance, designate the character and 
 extent of the use and improvement of any and all sidewalks. 
 
 Provided, however, that should any territory be added to 
 the corporate limits of the city subsequently to the time when 
 this charter takes effect, the width of the roadway in every street 
 
122 
 
 or avenue in such added territory shall be twenty-six (26) feet, 
 being thirteen (13) feet on each side of the center line of every 
 such street or avenue. The remaining portion of every such 
 street or avenue shall be sidewalk, including the width of the 
 curb. But a roadway of different width may be established at 
 any time by ordinance on any street or avenue in the territory 
 so added to the city. 
 
 Sec. 19. Contracts for making city improvements on 
 streets, sidewalks, avenues or alleys or for constructing sewers, 
 let to the lowest and best bidder, shall contain a convenant on 
 the part of the contractor or contractors with the city, to pay 
 for the work and labor of all laborers, subcontractors, and team¬ 
 sters, teams and wagons employed on the job, and for all mater¬ 
 ials used therein, and performance of such covenant shall be 
 guaranteed by good and sufficient sureties signing the contract, 
 whose sufficiency shall be approved by the city comptroller, but 
 who shall not be liable beyond the estimated cost of the materials 
 used and the labor done upon the job, to be stated in the con¬ 
 tract; provided, that the city shall not be liable for the sufficiency 
 of the contractors or sureties, nor for any failure to comply with 
 or irregularity in complying with this provision. Laboreers, 
 subcontractors and teamsters and owners of teams and wagons 
 who may do work, and parties who may furnish materials stip¬ 
 ulated for by any such contract, may recover in an action in the 
 name of the city for their use (in which no cost shall be adjudged 
 against the city, and all costs not adjudged against the defend¬ 
 ant shall be adjudged according to equity against the persons 
 for whose use the suit may be prosecuted), all money due them 
 for labor and materials, or either, not exceeding the estimated 
 cost of the labor and materials as stated in the contract; and such 
 recovery may be had against the contractor and sureties, or 
 either, as in chancery; but it shall not be necessary to file with 
 the petition the original contract. Suit may be brought for the 
 benefit of all laborers, subcontractors, teamsters and owners of 
 teams and wagons on the job, and for materials used in the per¬ 
 formance thereof, and the amount due them to be ascertained 
 by the court or referee, unless the court direct an issue to be 
 tried by a jury; pending the suit, laborers, subcontractors, team¬ 
 sters and owners of teams and wagons, and parties who have 
 furnished materials for the performance of the contract, not 
 mentioned in the petition, whether they have done work or fur¬ 
 nished materials before or after the commencement of the suit, 
 may become parties to the proceedings by appearing and filing 
 in the action a written statement of their demand. Such notice 
 thereof as the court may direct shall be given to the defendants, 
 and reasonable opportunity to defend shall be given. The pr£.- 
 
123 
 
 ceedings shall, as far as practicable, be governed by the hiles 
 and principles of courts of chancery, so as to afford speedy 
 and adequate relief according to the spirit and letter of this sec¬ 
 tion. Judgments shall be rendered for the estimated cost of labor 
 and materials as stated in the contract, and execution shall be 
 awarded and issued for the aggregate amount found due the lab¬ 
 orers, subcontractors, teamsters and owners of teams and wagons, 
 and the parties who have furnished materials, not exceeding the 
 estimated cost in the contract, which shall be collected, with costs. 
 The money shall, after paying costs, be divided and paid pro rata 
 among those for whose use the judgment may be rendered. The 
 court shall decide all questions as to distribution summarily on 
 motion. No action shall be brought or prosecuted for the bene¬ 
 fit of laborers, subcontractors, teamsters or owners of teams and 
 wagons, or parties who have furnished materials on the contract, 
 unless the suit be commenced within three months after the 
 completion of the work to be done under the contract and accept¬ 
 ance thereof by the city, nor shall such action be brought before 
 such completion and acceptance, unless the court find good cause 
 therefor according to the averments in the petition. Suits shall 
 be brought in some court of competent jurisdiction in Jackson 
 county, if jurisdiction of the proper parties can be obtained in 
 the county. 
 
 Sec. 20. The provision of section twenty-nine (29) of 
 article four (IV) of this charter with reference to sureties and 
 bonds shall apply to any bond or contract provided for in this 
 article. 
 
 Sec. 21. Whenever a remonstrance of property owners 
 against public improvements purporting to be executed under 
 the authority of this charter is filed with the board of public 
 works, the board shall canvass the same and determine and cer¬ 
 tify whether or not such remonstrance is legally sufficient under 
 the requirements of this charter, and such certificate shall be 
 final and conclusive as to the legal sufficiency of such remon¬ 
 strance, and the determination of the said board that no legal 
 remonstrance has been filed shall be conclusive of that fact. 
 
 Sec. 22. As soon as the cost of any work, payable in spe¬ 
 cial tax bills, as in this article provided, has been assessed against 
 the several tracts of land chargeable therewith, the board of 
 public works shall, at the time of delivering the tax bills to the 
 contractor, or his assignee, entitled thereto, certify such appor¬ 
 tionment and assessment to the City Treasurer, which appor¬ 
 tionment shall contain the names of the owners and parties in- 
 
124 
 
 terested in the several tracts of land affected and charged there¬ 
 with who were such at the date when the work was accepted by 
 the said board, such names to be determined and taken from 
 the city assessor’s books at the time; but no defect or mistake in 
 said books, or in the description therein of the parcels of land, 
 or in the names in such apportionment, shall impair or affect the 
 validity of the tax bills. The city treasurer shall, immediately 
 upon the receipt of such apportionment, enter the assessments 
 therein contained in appropriate books to be kept for that purpose, 
 showing the property assessed, the title and date of approval of 
 the ordinance providing for the improvement for which such 
 tax bills are issued, the amount and date of the assessment and 
 the rate of interest thereon, which book shall be denominated, 
 “Special Tax Record.” 
 
 Immediately upon receipt of such apportionment, the City 
 Treasurer shall give notice, by mail or otherwise, as provided by 
 ordinance, to the parties named in'such apportionment, of the is¬ 
 suance of the tax bills against the tract of land in which they ap¬ 
 pear to be interested as appears by such apportionment, de¬ 
 scribing such tract of land, and stating in general terms for what 
 purpose issued, the amount, rate of interest, and when and where 
 payable. Any person owning or interested in any tract of land 
 against which a special tax bill may be issued under the pro¬ 
 visions of this charter, may pay the same to the City Treasurer, 
 whose duty it shall be to receive the amount thereof, without 
 charge or commission, and to issue to such person duplicate re¬ 
 ceipts therefor, showing from whom received, the date, the 
 amount of such tax bill, with a description of the land as de¬ 
 scribed in such bill; the original of such receipt shall be counter¬ 
 signed by the Auditor, and delivered to the person entitled there¬ 
 to ; the duplicate thereof shall be filed by the Auditor in his office, 
 and he shall enter a memorandum thereof in a book kept for 
 that purpose. The City Treasurer shall cancel and mark “paid” 
 the amount of such tax bill so paid, on the record thereof, and 
 such entry shall be evidence of the payment as stated, and said 
 tract of land shall be discharged from all liens on account of 
 such tax bill so paid from that. The person to whom any such 
 tax bill may be issued, or the assignee thereof shall be en¬ 
 titled to receive on demand the money so paid to the City Treas¬ 
 urer only on delivery to the City Auditor of such special tax bill, 
 duly receipted in full, who shall file the same in his office and 
 draw a warrant upon the City Treasurer in favor of the party so 
 entitled to receive the same, for the amount so paid to the City 
 Treasurer on account of such special tax bill, which warrant, be¬ 
 fore it shall be paid, shall be countersigned by the Comptroller. 
 
 Sec. 23. The special tax record to be kept by the Treasurer 
 
% 
 
 125 
 
 shall be complete and full and show all special tax bills, if any, 
 issued under this charter, and all benefit assessments arising out 
 of condemnation. and grading cases made under the provisions 
 of articles six (VI) and seven (VII) respectively, of this char¬ 
 ter, which' may be in his hands for collection against any lot or 
 parcel of land in Kansas City. Any and all special assessments 
 therein contained, whether arising out of the issuance of special 
 tax bills, as in this article provided, or by virtue of the verdict 
 or report of juries or commissioners in such condemnation or 
 grading proceedings, respectively, shall be considered for the 
 purpose of collecting and receiving payment thereof, as special 
 taxes against any lot or parcel of land against which the same 
 may be a lien, and upon application to the City Treasurer for the 
 amount of general city taxes against any lot or parcel of land 
 in Kansas City, said treasurer shall also furnish to the party 
 making such application, a list of all special tax bills and such 
 benefit assessments against such lot or parcel of land as appear 
 by said record at that time. The Common Council may, by or¬ 
 dinance, consistent with the provisions of this charter, further 
 regulate the keeping of the records, by the City Treasurer, of spe¬ 
 cial tax bills and benefit assessments against private property, 
 arising out of the provisions of articles six (VI) and seven 
 (VII) of this charter, and the collection of such assessments by 
 execution and sale of the private property against which the same 
 may be a lien. 
 
 Failure to comply with the provisions of this and the next 
 preceding section of this article shall not vitiate or impair any 
 tax bill. Nor shall the execution of the provisions of this and 
 said next preceding section, or failure or defect in executing the 
 provisions of said two sections impair or vitiate the general city 
 taxes on any lot or parcel of land. 
 
 Sec. 24. Every special tax bill may be paid to the owner 
 or holder thereof, and upon presentation of such tax bill marked 
 “paid” to the city treasurer, he shall cancel and mark “paid” the 
 amount of such tax bill on the record thereof, which entry when 
 made, shall have the same effect to discharge the tract of land 
 affected by such tax bill from the lien thereof, as if the amount of 
 such tax bill had been paid to the City Treasurer as in section 
 twenty-two of this article provided, and such entry shall be 
 evidence of the payment of the tax bill as therein stated. Every 
 special tax bill issued under the provisions of this article shall be 
 a lien upon the land described therein upon the date of the cer¬ 
 tification thereof to the City Treasurer, as in this article pro¬ 
 vided, and such lien shall continue for two years thereafter, but 
 no longer, except as in this article otherwise provided, unless 
 suit shall be brought to collect the same within two years from 
 
126 
 
 the date of said certification, in which case the lien shall con¬ 
 tinue until the determination of the legal proceedings to collect 
 the same, including any sale of the property charged; provided, 
 however, that if such suit shall be brought within the two years, 
 the plaintiff or plaintiffs therein shall within ten days after the 
 bringing of such suit, in person or by attorney or agent, file in 
 the office of the City Treasurer a written statement giving a brief 
 description of the tax bill sued on, and in what court and against 
 whom such suit shall have been brought. The City Treasurer 
 shall immediately after the filing of any statement, note on the 
 record of such tax bill the time of filing such statement and the 
 substance of the same. If the plaintiff or plaintiffs in such suit 
 shall fail to file such statement within the time above limited, 
 the land described in the tax bill sued on shall be free from the 
 lien of the tax bill and of any judgment in such suit, no matter 
 when rendered, and shall not be sold in satisfaction of any such 
 judgment; provided, however, that failure to file said notice 
 shall not affect or invalidate said lien or judgment as to the in¬ 
 terest of persons made parties to such suit and served with pro¬ 
 cess in said suit. Every special tax bill if paid within thirty 
 days from the date of said certification thereof, shall bear no in¬ 
 terest; if not paid within such time, shall bear interest from the 
 date of the certification thereof at the rate of seven per cent per 
 annum. No tax bill need give the name of any party owning or 
 interested in the land charged thereby; and before suit, the owner 
 of any part in severalty, or of any undivided interest, in the land 
 charged by any tax bill, may pay his share separately, in which 
 case his part or interest shall not be liable in case of suit. Such 
 tax bills shall be issued within twenty days from the completion 
 and acceptance of the work, but the failure to issue them within 
 such time shall not affect the validity of the tax bills. All or 
 any of the owners of the land charged, or of any interest or 
 estate therein, may be made defendants in any suit upon a tax 
 bill and the right, title interest or estate of the parties made de¬ 
 fendants in any such suit shall be bound thereby, and the owners 
 of the land as shown by the records in the office of the recorder 
 of deeds for Jackson County, Missouri, and by the records of 
 the courts of record having jurisdiction in Kansas City shall be 
 conclusively held to be the owners thereof for the purpose of 
 foreclosing such liens, and all suits on special tax bills may be 
 brought in the names of the owners or assignees thereof. 
 
 In case any owner of land or interest therein shall be un¬ 
 known, or a nonresident of the state, suit may be brought against 
 such owner separately or together with others, and such un¬ 
 known or nonresident owner may be proceeded against and 
 charged by giving notice, either by publication in a newspaper 
 
127 
 
 or otherwise as in a suit in the Circuit Court of Jackson County, 
 to enforce any other lien on land in the county. Every such 
 tax bill and lien thereof shall be assignable and the assignee 
 thereof may sue in his own name. It shall be sufficient for the 
 plaintiff in any suit to plead the making and issuance of the tax 
 bill sued on, giving the date and contents thereof, and the as¬ 
 signment thereof, if any, and to allege that the parties or party 
 made defendants own or claim to own the land charged or some 
 estate or interest therein, as the case may be, and to file the tax 
 bill in the suit, or to set out a copy thereof in the petition. 
 Special tax bills, whether issued pursuant to one or more con¬ 
 tracts or against one or more parcels of land owned by the same 
 party or parties made defendant, may be joined in one suit, but 
 a separate judgment on each tax bill shall be rendered and exe¬ 
 cution shall be issued accordingly. The ordinance authorizing 
 any public improvement and the contract therefor, and approv¬ 
 ing and confirming such contract, shall operate and shall be held 
 by all departments and courts, to cure all errors and irregulari¬ 
 ties, if any, on the part of the city in the proceedings relating to 
 such improvements, up to and including the time such ordinance 
 takes effect, and no tax bill shall be defeated, or the amount 
 or lien thereof, in anywise be affected, by reason of any such 
 error or irregularity. Every tax bill shall, in any suit thereon, 
 be prima facie evidence of the validity of the bill, of the doing 
 of the work and of the furnishing of the material charged for 
 and of the liability of the land to the charges stated in the tax 
 bill. Provided, that nothing in this section shall be so con¬ 
 strued as to prevent any defendant, from pleading and proving 
 in reduction of any bill, any mistake or error in the amount 
 thereof, or that the work therein mentioned was not done in a 
 good and workmanlike manner; and Provided, further, 
 that if any party shall plead any mistake or error 
 in the amount of the bill or that the work was not done 
 in a workmanlike manner, and that such'party before the com¬ 
 mencement of the suit,'tendered to the contractor, or holder of 
 the bill, the full value of the work done, and shall establish the 
 same on the trial, the recovery shall only be for the amount so 
 tendered and judgment for costs shall be rendered against the 
 plaintiff. Provided, further, that if it shall be pleaded and proved 
 that the work for which the bill was issued was not done accord* 
 ing to the terms of the contract made by the contractor with the 
 city, then the plaintiff or plaintiffs shall recover thereon only the 
 actual value of the work done, if of any value, and if not of any 
 value, the judgment shall be for the defendant. No suit on any 
 tax bill shall be defeated or affected by any irregularity affecting 
 any other bill, or matter rendering any Other bill invalid in whole 
 or in part. 
 
128 
 
 In a suit on any special tax bill except as in this article 
 otherwise provided, judgment shall be special that the plaintiff 
 shall recover the amount found due, including interest, together 
 with costs, to be levied and made off of the land described in the 
 tax bill, and a special execution shall issue to sell the land to 
 pay any such judgment, interest and costs. The judgment, ex¬ 
 clusive oncosts, shall bear interest at the same rate as the tax 
 bill. Suits on special tax bills issued under this article may be 
 brought in any court of competent jurisdiction. When the 
 amount due on any tax bill shall not exceed three hundred dol¬ 
 lars, suit may be brought thereon in the circuit court of Jack- 
 son County, or in the municipal court of Kansas City, but to en¬ 
 force any judgment rendered by said "municipal court, a tran¬ 
 script of the judgment shall be filed in the office of the clerk of 
 the circuit court of Jackson County, in said city, and duly dock¬ 
 eted, recorded and indexed as a judgment of that court; where¬ 
 upon, a special execution may issue out of that court the same, 
 as if the judgment had been rendered in that court. Upon sales 
 made by the sheriff upon any such special executions, he shall 
 issue to the purchaser a certificate of purchase, setting forth the 
 substance of such special execution, the date of sale, the pur¬ 
 chaser, the property sold, and the amount bid. If the property 
 so sold be redeemed within one year from the date of such, sale 
 by payment to the sheriff of the amount due on said judgment, 
 including interest and costs up to the date of redemption by the 
 owner of, or party interested in, said property, no deed shall be 
 given by the sheriff. Upon such redemption as herein provided 
 of any tract of land sold under such special execution, the judg¬ 
 ment against the same and the lien thereon shall be satisfied 
 on the record of such judgment in the office of the clerk of the 
 circuit court aforesaid by said clerk upon presentation of the 
 receipt of the sheriff for the amount necessary for the redemp¬ 
 tion. If the tract of land so sold be not redeemed, as herein 
 provided, a deed shall be given at the end of one year from the 
 date of said sale by the sheriff to the holder of such certificate. 
 Such deed may be given to the original holder of such certifi¬ 
 cate or his assignee, and shall vest all the right, title, interest 
 and estate in the land so sold that defendants, and each of them, 
 owned at the time that the lien of the tax bill commenced, or 
 acquired afterwards and every such special judgment as herein 
 provided, shall bind all the right, title, interest and estate in the 
 land that defendants, and each of them, owned at the time 
 that the lien of the tax bill commenced, or acquired afterwards. 
 Parties interested in lands not made defendants shall not be af¬ 
 fected thereby, and if they claim through or under any party 
 defendant by right acquired before such suit was brought may 
 redeem from the purchaser or otherwise assert their rights ac- 
 
129 
 
 cording to equity and good conscience. Proceedings on special 
 executions on judgments on special tax bills shall, except as here¬ 
 in provided, including the making of deeds to purchasers, conform 
 as far as practicable to proceedings on other special executions 
 from the circuit court. Such certificate of purchase shall be 
 delivered by the sheriff to the purchaser, or his assignee on the 
 payment of the amount bid, which certificate shall be executed 
 and acknowledged by such sheriff before an officer authorized to 
 take acknowledgments of instruments affecting real estate, and 
 shall be filed for record in the office of the recorder of deeds of 
 Jackson County, at Kansas City, within six months after the 
 date of the same. In case the owner of any undivided interest 
 or particular estate in any land charged, be compelled by suit 
 to pay on account of any such tax bill more than he ought 
 equitably to pay as between him and others interested in the land, 
 such owner so paying shall be subrogated to the lien of such tax 
 bill, and may, by proper proceedings in any court of competent 
 jurisdiction, enforce such lien and have the equities between 
 such owner so paying and other parties interested in the land 
 adjusted, though such other parties were not parties defendant 
 to the original suit on the tax bill, and though such subsequent 
 procedings may be commenced after two years from the issue 
 of the tax bill, and the lien of the tax bill shall continue after 
 the two years for the purpose of such remedy, or the owner so 
 paying shall be entitled to contribution from others according 
 to equity without enforcing the lien. 
 
 Sec. 25. The common council may, by ordinance, pro¬ 
 vide that the special tax bills to be issued in payment for im¬ 
 provements mentioned in section three of this article shall be 
 made payable in four equal installments, and such tax bills 
 when issued shall be payable and collectible as follows: The 
 first installment shall become due and collectible on the thirtieth 
 day of June next succeeding the date of certification to the 
 treasurer of the tax bills, provided, that if such period is less 
 than thirty days after the date of said certification of the tax 
 bills, then the first installment shall become due and collectible 
 on the thirtieth day of June of the next year; the second in¬ 
 stallment shall become due and collectible in one year, the third 
 installment in two years, and the fourth installment in three 
 years, after the first installment is due and collectible as above 
 mentioned; provided, however, that the owner of the property 
 charged with the payment of such tax bills, or the owner of 
 any interest therein, shall have the privilege of paying the same 
 in full at any time before the expiration of thirty days from the 
 date of said certification; and provided, further, that the owner 
 of the property charged with the payment of such tax bills, or 
 
130 
 
 the owner of any interest therein, shall have the privilege of 
 paying such tax bills in full at any time by paying interest there¬ 
 on to a period ninety days after the date of such payment, un¬ 
 less such payment is made within less than ninety days of the 
 maturity of the next installment, and then by paying interest 
 thereon to the date when the next installment becomes due and 
 payable. Such tax bills, including each installment thereof, if 
 not paid in full before the expiration of thirty days from the 
 date when their apportionment and assessment is certified to the 
 City Treasurer, shall bear interest from the date of said certifi¬ 
 cation at the rate of seven per cent per annum, and when any 
 installment becomes due and collectible, as herein provided, 
 interest thereon and on all unpaid installments shall be due and 
 collectible to that date. If any installment of any such tax bills 
 be not paid when due, then all the unpaid installments shall 
 immediately become due and collectible, together with interest 
 thereon at the rate of eight per cent per annum from the date on 
 which interest has already been paid on said installments. The 
 lien of all tax bills issued under this section shall continue for a 
 period of one year after the date the last installment matures as 
 expressed upon its face, and no longer, unless within such year 
 suit shall have been instituted to collect such tax bill, and unless 
 within ten days after the institution of such suit, notice of the 
 bringing of such suit shall have been filed with the city treasurer 
 as provided as to other tax bills, in which case the lien of such 
 tax bill shall continue until the termination of such suit and until 
 the sale of the property under execution of the judgment es¬ 
 tablishing the same, and no default in the payment of any in¬ 
 terest or any installment shall operate to diminish the period 
 during which such lien shall continue, or during which 
 suit may be brought. Such tax bills and liens thereof 
 shall be assignable and shall be of the same force and 
 effect, and suits may be brought thereon in the same manner 
 as on other tax bills issued by the city, and all other provisions 
 relating to special tax bills issued pursuant to the authority 
 given in this article shall apply to those issued under this sec¬ 
 tion, excepting so far only as the other provisions of this article 
 conflict with those contained in this section. 
 
 Sec. 26. When the city shall own any tract of land, or 
 hold the title to any land not used as a street, avenue, boulevard, 
 alley, or public highway, which if owned by a private person 
 would be liable to assessment for benefits to pay for any public 
 improvement mentioned in this article, an assessment shall be 
 made against such land, and a special tax bill issued as though 
 such land were the property of a private person, and the city 
 shall pay the amount of that assessment as evidenced by the 
 
131 
 
 * 
 
 special tax bill out of the general fund. Suits shall be instituted 
 to enforce the collection of any such tax bill in the same man¬ 
 ner and in the same courts as on other tax bills, and the judg¬ 
 ment in any such suit shall be a personal judgment against the 
 city for the amount due on such tax bill, which judgment may 
 be enforced as other judgments against the city, and no such 
 land of the city shall be sold under any such judgment. And 
 no other proceedings or official action on the part of Kansas 
 City shall be necessary in a proceeding for a public improve¬ 
 ment in which land owned by the city may be assessed with 
 benefits therefor than though such land had been owned by a 
 private person. 
 
 And whenever any land liable to be assessed with special 
 benefits to pay for any public improvement mentioned in this 
 charter shall be owned by a railroad corporation, cemetery as¬ 
 sociation, county, school district, or any other public or quasi¬ 
 public corporation, or by any corporation, association, society, 
 person or trustee, such land shall be assessed and a special tax 
 bill issued to evidence the same in the same manner as though 
 the same were the property of a private person, and if a sale 
 of such land to enforce such assessment in contrary to the public 
 policy or the laws of this State, then the amount of such assess¬ 
 ment as may be evidenced by the special tax bill shall be paid 
 by such railroad, corporation, cemetery association, school dis¬ 
 trict, county or other public or quasi-public corporation, asso¬ 
 ciation, society, person or trustee. Suits shall be instituted 
 to enforce the collection of any such tax bills in the same man¬ 
 ner and in the same courts as on other tax bills, and the judg¬ 
 ment in any such suit, if for the plaintiff, shall be a personal one 
 against the owner of the land assessed, for the amount due on 
 such tax bill; but no such judgment shall be rendered in any 
 such suit for an amount greater than the value of the land so 
 assessed; and the defendant or defendants in any such suit may, 
 by appropriate pleading, raise the issue of the value of the land 
 so assessed and when that issue is raised the judgment, if any, 
 shall be enforced as other judgments against the judgment 
 debtor, but no such lands shall be sold under such judgments. 
 
 Sec. 27. Whenever the city, by a valid ordinance, shall 
 have authorized the making of any public improvement to be 
 paid for in special tax bills and shall have entered into a valid 
 contract for such improvement, and shall have attempted to 
 levy an assessment or issue a special tax bill to pay the cost 
 thereof, and said contract shall have been faithfully and fully 
 performed by the contractor, and it shall be made to appear by a 
 judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction or otherwise, that 
 the lien of such assessment or part thereof, or of any or all tax 
 
132 
 
 bills evidencing the same, is invalid by reason of any omission, 
 irregularity, defect or invalidity in the acts or procedings of any 
 of the municipal authorities of the city relating thereto, the 
 board of public works may, at any time within one year after 
 the original issue of the tax bills, reassess any or all of the 
 tracts of land subject to assessment to pay the cost of such im¬ 
 provement, according to the method of assessment, and in the 
 same manner and with the same effect and evidence the same by 
 like tax bills as is provided in this article for such assessments in 
 the first instance. 
 
 Sec. 28. When in grading or regrading any street, avenue, 
 highway, or part thereof, a very large or unusual amount of 
 filling in or cutting or grading away of earth or rock be neces¬ 
 sary, necessitating an expense of such magnitude as to impose 
 too heavy a burden on the land situate in the benefit district as 
 limited in section three of this article, and when in grading or 
 regrading, constructing or reconstructing any street, avenue, 
 highway or part thereof, one or more bridges, viaducts, 
 tunnels, subways, cuts or approaches on, along, over or under 
 the same is or are required or needed, the cost of grading or 
 regrading such street, avenue, highway, or part thereof, in¬ 
 cluding the cost of constructing or reconstructing such bridges, 
 viaducts, tunnels, subways and approaches, or any of them, may 
 be charged as a special tax on parcels of land (exclusive of 
 improvements) benefited thereby, after deducting the portion 
 of the whole cost, if any, which the city may pay, and in pro¬ 
 portion to the benefits accruing to the said several parcels of land, 
 exclusive of improvements thereon, and not exceeding the 
 amount of said benefit, said benefits to be determined by the 
 board of public works as hereinafter provided, and the limits 
 within which parcels of land are benefited shall in all such speci¬ 
 fied instances be prescribed and determined by ordinance. If the 
 common council shall find and declare in the ordinance provid¬ 
 ing for the doing of the work above described that a very large 
 or unusual amount of filling in or cutting or grading away of 
 earth or rock be necessary, necessitating an expense of such 
 magnitude as to impose too heavy a burden on the land situated 
 in the benefit district as limited in section three of this article, 
 or that in grading or regrading, constructing or reconstructing 
 any street, avenue, highway, or part thereof, one or more 
 bridges, viaducts, tunnels, subways, cuts or approaches on, along, 
 over or under the same is, or are required or needed, necessitat¬ 
 ing a large or unusual expense as hereinbefore specified, the said 
 finding and declaration in said ordinance shall be final and conclu¬ 
 sive as to all such matters. 
 
133 
 
 The public work described as above shall be provided for by 
 ordinance, and the city may provide that after the passage of 
 the ordinance and after an approximate estimate of the cost of 
 the work shall have been made by the board of public works, 
 the city shall file a proceeding in the circuit court of Jackson 
 County, Missouri, in the name of the city, against the respective 
 owners of land chargeable under the provisions of this section . 
 with the cost of such work. In such proceeding the city shall 
 allege the passage and approval of the ordinance providing for 
 the work, and the approximate estimate of the cost of said work; 
 and shall define and set forth the limits of the benefit district, 
 prescribed by the ordinance, within which it is proposed to as¬ 
 sess property for the payment of said work. The prayer of the 
 petition shall be that the court find and determine the validity 
 of said ordinance, and the question of whether or not the re¬ 
 spective tracts of land within said benefit district shall be 
 charged with the lien of said work in the manner provided by 
 said ordinance. 
 
 Service of process in such proceeding shall be governed by 
 the provisions of section eleven (11) of article thirteen (XIII) 
 of this charter, relating to service of notice and summons in 
 proceedings for the ascertainment of benefits and damages for 
 the condemnation of lands for parks and boulevards. In such 
 proceedings, the city shall have the right to offer evidence tend¬ 
 ing to prove the validity of said ordinance, and said proposed 
 lien against the respective lots, tracts and parcels of land within 
 said benefit district sought to be tharged with such lien; and 
 the respective owners of lots, tracts and parcels of lanld within 
 said benefit district shall have the right to introduce evidence 
 tending to show the invalidity or lack of legality of said ordi¬ 
 nance, and said proposed lien against the respective lots, tracts 
 and parcels of land owned by each respective defendant; and the 
 court shall have the right to determine the question of whether 
 or not the said lots, tracts and parcels of land owned by each 
 defendant should be charged with such lien. 
 
 The trial of such proceedings shall be in accordance with 
 the constitution and laws of the State, and the court shall ren¬ 
 der judgment either validating such ordinance, and proposed 
 lien against the lots, tracts and parcels of land within said bene¬ 
 fit district or against such lots, tracts, or parcels of land as the 
 court may find legally chargeable with the same, or the court 
 may render judgment that such ordinance or proposed lien are, 
 in whole or in part, invalid and illegal. 
 
 Any appeal taken from such judgment must be taken with¬ 
 in ten days after the rendition of such judgment, or if a motion 
 for new trial be filed therein, then within ten days after such 
 
134 
 
 motion may be overruled or otherwise disposed of; but in all 
 other respects the rules covering such appeal shall be the same 
 as provided by section eightetn (18) of article thirteen (XIII) 
 of this charter. 
 
 If no appeal shall be taken, or after the determination of 
 such appeal, the city may enter into a contract with the success¬ 
 ful biader to whom such work may be let; and, after the work 
 under such contract shall have been fully completed, the esti¬ 
 mate of the cost thereof, and the apportionment of the same 
 against the various lots, tracts and parcels of land within the 
 benefit district, shall be made by the board of public works ac¬ 
 cording to the assessed value thereof, exclusive of improve¬ 
 ments, with the assistance of the city assessor as provided in 
 section three of this article, and all of the provisions of section 
 three of this article relating to the apportionment of special as¬ 
 sessments, and the levy, issue and collection of special tax bills 
 as in grading proceedings as in said section specified, shall apply 
 as far as applicable to special tax bills issued pursuant to this sec¬ 
 tion, except that said tax bills may be made payable in not to 
 exceed ten annual installments; the number of installments, and 
 the time when payable to be determined by the Common Council 
 on the recommendation of the board of public works, such 
 determination to be specified in the ordinance of the Common 
 Council in which said work is authorized and the proceedings 
 therefor instituted. 
 
 Nothing in this section stated shall in anywise affect, modify 
 or change the provisions of the previous sections of this article, 
 or in any manner affect or change the proceedings 
 therein set forth for the doing of public work and the payment 
 therefor by the issue of special tax bills; the intention of this 
 section being to provide an independent and separate method 
 of public improvements made under the provisions of this sec¬ 
 tion. 
 
ARTICLE IX. 
 
 Vacating Highways and Public Places. 
 
 Sec. 1 . The city shall have exclusive control of all its 
 public highways, streets, avenues, alleys and public places, and 
 shall have exclusive power to vacate or abandon any public 
 highway, street, avenue, alley or public place, or any part there¬ 
 of, and to vacate any platted addition or subdivision of land or 
 part thereof within the corporate boundaries of the city, pro¬ 
 vided that no such vacation or abandonment shall take place ex¬ 
 cept by ordinance. 
 
 Sec. 2. Any person or corporation owning any property 
 fronting on any public highway, street, avenue, alley or public 
 place or part thereof, proposed to be vacated, may petition the 
 Common Council therefor. Such petition must give a distinct 
 description of the part of the public highway, street, avenue, 
 alley or public place sought to be vacated, and also the names 
 of the persons or corporations owning or claiming the property 
 fronting thereon and be verified by affidavit. Said petition shall 
 be filed with the city clerk at least twenty days previous to any 
 action being taken thereon by the Common Council, and notice 
 of the pendency of such petition shall be given for the same 
 length of time in the newspaper then doing the city printing. 
 The person or corporation seeking such vacation, shall, at the 
 time of filing the petition for vacation, deposit with the city 
 Comptroller a sum sufficient, in the opinion of the Comptroller, 
 to cover all costs and expenses which the city may incur by 
 reason of said proceedings. 
 
 Sec. 3. If opposition be made in writing to such petition 
 within said twenty days by any person or corporation interested 
 in the vacation of such property, no action shall be taken by the 
 common council on such petition before the expiration of an 
 additional twenty days. Subject to the provisions of this 
 article, the Common Council may, by ordinance, vacate the prop¬ 
 erty mentioned and described in said petition aforesaid with 
 such restrictions as it may deem for the public good; but no 
 such ordinance shall be passed unless the consent, in writing, 
 of the persons or corporations owning three-fourths of the front 
 feet of the property fronting on that part of the public high¬ 
 way, street, avenue, alley or public place to be vacated, acknowl¬ 
 edged as deeds conveying real estate in this State are required 
 
136 
 
 to be acknowledged in order to entitle them to be recorded, 
 shall have been obtained to such vacation, and filed with said 
 petition in the city clerk’s office. 
 
 Sec. 4. The property or part thereof so vacated, if it be 
 a lot or public square, shall belong to the persons or corpora¬ 
 tions who may have the title thereof according to law; and if 
 same be a public highway, street, avenue, or alley, the same 
 shall vest in the persons or corporations owning the property 
 on each side thereof in equal proportions according to the length 
 or breadth of such land as the same may border thereon and 
 as the titles to such bordering lands may be held by the said 
 owners thereof respectively. 
 
 Sec. 5. The owner of any lot in any platted addition or 
 subdivision within the corporate boundaries of the city may 
 petition the Common Council for the vacation of the said platted 
 addition or subdivision or any part thereof. Said petition must 
 give a distinct description of the part of the addition or sub¬ 
 division to be vacated, and also the names of all legal owners 
 of all lots contained in such addition or subdivision and be veri¬ 
 fied by affidavit. Said petition shall be filed with the city clerk 
 at least twenty days previous to any action being taken thereon 
 by the Common Council, and notice of the pendency of such peti¬ 
 tion shall be given for the same length of time in the newspaper 
 then doing the city printing. 
 
 Sec. 6 . If opposition be made in writing to such petition 
 within said twenty days by any person or corporation interested 
 in such vacation, no action shall be taken by the Common Council 
 on such petition before the expiration of an additional twenty 
 days. The Common Council may, by ordinance, vacate such 
 platted addition or subdivision, or part thereof, and upon such 
 vacation being made, such plat and all dedications to public use 
 made by or consequent upon such plat shall within and as to the 
 part of such addition or subdivision so vacated, ipso facto cease 
 and determine, and become and be of no effect, but no such ordi 
 nance shall be passed unless the consent in writing of the legal 
 owners of all lots contained in such addition or subdivision ac¬ 
 knowledged as deeds conveying real estate in this state are re¬ 
 quired to be acknowledged in order to entitle them to be re¬ 
 corded, shall have been obtained to such vacation and filed with 
 said petition in the city clerk’s office. 
 
 Sec. 7. No ordinance vacating any public highway, street, 
 avenue, alley, public place or platted addition or subdivision or 
 part thereof, shall be passed except by at least two-thirds af- 
 
137 
 
 
 firmative vote of the full authorized membership of each house 
 of the Common Council. If any such ordinance be returned 
 without the approval of the Mayor, and with his objections, an 
 affirmative vote of at least three-fourths of the authorized mem¬ 
 bership of each house of the Common Council shall be necessary 
 to the passage of such ordinance notwithstanding the objections 
 of the Mayor thereto. 
 
 Sec. 8. Every ordinance vacating any public highway, 
 street, alley, public place, or platted addition or subdivision, or 
 part thereof, shall be acknowledged by the city clerk as deeds 
 are acknowledged as aforesaid, and such ordinance so acknowl¬ 
 edged and the consents of property owners herein required shall 
 be filed for record in the recorder’s office in Jackson County, 
 Missouri. 
 
 Sec. 9. The common council may provide in any ordi¬ 
 nance for vacating any highway, street, avenue, alley, public 
 place, or plat that such vacation shall not become final and ab¬ 
 solute until the damage which may be occasioned thereby, if any, 
 has been ascertained and paid in the manner hereinafter pro¬ 
 vided. 
 
 Whenever private property shall be so disturbed or damaged 
 by the proposed vacation as to entitle the owners thereof to 
 remuneration or damages under the constitution of the State of 
 Missouri, the ordinance which shall order such vacation shall 
 also prescribe and determine the limits within which private 
 property is deemed benefited by the proposed vacation. Such 
 benefited district shall not, however, include any property other 
 than that abutting on the street, alley or public place proposed 
 to be vacated, the owners of which abutting property have signed 
 the petition for such vacation. The Mayor shall cause a certified 
 copy of said ordinance to be filed in the Circuit Court of Jack- 
 son County, Missouri, at Kansas City,- or with the clerk thereof, 
 and said court shall fix a day and place for assessing the damages 
 and benefits arising from the proposed proceeding, and such 
 damages and benefits shall be ascertained and assessed in the 
 manner and by the procedure provided in Article VII of this 
 charter for assessing damages and benefits arising from grading 
 and regrading streets; provided , however, that at any time before 
 final judgment, the owners of the property abutting on the street, 
 alley, highway, or public place proposed to be vacated who shall 
 have signed the petition for said vacation may withdraw there¬ 
 from, and, upon filing such withdrawal in the office of the City 
 Clerk, the City Counselor shall dismiss the said proceedings, and 
 the same shall be ab initio null and void. 
 
13a 
 
 Unless all the owners of the property against which assess¬ 
 ments of benefits have been made in said proceedings shall, with¬ 
 in twenty days after the rendition of the verdict, pay such assess¬ 
 ments to the clerk of the circuit court of Jackson county, Mis¬ 
 souri, for the use of the parties entitled thereto, the city shall 
 cause said proceedings to be dismissed and said ordinance shall 
 thereupon be ab initio null and void. 
 
 Any party aggrieved by said verdict may appeal therefrom 
 in the same manner and with like effect as is provided by 
 Article VII of this charter from judgments rendered by the 
 circuit court 
 
 
ARTICLE X. 
 
 Board of Public Works. 
 
 Section 1. There is hereby established within the city a 
 department to be known as the board of public works, to con¬ 
 sist of four members until the third Monday in April, 1910. 
 The four members of the board of public works of Kansas City, 
 in office at the time this charter goes into effect, shall constitute 
 the first board of public works under this charter and shall serve 
 until the third Monday of April, 1910, but shall have no powers 
 or duties except as provided in this charter. On and after the 
 third Monday of April, 1910, the board of public works shall 
 consist of only three persons, who shall be appointed by the 
 Mayor, by and with the advice and consent of the upper house 
 of the common council? to serve, one for one year, one for two 
 years, and one for three years from the date of their appoint¬ 
 ment. Each year thereafter the Mayor shall in like manner 
 appoint one person as the successor of the member whose term of 
 office expires in that year to serve as such member for three 
 years. 
 
 Sec. 2. Each member of said board shall receive such 
 salary as may be prescribed by ordinance. Immediately after 
 qualification at the beginning of the fiscal year of 1910 and each 
 year thereafter, said board shall elect one of its members presi¬ 
 dent, for a term of one year, and one of his duties shall be to 
 attend all meetings of the common council, and at the request of 
 any member thereof, to give such information concerning the 
 business of the board as may be required of him. 
 
 Sec. 3. ' The board of public works shall meet at its office 
 at least three times each week to transact such business as may 
 properly come before it. Two members of said board shall con¬ 
 stitute a quorum. 
 
 Sec. 4. Said board shall appoint a city engineer, who 
 shall be a civil engineer and a person well skilled in the science 
 of engineering and the practical application thereof. He shall, 
 in addition to the oath prescribed for city officers, take an oath 
 that he is not and will not be during his continuance in office, 
 directly or indirectly interested in any contract with the city, 
 or in any public work. The board shall establish a department 
 of engineering and the city engineer shall be the head thereof, 
 
140 
 
 and shall have the sole executive control of said department, 
 subject to the rules and regulations prescribed by the board, 
 and shall hold his position at the pleasure of the board. He 
 shall appoint and discharge the employes and subordinates in 
 said engineering department, and shall carry into effect the 
 public work designated by the board to be done by the engineer¬ 
 ing department, and shall perform such other duties, not incon¬ 
 sistent herewith, as may be prescribed by ordinance. The board 
 shall appoint such persons not employed in the engineering de¬ 
 partment as may be necessary to transact the business and per¬ 
 form the duties devolving upon the board Under the provisions 
 of this charter. Upon the taking effect of Article XV of this 
 charter, said board and said engineer shall, in making said ap¬ 
 pointments, and in all other respects, conform to the provisions, 
 rules and regulations of the civil sendee board. 
 
 Sec. 5. The board shall establish a department of street 
 repairs. It shall appoint a superintendent of repairs who shall 
 have the sole executive control of said department, subject to 
 the rules and regulations prescribed by the board. Except as 
 otherwise provided by this charter, or by ordinance, it shall be 
 his duty to have charge of the repairs of all streets and alleys, 
 to repair all sidewalks and curbing, to construct all street cross¬ 
 ings, and to repair the same, to repair all bridges and viaducts 
 required to be kept in repair by the city; he shall have charge of 
 the repairs of sewers and catch-basins, and the supervision of 
 the erection of all telegraph and electric light poles; he shall 
 also have the supervision of all excavations and fillings, made for 
 the laying of gas and water pipes or for the repairing of sewers 
 or for any other purpose whatever, in the streets and alleys of 
 the city; he shall have charge and control of all implements and 
 teams employed in such work, and shall perform such other 
 duties not inconsistent with the provisions of the charter as may 
 be required by the board of public works or by ordinance. The 
 superintendent of repairs shall appoint and discharge all em¬ 
 ployes and subordinates in said department, and upon the taking 
 effect of Article XV of this charter relating to civil service, he 
 shall appoint and discharge appointees and subordinates subject 
 to the provisions of said Article, and the rules made pursuant 
 thereto. He shall hold his position at the pleasure of the board. 
 
 Sec. 6. After the taking effect of this charter no plat of 
 any addition to the city or in the city or of any subdivision of 
 lands within the city, shall be recorded or be of any validity 
 unless, before such record, the approval of the board be endorsed 
 thereon. Before approving any such plat the board of public 
 works shall require that there be filed in its office a certificate 
 
141 
 
 from the proper person and authorities that all taxes and all 
 liens and incumbrances of every sort on that part of the land 
 dedicated or conveyed for public use have been satisfied of 
 record. 
 
 Plats and maps of additions to the city or of subdivisions 
 of land in the city, shall be made according to the general law 
 of the State in force at the time. Such map or plat shall be 
 acknowledged by the proprietor before some court or officer 
 authorized by law to take the acknowledgment of conveyances 
 of real estate, and recorded in the office of the recorder of deeds 
 in Jackson county; provided, however, that before any such plat 
 shall be approved by the board of public works, the grade of the 
 streets, alleys, avenues and public highways designated thereon 
 shall be established by ordinance, and the said approval of such 
 board shall recite the number and date of approval of said ordi¬ 
 nance. After any street, avenue, alley or public highway shall 
 be dedicated by any such map or plat or by a conveyance to the 
 city of any land for such use, and the grades of the streets, alleys 
 and public highways thereon shall be established as aforesaid, the 
 city shall have the right to grade the same to the grade so 
 established, and shall have an easement upon the land abutting 
 on the said'streets, avenues," alleys and public highways permit¬ 
 ting the city the right to use so much of said lands as will enable 
 the city to provide adequate support for said streets, avenues, 
 alleys and public highways in case of any fill in such grade neces¬ 
 sitating such support. In lieu of such easement retaining walls 
 may be constructed at their own expense by the owners or pro¬ 
 prietors of said abutting lands according to plans approved by 
 the board of public works and under its supervision and control. 
 Said walls may be so constructed at the time said grading is 
 
 done or at any time thereafter in the discretion of said owner 
 
 or proprietor. The city shall have the right to grade or other¬ 
 wise improve the said streets, avenues, alleys and public high¬ 
 ways, without making compensation for damages therefor to 
 other lands of the proprietor making the map or plat, or to 
 
 other lands of the maker of the conveyance, and it shall be 
 
 deemed and taken by all courts for all purposes, that just com¬ 
 pensation was made for such damages and for said easements 
 when such map or plat or conveyance was made, or that the 
 right to the same was released, so that neither the original pro¬ 
 prietor nor anyone holding under such proprietor, shall have 
 a right to compensation for such damages; provided, however, 
 that if, after the city shall have established the grade of anv 
 such street, avenue, alley or public highway as aforesaid, and 
 the city shall thereafter change such grade and re-grade the 
 same, just compensation shall be made for damages resulting to 
 any property from such change of grade and regrading. 
 
142 
 
 Sec. 7. No ordinance establishing or re-establishing the 
 grade of any street, avenue, alley or public highway, or estab¬ 
 lishing any sewer district, or providing for the construction of 
 any public, district or joint-district sewer, shall be passed by 
 the common council, unless the same has endorsed thereon a 
 certificate of approval by the board of public works. 
 
 Sec. 8. Said board shall, in all cases not in this charter 
 otherwise provided, inaugurate and control the grading and 
 paving of all streets, avenues, alleys and public grounds; the 
 cleaning, sprinkling, repairing and improving of all streets, 
 alleys, avenues and public places; the construction, altering and 
 repairing of all bridges, culverts, receiving basins, sewers, drains 
 and water courses under the jurisdiction or control of said city; 
 the laying of gas and water pipes through any street or alley; ' 
 and the issuing of permits for connecting with gas, water or 
 sewer pipe, and for the erection of gas lamps, telegraph poles, 
 electric light poles, and street car poles; the laying down and re¬ 
 pairing of all sidewalks, cross-walks, curbing and guttering; the 
 construction of all vaults under any portion of said streets; the 
 construction, repair, alteration and removal of all buildings, 
 houses, barns, stables, fences and other similar improvements 
 upon lots and lands within the limits of the city, and the issuing 
 of permits therefor; the construction and repair of the city hall, 
 and all other public buildings of the city, and shall in all cases 
 (where no other provision is made in this charter for so doing), 
 supervise the doing of all other public work and improvements 
 provided for in this charter, and of all other public work and 
 improvements not specifically assigned by this charter to some 
 other authority. 
 
 Said board may require that before any street be paved the 
 sewer, water and gas pipes be laid therein, and connection laid 
 to the curb in front of each lot. 
 
 Nothing in this article contained shall be so construed as to 
 in any wise affect the exercise by the board of park commission¬ 
 ers, or by the board of fire and water commissioners, of the 
 powers conferred and duties imposed on either of said boards 
 by this charter. 
 
 Sec. 9. Whenever the city shall construct or acquire in 
 any way the ownership, use, occupation or control of any gas, 
 electric light, heat, power or refrigeration plant or works, or 
 any other kind of works for the purpose of serving the city or 
 its inhabitants, or any other person or corporation with light, heat, 
 refrigeration or power, and whenever the city shall construct, 
 purchase or in any wise acquire any subways, tunnels, bridges or 
 viaducts, conducts, wharves, tracks, depots, terminals, transporta- 
 
N 
 
 143 
 
 tion lines, telegraph or telephone lines, or other means of com¬ 
 munication or transportation or any other property within the 
 class of public utilities, the same shall be managed or controlled 
 by the board of public works, under such regulations as the 
 city may, by ordinance, from time to time provide. 
 
 Sec. 10. The board shall also have the power, and it shall 
 be its duty, when any levee district has been established by the 
 Common Council, to devise and adopt a system of levees, dikes, 
 drains and other works for the protection of all lands within 
 such districts from floods or overflows, and select and designate 
 lands and rights-of-way to be used and appropriated for such 
 levees and other works, and to carry out all the powers and 
 duties imposed upon it in Article XII of this charter. 
 
 Sec. 11. Said board shall also exercise such other powers 
 and perform such other duties in the superintendence of public 
 works, improvements and repairs constructed by authority of 
 the common council or owned by the city, not inconsistent with 
 the provisions of this charter, nor with the powers of the city 
 engineer, as may be prescribed by ordinance. Said board shall 
 make all necessary rules and regulations for the government 
 of its department not inconsistent with this charter or any or¬ 
 dinance of the city. 
 
 Sec. 12. The board of public works shall establish under 
 its supervision a department of street cleaning, and shall appoint 
 a commissioner of street cleaning, who shall have the control 
 and management of such department. The commissioner of 
 street cleaning shall have direction and control of the sweeping 
 and cleaning of the streets of the city, including all avenues, 
 alleys and highways and public grounds of the city, except such 
 as are under the control and management of the board of park 
 commissioners, and shall have the direction and control of the 
 removal or other disposition of street sweeping and other refuse 
 and rubbish from the^, streets, alleys, avenues, highways and 
 public places, and of the removal of snow and ice from the 
 leading thoroughfares and from such other streets within the 
 city as may be found practicable. 
 
 Sec. 13. The commissioner or street cleaning may ap¬ 
 point, subject to the civil service laws, rules and regulations 
 contained in or provided for by this charter, one deputy, and 
 such clerks, district superintendents, foremen, employes and 
 laborers as may be provided by ordinance. He shall organize 
 a sufficient street cleaning force, with such ranks, grades and 
 
144 
 
 divisions as he may deem necessary for the effective cleaning of 
 the streets and within the limits of the funds at the disposal of 
 the street cleaning department. He shall keep a record of all • 
 of his expenditures and of all employes under him, and of their 
 wages, and shall report the same to the board of public works 
 at the end of each week. 
 
 Sec. 14. It shall be the duty of the commissioner of street 
 cleaning to make such allotment and designation of the areas 
 to be covered and the duties to be performed by each employe 
 and all of the different employes of the department as he shall 
 deem expedient, and he may transfer one or more of such em¬ 
 ployes from one district or section of the city to another, or 
 temporarily employ all or any part of said employes in a particu¬ 
 lar section. 
 
 Sec. 15. The territory within the limits of the city, for 
 the purposes of street cleaning, shall be at all times divided into 
 the same number of districts, with the same boundaries for each 
 district, as provided in this charter for the division of the city 
 into park districts; and the funds in this article provided for the 
 use of the department of street cleaning, shall be expended in 
 each district as. nearly as possible in proportion to the assessed 
 valuation of the real property in such district as shown by the 
 books of the city assessor. The commissioner of street cleaning 
 shall appoint a superintendent in each district, who shall be 
 responsible to the commissioner for the cleanliness of the streets 
 in his respective district, and for the faithful performance of 
 the duties of all employes under him. The Common Council shall 
 provide for the office and general headquarters of the commis¬ 
 sioner at the city hall, and may provide for district headquarters 
 in each district hereby established, which shall be the head¬ 
 quarters of the district superintendent and the employes for 
 such district. 
 
 Sec. 16. There shall be appropriated annually for th£ use 
 of the department of street cleaning, for the purpose of sweep¬ 
 ing and cleaning the streets as provided herein, a sum of money 
 equal to seven per cent of the total revenues of the city exclusive 
 of any sums raised from special assessment or special taxes on 
 real estate. It shall be the duty of the common council to make 
 monthly appropriations to said department to pay the expenses 
 of said department, including wages, salaries, appliances and 
 supplies, within the limits of said seven per cent of the total 
 revenues of the city, above provided. The common council 
 may also appropriate to the use of such department such addi¬ 
 tional sums out of the general fund of the city as may be neces- 
 
145 
 
 sary for the efficient sweeping- and cleaning of the streets and 
 the carrying out of the purposes of this article. It shall be the 
 duty of the board of public works to include in its annual esti¬ 
 mate to the comptroller, at the beginning of each fiscal year, 
 such an amount in addition to the seven per cent herein provided 
 for as the said board may deem necessary for the use of the de¬ 
 partment of street cleaning. No funds appropriated to the use 
 of the department of street cleaning shall be used for any other 
 purposes than those specified in this article. 
 
 Sec. 17. The commissioner of street cleaning is hereby 
 authorized to take and use from the hydrants and water pipes 
 of the city, under such reasonable rules and regulations as may 
 be prescribed by the Board of Fire and Water Commissioners, all 
 water which he may deem necessary for the purpose of washing 
 or otherwise cleaning the streets'of the city, and. for all other 
 uses of his department, and no charge or debit shall be made on 
 account thereof against the funds appropriated for the use of 
 said department of street cleaning. 
 
 Sec: 18. In case of snowfall or other emergency the com¬ 
 missioner of street cleaning, or his district superintendents, may 
 hire or temporarily employ such and so many men, vehicles 
 and horses as shall be rendered necessary for such emergency, 
 forthwith reporting such action, with full particulars, to the 
 board of public works; but no man, vehicle or horse shall be so 
 employed for a longer period than three days, except that any 
 person registered or eligible to appointment on the list of the 
 Civil Service Commissioners may be temporarily employed at any 
 time as extra employe, to fill the place of any employe who is 
 suspended or temporarily absent from duty from any cause. 
 
 Sec. 19. The Common Council may, upon recommenda¬ 
 tion of the Mayor, authorize the board of public works to enter 
 into contracts for the cleaning of any street or streets, in any 
 district, cfr for the part or whole of any district, provided such 
 contract shall be publicly let to the lowest and best bidder and 
 shall not be for a period longer than five years. The work to 
 be done under such contracts shall be under the supervision of 
 the commissioner of street cleaning and the superintendent of 
 the district in which the streets to be cleaned may be located. 
 Such contractors shall be paid out of the funds appropriated for 
 the use of the department of street cleaning and set apart to the 
 particular district or districts in which said work is done. Such 
 contractors shall in every case give such bonds for the faithful 
 performance of such contracts, in such amounts and upon such 
 
140 
 
 conditions as may be required by ordinance of the Common Coun¬ 
 cil. 
 
 Sec. 20. The commissioner of street cleaning is hereby 
 authorized and empowered from time to time to make, adopt 
 and enforce reasonable rules, orders and regulations, subject to 
 the approval of the board of public works, for the purpose of 
 carrying out the purposes of this article, and for the adminis¬ 
 tration and discipline of said department and the members and 
 employes thereof. 
 
 Sec. 21. The common council shall, by ordinance, provide 
 that all carts and wagons used by said department of street clean¬ 
 ing shall be of such size, form and construction as to prevent 
 the escape, during transit, of dust, dirt or any refuse carried 
 therein; and shall pass suitable ordinances for the prevention of 
 the deposit of any filth, trash, rubbish or other refuse in any 
 manhole or sewer of the city, or upon any sidewalk, street, high¬ 
 way or public place thereof, or upon any private property within 
 the limits of the city, except with the consent of the owner of 
 said property and upon a permit from the Board of Hospital and 
 Health of the city, and shall provide suitable penalties for the 
 violation of such ordinances. It shall be the duty of the commis¬ 
 sioner or street cleaning, and the district superintendents and all 
 employes in said department, to report all violations of said 
 ordinances to the chief of the police department, and to lodge 
 complaints with the proper officers of the city, giving the names 
 of the persons so violating said ordinances. The commissioner 
 of street cleaning and all district superintendents and foremen 
 in said department, shall be conservator of the peace, with power 
 to arrest any person who may violate any of the provisions of 
 said ordinance. 
 
 Sec. 22. The commissioner of street cleaning is hereby 
 authorized from time to time, with the approval of the board 
 of public works, to prescribe uniforms, badges or insignia to be 
 worn and displayed by employes and members of said depart¬ 
 ment, and to prescribe that the same shall be worn during all 
 hours of service. 
 
 Sec. 23. Nothing in this article shall be held to relieve 
 any owner or occupant of any property from any duties imposed 
 upon him by ordinance of the Common Council in relation to the 
 cleaning of, or the removal of filth, snow, ice, dirt or other 
 refuse from sidewalks or gutters of any streets upon which said 
 property fronts or abuts, or from any alley in the rear or upon 
 the side of any such property. The common council may pass 
 
147 
 
 
 9 ' 
 
 such ordinances, not in conflict with this article or the constitu¬ 
 tion and laws of this State, as it may deem necessary or expedient 
 for more fully carrying into effect or enforcing the provisions of 
 this article. 
 
 Sec. 24. Whenever the repair of any street, alley or high¬ 
 way of the city is necessary in order to expedite the cleaning 
 of streets as herein provided, the commissioner of street cleaning 
 shall report such fact to the superintendent of repairs, whose 
 duty it shall be to promptly make such repairs. 
 
 Sec. 25. The board shall keep full and complete records 
 of all its proceedings. It shall keep books of account showing 
 with accuracy the receipts and expenditures of the board under 
 such plan and system as the comptroller may prescribe. It shall 
 classify or divide the various works and interests under its con¬ 
 trol into branches, as far as may be, and keep an accurate ac¬ 
 count of each branch, showing the amounts expended for original 
 improvements and construction, and the amount for repairs, 
 superintendence and other expenditures, exhibiting the source of 
 expenditure. 
 
 It shall be the duty of the board to make a report in writing 
 to the Mayor and Common Council once every three months, or 
 oftener if thereto required, giving the expenditure of the differ¬ 
 ent branches of work under the control of the board, and embrac¬ 
 ing a statement of the condition, progress and • operation of the 
 works in its charge. 
 
 \ 
 
ARTICLE XI. 
 
 Department of Fire and Water. 
 
 Section 1. There is hereby established within the city an 
 executive department to be known as the Fire Department and 
 an executive department to be known as the Water Department, 
 both of which shall be under the control and management of a 
 board of fire and water commissioners. Said commissioners shall 
 be appointed by the Mayor and shall be well known for their 
 intelligence and integrity. The term of office of such commis¬ 
 sioners shall be three years; provided, that the first commission¬ 
 ers appointed hereunder shall so classify themselves by lot that 
 the term of one of the commissioners shall expire at the begin¬ 
 ning of the fiscal year 1909; one at the beginning of the fiscal 
 year 1910; one at the beginning of the fiscal year 1911, and at the 
 expiration of the term of each member his successor shall be 
 appointed by the Mayor for a term of three years from the date 
 of the expiration of the official term of his predecessor. The 
 first board shall be appointed forthwith after this charter takes 
 effect. Said commissioners shall each receive the sum of one 
 thousand dollars per year as compensation for their services 
 until otherwise provided by ordinance. 
 
 The first board appointed hereunder shall organize by elect¬ 
 ing one of its members president, and the members of said board 
 shall, annually'thereafter, elect one of their number as president 
 of said board; each president elected hereunder shall hold office 
 for one year and until his successor is elected and qualified. 
 
 The board shall select a secretary who shall not be a mem¬ 
 ber of the board, and who shall serve at the pleasure of the 
 board. 
 
 The board shall hold regular meetings at least once each 
 week, and as many special meetings as it may deem proper; two 
 members of said board shall constitute a quorum for the trans¬ 
 action of business and an affirmative vote of at least two mem¬ 
 bers shall be necessary to authorize any action of the board. 
 
 Sec. 2. Said board of fire and water commissioners shall 
 have power, and it shall be its duty to maintain and operate a 
 water works system for the use of and to supply the city, its 
 inhabitants or any person, firm or corporation with water within 
 or without the corporate limits of said city, or within or with¬ 
 out the limits of the State of Missouri. Said board shall have 
 power to select and designate the lands to be used and appro- 
 
priated for a water works or fire department within or without 
 the city limits and within or without the State of Missouri, and 
 to extend, alter, enlarge and modify the water works or fire 
 department systems of Kansas City. 
 
 Said board shall have power by and with the approval and 
 authority by ordinance of the common council, to lease, control 
 or otherwise acquire in the name of the city, land for water 
 works or fire department systems or for purposes appertaining 
 thereto. 
 
 r • 
 
 Said board shall have power to lay water pipes and supply 
 water along such streets, avenues, public highways or alleys or 
 part thereof, or in such places within or without the city or with¬ 
 out the State of Missouri, and under such terms and conditions 
 as it may deem advisable; the cost of laying such pipe shall be 
 paid out of the sum or sums appropriated to the use of said board 
 as hereinafter provided. The necessary excavations and fillings 
 for water pipes and their connections, when within the lines of 
 public highways of the city, shall be made under the supervision 
 of the board of public works. 
 
 Sec. 3. The board of fire and water commissioners shall 
 have charge of the entire water works and fire department sys¬ 
 tems of the city, and all appurtenances thereto belonging and 
 shall superintend, control and manage said water works and 
 fire department systems and all property appertaining thereto or 
 necessary or convenient for accomplishing the purposes contem¬ 
 plated by this article, and shall enforce the performance of all 
 contracts and work, and shall have custody of all books, assets 
 and property belonging to or appertaining to said water works 
 and fire department systems. Said board may, subject to the 
 civil service laws, rules and Regulations prescribed by and pro¬ 
 vided for in this charter, appoint and employ such chief super¬ 
 intendent and superintendents, assessor and collector of water 
 rates, and any and all other officers and employes as it may deem 
 necessary and shall prescribe and fix their duties. 
 
 Sec. 4. The contracts for the doing of all work and the 
 furnishing of all materials and supplies for the water works and 
 fire department systems shall be let by the board of fire and water 
 commissioners, subject to the provisions of article IV of this 
 charter relating to the city purchasing agent, except that in cases 
 6f emergency when the purchasing agent is unable to furnish 
 materials, machinery, tools and supplies immediately necessary 
 for the use of said board, the same may be purchased by the 
 board irrespective of the purchasing agent and without competi¬ 
 tive bidding, when said purchases do not involve an expenditure 
 of more than five hundred dollars. 
 
150 
 
 Sec. 5. The board of fire and water commissioners may 
 require owners, or lessees or their agents, of houses, stores and 
 other buildings in the city, or in any such parts thereof as they 
 are ready to supply, to take out licenses for the use of water 
 for such houses, stores or buildings, according to the rates or 
 assessments fixed as provided in this article, whenever the hos¬ 
 pital and health board of the city, or the proper officer desig¬ 
 nated by it, shall, by order duly made, declare that the use of 
 w T ater from the water works of the city in any such houses, stores 
 or buildings is demanded as a sanitary measure for the preserva¬ 
 tion of the health of the inmates or inhabitants of such houses, 
 stores or buildings'; and the said rate of assessments shall be paid 
 by all such proprietors, owners or lessees or their agents, as well 
 by those who consent as by those who refuse to place in their 
 houses, stores and buildings the water pipe to convey the same, 
 and shall be payable whenever the board of fire and water com¬ 
 missioners shall have notified the proprietor, owner, lessee, or his 
 agent, of the readiness of said board to supply such houses, 
 stores or buildings with water as aforesaid. The parties who 
 fail or neglect to comply with the provisions of this section shall 
 be subject to penalties as may be provided by ordinance. 
 
 Sec. 6. The assessment and collection of water rates shall 
 be under the control and supervision of the board of fire and 
 water commissioners, who shall appoint an assessor and collector 
 of water rates, who shall hold office during the pleasure of the 
 board. He shall have authority to appoint, subject to the civil 
 service laws, rules and regulations contained in or provided for 
 by this charter, such clerks and assistants as may be authorized 
 by said board. It shall be the duty of such assessor and col¬ 
 lector to collect all revenue due or to become due to the city for 
 water, or accuring to the city on account of the operation of 
 the water works system. 
 
 The board shall have power to make corrections and adjust¬ 
 ments for all over-charges or errors in water bills collected from 
 or charged against consumers of water. All refunds shall be 
 made out of the funds of the board by requisition on the auditor 
 for warrants, as authorized by this charter. The board shall 
 make a detailed daily report to the comptroller of all such re¬ 
 funds. 
 
 Sec. 7. The assessor and collector of water rates shall 
 each day pay the City Treasurer all revenue collected on account 1 
 of water works, and then on hand, and take duplicate receipts 
 for the same, one of which he shall file in his office, and the 
 other he shall forthwith deliver to the auditor. He shall, within 
 the first six days of each month, furnish the comptroller with a 
 
151 
 
 full and complete statement of all collections made by him dur¬ 
 ing the preceding month, and also the number of blank licenses 
 on hand at the end of that month. 
 
 Sec. 8. Blanks for water licenses shall be in such form as 
 may be prescribed by the board, and the comptroller shall coun¬ 
 tersign the same and shall issue the same from time to time to 
 the assessor and collector of water rates and take his duplicate 
 receipt therefor, one of which shall be filed with the city auditor, 
 one to be retained in the comptroller’s office, which latter receipts 
 shall be kept in well bound books. The comptroller shall exam¬ 
 ine each monthly statement of said assessor and collector of 
 water rates and certify to the Auditor and to the board of fire 
 and water commissioners whether the same be correct or not. 
 
 Sec. 9. It shall be the duty of the Common Council, by 
 ordinance, upon recommendation of the board of fire and water 
 commissioners, from time to time, to fix, alter and establish 
 prices and rates to be paid for the use of water. No water rate 
 shall be allowed or fixed by any other principle or consideration 
 than that of producing revenue, and exceptional discriminations 
 in rates are forbidden. Water rates shall be so fixed as to pro¬ 
 duce revenue enough to pay at least all running expenses, the 
 interest on all bonds issued and outstanding for water works 
 purposes and costs of all repairs of the works. All revenue and 
 income derived from the water works after paying all salaries 
 of officers and employes, running expenses and cost of repairs, 
 shall, so far as may be necessary to meet the same, be first applied 
 to the payment of interest on said boncjs, and the balance thereof 
 shall go to the sinking fund to meet the principal of said bonds, 
 or for enlargements, extensions and betterments as the common 
 council may, by ordinance, provide. 
 
 Sec. 10. If deemed advisable by the law-making authori¬ 
 ties of the city, upon recommendation of the board of fire and 
 water commissioners, water rates may be so fixed by ordinance 
 as to produce revenue enough to pay for all enlargements, exten¬ 
 sions and betterments of the works, in addition to the running 
 expenses, the interest on all bonds issued or hereafter to be 
 issued and outstanding for water works purposes, and costs of 
 all repairs of the works. 
 
 Sec. 11. Said board shall make an annual report to the 
 Mayor and Common Council of the acts of said board of fire and 
 water commissioners and all its expenditures, showing the con¬ 
 dition of all affairs under its control. Said board shall also 
 
152 
 
 cause to be published in pamphlet form, at least once in four 
 years, a comprehensive report of the operations of the depart¬ 
 ment, for public distribution. 
 
 Sec. 12. Said board shall have charge, management and 
 control of all the city’s fire engines and means and apparatus 
 used or provided for the extinguishment and prevention of fires 
 and of all buildings, houses and places of the city used in keep¬ 
 ing and preserving the same, and generally shall have full charge 
 and control of the management, operation, extension, enlarge¬ 
 ment and betterment of the fire department system of the city, 
 subject to the provisions of this charter. 
 
 Sec. 13. Said board shall appoint a fire chief to serve dur¬ 
 ing the pleasure of the board. It shall also, from time to time, 
 divide the places of employment and service in the fire depart¬ 
 ment into positions, naming them, grading according to the 
 importance of the duties to be performed by the employes occu¬ 
 pying such positions. The chief of the fire department, and all 
 other persons in the employ of the fire department at the date 
 of the taking effect of this charter shall, upon the taking effect 
 of this charter, be deemed to have been appointed to and em¬ 
 ployed in their present positions and places of employment by 
 said board of fire and water commissioners at the same com¬ 
 pensation, without further or additional appointment or employ¬ 
 ment, except that the said chief of the fire department shall 
 henceforth be known as Fire Chief. 
 
 Sec. 14. Except as provided in the next preceding sec¬ 
 tion of this article, and with the exception of the Fire Chief, no 
 person shall be taken into the service of the fire department other¬ 
 wise than in accordance with the civil service laws, rules and 
 regulations contained in or provided for by this charter. All 
 employments in the fire department shall, in the first instance, 
 be for a probationary period of six months, during which time 
 such probationers shall perform such substitute duties in the 
 department and shall receive such per diem compensation for 
 the actual time engaged in the performance of such duties as the 
 board shall prescribe. Such probationers shall be numbered by 
 the Fire Chief in the order in which, according to merit, they are 
 certified for employment from the eligible list of the civil sendee 
 commission, and each probationer who by such actual experience 
 manifests his fitness for duty as a fireman shall be selected for 
 regular employment in the department in the same relative order. 
 
 Sec. 15. Said board shall organize fire, hose, ax, chemi¬ 
 cal, hook and ladder and other fire fighting companies and em- 
 

 153 
 
 f 
 
 ploy a suitable number of able and reputable inhabitants of the 
 city as firemen to take the care and management of the engines 
 and apparatus and implements-used and provided for the extin¬ 
 guishment of fires, and shall prescribe the duties of firemen, and 
 make rules and regulations for their government, and impose 
 reasonable penalties for violation of the same. Said board shall 
 from time to time, determine and fix the quantity, kind, char¬ 
 acter and quality of all equipment, apparatus and supplies needed 
 by said fire department, including means of giving and receiv¬ 
 ing fire alarms, and shall purchase and pay for the same as pro¬ 
 vided in this charter. 
 
 Sec. 16. The Fire Chief shall be responsible for the disci¬ 
 pline, good order and proper conduct of the employes under him 
 in the whole fire department, the enforcement of all laws, ordi¬ 
 nances, rules and regulations pertaining thereto, and for the care 
 and condition of the houses, engines, hose, carriages and all 
 property of the department. He shall have the superintendence, 
 control and command of all the officers and men belonging to the 
 department, and full power to remove, discharge and suspend 
 them, or any of them, and shall also have charge of all the 
 engine houses used by the department, and of all the engines and 
 fire apparatus belonging to the city. He shall, likewise, have 
 full control of all persons present at fires, and to that end shall 
 ex-officio have and exercise all the powers of the chief of police 
 of the city thereat, and all of his subordinates shall have the 
 same powers as policemen. He shall have power, if need be, to 
 summon any and all persons present to aid in extinguishing any 
 fire, in removing personal property from any building on fire 
 or in danger thereof, and in guarding the same, and any person 
 refusing to obey such summons shall be deemed guilty of a mis¬ 
 demeanor. He shall also have power to order the cutting down 
 and removing of any building, erection, fence and thing, if he 
 shall deem it necessary for the purpose of checking the progress 
 of any fire. In case of the absence of said Fire Chief from any 
 fire, the assistant in the department of the highest rank then 
 present shall, for the time, have the powers and perform the 
 duties of such Fire Chief. The Fire Chief or the assistant in com¬ 
 mand at any fire may prescribe limits in the vicinity of such fire 
 within which no person, excepting those who reside therein, 
 members of the fire department or the police department, and 
 those admitted by order of the officers of the fire department, 
 shall be permitted to come. 
 
 Sec. 17. It shall be the duty of the Common Council to 
 appropriate and set apart twenty-five per cent of the total amount 
 received by the city from the tax on foreign insurance com¬ 
 panies to aid in the creation of a fund for the purposes set forth 
 
164 
 
 in the act of the general assembly of the State of Missouri, 
 entitled, “An act to provide for the creation, maintenance and 
 management of funds for the pensioning of crippled, disabled and 
 retired firemen, and for the relief of widows, minor children and 
 dependents of the deceased firemen; the retirement from service 
 of members of the fire department, and the pensioning of mem¬ 
 bers, their widows, minor children and dependents in all cities 
 in this State which now have or which hereafter acquire a pop¬ 
 ulation of more than one hundred thousand inhabitants: Ap¬ 
 proved March 23rd, 1903.” 
 
 Such appropriation shall be made as soon as the money has 
 been actually received into the city treasury from said tax on 
 foreign insurance companies, and the organization of said board 
 of trustees fully completed as provided in said Act of the Gen¬ 
 eral Assembly. 
 
 Sec. 18. The management and control of such fund shall 
 be governed by all the provisions and limitations in said Act of 
 the General Assembly contained. 
 
 Sec. 19. Whenever the city shall have paid into said fund 
 as aforesaid, the sum of one hundred thousand dollars, no fur- 
 there appropriation shall be made by the city to said fund except 
 by ordinance passed by an affirmative vote of at least two-thirds 
 of the members elect of each house of the Corpmon Council. 
 
 Sec. 20. The Common Council shall have power to pass all 
 such ordinances not in conflict with this charter or the constitu¬ 
 tion and laws of the State, as it shall deem proper to more fully 
 carry out the objects and purposes of this article. 
 
ARTICLE XII. 
 
 Establishment and Maintenance of Levee Districts. 
 
 Section 1 . The common council shall have power to pro¬ 
 vide for the establishment of levee districts within the city limits 
 and for the construction of levees, dikes, drains and other works 
 therein, for the protection of the lands within such levee districts 
 from floods or overflow of waters, and for the acquisition of 
 lands, right-of-way, and other rights required therefor by the 
 city, by purchase, condemnation or otherwise, including railroad 
 property. The cost of such land, rights-of-way and other rights, 
 and of the construction of said levees, dikes, drains and other 
 works within any levee district may be paid by assessment of 
 benefits upon all the lands within said levee district, exclusive of 
 improvements thereon, or out of the general fund of the city, 
 or by the issue and sale of the bonds of the city according to 
 law, or partly by assessment and partly out of the general fund, 
 as may be provided by ordinance; or, when two or more of such 
 levee districts may be joined as one benefit district as herein¬ 
 after provided, for the acquisition of such lands or rights, and 
 the construction of such improvements, the Common Council shall 
 have power, by ordinance, to provide that the cost of such acqui¬ 
 sition and construction may be paid by assessment of benefits 
 upon the lands, exclusive of improvements thereon, in all such 
 districts so joined. 
 
 Sec. 2. The board of public works shall have the power, 
 and it shall be its duty, when any such levee district has been 
 established by the Common Council, to devise and adopt a system 
 of levees, dikes, drains and other works for the protection from 
 floods or overflow, of all lands within such levee district, and to 
 select and designate lands and rights-of-way to be used and 
 appropriated for levees and others works necessary for the uses 
 of said district, and recommend to the Common Council the acqui¬ 
 sition of such lands and other rights and the construction of 
 such works. 
 
 And said board of public works shall cause accurate sur¬ 
 veys, maps and profiles to be made of levees, dikes, drains and 
 other works to be constructed, and shall estimate and calculate 
 the cost of the construction of the same, and the city engineer 
 and his assistants shall assist said board when required, and the 
 board may, if authorized so to do by the common council, employ 
 additional experienced, suitable and competent engineer or engin- 
 
166 
 
 eers to assist said board, and the board shall make a written 
 report to the Common Council of its conclusions, showing the 
 amount, character and kind of work to be done, the location and 
 probable cost thereof, for the information and use of the Com¬ 
 mon Council. 
 
 Sec. 3. The Common Council may provide, by ordinance, 
 for the acquisition of land, rights-of-way and other rights re¬ 
 quired by the city in the exercise of the powers conferred in this 
 article, in the manner provided in Article VI of this char¬ 
 ter relating to .condemning and damaging private property, or 
 as hereinafter provided. 
 
 Sec. 4. The Common Council may provide in the ordinance 
 for the acquisition of the land, rights-of-way and other rights 
 required as aforesaid, and for the construction of the levees, 
 dikes, drains and other works proposed, in which case the acqui¬ 
 sition of the land, rights-of-way and other rights, and the assess¬ 
 ment of the costs and damages on account of the acquisition of 
 the same, and the assessment of benefits to pay. therefor, and 
 the assessment of benefits to pay for the construction of said 
 levees, dikes, drains and other works, may be had and done in 
 one and the same judicial proceeding. 
 
 The benefit district in any such proceeding may include one 
 or more levee districts as may be provided by ordinance. And 
 in such ordinance, separate descriptions of each piece or parcel 
 of private property to be taken will not be required, but it shall 
 be a sufficient description of the property to be taken, purchased 
 or damaged, to give a description of the entire tract by metes 
 and bounds, whether the same shall be composed of one or more 
 than one piece or parcel. 
 
 After the passage of such ordinance, the city engineer, or 
 his assistants, shall make out and deliver to the board of public 
 works a statement, by map, plat or otherwise, containing a cor¬ 
 rect' description of the several lots or parcels of private property 
 to be, purchased, taken or damaged, and containing also the 
 names of the owners so far as known of such lots or parcels of 
 land, if any, to be taken or damaged, or of any estate or inter¬ 
 est therein, who may be such at the time of the taking effect of 
 the ordinance providing for the taking or damaging of such 
 private property. 
 
 Sec. 5. After the passage of the ordinance as specified in 
 the foregoing section providing for the construction in any levee 
 district or districts of any levee, dike, drain or other works, or 
 system of levees, dikes, drains or other works, and the acquisition 
 of the land, rights-of-way and other rights, if any, required 
 
157 
 
 therefor, the board of public works shall cause plans and speci¬ 
 fications to be made for the work, and shall make estimates and 
 calculations of the cost of such work, exclusive of the cost fcf 
 the land, rights-of-way and other rights to be acquired, and 
 damages sustained by virtue of said improvements, and to that 
 end, may advertise for bids or proposals for the whole or any 
 part of the work; and the said board shall be aided in making 
 said estimates and calculations by the city engineer and his assist¬ 
 ants, and by such other persons, if any, as may be employed by 
 said board by authority of the Common Council, the cost of such 
 work to include the cost of any material required for the said 
 work; and such estimates and calculations of the cost of such 
 work, when completed, shall be certified to under the hand of 
 the president and secretary, and a record thereof shall be made 
 and kept in the office of said board; and said estimates and cal¬ 
 culations of the board shall be conclusive as to the cost of such 
 work in all proceedings for the assessment of benefits to pay 
 therefor as hereinafter provided. 
 
 After the plans and specifications of the work provided by 
 the said ordinance to be done, and the estimates and calculations 
 of the cost of the same, shall have been completed, the city shall 
 file a proceeding in the circuit court of Jackson county, Missouri, 
 at Kansas City, in the name of the city, the same to be conducted 
 in all respects as proceedings for the condemnation of lands for 
 the establishment of parks and boulevards as provided in Article 
 XIII of this charter. In the petition filed by the 
 city in such proceeding, the city shall allege the passage and 
 approval of the odinance providing for the work specified therein 
 to be done, the condemnation of land, rights-of-way and other 
 rights required therefor, if the same shall have been provided 
 for in the ordinance, and the estimated cost of the work as shown 
 by the record of the board of public works, and the prayer of 
 the petition shall be that the court shall summon a jury of six 
 freeholders who shall not be interested in any property or rights 
 to be taken, purchased or damaged, for the assessment of the 
 costs and damages on account of the property and rights to be 
 taken or damaged, and the benefits arising from said proposed 
 improvement, including all benefits to the city at large, and that 
 the court shall find and determine the validity of said ordinance, 
 and the amount, if any, for which the respective lots, tracts, and 
 parcels of land within the benefit district described in the ordi¬ 
 nance shall be charged for the acquisition of the property and 
 rightS'to be acquired, if any, and the construction of the improve¬ 
 ments provided for by said ordinance. 
 
 Sec. 6. Service of process in the proceedings specified in 
 the preceding section shall be governed by the provisions of 
 
158 
 
 Article XIII of this charter, relating to service of 
 notice and summons in proceedings for the ascertainment of 
 benefits and damages for the condemnation of lands for parks 
 and boulevards. In such proceeding, the city may offer in evi¬ 
 dence the plans and specifications of the work to be done and 
 improvements to be made as provided by the ordinance and 
 approved by the board of public works together with the esti¬ 
 mates of the cost of such work and improvements as determined 
 by the board of public works, and may offer evidence tending 
 to prove the validity of said ordinance and proposed lien, the 
 value of the land and rights-of-way and other rights to be taken, 
 if any, the damages to be suffered by any and all persons on 
 account of the construction of said dikes, levees, drains and other 
 works, and the benefits to* each and every tract and parcel of 
 land within the said levee or benefit district sought to be pro¬ 
 tected, and to the city at large; and the respective owners of 
 lots, tracts and parcels of land within said benefit district will 
 have the right to introduce evidence tending to show the invalid¬ 
 ity of such ordinance and of said proposed lien against the 
 respective lots, tracts and parcels of land within said benefit dis¬ 
 trict, and shall have the right to have determined the question 
 of whether or not the owner of any lot, tract or parcel of land 
 shall be charged with such lien, and shall have the right to offer 
 evidence as to any damages to any lot, tract or parcel of land 
 sought to be taken, or any lot, tract or parcel of land or other 
 property alleged to be damaged, and as to the benefit or want of 
 benefit to any lot, tract or parcel of land sought to be assessed 
 with benefits, and to the city at large. 
 
 And to pay compensation for the land, property and other 
 rights to be acquired and damages suffered and to pay the 
 estimated cost of the work to be done and improvements to be 
 made, the jury of freeholders shall estimate the amount of bene¬ 
 fit to the city at large, and shall estimate the value of the bene¬ 
 fits of the proposed improvements to each and every lot, piece 
 and parcel of private property, exclusive of the buildings and 
 improvements thereon within the benefit district, if any benefit 
 is found to accrue thereto; and in case the total of such benefits, 
 including the benefits to the city at large, equals or exceeds the 
 amount of compensation assessed or to be paid for the property 
 and rights purchased, taken or damaged, and the cost of the 
 improvement as estimated by the board of public works, or such 
 portion of said compensation and cost as by said ordinance is 
 provided to be paid by the assessment of benefits, then said 
 jurors shall assess against the city the amount of benefits to the 
 city as aforesaid, and shall assess the balance of the cost of such 
 improvement, inclusive of the cost of the property and rights 
 
169 
 
 acquired and damages sustained, or so much of the cost thereof 
 as by said ordinance is to be paid by assessment of benefits, 
 against the several lots and parcels of private property found 
 benefited, each lot or parcel of ground to be assessed with an 
 ^mount bearing the same ratio to such balance as the benefit to 
 each lot or parcel bears to the whole benefit to all the private 
 property assessed. 
 
 And the jury of freeholders shall render a verdict which 
 shall show: 
 
 First : A correct description of each piece or parcel of pri¬ 
 vate property taken, if any, and the value thereof as found by 
 said jury, and of each piece or parcel of private property or other 
 property damaged, and the amount of damages thereto as found 
 by said jury, and the description of rights-of-way or any other 
 rights to be acquired by the proceeding and the value thereof 
 as found by said jury. 
 
 Second : The estimated cost of constructing the improve¬ 
 ments as determined by the board of public works. 
 
 Third : The amount, if any, assessed against the city, 
 which shall stand as a judgment against the city; and shall show 
 the amount of benefits assessed against each piece or parcel of pri¬ 
 vate property found benefited within the benefit district to pay 
 the compensaion awarded for property taken or damaged, or 
 rights acquired, and to pay the estimated cost of construction of 
 the proposed improvements provided for in said ordinance. 
 
 The provisions of Article XIII of this charter 
 relating to the making up and signing of the verdicts of juries 
 of freeholders in the acquisition of lands for parks and boule¬ 
 vards, and the duties of the city engineer and city assessor and 
 their assistants in relation thereto, shall apply to the making up 
 and signing of the verdicts of such juries in the cases specified 
 in this article. 
 
 Sec. 7. The proceedings specified and the rights conceded 
 in Article XIII of this charter,’ including the waiver 
 of such rights, as set forth therein, where property is taken or 
 damaged for public use for parks and boulevards, where the 
 owner or claimant therefor is an incorporated company entitled 
 under the law of the land to a trial of its claim for compensation 
 by a common law jury, shall be had in cases of land, rights-of- 
 way or other rights to be condemned or damaged for the pui- 
 poses of this article, when such incorporated company shall de¬ 
 mand a trial of its claim for compensation before a common law 
 jury of twelve men. 
 
160 
 
 Sec. 8 . After the jury shall render its verdict the same 
 may be reviewed by the court on its own motion, or on the 
 motion of any party interested, which shall be filed and heard in 
 the manner provided in Article XIII of -this charter 
 for reviewing verdicts of jurors in condemnation cases relating 
 to parks and boulevards, and the court may set aside such ver¬ 
 dict and order a new trial; or, the court may render judgment 
 that such ordinance, or the award of damages or the assessment 
 of benefits, are in whole or in part invalid and illegal. The 
 verdict, unless set aside as aforesaid, shall be confirmed by the 
 court, and the court shall render judgment that the said ordi¬ 
 nance and assessments are valid, and that the city have and hold 
 the property and rights sought to be taken, upon payment of the 
 compensation assessed for the use of the persons entitled thereto, 
 for the purposes specified in the ordinance providing for said 
 improvement, and that the city pay the benefits assessed against 
 said city, if any there be; that the city shall recover the respec¬ 
 tive amounts assessed against private property, and that the 
 several lots, tracts and parcels of private property assessed to pay 
 compensation for the verdict stand severally charged, and be 
 bound, for the payment of the respective assessments and inter¬ 
 est that may accrue thereon; and if said assessments are, by 
 the ordinance aforesaid, made payable in more than one install¬ 
 ment, the judgment shall so recite. 
 
 Sec. 9. Said assessments to pay for said improvements 
 may be payable in one installment, or in such number of annual 
 installments as may be determined by the Common Council, such 
 determination to be set forth in the ordinance of the Common 
 Council under which said proceedings are instituted. 
 
 • 
 
 Sec. 10. The provisions of Article XIII relating to 
 the time and manner of payment of assessments charged 
 against lands for the acquisition and establishment of parks and 
 boulevards which are payable in one or more installments, and 
 the rate of interest on said assessments, and the penalties speci¬ 
 fied for non-payment, and the manner of payment, and the col¬ 
 lection of the same, shall apply to the assessments made in pur¬ 
 suance of this article, and all provisions relating to the duties of 
 the City Treasurer in the matter of special assessments provided 
 in said Article XIII including the records to be kept 
 and the sale of lands under execution for non-payment of such 
 assessments, and the application of the assessments to the pur¬ 
 poses for which they are made, shall apply to the City Treasurer 
 in relation to the assessments made in pursuance of the authority 
 of this article. 
 
161 
 
 Sec. 11. Any party aggrieved by any verdict and judg¬ 
 ment aforesaid, may take an appeal therefrom by filing such 
 affidavit as is required in the appealing of civil cases, and filing 
 a bond in such sum and with such security as may be approved 
 by the circuit court, or judge thereof, conditioned that the party 
 appealing, should the judgment be affirmed by the appellate 
 court, or such appeal be dismissed, pay all costs of such appeal. 
 The bond and affidavit for such appeal, however, shall be filed 
 within twenty days from the rendition of the judgment of con¬ 
 firmation of the verdict, and the appeal shall be perfected withm 
 sixty days from the date of said judgment, unless further time 
 be granted by the court. In case of appeal, the judgment shall 
 stand suspended until the appeal is disposed of, and no interest 
 shall be allowed or collected on the judgment or on the assess¬ 
 ments, until said judgment be affirmed or appeal be dismissed. 
 No writ of error shall be allowed. The clerk of the appellate 
 court shall put such case on the docket for hearing at the next 
 term of that court after the appeal is allowed. No error nor 
 defect not affecting the rights of the appellant shall work a 
 reversal of the judgment. 
 
 Sec. ^12. The Common Council shall have the power, at 
 any time before any of the parties assessed with benefits shall 
 have paid the amount so assessed, to repeal the ordinance order¬ 
 ing the proposed improvement, if such repeal be deemed for 
 the best interests of the city; and in such event, the judgment 
 for compensation and benefits shall be void. 
 
 Sec. 13. After the judgment of confirmation of such ver¬ 
 dict and proceedings, the clerk of said court shall certify under 
 the seal of said court, to two copies of said verdict, one of which 
 copies he shall deliver to the City Treasurer, and one to the 
 Comptroller, and said assessment for benefits, if any, against pri¬ 
 vate property, shall be a lien from the date of the taking effect 
 of the ordinance in pursuance of which said assessments are 
 made and said proceedings instituted, and shall attach to the 
 several lots or parcels of land so assessed with benefits as afore¬ 
 said; and said lien shall continue against each lot or parcel 
 assessed until the assessment against each lot or parcel has been 
 paid or collected in full, both principal and interest. No assess¬ 
 ment shall be defeated or affected by any irregularity affecting 
 any other assessment or from the rendering of any other assess¬ 
 ment invalid in whole or in part. 
 
 Sec. 14. After the confirmation by the circuit court, or 
 appellate court on appeal, as hereinbefore provided, of any ver- 
 
182 
 
 diet in any proceeding in which special benefits are assessed 
 against real estate as compensation for property or rights pur¬ 
 chased, taken or damaged and to pay for all work to be done 
 and improvements made for the purposes specified in this arti¬ 
 cle, the common council for the purpose of raising money in 
 advance of the dates when assessments are due, to pay for land 
 purchased, taken or condemned, and work to be done and im¬ 
 provements to be made or constructed, may provide by ordi¬ 
 nance that the city treasurer shall issue levee fund certificates 
 in amount not to exceed the total amount of assessments against 
 the private property shown in any such verdict and unpaid at 
 the expiration of the said sixty days from the confirmation as 
 aforesaid. Such certificates shall be in such form and for such 
 sums as may be provided by ordinance, and shall be either paya¬ 
 ble to the order of the registered holder, or be payable to bearer. 
 Any such certificate shall entitle the owner or holder thereof to 
 his proportionate share as shown by such certificate, of the 
 special assessments and the interest thereon, as the same are 
 collected, upon which such certificates are issued, and shall so 
 specify. 
 
 Sec. 15. Distribution of the amounts collected upon said 
 special assessments, including interest, shall be made to the 
 holder or holders of such certificates, pro rata , at least semi¬ 
 annually, at such specified dates as may be provided in the ordi¬ 
 nance authorizing the issue of the same, and the holder shall 
 receipt for such payments; and the city shall be liable on such 
 certificates to the holders thereof for the sums collected from 
 the special assessments upon which said certificates are issued 
 and not otherwise. 
 
 Sec. 16. Should the purchaser or holder elect, said cer¬ 
 tificates shall be registered by the Comptroller -in the name of 
 the owner and his assigns from time to time, and the Comptroller 
 shall certify such registration to the holder. 
 
 Sec. 17. All levee fund certificates issued on account of 
 special assessments growing out of the same condemnation or 
 assessment proceedings, ‘including supplemental proceedings 
 shall be considered a part of the original proceeding, and shall 
 be designated as a series; and if any series comprises more than 
 one certificate, such certificates shall be numbered. 
 
 Sec. 18. Each of such levee fund certificates shall bear 
 the certificate of the City Treasurer and the attestation of the 
 Comptroller that the same is one of a series of certificates issued 
 
163 
 
 on account of certain special assessments to which such series 
 relates, and that such series is not in excess of the same: and 
 the Comptroller shall keep a record of all such certificates issued 
 in each series and of all payments and dividends thereon, and 
 shall publish the same in his annual statement, and also state¬ 
 ments of the amounts received by the city Treasurer from assess¬ 
 ments; and shall at the request of the holder of any levee fund 
 certificate, certify to such holder the amount that has been col¬ 
 lected and paid on tire same from special assessments, both 
 principal and interest. > 
 
 Sec. 19. Immediately upon full payment and surrender 
 of any levee fund certificates, the Treasurer shall cancel the same 
 and keep a record thereof, and deliver the same to the Comp¬ 
 troller, who shall give the Terasurer a receipt therefor; but when 
 all the special assessments represented by a series of such certifi¬ 
 cates have been fully collected so far as possible, with interest 
 thereon, and all sums collected have been distributed as afore¬ 
 said, such certificates shall be surrendered and cancelled, and if 
 not surrendered, shall nevertheless be void. 
 
 Sec. 20. The board of public works may sell such levee 
 fund certificates at such price not less than the face value of 
 the amount of special assessments represented by said certifi¬ 
 cates, as may be obtainable, and shall determine the manner 
 and means of such sale. Such certificates shall be delivered 
 by the City Treasurer to the purchaser, upon payment therefor, 
 upon the order of the board of public works, specifying the 
 price, which order shall be countersigned by the Comptroller, 
 who shall keep a record thereof, and the proceeds of such cer¬ 
 tificates so sold, shall be used for payment for land purchased or 
 condemned for the purposes of this article, and for the work 
 to be done and improvements made and constructed for which 
 the special assessments were made on which such certificates 
 are issued; and any surplus remaining after all such payments 
 are made in full shall accumulate for the use of the levee district 
 or districts in which the improvements are situated for which 
 such certificates were issued; but such certificates may, by agree¬ 
 ment, be issued directly in payment for the land purchased, taken 
 or condemned and for the work done and improvements made 
 or constructed, on account of which the said certificates were 
 issued. 
 
 Sec. 21. Any excess in the cost of any work done or im¬ 
 provements made or constructed in any levee district or dis¬ 
 tricts hereinbefore provided, above the estimate of the cost of 
 
164 
 
 the same made by the board of public works, shall be paid by 
 the city out of the funds of such levee district or districts not 
 otherwise appropriated, and in default of any such unappropri¬ 
 ated funds, shall be paid out of the general fund of the city, 
 unless said excess shall have been otherwise provided for by the 
 city. 
 
 Sec. 22. It shall be the duty of the City Treasurer, Comp¬ 
 troller and said board of public works, at all times to protect 
 such levee fund certificates by all means provided therefor, and 
 said' City Treasurer shall pay all sums collected from special 
 assessments as aforesaid to the holders of such certificates issued 
 thereon, and shall pay the same promptly on demand on the 
 dates fixed for the distribution thereof, as provided by ordi¬ 
 nance. 
 
 Sec. 23. The city shall pay all costs of proceedings under 
 this article to take or damage private property, or to levy assess¬ 
 ments for benefits in payment of land, and other rights, pur¬ 
 chased and condemned as herein provided, and for work to be 
 done and improvements to be made except cost of proceedings 
 for collecting overdue assessments,, which shall be taxed against 
 the real estate upon which said assessments are levied, except 
 the cost upon appeals, which shall be paid by the party unsuc¬ 
 cessfully prosecuting the same: and the City Counselor shall, 
 personally, or by any of his assistants, and as a part of his 
 duties as such counselor, conduct all the court proceedings under 
 this article. 
 
 Sec. 24. When any work is done, improvements made, or 
 lands purchased, and payment therefor is to be made in special 
 assessments, as provided in this article, the city shall in no 
 event, nor in any manner whatever, be liable fdr or on account 
 of such work done or improvements made or land purchased, 
 by reason of the invalidity or error in any such special assess¬ 
 ments, nor liable in any manner for the payment of the same. 
 
 Sec. 25. After the conclusion of any proceeding insti¬ 
 tuted by virtue of an ordinance of the Common Council as here¬ 
 inbefore set forth, providing for the construction of any levee, 
 dike, drain, or other works, or system of levees, dikes, drains 
 and other works, or other improvements, under the authority of 
 this article, the board of public works shall let the contract or 
 contracts therefor to the lowest and best bidder or bidders, sub¬ 
 ject to such rules and regulations as may be prescribed by ordi¬ 
 nance; and every contractor for work or improvements done 
 or made under authority of this article, shall give such bond 
 for the faithful performance of such contract as may be pre¬ 
 scribed by ordinance, such bond to be executed and approved 
 
165 
 
 in the same manner as bonds given by contractors for other city 
 work are required by the charter and ordinances of the city 
 to be executed and approved. 
 
 The construction of all improvements and all work done, 
 of every kind, under the authority of this article, shall be under 
 the supervision,, management and direction of the board of 
 public works, and the same duties shall be required of the city 
 engineer and his department as are required of his department 
 in other public improvements of the city under the supervision, 
 control and management of the board of public works; and the 
 board of public works shall have power to superintend, control 
 and manage the operation and maintenance of all such - work 
 and improvements as may be done or constructed under the 
 authority of this article. 
 
 Sec. 26. The real estate, inclusive of improvements 
 thereon constituting a part thereof, in any levee district or dis¬ 
 tricts, may be specially assessed annually for maintaining and 
 repairing any levees, dikes, drains or other works constructed 
 therein, and such assessments may be made according to valua¬ 
 tion and assessment for taxation of real estate in such levee 
 district or districts made for general city purposes; provided , 
 that any real estate which shall not be listed on the City Assessor’s 
 books for taxation for general city purposes, may, by ordinance 
 of the Common Council, be listed and valued by the City Assessor 
 for the purposes of this article: and provided further, that sucn 
 annual assessments authorized by this section shall never exceed 
 in any one year one mill upon each dollar of valuation as shown 
 on the books of the city assessor as aforesaid. Every such 
 assessment shall be made and collected as provided by ordinance 
 of the Common Council, and the Common Council shall have the 
 power to provide penalties for the failure to pay such assess¬ 
 ments when due, and may provide for the sale of the property 
 assessed to satisfy said assessments. 
 
 All other sums required to maintain such levees, dikes, 
 drains and other works, and to carry into effect the provisions 
 of this article, may be appropriated out of the general fund of 
 the city. 
 
 Sec. 27. The Common Council shall have power to pass 
 ordinances for the protection of the levees, dikes, drains and 
 other works constructed under the authority of this article, and 
 for the proper policing of the same, and to establish penalties 
 for the violation of such ordinances; and shall have power to 
 pass such ordinances, not in conflict with this article, or the 
 constitution and laws of the State, as may be deemed necessary 
 and expedient for more fully carrying into effect the objects 
 and purposes of this article. 
 
ARTICLE XIII. 
 
 Department of Parks and Boulevards. 
 
 Section 1. There is hereby established within the city a 
 department to be known as the department of parks and boule¬ 
 vards, which shall be under the control and management of a 
 board of park commissioners composed of three persons well 
 known for their intelligence and integrity, and whose term of 
 office shall be for a period of three years; provided, that the 
 first commissioners shall so classify themselves by lot that the 
 term of one of such commissioners shall expire at the end of one 
 year, one at the end of two years, and one at the end of three 
 years from the third Monday in April of the year 1909, and at 
 the expiration of the term of each member,, his successor shall 
 be appointed by the Mayor for a term of three years from the 
 date of expiration of the official term of his predecessor; Pro¬ 
 vided, further, that the members of the board of park commis¬ 
 sioners of said Kansas City in office at the time this charter goes 
 into effect shall become and constitute the first board of park 
 commissioners hereunder, and shall hold office until the expira¬ 
 tion of the terms for which they were originally appointed. 
 Said commissioners shall serve without compensation. 
 
 The first board appointed hereunder shall organize by elect¬ 
 ing one of its members president, and the members of said board 
 shall annually thereafter elect one of their number as president 
 of said board; each president elected hereunder shall hold his 
 office for one year and until his successor is elected. 
 
 The board shall hold regular meetings at least once each 
 week, and as many special meetings as it may deem proper, and 
 two members of said board shall constitute a quorum for the 
 transaction of business, and an affirmative vote of at least two 
 members shall be necessary to authorize any action of the board. 
 
 / 
 
 Sec. 2. Said board of park commissioners shall keep a 
 record of its proceedings, and shall appoint a secretary who shall 
 not be a member of the board, and who shall hold office at the 
 will of the board. It shall be his duty to keep all records of 
 the board and to make such reports thereof as may be required 
 by the board. In the absence or disability of the secretary, the 
 board may appoint or deputize a secretary pro tempore, who 
 shall perform the duties of the secretary. 
 
 The records of the board of park and boulevard commis- 
 
167 
 
 sioners, and of the board of park commissioners, as heretofore 
 constituted under previous charters of said city, and kept by the 
 secretaries of said boards, as well as all records of the board of 
 park commissioners hereby created and constituted kept by the 
 secretary of said board of park commissioners, or copies of any 
 such records when duly certified to by the secretary of said last 
 named board shall be competent evidence of the proceedings of 
 said board. 
 
 Sec. 3. The board shall also appoint a chief executive 
 officer under the board who may or may not be a landscape arch¬ 
 itect and who shall hold office at the pleasure of the board, and 
 who shall, in behalf of said board, have charge, supervision, and 
 direction of all work, and of all officers and employes under 
 said board, and may dismiss any officer or employe under him. 
 except the secretary of the board. 
 
 Said board of park commissioners may, also, subject to the 
 civil service laws, rules and regulations, prescribed by and pro¬ 
 vided for in this charter, appoint and employ such other officers 
 and employes as it may deem necessary, and shall prescribe and 
 fix their duties. 
 
 Sec. 4. The president, and in his absence or disability, 
 any other park commissioner appointed president pro tempore 
 by resolution of the board, is authorized to sign, execute and 
 acknowledge in the name of the board, all maps, plats, contracts, 
 or documents of any character required or authorized by this 
 article, and to sign requisitions upon the Auditor for warrants 
 upon the City Treasurer for funds under control of, and to be 
 expended by said board; all warrants shall be countersigned by 
 the secretary, and in his absence or disability, by some member 
 of the board, other than the president or president pro tempore. 
 Said board shall have power, and it shall be its duty, to make by¬ 
 laws, rules and regulations for the orderly transaction and con¬ 
 duct of its business, and to make and enforce contracts in the 
 name of the city to carry out the purposes expressed in this 
 article. 
 
 / 
 
 Sec. 5. Said board of park commissioners shall have 
 power, and it shall be its duty, to devise and adopt a system of 
 public parks, parkways and boulevards, for the use of the city 
 and its inhabitants, and to select and designate lands to be used 
 and appropriated for such purposes within or without the city 
 limits, and to select routes and streets for boulevards, and to 
 cause the same to be opened, and widened, as hereinafter set 
 forth, and, by and with the approval and authority, by ordinance, 
 
168 
 
 of the Common Council, to lease, purchase, condemn or other¬ 
 wise acquire, in the name of the city, lands for parks, parkways, 
 boulevards, or public squares, and, by and with the approval and 
 authority, by ordinance, of the Common Council, to establish, 
 change, or re-establish the grade of any boulevard or parkway, 
 and to require any railway upon or across such boulevard or 
 parkway to be brought to the grade so established, changed or 
 re-established. 
 
 No change shall be made in the grade of any street upon 
 which any park land abuts, unless the board of park commis¬ 
 sioners shall approve such change of grade. 
 
 Sec. 6. Said board of park commissioners shall also have 
 power to superintend, control and manage any and all parks, 
 parkways, and boulevards, belonging to or under control of the 
 city, and such other public grounds and thoroughfares as may, 
 upon recommendation of the board of park commissioners, be 
 placed under control and management of said board, and to con¬ 
 struct, improve, adorn, regulate and maintain the same in such 
 manner as it may deem best, and to establish a width of side¬ 
 walks on all boulevards and parkways. And the Common Coun¬ 
 cil shall have power, and it shall be its duty, upon the recom¬ 
 mendation of the board of park commissioners, to pass ordi¬ 
 nances for the regulation and oderly government of such parks, 
 parkways and boulevards, and to prescribe fines and penalties 
 for the violation of such ordinances. And the common council 
 may, upon the recommendation of the board as aforesaid, regu¬ 
 late the traffic on all boulevards, parkways, avenues or roads 
 under the control of said board, and it may regulate the width of 
 tires on all vehicles used oil or passing over the same, and may 
 exclude heavy traffic or any kind of vehicle therefrom. 
 
 Sec. 7. The territory within the city limits, as said limits 
 are described in this charter and so long as said limits remain 
 unchanged, is hereby divided into five park districts, to be 
 known as: “West Park District/’ “North Park District,” 
 “South Park District,” Westport Park District,” and “East 
 Park District;” the boundaries of which park districts shall be 
 the same as those heretofore established for the said park dis¬ 
 tricts under the charter of Kansas City and ordinances thereof, 
 in effect prior to the adoption of this charter, and which bound¬ 
 aries are and shall be as follows: 
 
 Of the West Park District : Beginning at a point where 
 the western boundary line of the State of Missouri intersects 
 the center line of the main channel of the Missouri river; thence 
 eastwardly with the meanderings of the center line of the main 
 
169 
 
 channel of the Missouri river to the intersection with the pro¬ 
 longation north of the center line of Delaware street; thence 
 in a southerly direction along the prolongation north of the 
 center line of Delaware street, and the center line of Delaware 
 street to the center line of Ninth street; thence eastwardly 
 along the center line of Ninth street to the intersection with 
 the center line of Main street south of the junction of Main and 
 Delaware streets; thence in a southerly direction along the cen¬ 
 ter line of said Main street to the south line of the north half 
 of section number seventeen, township number forty-nine north, 
 range number thirty,three west; thence west along the center 
 line of and through sections number seventeen and eighteen 
 in said township and range to the western boundary line of 
 the State of Missouri; thence north along the western boundary 
 line of the State of Missouri to the point of beginning. 
 
 Of the North Park District: Beginning at a point where 
 the center line of Delaware street produced north intersects the 
 center line of the main channel of the Missouri river; thence 
 southwardly along the center line of Delaware street to the 
 intersection with the center line of Ninth street; thence east¬ 
 wardly along the center line of Ninth street to the intersection 
 with the center line of Main street south of the junction of 
 Main and Delaware streets; thence in a southerly direction 
 along the center line of Main street to the intersection with the 
 center line of Fifteenth street; thence eastwardly along the cen¬ 
 ter line of Fifteenth street to the center line of the east half 
 of section number three, township number forty-nine north, 
 range number thirty-three west; thence north along the center ' 
 line of the east half of said section number three to the north 
 line of said section number three; thence north and parallel with 
 the center line through the east half of section number thirty- 
 four, township number fifty north, range number thirty-three 
 west, to the north line of said section number thirty-four; thence 
 east to a point one hundred and thirty feet east of the north 
 and south center line of the east half of section number twenty- 
 seven, township number fifty north, range number thirty-three 
 west; thence north on a line parallel to the north and south 
 center lines of the east halves of sections number twenty-seven 
 and twenty-two, township number fifty north, range number 
 thirty-three west, to the center line of the main channel of the 
 Missouri river; thence westwardly with the meanderings of 
 the center line of the main channel of the Missouri river to the 
 place of beginning. 
 
 Of the South Park District : Beginning at the intersection 
 of the center line of Fifteenth street with the center line of Main 
 street; thence south along the center line of Main street to the 
 
170 
 
 intersection with the south line of the north half of section 
 number seventeen, township number forty-nine north, range 
 number thirty-three west; thence east along the center line of 
 and through sections number seventeen, sixteen and fifteen, said 
 township and range, to the southeast corner of the west half 
 of the northeast quarter of said section number fifteen; thence 
 north along the center line of the east half of sections number 
 fifteen, ten and three, said township and range, to the center 
 line of Fifteenth street; thence west along the center line of 
 Fifteenth street to the point of beginning. 
 
 Of the Westport Park District : Beginning at a point 
 where the western bonndary line of the State of Missouri inter¬ 
 sects the southern boundary line of the West Park District in 
 Kansas City, Missouri; thence south and along said western 
 boundary line of the State of Missouri to a point one hundred 
 and eighty feet south of and at a right angle to the south line 
 of section number nineteen, township number forty-nine north, 
 range number thirty-three west; thence east on a line parallel 
 to the south line of section number nineteen, township number 
 forty-nine north, range number thirty-three west, to a point 
 one hundred and eighty feet west of the north and south center 
 line of section number thirty, township number forty-nine 
 north, range number thirty-three west; thence south on a line 
 parallel to the north and south center line of section number 
 thirty, township number forty-nine north, range number thirty- 
 three west, to a point one hundred and eighty feet south of ihe 
 east and west center line of section number thirty, township 
 number forty-nine north, range number thirty-three west; thence 
 east on a line parallel to the east and west center line of section 
 number thirty, township number forty-nine north, range num¬ 
 ber thirty-three west, to a point one hundred and eighty feet 
 west of the east line of section number thirty, township number 
 forty-nine north, range number thirty-three west; thence south 
 on a line parallel to the east line of section number thirty, town¬ 
 ship number forty-nine north, range number thirty-three west, 
 to a point on the east and west center line of the south half 
 of section number thirty, township number forty-nine north, 
 range number thirty-three west; thence east along the center 
 line of the south halves of sections number thirty, twenty-nine, 
 twenty-eight and twenty-seven, township number forty-nine 
 north, range number thirty-three west, to a point one hundred 
 and sixty feet east of the west line of section number twenty- 
 seven, township number forty-nine north, range number thirty- 
 three west; thence north on a line parallell to the west line of 
 sections number twenty-seven and twenty-two, township num¬ 
 ber forty-nine north, range number thirty-three west, to a point 
 
171 
 
 one hundred and sixty feet south of the north line of section 
 number twenty-two, township number forty-nine north, range 
 number thirty-three west; thence east on a line parallel to the 
 north line of section number twenty-two, township number 
 ' forty-nine north, range number thirty-three west, to a point one 
 hundred and sixty feet east of the north and south center line 
 of section number twenty-two, township number forty-nine 
 north, range number thirty-three west; thence north on a line 
 parallel to the north and south center lines of sections number 
 twenty-two and fifteen, township number forty-nine north, 
 range number thirty-three west, to a point one hundred and 
 sixty feet south of the east and west center line of section num¬ 
 ber fifteen, township number forty-nine north, range number 
 thirty-three west; thence east on a line parallel to the east and 
 west center line of said section number fifteen to a point one 
 hundred and sixty feet east of the north and south center line 
 of the east half of section number fifteen; thence north on a line 
 parallel to the north and south center line of the east half of said 
 section number fifteen, to the east and west center line of said 
 section number fifteen; thence west along the east and west 
 center line of the said section number fifteen and west along the 
 southern boundary lines of the South Park District and of the 
 West Park District in Kansas City, Missouri, to the point of 
 beginning. 
 
 Of the East Park District : Beginning at a point where 
 the east and west center line of section number fifteen, town¬ 
 ship number forty-nine north, range number thirty-three west, 
 intersects the north and south center line of the east half of 
 said section number fifteen, said last-described line being also 
 the eastern boundary line of the South Park District in Kansas 
 City, Missouri; thence east along the east and west center line 
 of said section number fifteen, to a point one hundred and sixty 
 feet east of the north and south center line of the east half of 
 said section number fifteen; thence north on a line parallel to 
 the north and south center line of the east half of section num¬ 
 ber fifteen, township number forty-nine north, range number 
 thirty-three west, to a point one hundred and sixty fe<*t south 
 of the north line of section number fifteen, township number 
 forty-nine north, range number thirty-three west; thence east 
 on a line parallel to the north lines/of sections number fifteen 
 and fourteen, township number forty-nine north, range number 
 thirty-three west, to a point one hundred and sixty feet east 
 of the north and south center line of the east half of section 
 number fourteen, township number forty-nine north, range 
 number thirty-three west; thence north on a line parallel to the 
 center lin£ of the east halves of sections number fourteen and 
 
172 
 
 eleven, township number forty-nine north, range number thirty- 
 three west, to a point one hundred and sixty feet south of the 
 north line of section number eleven, township number forty-nine 
 north, range number thirty-three west; thence east on a line 
 parallel to the north lines of sections number eleven and twelve, 
 township number forty-nine north, range number thirty-three 
 west, and section number seven, township number forty-nine 
 north, range number thirty-two west; to a point one hundred 
 and sixtv feet east of the north and south center line of section 
 number seven, township number forty-nine north, range num¬ 
 ber thirty-two west; thence north and parallel to the center lines 
 of sections number seven- and six, township number forty-nine 
 north, range number thirty-two west to the north line of section 
 number six, township number forty-nine north, range number 
 thirty-two west; thence west along the north line of 
 section number six, township number forty-nine north, 
 range number thirty-two west, to the north and south 
 center line of section number thirty-one, township number fifty 
 north, range number thirty-two west; thence north and along 
 the north and south center line of section number thirty-one, 
 township number fifty north, range number thirty-two west, to 
 the north line of section number thirty-one, towmship number 
 fifty north, range number thirty-two west; thence west along 
 the north line of section number thirty-one, township number 
 fifty north, range number thirty-two west, and the north lines 
 of sections number thirty-six. thirty-five and thirty-four, town¬ 
 ship number fifty north, range number thirty-three west, to a 
 point on the eastern boundary line of the North Park District 
 in Kansas City, Missouri; thence south along the eastern bound¬ 
 ary lines of the North Park District and of the South Park 
 District in Kansas City, Missouri, to the point of beginning. 
 
 Whenever and as often as the city shall extend or change 
 it limits, the Common Council shall have power, by ordinance, 
 upon recommendation of the board of park commissioners to 
 divide the added territory into new park districts, or to add 
 the same to districts already established. 
 
 Sec. 8 . It shall be the duty of the board of park commis¬ 
 sioners to provide at least one park in each park district, and 
 to purchase or otherwise acquire, with the concurrence of the 
 Common Council, as herein provided, real estate therefor; and 
 the common council is hereby authorized and empowered to pro¬ 
 vide by ordinance for the purchase, condemnation, or other¬ 
 wise obtaining of land within the city limits, and for the pur¬ 
 chase or otherwise obtaining of land without the city limits, for 
 public parks, parkways, and boulevards, and to establish the 
 
173 
 
 same, provided the acquisition of such land for such public 
 parks, parkways and boulevards, and the establishment of the 
 same, be first recommended by the board of park commissioners. 
 And whenever said board shall select and recommend to the 
 common council any acquisition of any land for parks, public 
 squares, parkways or boulevards, it shall be the duty of the 
 common council upon such recommendation to proceed forth¬ 
 with, by ordinance, to provide for the establishment and acqui¬ 
 sition by purchase, condemnation or otherwise, as it may deem 
 best, of such land for parks, parkways or boulevards as may 
 be selected by said board of park commissioners. Payment for 
 any such land so selected and acquired, whether within or 
 without the city limits, may be made out of the general fund, 
 or by the issue and sale of bonds of the city as may be pro¬ 
 vided by ordinance of the Common Council subject to the con¬ 
 stitution and laws of the State; or payment for land so selected 
 and acquired for such purposes within the city limits may be 
 made as hereinafter provided. 
 
 Sec. 9. The parks, parkways, public squares and boule¬ 
 vards, established in any park district or districts within the 
 city limits, whether acquired by purchase or condemnation, may 
 be paid for by special assessments upon the real estate situated 
 therein found benefited thereby as hereinafter authorized. Such 
 special assessments may be made payable in such manner and at 
 such time or times as may be provided by ordinance of the com¬ 
 mon council upon the recommendation of the board'of park 
 commissioners. 
 
 If the Common Council, with the concurrence or the board 
 of park commissioners, shall, by ordinance, find and determine 
 that the establishing of any park, parkway or boulevard, is a 
 benefit to more than one park district, or part or parts thereof, 
 the cost thereof may be assessed upon the real estate found bene¬ 
 fited in such park districts. 
 
 Sec. 10. Whenever the Common Council, upon the recom¬ 
 mendation of the board of park commissioners shall provide 
 by ordinance for the purchase or condemnation of any real 
 estate selected for a park, or for the opening, widening or ex¬ 
 tending of any boulevard or parkway, or part thereof, or for 
 constructing and maintaining any viaduct or bridge for public 
 use, or any parkway or boulevard, or for establishing, opening, 
 widening, extending or altering any route or right-of-way for 
 a sewer or for a channel of any water course necessary for 
 the maintenance of a park or a park system, in whole or in part, 
 and it becomes necessary to take or damage any private property 
 for any such purpose, said Common Council shall, by ordinance, 
 
 
174 
 
 describe the private property to be purchased, taken or damaged; 
 and in case the same is to be paid for by special assessments 
 upon real estate, shall designate the time and mode of payment 
 of such assessments, and shall also prescribe the limits within 
 which private property shall be deemed benefited by the pro¬ 
 posed improvement, and be assessed and charged to pay com¬ 
 pensation therefor, which benefit district may include one or 
 more park districts, and part or parts of such district or dis¬ 
 tricts. And in said ordinance, separate description of each piece 
 or parcel of property shall not be required, but it shall be suffi¬ 
 cient description of the property to be purchased, taken or 
 damaged, to give a description of the entire tract by metes and 
 bounds whether the same shall be composed of one or more 
 than one piece or parcel. Thereupon, the city engineer, or his 
 assistants, aided by the landscape architect or his assistants, 
 shall make out and deliver to the board of park commissioners, 
 a statement, by map, plat, or otherwise, containing a correct de¬ 
 scription of the several lots or parcels of private property to be 
 purchased, taken or damaged, and containing also the names of 
 the owners, so far as known, of such lots or parcels of land, if 
 any, to be taken or damaged, or of any estate or interest therein, 
 who may be such at the time of the taking effect of the ordi¬ 
 nance providing for the taking or damaging of such private 
 property. The proceedings for the taking or damaging of such 
 private property for public use as herein provided* and the 
 assessments of benefits to pay for the property so purchased, 
 taken or damaged, if the same is to be paid for by special assess¬ 
 ments upon real estate, shall be heard and determined by the 
 circuit court of Jackson County, Missouri, at Kansas City. 
 
 Sec. 11. When the board of park commissioners shairfile 
 or cause to be filed a certified copy of such ordinance referred 
 to in the preceding section, in the circuit court, or with the 
 clerk thereof, such court shall thereupon, and upon application 
 of the city, make an order appointing a day and place for 
 empaneling a jury to ascertain the compensation for the prop¬ 
 erty taken or damaged, and, if the same is to be paid for by 
 special assessments upon real estate, to make assessments to pay 
 for the property to be taken, purchased or damaged, as the case 
 may be; which order shall recite such ordinance, or the substance 
 thereof, and shall be directed to all persons whom it may con¬ 
 cern, without naming them, notifying them of the day and place 
 fixed for the empaneling of a jury, and for the ascertaining of 
 the compensation to be paid for the property to be taken or 
 damaged and the amount of benefits, if any, to be assessed to 
 pay therefor or for the property purchased. 
 
175 
 
 A copy of such order shall be published in a newspaper at 
 the time doing the city printing, for four successive weeks, the 
 last insertion to be not more than one week prior to the day 
 so fixed for said hearing. The court may, at the time of making 
 such order, or at any time before the hearing, further order that 
 the parties owning or having an interest in the real estate pro¬ 
 posed to be taken or damaged, be served with a copy of said 
 order, either by delivering to each of such owners or parties 
 interested at any time before the day fixed therein for a hearing, 
 a copy of the order or by leaving such copy at their usual place 
 of abode with some member of their respective families over the 
 age of fifteen years; and in case of corporation, by delivering 
 a copy to the president, secretary, or some managing officer 
 thereof, or to any agent of such corporation in charge of any 
 office or place of business of such corporation. 
 
 If service of such notice cannot be made on any or all of 
 such parties as above described, within said city, when personal 
 service is ordered by said court, the return on such notice shall 
 so state, and thereupon an alias order specifying a different date 
 may be made by said court, if deemed advisable, notifying such 
 unserved parties of the fact as in case of the original notice 
 above provided. Said cause may be continued or postponed 
 from time to time as in civil causes in said court. It shall not 
 be required in any case to bring in any person other than the 
 owners of the property or those interested therein, who were 
 such at the time of the taking effect of such ordinance; and the 
 parties claiming or holding through or under such owners, or 
 parties interested, or any of them, shall be bound by the pro¬ 
 ceedings as fully as if they were brought in; but any persons 
 having an interest in the real estate to be affected by the said 
 proceedings, may, upon application and entering their appear¬ 
 ance, be made parties thereto; but no notice of such proceedings 
 shall, in any case, be necessary to the validity thereof, except 
 the publication of the order as herein provided. Notice so given 
 by publication shall be sufficient to authorize the court to hear 
 and determine the cause and to make any finding or order, or 
 render any judgment therein, as fully as though all the parties 
 interested at the time of the taking effect of such ordinance, 
 or at any time thereafter, had been sued by their proper names, 
 and had been personally served. 
 
 Affidavit by the publisher, manager, or any person con¬ 
 nected with the newspaper in which such order was published, 
 accompanied with a printed copy of the notice shall be prima 
 facie evidence of the publication of such order as herein re¬ 
 quired. 
 
 The service of such notice or order, when so ordered by 
 
170 
 
 the court, may be made by a policeman of the city, or by any 
 constable or officer authorized to serve judicial writs; and any 
 return of service by a policeman, constable or other officer, shall 
 be evidence of the facts therein stated. 
 
 Sec. 12. If any incorporated company which may be in¬ 
 terested in the whole or in any part of the land to be taken or 
 damaged by the said proceedings, be entitled, under the law of 
 the land, to trial of its claim for compensation therefor by a 
 common law jury of twelve men, it may at any time prior to 
 the day fixed as herein provided for empaneling a jury, file in 
 the office of the clerk of said court, a petition in which it shall 
 state the description of the property owned or claimed by it 
 so to be taken or damaged and the amount and nature of its 
 claim therefor and may further state that it demands a trial 
 before a common law jury of twelve men of its claim for com¬ 
 pensation therefor; and if any such incorporated company shall 
 not so file such petition before such date, it shall be deemed and 
 taken to have waived its right of trial by a jury as aforesaid of 
 such issue. And if any incorporated company which may under 
 the law of the land be entitled to a trial by jury as aforesaid, 
 shall file such petition, then the< court shall cause such jury to be 
 empaneled for the trial of such claim; and the issues to be tried 
 by such jury shall be the actual value of the land of such claim¬ 
 ant taken, if any, and the amount of damage to the land of such 
 claimant not taken, by the public use thereof, and by the use of 
 the land taken for the purposes for which it is taken, including 
 all that the city may, from time to time, do or cause to be done, 
 with or upon the private property so taken or damaged. If 
 two or more such incorporated companies interested in the land 
 to be taken or damaged as aforesaid be entitled to trial by a 
 common law jury as aforesaid, and shall make demand therefor 
 as aforesaid, the court may, in its discretion, as may appear ex¬ 
 pedient, order that all such claims shall be tried at the same time 
 before one jury, and said cause or further proceedings in the 
 same shall be continued from time to time by the court until 
 such issue or issues shall have been determined by the verdict 
 of said jury. 
 
 Provided, that any party to such issue which may feel 
 aggrieved by the verdict of said jury may, within four days 
 after the rendition of the same, file its motion for a new trial 
 and in arrest of judgment, and said motion or motions shall be 
 heard without delay, and after hearing the same, the court may 
 overrule the same, or may order a new trial of such issue or 
 issues on good cause shown; but no appeal from the judgment 
 of the court overruling such motion shall be had therein until 
 
177 
 
 the final judgment of confirmation of the entire proceedings by 
 the said court as hereinafter provided. 
 
 After the rendition of the verdict of such common law jury 
 of twelve men, and after the hearing of the exceptions thereto 
 on the motions for new trial or in arrest of judgment, if any 
 there be, or if no such jury trial be demanded, then upon the 
 day fixed by the order and notice aforesaid for empaneling a 
 jury, or upon any day thereafter to which said cause may have 
 bebn continued, as aforesaid, the court shall empanel a jury of 
 six freeholders and the cause shall proceed before such jury of 
 freeholders empaneled to try the same as set forth in the next 
 succeeding section. 
 
 Sec. 13. Said court shall, upon the day fixed therefor, 
 or upon some subsequent day, to which said cause may have 
 been continued, empanel a jury of six freeholders of the city, 
 who shall not be interested in the property to be taken, pur¬ 
 chased or damaged, who shall receive the same compensation 
 as other jurors in said court; and said jurors, upon entering 
 upon their duties as such, shall make oath before the clerk of 
 said court that they will faithfully and impartially ascertain 
 the actual damages or just compensation to be paid in each case 
 separately, as well as the benefits, if any to be assessed, under 
 such instructions as shall, after hearing the parties, be given 
 them by the court. And if there shall be minors, incompetents, 
 or any other person under guardianship interested in any of the 
 lands to be taken or damaged, or the lands to be assessed, such 
 persons may appear by their guardians, or the court may, upon 
 application, appoint guardians ad litem, who may appear in 
 their behalf, but the failure of any such persons to so appear 
 or to be represented by guardians ad litem as aforesaid, shall 
 not in any manner affect the validity of the procedings. The 
 parties interested may submit evidence to said jury of free¬ 
 holders and such jury may examine personally each piece of 
 property described on such map or plat furnished as aforesaid 
 by the city engineer, or his assistants, to the board of park com¬ 
 missioners, and all property claimed to be damaged; and such 
 jury may examine personally the property, if any, to be assessed 
 with benefits, and the city engineer, or the landscape architect, 
 or any assistant of either of them, may accompany such jury 
 for the purpose of pointing out the property aforesaid; and the 
 court may continue the proceedings from day to day, or adjourn 
 to a future day. The party owning any property taken may 
 remove any improvements thereon, and this provision may be 
 taken into consideration by the jury in assessing damages. 
 
 Sec. 14. The jury shall ascertain the just compensation to 
 be paid as follows: 
 
178 
 
 First : For each piece of private property taken, when the 
 public use thereof shall be such that the city must have exclusive 
 control thereof, as in the case of a public park, public square, 
 parkway or boulevard, the actual value of the property taken; 
 provided, that in case any claim for compensation shall have 
 been tried and ascertained by a common law jury as provided 
 in section twelve of this article, any jury of freeholders in said 
 proceeding shall accept and adopt the valuation or assessment 
 of damages for any land taken or damaged as assessed by said 
 common law jury, and shall so recite the same in and as a part 
 of any verdict thereafter rendered by any such jury of free¬ 
 holders. 
 
 Second: For each piece of private property taken when 
 the public use thereof may be such that the city need only have 
 such possession and control as shall not wholly exclude the 
 beneficial use thereof by the owner or owners, as in the case 
 of a viaduct, bridge, or route for a sewer, and right-of-way 
 therefor, the actual damage from the public uses specified in the 
 ordinance. 
 
 Third: For all damages to each piece-of private property 
 not actually taken so as to give the city possession or control 
 of the same, the actual amount of damages such private property 
 may sustain from the use of the private property taken for the 
 public use for which it may be taken, including all that the city 
 may from time to time do or cause to be done with or upon the 
 property so taken. 
 
 Sec. 15. If the land to be purchased, taken or damaged 
 as aforesaid, is to be paid for by the assessment of benefits upon 
 real estate, whether the land acquired is to be condemned or 
 purchased, the jury of freeholders, to pay compensation for die 
 land purchased, taken or damaged, shall estimate the amount of 
 benefit to the city at large, inclusive of any benefit to the prop¬ 
 erty of the city, and shall estimate the value of the benefit of the 
 proposed improvement to each and every lot, piece and parcel 
 of private property, exclusive of the buildings and improvements 
 thereon, within the benefit district, if any benefit is found to 
 accrue thereto; and in case the total of such benefits, including 
 the benefits assessed to the city at large, equals or exceeds the 
 compensation assessed, or to be paid for the property purchased, 
 taken or damaged, then said jury shall assess against the city 
 the amount of benefits to the city as aforesaid, and shall assess 
 the balance of the cost of such improvement against the several 
 lots and parcels of private property found benefited, each lot or 
 parcel of ground to be asessed with an amount bearing the same 
 ratio to such balance as the benefit to each lot or parcel bears 
 to the whole benefit to all the private property assessed. 
 
179 
 
 Sec. 16. The jury of freeholders shall render a verdict 
 which shall show: 
 
 First : A correct description of each piece or parcel of 
 private property taken, if any, and the value thereof, and of each 
 piece or parcel of private property damaged, and the amount 
 of injury thereto; and in case the property to be taken or dam¬ 
 aged is to be paid for out of the general fund, or out of the 
 funds belonging to the park district in which the same is situ¬ 
 ated, or from the issue and sale of bonds of the city, and not 
 by the assessment of benefits against real estate, no further find¬ 
 ing of the jury shall be necessary. 
 
 Second: If the property purchased, taken or damaged 
 is to be paid for by the assessment of benefits upon real estate, 
 the verdict of said jury shall also show, in compensation for the 
 property purchased, taken or damaged, the amount, if any, 
 assessed against the city, which shall stand as a judgment against 
 the city, and shall show the amount of benefits assessed against 
 each piece and parcel of private property found benefited within 
 the benefit district. 1 
 
 ' i > 
 
 The city engineer, city assessor, and landscape architect, or 
 their assistants, shall, when required, aid said jury of freehold¬ 
 ers to put its verdict in proper form,; and said jury may use the 
 books, plats and records in the office of the city assessor for 
 such purpose, aftd if the jury shall find that any number of 
 tracts or parcels of land within the benefit district are benefited 
 ratably in proportion to the assessed value thereof as shown 
 by the books of said assessor, they may so assess the same; 
 and said jury shall not,be discharged until its verdict shall have 
 been reviewed by the court and is correct in form. Said verdict 
 shall be signed by each of said jurors, and the verdict of said 
 jury may be reviewed by said court, and said jury may be re¬ 
 quired by the court to correct any errors of description or other 
 clerical errors; and the court may, on its own motion, or may 
 on the motion of the city, or of any party interested in the pro¬ 
 ceedings, filed within foqr days after the rendition of the ver¬ 
 dict, for good cause, set aside the verdict of said jury of free¬ 
 holders, and thereupon, without further notice, may appoint a 
 new jury of freeholders to make a new appraisement or assess¬ 
 ment, and fix a time and place for empaneling such other jury 
 and for a rehearing of the whole matter; provided, that the ver¬ 
 dict of any common law jury theretofore rendered in such pro¬ 
 ceeding, fixing the compensation to be paid to any incorporated 
 company shall be accepted by such new jury of freeholders as 
 part of its finding. 
 
180 
 
 Sec. 17. The verdict, unless set aside as aforesaid,, shall 
 be confirmed and judgment entered thereon that the city have 
 and hold the property sought to be taken upon payment of the 
 compensation assessed therefor, for the purpose specified and 
 the ordinance providing for said improvement, and that the 
 city pay the benefits assessed against said city, that the city 
 recover the respective amount assessed against private property, 
 and that the several lots and parcels of private property, and 
 that the several lots and parcels of private property so assessed 
 to pay compensation for the verdict stand severally charged and 
 be bound for the payment of the respective assessments and the 
 interest that may accrue thereon; and if said assessments are, 
 by the ordinance aforesaid, made payable in more than one 
 installment, the judgment shall so recite. Such judgment shall 
 be by the clerk docketed and indexed in the books used for that 
 purpose. And if such assessment, or any portion thereof, against 
 any tract or parcel assessed, or any portion thereof, be not paid 
 and discharged when the same becomes due or collectible, and 
 shall be in default as hereinafter provided, the collection of the 
 same may be enforced by special execution or executions against 
 the lot, tract or parcel of land charged with the lien thereof; 
 and such execution or executions shall issue upon the filing of 
 the statement of the city treasurer with the clerk of the court, 
 showing what assessments are unpaid and collectible, and 
 against what lots and parcels of land, and the amount or amounts 
 due and collectible thereon. 
 
 The proceedings under such special execution or execu¬ 
 tions, shall, as far as practicable, conform to the proceedings 
 under special executions on ordinary judgments foreclosing liens 
 on lands, and any such execution herein authorized shall be 
 deemed sufficient if it recites the date of the judgment, the 
 amount assessed remaining unpaid against the tract or tracts 
 described in such execution, states that such tract or tracts were 
 assessed to pay compensation for private property purchased, 
 taken or damaged for public use, as provided in the ordinance 
 ordering such improvement, giving the title and date of the 
 taking effect of such ordinance, and commands the sheriff to 
 sell each tract or parcel of property described in said execution, 
 or so much thereof as may be necessary to satisfy the assess¬ 
 ment, interest and costs of such execution and sale. And any 
 number of tracts and parcels included in one judgment may 
 be sold under one and the same execution, and at the same time, 
 and in pursuance of one notice of sale, in which case the costs 
 of such execution and sale shall be apportioned against the sev¬ 
 eral tracts and parcels in proportion to the number of the same, 
 included in such execution; but on any such judgment execu- 
 
181 
 
 tion may, at the instance of the city, issue against one or more 
 tracts separately at different times, or two or more tracts may 
 be included in one execution. 
 
 Upon sales made by the sheriff under any special execution 
 he shall issue to the purchaser a certificate of purchase setting 
 forth the substance of such special execution so far as it relates 
 to the property described in such certificate, the date of sale, 
 the purchaser, and the property sold, and the amount bid. Such 
 certificate of purchase shall be delivered by the sheriff to the 
 purchaser on payment of the amount bid, which certificate shall 
 be executed and acknowledged by such sheriff before some 
 officer authorized to take acknowledgments of instruments af¬ 
 fecting real estate, and shall be filed for record in the office of 
 the recorder of deeds of Jackson County, at Kansas City, with¬ 
 in six months after the date of the same. If the property so 
 sold be redeemed within one year from the date of such sale 
 by the owner of or a party interested in said property by pay¬ 
 ment to the sheriff of the amount due on said judgment, to¬ 
 gether with any taxes that may have been paid by the pur¬ 
 chaser after such sale, and before redemption, including in¬ 
 terest on said amounts at the rate of ten per cent per annum 
 and costs up to the date of the redemption, no deed shall be 
 given by the sheriff. The holder of said certificate of purchase, 
 prior to the redemption thereof, shall have the right to pay 
 general and special taxes and special assessments against the 
 property described in said certificate of purchase when the same 
 are due and payable, and shall deliver the receipt or receipts 
 therefor to the sheriff, and any redemption by the owner or 
 party interested in such property shall include the amount of 
 such payments with interest thereon as above provided. Upon 
 such redemption as herein provided of any lot or parcel of land 
 sold under special execution, the sheriff shall give a certificate 
 of redemption describing said lot or parcel and acknowledging 
 receipt in full of such judgment, interest and costs, which shall 
 be executed and acknowledged by such sheriff before some of¬ 
 ficer authorized to take acknowledgments of deeds to real estate, 
 and the cost thereof shall be included in the cost of such re¬ 
 demption. If the lot or parcel of land so sold be not redeemed 
 as herein provided, a deed shall be given at the end of one year 
 from the date of said sale by the sheriff to the holder of said 
 certificate. Such deed may be given to the original holder or 
 his assignee, and shall vest in the grantee all the right, title, in¬ 
 terest and estate in the lot or parcel so sold. 
 
 .Sec. 18. Any party aggrieved by any verdict and judg¬ 
 ment aforesaid may take an appeal therefrom by filing such 
 affidavit as is required in the appealing of civil cases and filing 
 
182 
 
 a bond in such sum and with such security as may be approved 
 by the circuit court, or judge thereof, conditioned that the party 
 appealing, should the judgment be affirmed by the appellate 
 court, or such appeal be dismissed, pay all costs of such appeal. 
 The bond and affidavit for such appeal, however, shall be filed 
 within twenty days from the rendition of the judgment of con¬ 
 firmation of the verdict, and the appeal shall be perfected with¬ 
 in sixty days from the date of said judgment, unless further 
 time be granted by the court. In case of appeal, the judgment 
 shall stand suspended until the appeal is disposed of, and no 
 interest shall be allowed or collected on the judgment or on 
 the assessments until such judgment be affirmed or appeal be 
 
 dismissed. No writ of error shall be allowed. The clerk of 
 
 the appellate court shall put such case on the docket for hear¬ 
 ing at the next term of that court after the appeal is allowed. 
 
 No error nor defect not affecting the rights of the appellant 
 
 shall work a reversal of the judgment. 
 
 Sec. 19. The Common Council shall have the power, with 
 the concurrence of the board of park commissioners, at any time 
 before any of the parties assessed with benefits shall have paid 
 the amount so assessed, to repeal the ordinance ordering the 
 proposed improvement, if such repeal be deemed for the best 
 interests of the city; and in such event the judgment for com¬ 
 pensation and benefits shall be void. 
 
 i 
 
 Sec. 20. After the judgment of confirmation of such ver¬ 
 dict and proceedings, the clerk of said court shall certify under 
 the seal of said court to two copies of said verdict, one of which 
 copies he shall deliver to the City Treasurer and one to the Comp¬ 
 troller, and said assessment for benefits, if any, against private 
 property, shall be a lien from the date of the taking effect of 
 the ordinance in pursuance of which said assessments are made, 
 and such proceedings instituted, and shall attach to the several 
 lots or parcels of land so assessed with benefits as aforesaid; 
 and said lien shall continue against each lot or parcel assessed 
 until the assessment against such lot or parcel has been paid or 
 collected in full, both principal and interest. No assessment 
 shall be defeated or affected by any irregularity affecting any 
 other assessment or from the rendering of any other assess¬ 
 ment invalid in whole or in part. 
 
 Sec. 21. Said assessments shall be payable in one install¬ 
 ment, or in such number of annual installments as may be de¬ 
 termined by the Common Council upon the recommendation of 
 the board of park commissioners, such determination to be de- 
 
183 
 
 dared in the ordinance of the Common Council under which said 
 proceedings are instituted. All assessments confirmed by the 
 circuit court during any year ending with the thirtieth day of 
 April, if payable in more than one installment, shall have their 
 first installment due on the thirtieth day of June next follow¬ 
 ing, and the successive installments shall be due on the thir¬ 
 tieth day of each succeeding June until all shall have been paid, 
 with interest as provided by law; provided, that assessments 
 payable in one installment shall be payable without interest with¬ 
 in sixty days after said judgment of confirmation thereof, and 
 if not so paid, shall bear interest at the rate of eight per cent 
 per annum from the date of the confirmation thereof, and exe¬ 
 cution may issue thereon. Installments of all assessments pay¬ 
 able in more than one installment may be paid without interest 
 within sixty days after the date of the judgment of confirma¬ 
 tion of the verdict of the jury making said assessment; but if 
 not so paid, they shall bear interest at the rate of six per cent 
 per annum from the date of said judgment of confirmation 
 thereof, and such interest shall be due and payable annually on 
 the thirtieth day of June of each year; provided, however, that 
 the owner of the property charged with the payment of such 
 assessment or any installment thereof, or the owner of any in¬ 
 terest therein, shall have the privilege of paying such assess¬ 
 ment in full, or any installment thereof, at any time by paying 
 all the interest thereon to a date six months after the date of 
 said payment, except only as to any installment due within six 
 months from the date of such payment, upon which installment 
 interest shall be paid to maturity thereof ; and on and after the 
 first day of June of each year any statements made by the City 
 Treasurer of taxes due or payable on any real estate shall in¬ 
 clude all assessments or installments thereof or interest there¬ 
 on, due on the thirtieth day of June of said year, and the City 
 Treasurer shall receive payment thereof at the same time with 
 the payment of city taxes. All installments of assessments and 
 interest on any such installments, if not paid at maturity, shall 
 bear interest thereon at the rate of eight per cent per annum 
 until paid; and if any installment of any assessment, payable 
 in more than one installment, or if interest on any installments 
 be not paid at maturity and shall remain in default for three 
 months thereafter, then all the unpaid installments and interest 
 shall be collectible, together with interest thereon at the rate 
 of eight per cent per annum from the date of the maturity of 
 said interest or installment in default, and special execution or 
 executions may issue as aforesaid for the collection of all the 
 installments and interest unpaid and the costs of such collec¬ 
 tion. Provided, that the owner or party interested may pay to 
 
184 
 
 the City Treasurer at any time before special execution has is¬ 
 sued against his land, the amount of the installment or install¬ 
 ments and interest in default with interest thereon at eight per 
 cent as aforesaid, in which case the installments not then due 
 shall not be affected by such default. 
 
 Nothing in this section contained shall affect or change the 
 rate of interest upon any assessment or installments of assess¬ 
 ments made under the charter of Kansas City prior to the adop¬ 
 tion of this charter and still unpaid, but all assessments and 
 provisions thereof shall be and remain in full force and effect 
 until the same have been paid in full. 
 
 Sec. 22. The City Treasurer shall keep a record of all spe¬ 
 cial assessments charged against lands hereunder. All assess¬ 
 ments and interest thereon shall be payable at the office of the 
 City Treasurer at any time before special execution has issued 
 thereon, and thereafter they shall be payable to the sheriff with 
 costs, at any time before the date of sale. The City Treasurer 
 shall receive payment of assessments on part of any lot, parcel 
 or piece of land, or of any undivided interest therein, or on the 
 whole, in the same manner and to the same extent as in the 
 case of the payment of city taxes or special tax bills, and shall 
 make entry on his books accordingly, showing on what lot, piece 
 or parcel of iand payment has been made. When any person 
 shall pay an assessment or installment, or part thereof, it shall 
 be the duty of the City Treasurer to sign a receipt and duplicate 
 receipt therefor; but it shall be sufficient if the amount paid 
 be shown as stated in the receipt given for city taxes. The 
 treasurer shall immediately deliver all such receipts to the city 
 Auditor, whose duty it shall be to countersign and deliver the 
 original receipt to the payor, and retain the duplicate, from 
 which he shall, from day to day, make a perfect record and ac¬ 
 count showing what sums have been received by the Treasurer 
 for each park district, and on account of what improvement 
 And it shall be the duty of the city teasurer to include in any 
 statement of taxes due on any real estate, any special assess¬ 
 ments or installments thereof, or interest thereon which may 
 be due on said real estate. Payment of said assessments in 
 full to the city treasurer as provided in this section shall operate 
 as a satisfaction of the judgment therefor, and the lien on the 
 land charged therewith. The rebates provided for the payment 
 of city taxes before the same are due shall not apply to assess¬ 
 ments collected hereunder. 
 
 Sec. 23. The city treasurer shall collect said assessments 
 and all interest thereon and hold all moneys collected therefrom, 
 or by sale of lands under execution as aforesaid, upon special 
 
185 
 
 V 
 
 
 trust to apply the same in payment of land purchased, taken or 
 damaged as aforesaid, or in payment of park fund certificates 
 as hereinafter provided; and any balance or surplus resulting 
 after all such payments, shall accumulate for the use of the park 
 district or districts, and may be applied and used by the board 
 of park commissioners in its discretion. It shall be his duty to 
 keep a separate and full account for each list of special assess¬ 
 ments growing out of a separate proceeding as aforesaid, of all 
 moneys received and paid out, and of all park fund certificates, 
 if any, issued thereon, and of the payment and cancellation of 
 the same, and of the distribution of dividends made thereon, as 
 hereinafter set forth; and he shall make report thereof each 
 year as part of his annual report to said city; and shall publish 
 the same with his annual statement. 
 
 And the Comptroller shall publish the same with his annual 
 statement, and the Treasurer shall make a full report as to each 
 list of special assessments growing out of each separate pro¬ 
 ceeding as aforesaid at the date when the installment thereof 
 becomes due, which report shall show the amount of such as¬ 
 sessments still unpaid, together with the tracts or parcels of 
 land against which said assessments stand, and it shall be his 
 duty to proceed to the collection of all such delinquent assess¬ 
 ments in the manner provided in Section 17 of this article; pro¬ 
 vided, that if the holder of a majority of any series of park 
 fund certificates issued in pursuance of this article, shall require 
 the collection of any installments of any special assessments 
 that may be delinquent, upon which said series of park fund 
 certificates are based, it shall be the duty of the city treasurer 
 to make out a list of such delinquents and proceed to the col¬ 
 lection of the same as aforesaid. 
 
 Any moneys received from special assessments upon which 
 no park fund certificates have been issued, shall be applied di¬ 
 rectly to the purposes for which said assessments were made; 
 but the City Treasurer shall hold all funds collected from spe¬ 
 cial assessments with interest thereon, if any, including annual 
 assessments for maintenance of parks and boulevards within 
 each park district until the same are applied to the purposes 
 for which said assessments were made: and he shall be respon¬ 
 sible for the safe keeping of said funds to the same extent as 
 for other city funds, and shall keep separate accounts for each 
 park district, and all interest accruing on daily balances shall 
 be credited to such funds for each district; and for any breach 
 of duty by the Treasurer or Comptroller, prescribed in this ar¬ 
 ticle, they shall respectively be liable for a breach of duty as 
 in respect to other city funds; and the bond required for the 
 treasurer for the faithful discharge of his duties shall be held 
 
186 
 
 to cover also the duties regarding all moneys collected from 
 special assessments as aforesaid, and his duties as trustee here¬ 
 under, and his bondsmen shall be liable for any breach of said 
 trust or said duty. 
 
 Sec. 24. After the confirmation by the circuit court, or 
 appellate court on appeal, as hereinbefore provided, of any ver¬ 
 dict in any proceeding in which special benefits are assessed 
 against real estate as compensation for property purchased, 
 taken or damaged for park purposes, the common council, upon 
 the recommendation of the board of park commissioners, and 
 for the purpose of raising money in advance of dates when as¬ 
 sessments are due, to pay for land purchased, taken or dam¬ 
 aged, may provide by ordinance that the city treasurer shall 
 issue park fund certificates in amount not to exceed the total 
 amount of assessments against the private property shown in 
 any such verdict and unpaid at the expiration of sixty days from 
 the confirmation thereof as aforesaid. Such certificates shall 
 be in such form and for such sums as may be provided by or¬ 
 dinance, and shall be either payable to the order of the reg¬ 
 istered holder or be payable to bearer. Any such certificate 
 shall entitle the holder or owner thereof to his proportionate 
 share as shown by such certificate, of the special assessments 
 and the interest thereon, as the same are collected, upon which 
 such certificates are issued, and shall so specify. 
 
 Distribution of the amounts collected upon said special as¬ 
 sessments, including interest, shall be made to the holder or 
 holders of such certificates pro rata at least semi-annually, at 
 such specified dates as may be provided in the ordinance author¬ 
 izing the issue of the same, and the holder shall receipt for 
 such payments; and the city shall be liable on such certificates 
 to the holders thereof for the sums collected from the special, 
 assessments upon which said certificates are issued and not 
 otherwise. 
 
 Should the purchaser or holder elect, said certificates shall 
 be registered by the Comptroller in the name of the owner and 
 his assigns from time to time, and the Comptroller shall certify 
 such registration to the holder. 
 
 All park fund certificates issued on account of special as¬ 
 sessments growing out of the same condemnation or assess¬ 
 ment proceeding, including supplemental proceedings, which 
 shall be considered a part of the original proceeding, shall be 
 designated as a series; and if any series comprises more than 
 one certificate, such certificates shall be numbered. 
 
 Each of such park fund certificates shall bear the certifi¬ 
 cate of the city treasurer and the attestation of the comptroller 
 that the same is one of a series of certificates issued on account 
 
 * 
 
187 
 
 of certain special assessments to which such series relates, and 
 that such series is not in excess of the same; and the comp¬ 
 troller shall keep a record of all certificates issued in each series, 
 and of all payments and dividends thereon, and shall publish 
 the same in his annual statement, and also statements of the 
 amounts received by the city treasurer from assessments; and 
 shall, at the request of the holder of any park fund certificate, 
 certify to such holder the amount that has been collected and 
 paid on the same from special assessments, both principal and 
 interest. 
 
 Immediately upon full payment and surrender of any park 
 fund certificates, the Treasurer shall cancel the same and keep 
 a record thereof, and deliver the same to the Comptroller, who 
 shall give the Treasurer a receipt therefor; but when all the spe¬ 
 cial assessments represented by a series of such certificates have 
 been fully collected so far as possible, with interest thereon, 
 and all sums collected have been distributed as aforesaid, such 
 certificates shall be surrendered and cancelled, and if not sur¬ 
 rendered, shall nevertheless be void. 
 
 Sec. 25. The board of park commissioners may sell such 
 park fund certificates at such price not less than the face' value 
 of the amount of special assessments, excluding interest, repre¬ 
 sented by said certificates, as may be obtainable, and shall de¬ 
 termine the manner and meajis of such sale. Such certificates 
 shall be delivered by the city treasurer to the purchaser, upon 
 payment therefor, upon the order of the board of park commis- > 
 sioners, specifying the price, which order shall be countersigned 
 by the comptroller, who shall keep a record thereof; and the 
 proceeds of such certificates so sold shall be used for payment 
 for land purchased or condemned for a park or for park pur¬ 
 poses, for the establishment of which the special assessments 
 were made on which such certificates are issued : and any sur¬ 
 plus remaining after all such payments are made in full shall 
 accumulate for the use of the park district or districts; but such 
 certificates may, by agreement, be issued directly in payment 
 for land purchased, taken or damaged for parks or park pur¬ 
 poses. 
 
 All payments made out of the city treasury for land pur¬ 
 chased or condemned under this article, as well as payments 
 made to the holders of park fund certificates issued hereunder, 
 shall be made upon requisition upon*the auditor for warrants 
 signed by the comptroller, and for all payments made by the 
 city to owners or parties interested in land so purchased or con¬ 
 demned, the comptroller shall take proper receipts from all such 
 persons or from their duly authorized representatives. 
 
188 
 
 Sec. 26. It shall be the duty of the city treasurer, comp¬ 
 troller. and said board of park commissioners, at all times to 
 protect such park fund certificates by all means provided there¬ 
 for, and said city treasurer shall pay all sums collected from 
 special assessments as aforesaid to the holders of such certifi¬ 
 cates issued thereon, and shall pay the same promptly on de¬ 
 mand on the dates fixed for the distribution thereof as pro¬ 
 vided by ordinance. 
 
 Sec. 27. When, by reason of any error, defect or omis¬ 
 sion in any proceedings that may be instituted under the pro¬ 
 visions of this article, a portion of the private property sought 
 to be taken, or some interest therein, cannot be acquired, or 
 an assessment is made against private property which cannot 
 be enforced or collected, said board of park commissioners may, 
 and in case park fund certificates have been issued, shall, insti¬ 
 tute, carry on and maintain supplemental proceedings to ac¬ 
 quire the right and title to such property or interest therein, in¬ 
 tended to be taken by the first proceeding, but which cannot on 
 account of such defect, error or omission, be acquired thereun¬ 
 der, or to properly assess against any piece or parcel of private 
 property against which an assessment was in the first proceeding 
 erroneously made,' or omitted to be made the proper amount 
 such private property, exclusive of the improvements thereon, 
 is benefited by the proposed park or other improvements, to be. 
 determined by the verdict of the jhry in such supplemental pro¬ 
 ceedings : and the original assessments may be revised, corrected, 
 increased or diminished as may be necessary or equitable under 
 the provisions of this article for the original proceedings. Such 
 supplemental proceedings shall be instituted and conducted as 
 to the particular piece or pieces of private property sought to 
 be acquired or ^assessed, in like manner and with like effect as 
 in the original proceedings, and shall be known and described 
 as supplemental proceedings, for the purposes specified in the 
 original ordinance: and a supplemental verdict and assessment 
 shall be made, confirmed and two copies of the original verdict 
 certified in every particular as in the original proceedings; and 
 the assessments as established and corrected by such supple¬ 
 mental verdict shall be collected by the city treasurer in the same 
 manner and under like conditions and restrictions, powers and 
 duties as in the case of original proceedings, and remain and 
 be pledged for the payment of park fund certificates, if any, 
 that have been issued, or that may be issued thereon. * 
 
 Sec. 28. The city shall not be entitled to the possession 
 of any lot or parcel of property taken under the provisions of 
 this article until full payment of the compensation therefor, as 
 
189 
 
 determined, be made or paid into court for the use of the per¬ 
 sons in whose favor such judgment may have been rendered, 
 or who may be lawfully entitled to the same; and upon such 
 payment as aforesaid, such circuit court, or judge thereof, in 
 which proceedings were had, shall immediately order, adjudge 
 and decree that the title in fee to, and every other interest in 
 the land so condemned and taken for such park, road, boule¬ 
 vard, avenue or public use be divested out of such owner and 
 other persons interested and vested forever in the city, to the 
 use of such park district or districts; and the court shall there¬ 
 upon, without delay, put the city in the possession thereof, and 
 it shall be the duty of the City Counselor, within six months 
 after the rendition of the judgment and decree vesting the title 
 of such land in said'city as aforesaid, to cause a duly certified 
 copy of said judgment or decree to be filed and recorded in 
 the office of the recorder of deeds for Jackson County, Missouri. 
 
 And subsequent legal proceedings shall not affect the title 
 or possession of the city to said property so acquired, but shall 
 only affect the question of damages and assessments for bene¬ 
 fits, and the value to be fixed in such subsequent proceedings, 
 if any, shall be as of the date of the original proceedings, and 
 no improvements of the property made in the meantime shall 
 be considered. If the title to the property taken be in contro¬ 
 versy, the right to the compensation therefor shall be deter¬ 
 mined in a suit between the parties claiming the same, in which 
 none of the costs of litigation shall be borne by the city, unless 
 the city is one of the claimants, and during such controversy 
 such compensation shall remain in the possession of the court; 
 but the title and possession of the city to the property taken 
 shall not be in any manner affected by such controversy. 
 
 Sec. 29. The lands which may be selected and obtained 
 under the provisions of this article shall remain forever for 
 parks, parkways and boulevards for the use of all the inhabit¬ 
 ants of said city. 
 
 Sec. 30. The city shall pay all costs of proceedings under 
 this article to take or damage private property or to levy assess¬ 
 ments for benefits in payment of land purchased as herein pro¬ 
 vided, except costs of proceedings for collecting overdue assess¬ 
 ments and tax bills, which shall be taxed against the real estate 
 upon which said assessments are levied or said tax bills are 
 issued, and except the costs upon appeal, which shall be paid 
 by the party unsuccessfully prosecuting the same; and the City 
 Counselor shall, personally or by any of his assistants,’ and as 
 a part of his duties as such counselor, conduct all court pro¬ 
 ceedings under this article, and shall be the legal adviser of 
 
leo 
 
 said 1 board; provided, that the board may, in any special case, 
 upon request of the City Counselor, or when in its judgment the 
 interests of the city demand, employ, temporarily, special coun¬ 
 sel to assist the city counselor. 
 
 If the city fail to collect any assessments, in whole or in 
 part, it may pay the amount not so collected out of the city 
 treasury. 
 
 .Sec. 31. The board of park commissioners shall have 
 power to cause any road, parkway, boulevard or avenue, or 
 part thereof, which may be underwits control and management, 
 to be' graded, re-graded, paved, re-paved, curbed, re-curbed, 
 guttered, re-guttered, or otherwise improved, repaired and 
 maintained, including the construction, repair and maintenance 
 of bridges, viaducts and sidewalks, and the sodding of sidewalk 
 spaces, and the planting of trees and shrubbery in such man¬ 
 ner and at such times, and with such material as the said board 
 may determine, and may pay for such work or improvements, 
 or any part thereof, out of the funds not otherwise appropri¬ 
 ated, belonging to the park district in which said work or im¬ 
 provement is done or made, or out of the general park fund: 
 Provided, however, that if the board of park commissioners 
 shall, by resolution, determine that any such work shall be done, 
 and that the payment of the whole or any part thereof be made 
 in special tax bills, the common council shall have the power, 
 by ordinance, to ratify and confirm the action of said board, 
 and authorize such work to be done, in which case and when 
 so ratified the board of public works of said city shall appor¬ 
 tion or cause to be apportioned, the cost of said work or im¬ 
 provement, and issue special tax bills therefor, or for any por¬ 
 tion thereof, so ordered to be paid in tax bills, in the same 
 manner and with the same effect as the cost of similar work 
 or improvements is apportioned and tax bills in payment there¬ 
 for issued in such city for public improvements or work upon 
 streets not under the control or management of such board 
 of park commissioners. 
 
 The contract for doing the work of construction and fur¬ 
 nishing material for any such improvement, shall be let by 
 said board of park commissioners to the lowest and best bidder 
 therefor in the same manner and subject to the same rules and 
 regulations as similar work not under the control of the board 
 of park commissioners is let by the board of public works, and 
 all such work shall be done under the supervision and control 
 of the board of park commissioners. 
 
 And no hearing shall be necessary, and no petition shall 
 be necessary, to authorize any improvement provided for in 
 this section, nor shall the power of the board of park commis- 
 
191 
 
 sioners, or of the common council, to authorize any improve¬ 
 ments provided herein, be affected or restricted by any remon¬ 
 strance. 
 
 The contract for any work done under authority of this 
 section and which is to be paid for in special tax bills, shall, 
 before it becomes binding and effective, be ratified, approved 
 and confirmed by an ordinance of the common council in the 
 same manner as contracts for work done under the supervision 
 of the bo&rd of public works are required to be ratified, ap¬ 
 proved and confirmed; and when so ratified, approved and con¬ 
 firmed, any such contracts shall in all respects be considered 
 and held to have been authorized by the city. The city shall 
 also have power, by ordinance, for any good cause, to extend 
 the time of the beginning or of the completion of the work 
 under any such contract made in pursuance of this section, and 
 an ordinance of the common council purporting to extend the 
 time therefor shall be conclusive evidence of the good cause for 
 such extension, provided such extension of time be recom¬ 
 mended by resolution of the board of park commissioners; and 
 the board of park commissioners may, by resolution, and with¬ 
 out ratification by the common council, grant extensions of time 
 on any work done under the supervision of said board, which 
 is not to be paid for by the issuance of special tax bills. 
 
 Before any road, parkway, boulevard or avenue, or part 
 thereof, which may be under the control and management of 
 the board of park commissioners, shall be graded, or re-graded, 
 if the property owners to be disturbed or damaged thereby, 
 shall not have waived all rights or claims to compensation for 
 damages, proceedings shall be had for the ascertainment of the 
 damages and benefits to arise from such grading or re-grading 
 of said parkway, boulevard, road or avenue in the manner pro¬ 
 vided by sections two (2) and following of Article 
 VII of this charter: And it shall be the duty of the Mayor 
 and Common Council, upon the recommendation of the board 
 of park commissioners, to institute such proceedings and con¬ 
 duct the same to a conclusion without delay. 
 
 No petition or remonstrance of property owners shall af¬ 
 fect the power of the board of park commissioners and the 
 common council hereinbefore granted, to establish, change or 
 re-establish the grade of any parkway or boulevard. 
 
 Sec. 32. 'When any work is done, improvement made or 
 land purchased, and payment therefor is to be made in special 
 tax bills, or in special assessments, as provided in this article, 
 the city shall, in no event, nor in any manner whatever, be 
 liable for or on account of such work done or improvement 
 made or land purchased, by reason of the invalidity or error 
 
192 
 
 in any such tax bill or special assessment, nor liable in any man¬ 
 ner for the payment of the same. 
 
 Sec. 33. The real estate, exclusive of improvements there¬ 
 on, in each park district, may, upon recommendation of the 
 board of park commissioners, be specially assessed annually for 
 maintaining, adorning, constructing, repairing and otherwise 
 improving the park or parks, parkway or parkways, road or 
 roads, boulevard or boulevards, avenue or avenues,'or portions 
 thereof, located therein, which are under the control and man¬ 
 agement of a board of park commissioners; and such assess¬ 
 ments may be made according to valuation and assessment for 
 taxation of real estate in each park district made for city pur¬ 
 poses; provided, that any real estate which shall not be listed 
 on the city assessor’s books for taxation for general city pur¬ 
 poses, may, by order of the common council, be listed and valued 
 by the city assessor for the purposes of this assessment; and 
 provided, further, that such annual assessments authorized by 
 this section shall never exceed in any one year two and one-half 
 mills upon each dollar of valuation as shown on the books of 
 the city assessor as aforesaid. Every such assessment shall be 
 made and collected as provided by ordinance of the common 
 council, and the common council shall have power to provide 
 penalties for the failure to pay such assessments when due, and 
 may provide for the sale of the property assessed to satisfy said 
 assessments. 
 
 All sums derived from license taxes collected by the city 
 for licenses upon all vehicles of every kind and class licensed 
 by the city, shall be appropriated and used exclusively for main¬ 
 taining, adorning, constructing and repairing, and otherwise 
 improving the park or parks, parkway or parkways, road or 
 roads, boulevard or boulevards, avenue or avenues, or portions 
 thereof, which belong to the city, and are under the control and 
 management of the board of park commissioners; and it shall 
 be the duty of the Comptroller of the city from time to time as „ 
 the said license taxes are collected and paid into the city treas- 
 te ury to apportion and credit the same to the maintenance fund 
 of the various park districts, each park district to receive such 
 proportion thereof as the assessed value of the real estate of 
 each park district, exclusive of improvements thereon, bears 
 to the total assessed value of the real estate, exclusive of im¬ 
 provements thereon, of all the park districts as shown 
 by the books of the City Assessor; and the b"ard of 
 park commissioners may expend the same in the same manner 
 as the other funds raised by special assessments under the pro¬ 
 visions of this section are expended. 
 
193 
 
 Sec. 34. The Common Council shall also have power, up¬ 
 on recommendation of the board of park commissioners, and 
 for the purpose of maintaining’, repairing and otherwise im¬ 
 proving the boulevards, parkways, roads and avenues under the 
 control and management of said board, to levy, annually a spe¬ 
 cial assessment on the lots, tracts and parcels of land found 
 fronting and abutting on said boulevards, parkways, roads and 
 avenues. 
 
 No such annual assessment last aforesaid shall exceed the 
 sum of ten cents per front foot of such lots, tracts and parcels 
 of land, according to the frontage thereof on such boulevards, 
 parkways, roads or avenues. Every such assessment last afore¬ 
 said shall be made and collected as provided by ordinance of 
 the Common Council. 
 
 Sec. 35. All other sums used for improving any public 
 park or parks, parkway or parkways, road or roads, boulevard 
 or boulevards, avenue or avenues, or portions thereof, which are 
 under the control and management of the board of park com¬ 
 missioners, as well as all sums required for the general ex¬ 
 penses of such board 1 and for other park purposes, shall be paid 
 out of moneys apportioned and appropriated from the general 
 fund of the city, except as otherwise herein provided, such sums 
 to be apportioned, appropriated and expended in the manner 
 provided in sections 27 and 28 of Article IV of this charter. 
 But the board of park commissioners shall have power by. 
 requisition upon the auditor for warrant upon the city treas-. 
 ury, signed by the president or president pro tempore, and. 
 countersigned by the secretary, to expend the moneys collected 
 for construction and maintenance of the parks, parkways and 
 boulevards in each park district and for the use of such dis¬ 
 trict in pursuance of sections 33 and 34 of this article; but it 
 shall not, either directly or indirectly, expend the money of one 
 park district for use in any other park district. The Comptroller 
 shall make a record of all warrants of said board paid by the 
 Treasurer, 
 
 Sec. 36. Said board shall make an annual report to the 
 Common Council of the acts of said board and all its expendi¬ 
 tures, showing the condition of all affairs under its control. 
 The common council may require report from said board at any 
 time, and the records, books, papers and accounts of the board 
 shall at all times be subject to inspection by the Mayor, Comp¬ 
 troller, or any committee appointed by either house of the Com¬ 
 mon Council for that purpose. Said board shall also cause to 
 be published in pamphlet form at least Once in four years, a 
 comprehensive report of the operations of the department, for 
 public distribution. 
 
194 
 
 Sec. 37. No roads nor streets shall be laid out or con¬ 
 structed through any park, except said board of park commis¬ 
 sioners shall lay out and construct or permit the laying out and 
 construction of the same; and any road, highway, street or alley 
 (excepting railroads) or part thereof, which may pass through, 
 or into, or divide, or separate any land now used or condemned, 
 or that may hereafter be acquired or condemned, for parks, 
 shall, upon recommendation of the said board of park commis¬ 
 sioners, with the consent of the Common Council of such city, 
 be by said Common Council vacated and closed up and made a 
 part of such park. 'And no railway shall be built into, through 
 or over any park, parkway or boulevard without the permission 
 of the board of park commissioners, the said permission to be 
 evidenced by ordinance passed in pursuance of the recommenda¬ 
 tion, by resolution, of the board of park commissioners, and 
 to be on such terms and conditions as the board of park com¬ 
 missioners and the common council may determine; nor shall 
 any telegraph, telephone or electric light wires, or other wires, 
 or posts or supports thereof, be erected or placed in, upon, 
 through or over any park without the consent of said board 
 of park commissioners; and said board shall have full power 
 and authority to designate the place or places for and manner 
 of erecting, placing and maintaining the same, in or upon any 
 park or boulevard, and may cause the place and manner of 
 maintaining the same, whether heretofore or hereafter erected 
 or placed, to be altered at such times and in such manner as it 
 shall deem best for the interests of the city, and may require 
 such wires in any park, parkway or boulevard to be put and 
 kept underground. 
 
 Sec. 38. Real or personal property, or the income there¬ 
 of, may be granted, bequeathed, devised or conveyed to the 
 city for the purpose of improvement or ornamentation of parks, 
 parkways or boulevards, or for the establishment or mainte¬ 
 nance in any park, or zoological or other gardens, observatories, 
 monuments or works of art, or other park purposes, upon such 
 trusts and) conditions as may be prescribed by the grantors or 
 devisors thereof, and agreed to by the Common Council and 
 board of park commissioners. All property so devised, granted, 
 bequeathed or conveyed, and rents, issues, profits and income 
 thereof, shall be subject to the management and control of said 
 board of park commissioners. 
 
 Real estate may also be devised or conveyed to the city for 
 the purpose of parks, parkways or boulevards, or additions there¬ 
 to, upon such conditions, including exemption from the pay¬ 
 ment of benefits or assessments for such improvements, as may 
 be prescribed by the grantors or devisors thereof: Provided, 
 
195 
 
 that the location of such real estate* be acceptable, and the con¬ 
 ditions of the conveyance be agreed to by the Common Council 
 and board of park commissioners. 
 
 Sec. 39. Neither the Common Council nor the board of 
 park commissioners, shall have authority to permit any per¬ 
 son, firm or corporation, to build or maintain any structure 
 within any park, square or parkway, which may now or here¬ 
 after be under the control or management of the board of park 
 commissioners; nor shall any structure be erected or maintained 
 within any park, square or parkway, excepting such structures 
 or buildings as. may be erected by the board of park commis¬ 
 sioners, under its authority, in the public parks, under their 
 jurisdiction, for park uses or park pleasure purposes, and ex¬ 
 cepting also such statues, monuments, works of art, or other 
 structures intended for ornamentation only, as may be erected 
 by authority of the board of park commissioners, in the parks, 
 boulevards, parkways or roads under the jurisdiction and con¬ 
 trol of the said board. 
 
 Nor shall any part of any park or public ground under the 
 supervision or control of said board be leased to any person, 
 firm or corporation for any purpose, but the board may lease 
 any building or parts thereof, erected by it for park purposes, 
 to any person undertaking to serve such purposes, and may 
 grant concessions therein for the sale of refreshments to the 
 public using said park, and for other park purposes, upon such 
 terms and under such regulations as the board may prescribe: 
 Provided, however, that the sale of spirituous, vinous or malt 
 liquors or other intoxicating beverages shall never be permit¬ 
 ted within any park, square or public ground under the control 
 and management of said board. No lease shall be for a longer 
 term than three years. No concession shall be granted for any 
 purpose not within the objects for which said parks, squares and 
 grounds were acquired by the city, and in every such lease the 
 board shall reserve the right to enter at all times into and upon 
 the premises so leased, and shall make the condition that the 
 building so leased shall be used only for the purposes expressed 
 in such lease, and no shows or exhibitions of any character or 
 kind, shall be allowed or given in any park, square, or public 
 ground of the city under the control of said board; but this 
 shall not inhibit such musical entertainments, concerns, and 
 zoological or other exhibits as may be provided bv the board of 
 park commissioners in any park, for the use and enjoyment of 
 the public and for strictly park purposes. 
 
 All moneys derived from any leases or concessions or from 
 the.sale of the products obtained from any park, or of any per- 
 \ sonal property in use by, or belonging to, said department of 
 
196 
 
 parks and boulevards, shall be paid into the treasury of the 
 city, and be credited to the fund in control of the board of park 
 commissioners, and be used and expended by said board for 
 park purposes. 
 
 Nothing herein stated shall authorize the sale of any lands 
 or be held to abrogate the conditions specified in the deed of 
 gift of the land known as “Swope Park” heretofore granted to 
 the city by the Honorable Thomas PI. Swope, but said deed 
 and acceptance thereof, and all conditions contained therein are 
 hereby ratified and confirmed, which conditions, so far as they 
 may be in conflict with this article, shall be considered as ex¬ 
 ceptions to the provisions hereof. 
 
 Sec. 40. For the purpose of adorning, beautifying and 
 improving said city, and to the end that the public good may 
 be conserved the Common Council shall have power, upon the 
 recommendation of the board of park commissioners, to estab¬ 
 lish and fix building restrictions on any boulevard, parkway, 
 road or avenue, or any part thereof, under the control and man¬ 
 agement of the board of park, commissioners. Said 1 restrictions 
 may be to limit, confine or exclude and prohibit the carrying 
 on of any business vocation or vocations, or the erection and 
 maintenance of any factories, stores or business houses on the 
 lots, tracts or parcels of land fronting or abutting on such boule¬ 
 vard, parkway, road or avenue, or any part thereof, or within 
 fifty feet of the same, or to establish a building line on such 
 property to which all buildings, fences, or other structures shall 
 conform. And said restrictions may be made to apply to all 
 property fronting or abutting on any boulevard, parkway, road 
 or avenue, or part thereof, along which the same are estab¬ 
 lished, or may provide for excepting from such restrictions any 
 property or lot, piece or parcel of land: Provided, however, 
 that no restrictions shall be fixed as herein provided unless the 
 owners of a majority in front feet of the lands fronting or 
 abutting on any such boulevard, parkway, road or avenue, or 
 any part thereof, upon which it is proposed to fix and estab¬ 
 lish such restrictions, shall petition therefor, stating clearly in 
 such petition the restrictions desired. And the board of park 
 commissioners shall in its resolution, and the Common Council 
 shall in the ordinance passed in pursuance of such resolution, 
 fixing and establishing any restrictions, find and declare that 
 the owners of a majority in front feet of all the lands fronting 
 on the boulevard, parkway, road or avenue, or part thereof, on 
 which said restriction is to be established, have petitioned there¬ 
 for, and 1 such finding and declaration shall be conclusive for 
 all purposes, unless the court finds in the proceedings instituted 
 for the assessment of damages and benefits as hereinafter set 
 
197 
 
 forth that the owners of a majority as aforesaid in front feet 
 did not sign said petition. The owners of all property signing 
 such petition shall be deemed to have waived all claim for dam¬ 
 ages resulting therefrom. 
 
 And provided, further, that the board of park commis¬ 
 sioners, in establishing any new boulevard^ or parkway may, 
 in the resolution providing for establishing of the same, also 
 provide for establishing the building line on said boulevard or 
 parkway without petition therefor, in which case, and if the 
 same be approved bv the Common Council, the benefits and dam¬ 
 ages may be ascertained and assessed by the jury in the con¬ 
 demnation proceedings for the establishment of said boulevard 
 or parkway, and the ordinance establishing said boulevard shall 
 also prescribe and determine the limits within which private 
 property is benefited by the proposed establishment of said build¬ 
 ing line restrictions as hereinafter provided; but the jury shall 
 return a separate verdict of benefits and 'damages arising from 
 the establishment of said building line, and separate appeal may 
 be had therefrom by any person aggrieved by such verdict; and 
 an ordinance repealing such building line restrictions shall not 
 affect the validity of the proceedings establishing such park¬ 
 ways or boulevards. 
 
 When the property owners to be affected, disturbed or 
 damaged by the fixing and establishing bf any building restric¬ 
 tions as aforesaid‘upon any boulevard, parkway, road, avenue, 
 or part thereof, are lawfully entitled to remuneration or dam¬ 
 ages under the constitution of the State of Missouri, and shall 
 not have waived all right of claim thereto, the ordinance which 
 shall provide for the fixing or establishment of any building re¬ 
 strictions as aforesaid, shall also prescribe and determine the 
 limits within which said property is benefited by the proposed 
 establishment of said building restrictions, and proceedings shall 
 be had for the ascertainment of the damages and benefits to 
 arise from the establishment of said building restrictions as 
 aforesaid, in the manner provided by sections two (2) and fol¬ 
 lowing of Article VII of this charter for the ascertain¬ 
 ment of benefits and damages in grading cases, and the pro¬ 
 visions in said Article VII relating to the exclusiveness 
 of the remedy therein given in grading cases, the powers of the 
 court and jury in assessing benefits and damages, and the sub¬ 
 mission of testimony, the . rights of claimants, the method of 
 collection and payment of such benefits and damages, and the 
 right of the city to repeal the ordinances, shall apply alike to 
 all proceedings for the ascertainment of benefits and damages 
 and the collection and payment of the same, in proceedings for 
 the establishment of building restrictions as aforesaid. 
 
 i 
 
198 
 
 The provisions of this section shall not affect or apply to 
 any boulevard, parkway, road or avenue, under the control and 
 management of the board of park commissioners which shall 
 have been established by ordinance of the Common Council upon 
 the recommendation of said board, prior to the taking effect 
 of this charter, but only to such boulevards, parkways, roads 
 or avenues as may be thereafter established. 
 
 Nothing in this section shall affect the power in this char¬ 
 ter given to the Common Council to regulate fire limits and the 
 kind and quality of buildings to be erected or maintained there- 
 in. ’ ' 3 
 
 Sec. 41. The restrictions fixed and established by ordi¬ 
 nance as herein provided, may be removed in full or in part by 
 an ordinance based upon the recommendation of the board of 
 park commissioners in the same manner as is required for the 
 establishment of said building restrictions, and a like proceed¬ 
 ing to ascertain damages and assess benefits for said removal 
 in full or in part as was had for the establishment of said re¬ 
 strictions, said proceeding being as far as practicable the same 
 as that required herein to establish said building restrictions, 
 but such proceeding shall be only as to the area covered by the 
 original proceeding. 
 
 Sec. 42. The officer or department of the city charged 
 with the superintendence of buildings shall obtain from the 
 city engineer, upon final judgment in any proceeding under this 
 article, a map or plat of the property affected by said ordinance 
 and proceedings, and shall file and keep the same in his office 
 in a well bound book, and shall further note on said map or 
 plat the restrictions fixed and established by said ordinance and 
 proceedings, and shall not, thenceforth, issue any permit for 
 improvements or buildings in violation of the restrictions so 
 fixed and established, so long as said restrictions remain in 
 force, provided, that should the said restrictions be removed in 
 whole or in part, the said officer or department shall note said 
 removal or modification of said building restrictions on said 
 map or plat as the same may occur, and thereafter issue permits 
 in accordance therewith. 
 
 Said Common Council shall also have power to provide by 
 fine or imprisonment, or both, subject to the limitations in this 
 charter set forth, for the punishment of any person violating 
 any such building restrictions after the same have been duly 
 established as herein provided. 
 
 Sec. 43. Whenever any street or avenue not under the 
 control of the board of park commissioners, and upon which 
 
199 
 
 any park land under the control of said board fronts or abuts, 
 shall be graded, re-graded, paved, re-paved, curbed, re-curbed, 
 guttered, re-guttered, or otherwise improved or repaired, or 
 when any drain or sewer shall be built in the sewer district in 
 which any park land under the control of said board is situated, 
 and tax bills have been issued against said park land or against 
 the city on account of the benefit deemed to have accrued, 
 under the provisions of this charter, to said park land, or to 
 the city on account of said park land, by virtue of any such im¬ 
 provement, the board of park commissioners shall pay off and 
 discharge such tax bills, or any judgments obtained against the 
 city on account thereof, out of the funds under the control of 
 said board of park commissioners and not otherwise appropri¬ 
 ated: Provided, however, that this section shall not be con¬ 
 strued to authorize or require said board of park commission¬ 
 ers to pay such tax bills or judgments out of any funds belong¬ 
 ing to the park district in which such work or improvement is 
 made, which have been levied and collected by special assess¬ 
 ment under the provisions of sections thirty-three and thirty- 
 four of this article, or either of them, for the improvement and 
 maintenance of the parks, parkways, roads, boulevards or ave¬ 
 nues in such park district under the control of said board. The 
 limitation last aforesaid shall not be extended so as to affect 
 the right of the board of park commissioners to use such park 
 district funds for the maintenance or improvement of any park, 
 parkway, boulevard, road or avenue under the control and man¬ 
 agement of said board of park commissioners, and located in 
 any such park district. 
 
 Sec. 44. The board of park commissioners is hereby au¬ 
 thorized to take from the hydrants and water pipes of the city, 
 under such reasonable rules and regulations as may be pre¬ 
 scribed by ordinance or by the water department, all water 
 which may be required for park purposes, including all water 
 required for sprinkling, cleaning and maintaining boulevards, 
 parkways, roads or avenues under its control, and no charges 
 or debits shall be made or allowed on account thereof against 
 the funds of any park district or other funds under the control 
 of said board of park commissioners. 
 
 Sec. 45. In all cases of the condemnation of private prop¬ 
 erty under the provisions of this article for the opening or estab¬ 
 lishing, of any parkway, road, boulevard or avenue to be con¬ 
 trolled by the board of park commissioners, the common coun¬ 
 cil, upon the recommendation of the board of park commis¬ 
 sioners, is hereby authorized by the same ordinance, or by sep¬ 
 arate ordinance, to establish the grade of that portion of said 
 
200 
 
 boulevard, parkway, road or avenue proposed to be condemned 
 and opened or established, and to provide for the grading of 
 the same. In such case, the notice required to be given as in 
 this article provided for the condemnation of private property 
 shall state that benefits and damages, if any, arising from the 
 grading of said boulevard, parkway, road or avenue to the es¬ 
 tablished grade, shall be assessed by the jury in said condemna¬ 
 tion proceeding. 
 
 In such case, if the owner of any tract or parcel of land 
 shall not file with the said clerk a claim for damages, on account 
 of the proposed grading ofi said boulevard, parkway, road or 
 avenue, he shall be deemed to have waived the same. Such 
 claim shall be filed on or prior to the day when the jury is em¬ 
 paneled to assess the damages. The jury shall find the amount 
 of damages, if any, in such case, to any tract or parcel of pri¬ 
 vate property for which damages are claimed on account of 
 said proposed grading in the manner provided in Article 
 VII of this charter, and in assessing the benefits, shall con¬ 
 sider the benefits caused by the opening of said boulevard, park¬ 
 way, road or avenue in the manner provided in this article for 
 the assessing of benefits in taking and damaging of private 
 property; and the benefits arising from the grading of the boule¬ 
 vard, parkway, road or avenue, to the proposed grade, as speci¬ 
 fied in said ordinance, shall be assessed in the manner pro¬ 
 vided in Article VII of this charter. 
 
 Sec. 46. Whenever the Common Council, upon the recom¬ 
 mendation of the board of park commissioners, shall provide 
 for the condemnation of any private property within the city 
 for any of the purposes specified in this article, and shall not 
 determine or provide to pay any part of the cost of the same 
 by assessment of special benefits, it shall not in said ordinance 
 provide for the establishment of any benefit district, and no 
 benefits shall be assessed; and in such case, proceedings for the 
 ascertainment of the damages or just compensation to be al¬ 
 lowed for the land or.rights or other property to be taken, shall 
 be begun and conducted in the same manner as hereinbefore 
 provided in this article, so far as the same may be applicable, 
 and such damages or just compensation shall be ascertained by 
 a jury of six disinterested freeholders as aforesaid. 
 
 Sec. 47. When any ordinance of the Common Council 
 shall be passed upon the recommendation of the board of park 
 commissioners, as herein provided, it shall not be neces¬ 
 sary for said ordinance to recite at length the resolution of the 
 board of park commissioners recommending the same; but it 
 shall be sufficient to recite the fact of such recommendation bv 
 
201 
 
 said board; and if the Common Council shall find and recite in 
 such ordinance that said action of the Common Council has been 
 recommended by the board of park commissioners, no special 
 tax bill or park fund certificate that may be issued, nor spe¬ 
 cial assessments that may be made for work done or property 
 purchased, taken or damaged, shall be held invalid or affected 
 after the issuance of such special tax bill or park fund certifi¬ 
 cate, or after judgment of confirmation of such special assess¬ 
 ment by the circuit court or appellate court on appeal, on the 
 ground that such recommendation of the board of park com¬ 
 missioners was not properly made. 
 
 Sec. 48. Nothing in this article contained shall be deemed 
 to impair or invalidate any of the actions or proceedings of the 
 board of park commissioners of this city prior to the adoption 
 of this article, and in all pending matters, where the provisions 
 of this article can so apply without injury to the interests of 
 said city, the same shall apply as to unfinished proceedings and 
 unexpended moneys collected or appropriated for park and 
 
 boulevard purposes. 
 
 0 . 
 
 f 
 
ARTICLE XIV. 
 
 Hospital and Health Department. 
 
 Section 1 . There is hereby established within the city 
 a department to be known as the Hospital and Health Depart¬ 
 ment, which shall have the power and it shall be its duty: 
 
 (a) To enforce the laws of the State of Missouri, ordi¬ 
 nances of Kansas City, Missouri, and the provisions of this 
 charter relating to public health; and to make such rules and 
 regulations, not inconsistent with other provisions of this char¬ 
 ter, as will tend to preserve and promote the public health—■ 
 
 (b) To have the care, management and control of all 
 buildings and property heretofore and now used and known 
 as city hospitals and all lands and premises used in connec¬ 
 tion therewith, and, also, of all property and institutions now, 
 or hereafter, owned or controlled by the city for the care and 
 treatment of sick and injured persons; for the support, main¬ 
 tenance and confinement of insane persons, and for maintenance 
 and support of poor persons; and to locate, establish and main¬ 
 tain quarantine hospitals and stations within, or outside cf, 
 the corporate limits of the city, and to have the custody of all 
 persons confined in any such institutions; 
 
 (c) To recommend to the common council the passage 
 of such ordinances as said department may deem necessary for 
 the preservation of the public health and care of sick or injured. 
 
 (d) From time to time, and as often as the bpard may 
 deem advisable, to direct inspection of every part of the city and 
 its environs, with a view to the maintenance of its sanitary con- 
 lic building or premises, and, also, after such reasonable notice 
 dition, and for such purposes to enter, in the day time, any'pub- 
 to the owner or occupants, as the board may prescribe, any pri¬ 
 vate building or premises, within the city; and shall have charge 
 of the inspection of dairies, milk, meat and all food stuffs, and 
 all water supplies for drinking purposes; and enforce all pure 
 food laws; 
 
 (e) To investigate the nature of all contagious or infec¬ 
 tious diseases, and to take measures to prevent their develop¬ 
 ment and continuance; and, if necessary to the public health and 
 safety, to order the destruction of animals that are suffering from 
 any contagious or infectious disease and of the buildings within 
 which they have been sick of such disease; 
 
 (f) ( To abate, or order to be abated, all nuisances found 
 
203 
 
 in or upon, the streets, alleys, lots, buildings or premises within 
 the city; 
 
 (g) To regulate the sanitary condition of all morgues, 
 cemeteries, crematories, vaults and burial places within the limits 
 of the city, and the disposition of dead bodies of persons and 
 animals; 
 
 (h) To provide for registration of births, deaths and 
 marriages occurring within the city; 
 
 (i) To make contracts, not inconsistent with other pro¬ 
 visions of this charter, and for periods of time not exceeding 
 ten years each, for the removal and disposal of garbage, offal 
 and other offensive materials accumulated or deposited within 
 the city limits. 
 
 Sec. 2. Said department shall be under the management 
 and control of a hospital and health board, whose term of office 
 shall be for a period of three years; provided, that the mem¬ 
 bers of the board first appointed hereunder shall, as soon as 
 practicable, so classify themselves by lot that the term of one of 
 such members shall expire at the end of one year, one at the 
 end of two years, and one at the end of three years, from the 
 third Monday in April, 1908. At the expiration of the term of 
 a member, a successor shall be appointed for a term of three years 
 from the date of the expiration of the term of his predecessor. 
 No member of the board shall be a practicing physician or sur¬ 
 geon. The members of said board shall serve without compen¬ 
 sation, and shall be selected with reference to special fitness for 
 the position. 
 
 Sec. 3. Said board shall, within ten days after its appoint¬ 
 ment, organize by the election of one of its members as presi¬ 
 dent. The board shall thereafter annually, at a regular meet¬ 
 ing to be held within thirty days after the third Monday in April 
 of each year, choose a president, to serve for the term of one 
 year and until his successor be chosen and qualified. It shall 
 also appoint a secretary, who shall not be a member of the board, 
 and who shall serve at the pleasure of the board. The secretary 
 shall keep a full and complete record of the official proceedings 
 of the board, and discharge such other duties as may be required 
 of him, from time to time, by the board, or by ordinances not 
 inconsistent with this charter. 
 
 i 
 
 Sec. 4. Said board shall establish rules and regulations 
 for the admission of sick or injured or insane citizens, and of any 
 person who may be taken sick, or be injured, or become insane, 
 while in the streets, or public places, or while stopping tempor- 
 
204 
 
 arily within the city, to the hospitals and institutions, and for 
 the treatment of such persons elsewhere, and for admission of 
 indigent citizens to such institutions as the city may provide for 
 their use, and for the administration and government of the 
 department, and shall provide for the necessary ambulance ser¬ 
 vice and city dispensaries. 
 
 Sec. 5. Said board shall have the power to appoint a vis¬ 
 iting and consulting staff of physicians and surgeons, who shall 
 serve at the pleasure of the board, without compensation; and 
 shall appoint a superintendent of the hospital, who shall be a 
 licensed physician and shall have practiced for three years in 
 Kansas City; and shall appoint, subject to the civil service laws, 
 rules and regulations contained in, and provided for, in this char¬ 
 ter, a health commissioner; and shall have power to appoint such 
 superintendents, health officers, medical officials, food and other 
 inspectors, assistants and subordinates, as may be necessary for 
 the efficient management and conduct of said hospital and health 
 department, subject to the provisions of this charter, 
 
 Sec. 6. The health commissioner shall be a registered 
 physician, and shall have resided within this city for at least 
 three years prior to the date of his appointment. He shall be 
 the executive officer of the board, and shall have the power, and 
 it shall be his duty, under the supervision of the board, to exer¬ 
 cise all powers and perform all duties conferred upon him by 
 the board, as provided in this article, and to perform such other 
 duties as may be required of him, from time to time, by the 
 board or by ordinance. 
 
 Sec. 7. Members of the board, health commissioner and 
 such subordinates as may be thereunto authorized by resolution 
 of the board, recorded in the records of its proceedings, shall be 
 conservators of the peace and shall have the same powers as 
 policemen to make arrests for any violation of laws or, ordi¬ 
 nances relating to public health, and of any lawful rule or regu¬ 
 lation of the board. 
 
 Sec. 8 . In order to effect the abatement of nuisances, or 
 removal of any accumulated substances injurious to health, the 
 board shall have power, whenever in its opinion such nuisance 
 or injurious substance exists, by resolution recorded in the rec¬ 
 ords of its proceedings, to order the same abated or removed, 
 and, thereafter, to notify the owner, or owners, of the premises 
 on which the same exists, or his or their agents, to abate or 
 remove the same, as the case may be. Such notice shall be 
 
205 
 
 ✓ 
 
 served upon the owner, or agent having charge of the premises, 
 if such owner or agent can be found in the city, or by any per¬ 
 son authorized by resolution of the board to serve the same, or 
 by any police officer of the city, in the same manner as writs 
 of summons are required to be served in civil cases. If such ser¬ 
 vice cannot be made for the reason that the owner, or such agent 
 cannot be found in the city, of which fact the return endorsed 
 upon such notice of the person serving the same shall be con¬ 
 clusive evidence, then the board shall cause such notice to be 
 published in the newspaper doing the city printing, for two con¬ 
 secutive days. Notice served in any manner herein prescribed 
 shall be held by all courts to be sufficient service upon the owner. 
 If the owner, or agent, who shall have been so served with notice, 
 shall fail, within the time indicated in such notice, which time 
 shall be fixed by said board, to comply with such order, or to 
 show cause to such health commissioner why he cannot, or ought 
 not to, comply with such order, for which purpose he shall have 
 the right to be heard, within the said time, before the said board, 
 if he so requests, such owner, or agent, as the case may be, shall 
 be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, on conviction before 
 the municipal court of the city, shall be fined not exceeding five 
 hundred dollars; and the board may order such nuisance, or 
 injurious substance, abated or removed, and the cost of such 
 abatement or removal, when fully completed, shall be ascertained 
 under the direction of the board of public works, and the board 
 of public works shall cause the same to be collected in the same 
 manner as provided by section fifteen of article eight of this 
 charter. The city may also collect such special tax by suit, by 
 foreclosing the lien thereof before the municipal court or other 
 court of competent jurisdiction. In such suit it shall only be 
 necessary for the plaintiff to allege the execution and delivery 
 of such certificate to the City Treasurer and the amount and non¬ 
 payment of the special tax sued for, together with the descrip¬ 
 tion of the particular tract of land charged therewith. The full 
 amount of such special tax, whenever collected, shall be paid 
 into the city teasury; provided the city may, at its option, waive 
 the lien of such special tax bill and enforce payment of the 
 amount of such certificate by suit in any court of competent jur¬ 
 isdiction as a debt due from such owner or agent to the city. In 
 such suit the city may have judgment, also, for costs. 
 
 Sec. 9. Whenever it shall come to the knowledge of the 
 Mayor that any malignant, infectious or contagious disease or 
 epidemic is prevalent in the city, or will probably become so. or 
 in case a public calamity arise by reason of flood, tornado, 
 fire, or other disasters, he may make proclamation of such fact 
 to the inhabitants; and after such proclamation the board shall 
 
206 
 
 have the power to take all steps and use all measures necessary 
 to avoid, suppress or mitigate such disease and relieve distress 
 caused by flood, tornado, fire, or other disasters, without the 
 intervention of the council, in the same manner and as effect¬ 
 ually as the council could itself do by ordinance, and may employ 
 such officers, agents, servants and assistants, establish tempor¬ 
 ary hospitals, provide necessary furniture, medical attendance, 
 nurses, food, clothing, shelter and relief, as in the opinion of the 
 said board may be necessary and advisable; provided the amount 
 expended shall not exceed any appropriation made for the depart¬ 
 ment. 
 
 The board shall have and exercise said power until it shall 
 declare, or until the Mayor shall proclaim, that the epidemic, 
 disease or calamity, in view of which the poclamation was made, 
 is no longer imminent or prevalent, whereupon the said power 
 shall cease. 
 
 Sec. 10. The board shall keep accurate and detailed ac¬ 
 counts in a form approved by the City Comptroller, of all monies 
 received and expended by it, the source from which received and 
 \ the purpose for which expended. It shall, at the end of each 
 fiscal year, transmit to the City Comptroller a report of the acts 
 of the board and condition of the business and property of the 
 department, showing all receipts and expenditures of money, 
 since its last preceding annual report; and shall cause said report 
 to be printed in sufficient numbers for public distribution. The 
 Mayor, or common council, may require a report from said 
 board at any time. 
 
 Sec. 11. It shall be the duty of the police department of 
 the city to co-operate with the hospital and health department, 
 and at all times, at the request of the hospital and health board, 
 to render such aid and assistance as said department may need. 
 It shall be the duty of all policemen to report to the health com¬ 
 missioner, through the chief of police, the existence of any nui¬ 
 sance, or unsanitary condition, at any place within the city. 
 
/ 
 
 ARTICLE XV. 
 
 Civil Service. 
 
 Section 1. At the beginning of the fiscal year of 1910, 
 the Mayor shall appoint three persons known to be devoted to 
 the improvement of civil service, based on merit, who shall con¬ 
 stitute a board of civil service, who are hereby named civil ser¬ 
 vice commissioners. One to serve to the end of the fiscal year 
 of 1911, one to serve for the term ending with the expiration 
 of the fiscal year of 1912, and one to serve for the term ending 
 with the expiration of the fiscal year of 1913. And, whenever 
 and as often as the term of office of any commissioner shall 
 expire, the then Mayor shall appoint a person known to be 
 devoted to the improvement of the civil service, based on merit, 
 to serve as such commissioner for three years. 
 
 The members of said board shall serve without compensa¬ 
 tion. 
 
 Sec. 2. It shall be the duty of said board to organize im¬ 
 mediately after their appointment by the election of one com¬ 
 missioner as president and by the appointment of a chief exam¬ 
 iner; and they shall prescribe and enforce rules for the classifi¬ 
 cation of the offices and employments in the classified service of 
 the city and for appointments and promotions therein, and exam¬ 
 inations therefor, and for the registration and selection of labor¬ 
 ers for employment therein, not inconsistent with the provisions 
 of this charter, and may amend or repeal the said rules from time 
 to time. All rules and amendments thereto shall be published, 
 and together with all proceedings and papers connected with said 
 civil service system shall, at all times, be subject to the inspec¬ 
 tion of the Mayor and City Comptroller. Subject to the provis¬ 
 ions Of this charter and of said rules, the civil service board shall 
 make regulations for and have control of examinations and reg¬ 
 istration for the service of the city, and shall supervise and pre- 
 * serve the records of the same. The board shall annually elect 
 one of its members as president for the term of one year. 
 
 Sec. 3. The civil service of the city shall be divided into 
 the exempt service and the classified service. 
 
 Sec. 4. The exempt service shall comprise: 
 
 First: All officers elected by the people; 
 
208 
 
 
 Second : Sergeant at arms of the Common Council, or 
 either house thereof, the Mayor’s secretary and the Mayor’s 
 stenographer; 
 
 Third : The city Auditor, the city Counselor, one assistant 
 the city clerk, the city assessor and one deputy, two deputies of 
 the city Comptroller, three deputies of the city Treasurer, the 
 members of the board of public works, the secretary of the board 
 of public works, the purchasing agent, the members of the board 
 of park commissioners, the landscape architect of the board of 
 park commissioners, the secretary of the board of park commis¬ 
 sioners, the members of the board of hospital and health, the 
 health commissioners, the secretary of the board of hospital and 
 health, the superintendent of the hospitals, and all visiting and 
 consulting physicians and surgeons, the members of the board 
 of fire and water commissioners, the fire chief, the secretary of 
 the board of fire and water commissioners, the members of the 
 civil service board, the chief examiner of the civil service board, 
 the members and officers of any public utilities commission that 
 may be appointed from time to time. Members of the board of 
 pardons and parole and court sergeant. 
 
 Sec. 5. The classified service shall comprise all officers 
 and positions in the city service not specifically designated in the 
 exempt service, and shall be arranged in two classes to be desig¬ 
 nated respectively as the competitive class and labor class. 
 
 Sec. 6. The competitive class shall include all positions 
 now existing or hereafter created of whatever function, desig¬ 
 nation or compensation in each and every branch of the civil \ 
 service of the city, except such positions as are in the exempt 
 service or in the labor class. 
 
 Sec. 7. Positions in the competitive class may be filled 
 without competitive examinations as follows: 
 
 First : Whenever there are, in the opinion of the commis¬ 
 sioners, urgent reasons for filling a vacancy in any position in 
 the competitive class, and there is no list of persons eligible for 
 appointment who have successfully passed the competitive exam¬ 
 ination, the appointing officer may nominate a person to the civil 
 service commission for non-competitive examination, and such 
 nominee shall be certified by said commission as qualified after 
 such non-competitive examination; but the commission shall 
 forthwith hold a competitive examination covering such posi¬ 
 tion, and such provisional appointment shall not continue for a 
 longer period than sixty days, nor shall successive temporary 
 appointments be made to the same position under this subdi¬ 
 vision. 
 
209 
 
 Second : In case of a vacancy in a position in the com¬ 
 petitive class where peculiar and exceptional qualifications of a 
 scientific, professional or educational character are required, and 
 Upon satisfactory evidence that for specified reasons competition 
 in special cases is impracticable, and that the position can be 
 best filled by^the selection of some designated pefson of high 
 and recognized attainments in such qualities, the commission 
 may, by unanimous vote of all three commissioners, spread upon 
 the records at the time such suspension is made, suspend the pro¬ 
 visions of the rules requiring competition in such case, but. no 
 such suspension shall be general in its application to such posi¬ 
 tion, and all such cases of suspension shall be reported in the 
 annual reports of such commission, with the reasons for the 
 same. 
 
 Sec. 8. The labor class shall include unskilled laborers 
 and such skilled laborers as may be so classified by the rules 
 and regulations of the commission. Vacancies in the labor class 
 shall be filled by appointment from lists of applicants registered 
 by the civil service commission. There may, in the discretion 
 of the commission, be separate lists of applicants for different 
 kinds of labor or employment, and the commission may estab¬ 
 lish separate labor lists for various institutions and departments. 
 Where the labor service of any department or institution is con¬ 
 fined to separate districts or localities, the commissioners may 
 provide separate ' registration lists for each district or locality. 
 The commissioners shall require an applicant for regstration in 
 the labor class to furnish such evidence, or pass such examina¬ 
 tion as they may deem proper with respect to age, residence, 
 physical condition, ability to labor, skill, capacity and experience 
 in the trade or employment for which he applies. Where no 
 examination is required, laborers shall be placed on the eligible 
 list and be appointed therefrom in the order of the priority of 
 their applications. Restrictions as to citizenship specified in this 
 article need not be applied to the labor class. 
 
 Sec. 9. All appointments, promotions and changes of status 
 of persons in the public service of the city shall be made in the 
 manner prescribed by this article, unless otherwise provided in 
 this charter. The said commission shall keep minutes of its own 
 proceedings and records of its examinations and other official 
 acts. It shall be the duty of the civil service commissioners to 
 supervise the execution of this law and the regulations there¬ 
 under and see that the same are enforced, and they shall be 
 responsible for the correction of all abuses and irregularities 
 growing out of the administration of said law and regulations 
 thereunder. They may make such investigations as they deem 
 
210 
 
 necessary and report to the Mayor from time to time upon all 
 matters touching the enforcement and effect of the provisions 
 of this article; and in the course of such investigations, each 
 commissioner and the chief examiner shall have power to admin¬ 
 ister oaths; they shall have the power to subpoena and require 
 the attendance of witnesses and the production of books, papers 
 and records pertinent to the investigations and inquiries hereby 
 authorized, and to examine them; and of such public records as 
 they shall require in relation to any matter which they are 
 required to investigate, and for the purpose of such examination, 
 the board may, if it deems fit, invoke the power of any court 
 of record in the county to compel the attendance and testify¬ 
 ing of witnesses, and the production thereby of books, papers 
 and records as aforesaid. They shall make an annual report to 
 the Mayor and common council on or before the fifteenth day of 
 January of each year, showing their own actions, the rules and 
 regulations and exceptions thereto in full, and the practical effect 
 thereof, and any suggestions they may approve for the more 
 effectual accomplishment of the purposes of this article. The 
 Mayor may also require a report from the board at any other 
 time. The board shall meet as often as the needs of the public 
 service may require, and shall hold stated regular meetings at 
 least once a week on such day as may be fixed by its rules. Two 
 members of the board shall constitute a quorum. 
 
 Sec. 10. From and after the taking effect of this article 
 and the adoption of the rules herein provided for, all appoint¬ 
 ments to positions and employments in the several departments 
 of the city service shall, unless in this charter otherwise pro¬ 
 vided, be made by the respective heads of such departments under 
 arid in conformity with the provisions of such rules, and such 
 heads of departments shall respectively have power to remove 
 or discharge any person holding any office, position, or em¬ 
 ployment in their respective departments whenever, in their 
 opinion, the good of the public service requires the exercise of 
 such power. It shall be the duty of a discharging officer, upon 
 request of a discharged person, at any time after discharge, to 
 give such person a correct statement in writing of the reasons 
 for his discharge. No person in the city’s service shall be re¬ 
 moved, reduced in grade or salary, or transferred because of 
 political or religious beliefs or opinions of such persons; nor 
 shall any person in the competitive class of the city service be 
 removed, reduced in grade or salary or transferred without first 
 having received a written statement setting forth in detail the 
 reasons therefor; and 1 at the option of the person who shall have 
 been removed, reduced, or transferred, a copy of such statement 
 shall be filed in the office of the Civil Service Commissioners, 
 
211 
 
 together with reply, if any made thereto, by the person removed, 
 and the whole shall be filed and preserved in the office of said 
 Commissioners and be open to public inspection. In case of dis¬ 
 charge of any person owing to’the reduction of force, the dis¬ 
 charged person shall receive a certificate so stating, and shall 
 be placed on the eligible list with the same rank he had 1 already 
 attained, and shall have a preference over those on the eligible 
 list, and those who have served the longest before being so dis¬ 
 charged shall be first restored. 
 
 Whenever said Commissioners shall have reason to believe 
 that any officer, board, head of department or person having 
 power to discharge has abused such power by making dismis¬ 
 sals or discharges for political or other reasons than solely for 
 the good of the public service, it shall be their duty to make such 
 investigation in the premises as they may deem advisable and if 
 they shall find that any such violation of the provisions of the 
 intent and spirit of this article has occurred, they shall make 
 report thereof to the Mayor and the officer or tribunal having 
 power under this charter to remove such officer, board, head of 
 department, or persons, and such report shall be sufficient cause 
 for removal of such guilty officer, board, head of department, or 
 person. 
 
 Sec. 11. All applicants for offices or positions in the class¬ 
 ified service, subject to the exceptions expressly made in this 
 charter, shall be subjected to examination, which shall be public, 
 competitive and free to all citizens of the United States, with 
 specified limitations as to residence, age, health, habits and moral 
 character. Such examinations shall be practical in their char¬ 
 acter, and shall relate to those matters which will fairly test the 
 relative capacity of the person examined to discharge the duties 
 of the positions to which they seek to be appointed, and shall 
 include tests of physical qualifications and health, and when ap¬ 
 propriate, of manual skill. 
 
 No questions in any examination shall relate to political or 
 religious opinions or affiliations. The Commission shall control 
 all examinations and may, whenever an examination is to take 
 place, designate a suitable number of persons, either in or not in 
 the official service of the city, to be examiners, and it shall be 
 the duty of such examiners, and if in the official service of the 
 city, it shall be part of their official duty, without extra compen¬ 
 sation, to render such service in connection with such examin¬ 
 ation as the Commission may require, and to make report or 
 return thereof to said Commission, and the Commission may, at 
 any time, substitute any other person, whether or not in such 
 service, in place of any one so selected, and the board may them¬ 
 selves at any time act as such examiners, and without appoint- 
 
212 
 
 ing examiners. The Commission shall fix the compensation of 
 such examiners, and may appoint such other employes of the 
 board as they deem necessary, and fix their pay. 
 
 Intending competitors shall be required to file in the office 
 of the Commissioners a reasonable length of time before the date 
 of any examination, a formal application in which the applicant 
 shall state, under oath, first, his full name, residence and post- 
 office address; second, his age, date and place of birth; third, 
 health and physical capacity for public service; fourth, his busi¬ 
 ness or employment and residence for at least five years previous; 
 fifth, such other information as may be reasonably required 
 touching the applicant’s merit and fitness for the public service. 
 Blank forms for such application shall be furnished by the Civil 
 Service Commissioners without charge to all persons requesting 
 the same. Such Commissioners may require in connection with 
 such application such certificates of citizens, physicians, public 
 officers or others having knowledge of the applicant as the good 
 of the service may require. Such Commissioners may refuse to 
 examine an applicant, or, after examination, to certify as eligible 
 one who is found to lack any of the essential preliminary require- , 
 ments for the examinations for positions for which he applies; 
 or who is physically so disabled as to be rendered unfit for the 
 performance of the duties of the position to which he seeks ap¬ 
 pointment; or who is addicted to the habitual use of intoxicat¬ 
 ing beverages to excess; or who has been convicted of a crime 
 or guilty of infamous or notoriously disgraceful conduct; or who 
 has been dismissed from the public service for delinquency or 
 misconduct; or who has intentionally made a false statement of 
 any material fact, or practiced, or attempted to practice, any 
 deception or fraud in his application, in his examination, or in 
 securing his eligibility or appointment. 
 
 Sec. 13. Notice of the time and place and general scope 
 of every competitive examination provided for in this article 
 shall be given by the board by publication, for at least five days 
 preceding such examination, in the newspaper doing the city 
 printing, and such notice shall also be posted in a conspicuous 
 place in their office for two weeks before such examination. 
 The board may advertise non-competitive examinations provided 
 for in this article in such manner as the nature of such exam- 
 ‘ inations may, in their opinion, require, Applications for appoint¬ 
 ment may be filed at any time, and when so filed personal notice 
 of the time and place of examinations must be sent by mail to 
 the applicant. 
 
 Sec. 14. From the returns or reports of the examiners, or 
 from the examinations made by the Commission, the Commis- 
 
sion shall prepare an eligible list for each grade or class of posi¬ 
 tions in the competitive class of the classified service of the city, 
 of the persons whose general average standing upon examina¬ 
 tion for such grade or class is not less than the minimum fixed 
 by the rules of such Commission, and who are otherwise eligible, 
 and shall furnish to each of such persons a certificate setting 
 forth the general average standing secured by him under such 
 examination, and such person shall take rank upon the eligible 
 list as candidates in the order of their relative excellence as 
 determined by examination without reference to priority of time 
 of examination. 
 
 Sec. 15. The board shall, by its rules, provide fbr promo¬ 
 tion in such competitive class of the classified service on the 
 basis of ascertained merit, and shall provide in all cases where 
 it is practicable that vacancies therein shall be filled by promo¬ 
 tion, and 1 in said rules shall provide for transfers and re-instate¬ 
 ments. 
 
 Sec. 16. The head of a department or office in which a 
 position in the classified service is to be filled shall notify said 
 board of the fact, and 1 said Commission shall certify to the 
 appointing officer the name and address of the candidate stand¬ 
 ing highest upon the eligible list for the class or grade to which 
 said position belongs, except that where a choice by competition 
 is not required by this article, said Commission may, subject to 
 the provisions of this article, provide by its rules how selections 
 shall be made among those candidates proved fit by examina¬ 
 tion. In making such certification, sex shall be disregarded, 
 except when some statute, the rules of the Commission or the 
 appointing power specify sex. The appointing officer shall notify 
 said Commission of each position to be filled separately, and 
 shall fill such place by the appointment of the person certified to 
 him by said Commission therefor. Said Commission shall strike 
 off names of candidates from the eligible list after they have 
 remained thereon more than two years. In the event of more 
 than one applicant receiving the same mark at any examination, 
 all such applicants shall cast lots to determine the order in which 
 their names shall be placed on the eligible list. 
 
 Sec. 17. Immediate notice in writing shall be given by 
 the appointing power to said board of all appointments, perma¬ 
 nent and temporary, made in such classified service, and all trans¬ 
 fers, promotions, resignations or vacancies, from any cause, in 
 such service, and of the date thereof, and a record of the same 
 shall be kept by said board. When any office or position is 
 created or abolished or the compensation attached thereto altered, 
 the City Clerk shall immediately report the fact in writing to 
 said board. 
 
214 
 
 Sec. 18. The incumbents of all positions at the time this 
 charter takes effect,, coming within the competitive class of the 
 classified service, may continue in service and discharge the 
 duties assigned them until the beginning of the fiscal year 1910, 
 and until the board secures an eligible list and promulgates rules 
 as provided in section 3 of this article, whereupon said incum¬ 
 bents shall be deemed to have vacated their several positions. 
 Until such time appointments and removals shall be made and 
 vacancies filled as elsewhere provided in this charter. 
 
 Sec. 19. The board shall appoint a chief examiner who 
 shall, under their direction, superintend any examination held 
 under this article, and who shall perform such other duties as 
 the board may prescribe. The chief examiner shall be secre¬ 
 tary of the board by virtue of his office. He shall keep the 
 minutes of its proceedings, preserve all reports made to it, and 
 keep a record of all examinations held under its direction. 
 
 Sec. 20. No person or officer shall wilfully or corruptly, 
 by himself, or in co-operation with one or more other persons, 
 directly or indirectly, defeat, deceive or obstruct any person in 
 mark, grade, estimate or report upon the examination, or proper 
 standing of any person examined hereunder, or aid in so doing, 
 or wilfully or corruptly make a false representation concerning 
 the same, or concerning the person examined, or wilfully or 
 corruptly furnish to any person any special or secret informa¬ 
 tion for the purpose of either improving or injuring the pros¬ 
 pects or chances of any person so examined or to be examined, 
 of being appointed, employed or promoted. 
 
 Sec. 21. No officer or employee within the competitive 
 class of the classified service of the city shall solicit orally or 
 by letter, or otherwise, or receive, or be in any manner con¬ 
 cerned in soliciting or receiving any assessment, subscription 
 or contribution for any political party or for any political pur¬ 
 pose whatever. 
 
 Sec. 22. No person shall solicit, orally, or by letter, or 
 otherwise, or be in any manner concerned in soliciting any 
 assessment, contribution or payment for any political party or 
 for any political purpose whatever from any officer or employe 
 
 in the classified service of the city. 
 
 * \ ■ 
 
 Sec. 23. No person shall, in any room or building occu¬ 
 pied for the discharge of official duties by any officer or employe 
 of the city, solicit orally or by letter or written communication 
 
215 
 
 delivered therein, or in any manner, or receive any contribution 
 of money or other thing of value for any political party or for 
 any political purpose whatever. No officer, agent, or employe, 
 under the government of the city, who may have charge or con¬ 
 trol of any building, office or room occupied for any purpose of 
 said government, shall permit any person to enter the same for 
 the purpose of therein soliciting or delivering written solicita¬ 
 tions for or receiving or giving notice of any political assess¬ 
 ment. 
 
 Sec. 24. No officer or employe in the service of the city 
 shall directly or indirectly give or hand over to any officer or 
 employe in the service of said city any money or other valu¬ 
 able thing on account of or to be applied to the promotion of any 
 political party or any political purpose whatever. 
 
 Sec. 25. No officer or employe of the city shall discharge 
 or degrade or promote, or in any manner change the official 
 rank or compensation of any other officer or employe, or prom* 
 ise or threaten to do so for giving or withholding, or neglecting 
 to make any contribution of money or other valuable thing for 
 any political party or purpose, or for refusal or neglect to render 
 any political service. 
 
 Sec. 26. No applicant for appointment in said Civil Ser¬ 
 vice shall, either directly or indirectly, pay or promise to pay any 
 money or other valuable thing to any person whatever for or on 
 account of his appointment, and no officer or employe shall pay 
 or promise to pay, either directly or indirectly, to any person, 
 any money or other valuable thing whatever for or on account 
 of his promotion or retention in the public service of the city. 
 
 I 
 
 Sec. 27. No applicant for appointment or promotion in 
 said Civil Service shall ask for or receive any recommendation 
 or assistance from any officer or employe in said service, or 
 from any person, upon the consideration of any political service 
 to be rendered, or the promotion of any person to any office or 
 appointment. 
 
 Sec. 28. No person while holding an office in the govern¬ 
 ment of the city, or a nomination for, or while seeking a nom¬ 
 ination for or appointment to any such office, shall corruptly 
 use or promise to use, either directly or indirectly, any official 
 authority or influence (whether then possessed or merely antici¬ 
 pated), in the way of conferring upon any person, or in order to 
 secure or aid any person in securing any office or public appoint- 
 
216 
 
 rnent, or any nomination, promotion or increase of salary, upon 
 the consideration or condition that the vote, or influence or 
 action of the last named person or any other shall be given or 
 used in behalf of any candidate, officer, person, or political party, 
 or upon any corrupt condition or consideration. 
 
 Sec. 29. The board shall certify to the City Comptroller 
 all appointments to offices and places in the competitive class of 
 the classified service and all vacancies occuring therein. 
 
 Sec. 30. It shall be unlawful for the City Comptroller or 
 other fiscal officer of the city, when Civil Service rules have 
 been prescribed, pursuant to this article, to draw, sign, or issue 
 or authorize the drawing or issuing of any warrant on the Treas¬ 
 urer or other disbursing officer of the city to pay any salary or 
 compensation to any officer, clerk or person in the competitive 
 class of the classified service of the city unless his name shall 
 have been certified to the Comptroller as provided for in the 
 preceding section of this article. Any officer, clerk or other per¬ 
 son entitled to be certified by said board to the Comptroller, 
 Treasurer or other fiscal or disbursing officer of the city, as hav¬ 
 ing been appointed or employed in pursuance of this article, and 
 of the rules made in pursuance of it, and refused such certificate, 
 may maintain a proceeding by mandamus in the Supreme Court 
 of the State, or in the Circuit Court of Jackson County, Missouri, 
 at Kansas City, to compel said board to issue such certificate. 
 Mandamus proceedings as herein specified must be brought within 
 thirty days after refusal of such certificate. Jurisdiction is hereby 
 conferred upon the Circuit Court of Jackson County, Missouri, 
 at Kansas City, and on any judge thereof, in vacation, on appli¬ 
 cation of any tax-payer of said city, to restrain and enjoin the 
 payment of any compensation for services rendered said city by 
 any person by virtue of occupying any office or position coming 
 within the competitive class of the classified service of the city 
 who occupies such office or position under any appointment made 
 in contravention of any provision of this article. The process 
 above provided shall not be so construed as to limit or restrict 
 the jurisdiction or power of said court to accord other adequate 
 civil remedy necessary to effectuate the provisions of this article. 
 
 Sec. 31. Any person who shall wilfully, or through 
 culpable negligence, violate any of the provisions of this article, 
 shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall upon conviction there¬ 
 of in the Criminal Court of Jackson County, Missouri, at Kan¬ 
 sas City, be punished by a fine of not less than fifty dollars and 
 not exceeding five hundred dollars, or by imprisonment in the 
 
217 
 
 city workhouse for a term not exceeding six months or by both 
 such fine and imprisonment, and the said Criminal Court is 
 hereby vested with jurisdiction of violations of this article, in 
 so far as enforcing fines and penalties is concerned. And it is 
 hereby made the duty of the City Counselor to appear in said 
 court on behalf of the city, and to prepare all informations for 
 violations of this article, which shall be verified by the prose¬ 
 cuting witness or the City Counselor, andvshall be prosecuted in 
 the name of the city. Upon the filing of such verified informa¬ 
 tion by said City Counselor specifying the acts or omissions of 
 the accused constituting the alleged offense, in term time in said 
 court, or with the clerk thereof in vacation a warrant shall issue 
 for the apprehension of the person charged with the offense as 
 provided by Section 2484 of the Revised Statutes of Missouri 
 of 1899, and the trial and all proceedings shall be in accordance 
 with the State law of Missouri applicable to proceedings upon 
 information filed in a court of record, except that the City Coun¬ 
 selor shall institute and conduct the same in the name of the 
 city, as herein provided. The Prosecuting Attorney of Jackson 
 County may also*file information and conduct prosecutions in 
 the name of the city in said court for violations of the provisions 
 of this article. 
 
 Sec. 32. The Common Council shall have the power to 
 
 pass all ordinances touching the Civil Service, the passage of 
 
 whictt shall have been recommended bv the Commission in writ- 
 
 * 
 
 ing duly certified thereon, provided the same are in no wise 
 inconsistent or in conflict with any provision of this article. 
 
 Sec. 33. The provisions of this article shall extend to and 
 govern the police department of the city whenever and so far 
 as the State laws shall authorize or permit. Should the State 
 enact a Civil Service law governing the police department of this 
 city, this Commission is authorized to administer said law, should 
 the State so provide. 
 
ARTICLE XVI. 
 
 Franchises. 
 
 Section 1. The title of the city to and in its water front, 
 wharf property, land! under water, public landings, wharves, 
 docks, highways, avenues, boulevards, streets, lanes, alleys, parks, 
 public grounds and public places is hereby declared to be inalien¬ 
 able; provided, that nothing herein contained shall prevent the 
 city from, vacating any street or highway or part thereof in 
 the manner provided for in this charter, nor for disposing of 
 any building or parcel of land which the city may lawfully sell, 
 no longer needed for public use, provided such disposition shall 
 be made on open and public competition and pursuant to ordi¬ 
 nance passed by at least two-thirds affirmative vote of all the 
 members elect of each house of the Common Council. 
 
 Sec. 2. The city may grant for a limited time, and sub¬ 
 ject to the limitations and conditions contained in this charter* 
 specific franchises, privileges, or rights in or relating to any of 
 the public property or places mentioned in the preceding section, 
 but the city shall have no power to grant any exclusive fran¬ 
 chise, privilege or right for any purpose whatsoever; and, pro¬ 
 vided, that no such franchise, privilege or right shall be granted 
 by both houses of the Common Council at the same meeting at 
 which the ordinance providing therefor is introduced. 
 
 Sec. 3. Alb franchises hereafter granted or extended by 
 the city shall have a time fixed therein for the expiration of such 
 grant or extension; and ; if'do time be fixed therein for their 
 expiration or extension, then such franchise shall expire twenty 
 years after the ordinance granting or extending the same takes 
 effect. No franchise for any purpose whatever shall be granted 
 or extended by the city for a longer period of time than thirty 
 years unless the ordinance granting or extending such franchise 
 shall be submitted to the qualified voters of said city, and ratified 
 by a majority vote of said qualified voters voting at an election 
 to be held for that purpose, and no such franchise shall be valid 
 unless so ratified. Any ordinance, however, granting or extend¬ 
 ing a franchise for a term of thirty years, or for a term less than 
 thirty years, may provide that the same shall not take effect 
 or be valid unless ratified as above provided, and in every such 
 case the ordinance shall not take effect or be of any validity 
 until submitted 1 to the qualified voters of said city, and ratified 
 
219 
 
 by a majority of said qualified voters voting’ at an election to 
 be held for that purpose. The expense of any special election 
 called for a vote on such ordinance shall be paid by the grantee 
 or grantees named in the franchise ordinance so submitted. 
 
 Sec. 4._ The city may, by ordinance, direct and control the 
 laying and construction of surface, elevated and underground 
 railroads of any kind on, over or under the streets, avenues, high¬ 
 ways and alleys of the city, and may require any such railroads, 
 and all parts thereof to be constructed, laid and' kept in repair 
 so as to interfere as little as possible with ordinary travel and 
 use of streets, avenues, highways and alleys, and may require 
 the space between the rails and columns, and not less than 
 eighteen inches on the outside thereof, and the space between all 
 tracks and columns to be macadamized, paved, repaved, blocked, 
 reblocked or improved, as the roadway beyond such limits may 
 be macadamized, paved, repaved, blocked, reblocked or improved, 
 and kept in repair by the person, persons or corporation owning 
 or operating the same; this section shall apply to all such rail¬ 
 roads heretofore constructed, and those hereafter to be con¬ 
 structed. 
 
 The city shall not grant the right-of-way on or over any 
 street in said' city to any person, persons or corporation for the 
 construction of any railroad without the consent of the property 
 owners owning a majority in front feet of the property front¬ 
 ing on each street between the points where such railroad is pro¬ 
 posed to be constructed; nor shall any railroad be hereafter con¬ 
 structed ,or laid down without such consent; and the city shall 
 have power, by ordinance, to fix and regulate, from time to 
 time, the hours and frequency of trips of street railroads, the 
 fare to be charged for passage on any such railroad, and to 
 require any such railroad, or any part thereof, to be lighted and 
 guarded, and to designate the kind of rails and vehicles to be 
 used, and shall have power to require the performance of any 
 other condition, and the making of any other improvement that 
 the Common Council may deem for the best interests of the 
 city. 
 
 Sec. 5. It shall be lawful for the city to regulate and con¬ 
 trol the exercise by any person or corporation of any public fran¬ 
 chise or privilege in any of the streets or public places of the 
 city, whether such franchise or privilege has been or may be 
 granted by the city or by or under the State of Missouri, or any 
 other authority. 
 
 All persons, firms and corporations owning or operating 
 telephone or telegraph lines, systems or exchanges or street 
 railway lines and systems or a tunnel or subway, conduit or 
 
 «■ 
 
220 
 
 viaduct, or engaged in furnishing gas, steam or electricity for 
 lighting, heating or power, or engaged in furnishing light, heat 
 or refrigeration under any franchise granted by the State of 
 Missouri or the city of Kansas City, and all persons, firms and 
 corporations owning or operating any other public utility under 
 any franchise granted by the State of Missouri or the city of 
 Kansas City are hereby required to charge no more for the ser¬ 
 vice of such utility than such rates as shall be fixed, from time 
 to time, by ordinance of the city. The city shall have power 
 and authority to fix, by ordinance, the rates charged for the 
 service of such utility within its corporate limits and to provide 
 and enforce fines and penalties for the violation thereof, and to 
 change such rates, by ordinance, from time to time, as often as 
 may be deemed necessary; provided however, that such rates 
 must be reasonable and shall not be changed oftener than once 
 every two years. Any such person, firm or corporation owning 
 or operating any of the utilities mentioned in this charter, and 
 claiming to be aggrieved by the rates fixed by any ordinance of 
 the city, shall have the remedies herein provided to have the 
 validity of such ordinance, and the reasonableness of such rates, 
 determined by the Circuit Court of the County of Jackson at 
 Kansas City. The party so complaining shall, as plaintiff, file 
 in the Circuit Court within twenty days after the passage of such 
 ordinance a petition against such city as defendant, setting forth 
 the objections to such ordinance, whereupon summons shall issue 
 and be served upon such city and proceedings had as in other 
 cases. The plaintiff or defendant shall have the right of appeal 
 to the proper appellate court of the State as in other cases. Said 
 cause shall be speedily heard and determined, and shall have 
 precedence in time in the Circuit and Appellate Courts over other 
 civil actions. Nothing contained in this section shall be con¬ 
 strued to mean that any power or jurisdiction is conferred upon 
 said courts to fix such rates or regulate the charges of any such 
 public utility. 
 
 Sec. 6. The city may, by ordinance, provide for and estab¬ 
 lish a committee or commission to make investigation into all 
 facts and matters touching the establishment of such just and 
 reasonable rate or rates charged, and the character of the ser¬ 
 vice furnished, and such other matters as the Common Council 
 may designate by ordinance, and after such investigation said 
 commission shall report its findings and recommendations to the 
 City Council. The city shall have power and authority, by ordi¬ 
 nance, to require and enforce the production of books and papers 
 and compel the attendance of witnesses before the Common 
 Council or any dtily established committee or commission for the 
 purpose of ascertaining the facts under investigation. 
 
221 
 
 Sec. 7. A uniform gauge shall be established by ordinance 
 for all street railroads in Kansas City. 
 
 Sec. 8.' All franchises and privileges heretofore granted 
 by the city which are not in actual use and enjoyment, which 
 the grantees- thereof have not in good faith commenced to exer¬ 
 cise within the time fixed for so doing by the ordinance granting 
 the right, or by any ordinance extending said time, are hereby 
 declared forfeited and of no validity unless said grantees or their 
 assigns shall, within six months after this charter takes effect, 
 in good faith commence the exercise and enjoyment of such 
 privilege or franchise. 
 
 Sec. 9. All rights and regulations and control which this 
 charter gives to the city shall be construed as continuing rights, 
 and the city shall not be held to have exhausted the right bv 
 one exercise thereof, either in the original ordinance by which 
 any franchise may be granted, or by any subsequent ordinance. 
 
 Sec. 10. No ordinance creating, granting, extending, 
 amending or altering any franchise, right or privilege to any 
 person or corporation to make use, in whole or in part, of any 
 street or streets, alley or alleys, or other public ground or 
 grounds, whether on, under or above the surface thereof, shall 
 become final and effective until sixty days after the enactment 
 thereof and if within such sixty days after the enactment 
 thereof a petition or petitions requesting that such ordinance 
 shall be submitted to a vote of the qualified voters of said city, 
 signed by voters of said city, who were qualified to vote at the 
 last preceding general city election and aggregating in number 
 not less than twenty per cent of the number of votes cast at the 
 last preceding general city election for all candidates for Mayor, 
 shall be filed 1 in the office of the City Clerk, to which petition 
 must be attached a certificate of a Notary Public of Jackson 
 County, Missouri, stating that the Notary has good reason to 
 believe, and does believe, that the signatures thereto are the 
 genuine signatures of qualified voters of such city, which cer¬ 
 tificate shall constitute prima facie evidence of the genuineness 
 and authenticity of such signatures, the Mayor and Common 
 Council shall cause such ordinance to be submitted to the quali- * 
 fied voters of said city at a general or special election, and unless 
 a majority of the votes cast for and against such ordinance at 
 such election shall be in favor of the adoption thereof, such 
 ordinance shall be null and void. Such petition shall be can¬ 
 vassed by the City Clerk, City Comptroller and City Counselor, 
 who shall determine whether such petition contains the neces- 
 
222 
 
 sary signatures required as above. Their finding shall be con¬ 
 clusive for all purposes, and they shall make certification of such 
 finding to the Mayor, and a copy of such certificate shall be 
 recorded in the office of the City Clerk and preserved among 
 the archives of the city. Such election shall be called, held and 
 conducted as may be prescribed* by ordinance, and the certificate 
 of the officer or officers at such time legally required to make 
 such certificate as to the result of the election shall 
 be final and conclusive. Such franchise ordinance shall 
 not, in any event, be final and effective after the 
 filing of such petition until approved by a majority vote at such 
 election. If a special election be called for a vote on such ordi¬ 
 nance, the person or corporation in whose favor such ordinance 
 shall be enacted shall pay all costs and expenses of such elec¬ 
 tion, and shall give bond with security satisfactory to the Mayor 
 for the payment of such costs and expenses before the calling 
 of such election. 
 
 If any person shall sign the petition above provided for 
 with a name other than his own, or shall procure or attempt to 
 procure any other person to do so, or shall procure or attempt 
 to procure any signature to said petition by false or fraudulent 
 statements, he shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be pun¬ 
 ished by a fine of not more than five hundred dollars and by 
 imprisonment for not longer than twelve months. 
 
 i 
 
 
 V 
 
ARTICLE XVII. 
 
 Dramshops. 
 
 Section 1. Before an application for license to keep a 
 saloon, beer house, tippling house or dramshop shall be received 
 or filed by the City Auditor, there shall be endorsed thereon a 
 certificate signed by the Board of Police Commissioners that 
 such applicant has proved himself to be a person of good moral 
 character. Whenever such application is presented to the Board 
 of Police Commissioners, such Board shall cause notice, in. 
 writing, to be served by a policeman, upon every resident prop¬ 
 erty owner in the block where such saloon, beer house, tippling 
 house or dramshop is proposed to be located, designating a day 
 not less than five days nor more than ten days after the service 
 of such notice when remonstrances, if any, against the issuance 
 of such license will be heard by such Board. Whenever such 
 application so endorsed, as aforesaid, by said Board of Police 
 Commissioners, shall be presented to the City Auditor, he shall 
 issue a license to such applicant. 
 
 Sec. 2. Whenever it shall be shown to the Board of 
 Police Commissioners, upon complaint of any person in writing, 
 or whenever said Board shall become satisfied that any dram¬ 
 shop keeper of the city keeps a disorderly house, or a house that 
 is a resort of minors, lewd or disreputable women, or of evil- 
 disposed persons, the said Board of Police Commissioners may 
 order the license of such dramshop keeper to be revoked, and 
 from the date of such order of revocation, such- dramshop keeper 
 shall be deemed to have no license, and to be without authority 
 of law to carry on a dramshop; and thereafter no license shall 
 be granted to such person to keep a dramshop. Whenever such 
 complaint in writing shall be made to the Board, or whenever 
 the Board shall become satisfied that any dramshop keeper of the 
 city keeps a disorderly house, or a house that is the resort of 
 minors, lewd or disreputable women, or of evil-disposed persons, 
 such Board shall order its Secretary to notify such dramshop 
 keeper of the same, and set a day when such dramshop keeper 
 may be heard; and such notice shall be served by a policeman 
 by a copy thereof delivered to such dramshop keeper or any 
 barkeeper in charge of said dramshop, and no license shall be 
 revoked by said Board without notice thereof, and an oppor¬ 
 tunity to be heard, to said dramshop keeper. 
 
224 
 
 Sec. 3. The Board of Police Commissioners shall, on the 
 day next preceding any general or special election held in Kan¬ 
 sas* City, issue an order for the closing of all saloons, beer 
 houses, tippling houses and dramshops on such election day, 
 and give public notice of the issuance thereof. Said Board shall 
 direct the Chief of Police to take the necessary steps to insure 
 the strict enforcement of such order. 
 
ARTICLE XVIII. 
 
 Miscellaneous Provisions. ' 
 
 Section 1. All ordinances, regulations and resolutions in 
 force at the time this charter takes effect, and not inconsistent 
 with the provisions thereof, shall remain and be in force until 
 altered, modified or repealed by the Common Council. 
 
 Sec. 2. All measures and proceedings pending or under 
 consideration in the Common Council or either House thereof 
 at the time this charter takes effect and not inconsistent with 
 the provisions thereof, shall remain unaffected by this charter 
 and may be acted upon and disposed of the same as if they had 
 originated under this charter. 
 
 Sec. 3. Any street paving or repaving or other public 
 improvement declared to be necessary by any resolution which 
 shall have been passed by both Houses of the Common Council 
 of Kansas City, Missouri, prior to the time this charter goes 
 into effect, shall be made and the tax bills in payment therefor 
 shall be issued and all proceedings appertaining thereto shall be 
 carried out under the provisions of the charter and ordinances 
 existing at the time of the passage of the original resolution 
 declaring such street paving or repaving to be necessary and 
 the adoption of this charter or any ordinance thereunder shall 
 in no wise affect the validity of or render illegal any proceeding 
 of the Board 1 of Public Works or Board of Park Commissioners 
 or of the Common Council or of the City of Kansas City, or of 
 any officer or agent thereof which has been or shall be had or 
 carried out in accordance with the provisions of the charter and 
 ordinances existing at the time of the passage of said original 
 resolution, but anv and all such proceedings shall be legal and 
 valid. ' - * ' , 
 
 Sec. 4. All rights of action, contracts, titles, fines, penalties 
 and forfeitures accrued to the city before this charter goes into 
 effect shall remain in existence in full force and effect, unaffect¬ 
 ed thereby, and may be prosecuted, recovered and received as 
 fully in every respect as if this charter had not taken effect. 
 
 Sec. 5. All ordinances, resolutions and proceedings of the 
 Common Council may be proved by the seal of the corporation 
 
226 
 
 attested by the officer having charge thereof and when printed 
 and published by authority of the city, the same shall be re¬ 
 ceived in evidence in all cases and places by all courts without 
 further proof. 
 
 Sec. 6. All recognizances, obligations and all other in¬ 
 struments entered into or executed by or to the city before this 
 charter takes effect, and all fines, taxes, penalties and forfeitures 
 due or owing to the city, and all writs, prosecutions, actions 
 and causes of action, except as herein otherwise provided, shall 
 continue and remain unaffected by this charter. 
 
 Sec. 7. All judicial proceedings of any kind or character 
 and all condemnation proceedings growing out of the taking 
 or damaging of private property for any public use, begun or 
 pending at the time this charter takes effect, all contracts for 
 the doing of any kind of public work whether to be paid for 
 out of the revenue of the city or by special assessment or taxa¬ 
 tion, and all things done or to be done under or by reason of 
 any such contract or the doing of any work thereunder, not 
 completed and performed at the time this charter takes effect, 
 shall in no wise be affected by this charter, and the same shall 
 be conducted and prosecuted to completion and performance in 
 every respect under the provisions of the charter and amend¬ 
 ments thereof which this charter supersedes. 
 
 Sec. 8. The city, in taking an appeal or prosecuting a 
 writ of error in any judicial proceeding, shall give bond as 
 required by law; but it is hereby released from the obligation of 
 law to furnish security therefor; every such bond shall be exe¬ 
 cuted 1 by the Mayor in the name of the City, under the corporate 
 seal thereof, and shall be taken in all courts of this State as a 
 full compliance with the law in such cases. In all actions 
 brought by or against Kansas City, the inhabitants of the city 
 may be jurors or witnesses if otherwise competent and qualified. 
 
 Sec. 9. All persons in office in the city at the time of the 
 taking effect of this charter shall hold their offices until their 
 successors are elected or appointed and qualified, and no officer 
 of the city who was qualified to hold his office under the pro¬ 
 visions of the charter which this charter supersedes shall be con¬ 
 sidered as disqualified to hold such office by reason of any addi¬ 
 tional disqualification contained in this charter and existing as 
 to such officer at the time this charter takes effect, and any such 
 officer shall be entitled to continue in his office notwithstanding 
 the existence of such additional disqualification. In all cases 
 
227 
 
 where the authority or duties pertaining to any office held bv 
 any person at the time this charter takes effect are either 
 changed, increased or diminished 1 by this charter, the authority 
 and duties of the person holding any such office shall henceforth 
 be measured and determined solely in accordance with the pro¬ 
 visions of.this charter pertaining to such office. The City Attor¬ 
 ney in office at the time this charter takes effect shall continue 
 to discharge the duties and receive the compensation of that 
 office as defined and provided by the provisions of the charter 
 and amendments thereof which this charter supersedes until 
 the third Monday in April, 1910, anything in this charter to the 
 contrary notwithstanding. 
 
 Sec. 10. Any lien on real property existing in favor of 
 the State of Missouri, or of Kansas City, at or before the inking 
 effect of this charter, for taxes and special assessments levied by 
 such city, and all right, title and estate acquired by or vested 
 in the State of Missouri or in Kansas City, by reason of the 
 forfeiture or sale to the State or the city of any tract of land, 
 town or city lot offered at public sale for taxes, or special assess¬ 
 ment levied by such city, interest and costs due thereon, and not 
 sold to others for want of bidders, are hereby assigned and 
 transferred to and continued in such city; and all lands, town 
 or city lots forfeited or sold to the State of Missouri or such city 
 on account of taxes or special assessments levied thereon by the 
 city, or sold to the city in action for taxes or special assessments 
 levied thereon by the city, shall, from the taking effect of such 
 charter, be deemed and taken to be forfeited and sold to the :ity. 
 In all cases where certificates of purchase have at the time when 
 this charter takes effect been made out in the name of the pur¬ 
 chasers at any sale for such delinquent taxes or special assess¬ 
 ments, the right to redeem from any such sale, or to a deed or 
 deeds, shall not be affected or impaired by anything in this char¬ 
 ter contained. 
 
 Sec. 11. A warrant shall issue in all cases in favor of 
 Kansas City for a violation of any ordinance or other regulation 
 upon information by the City Counselor or one of his assistants 
 that such violation has been committed, or upon oath or affirma¬ 
 tion of any person that such violation has been committed. 
 
 Sec. 12. The repeal of any law by the provisions of this 
 charter shall not in any wise be so construed as to affect any 
 right or liability acquired or accrued thereunder by or on the 
 part of the city, or any person or body corporate. And this 
 charter shall not in any manner affect any right, lien or liability 
 
228 
 
 accrued, established or subsisting under and by virtue of the 
 previous charter or any amendment thereto, but such right, lien 
 or liability shall be enforced, and such action or proceeding shall 
 be carried on in all respects as if this charter had not taken effect; 
 nor shall this charter be in anywise so construed as to affect the 
 right or liability acquired or accrued under the previous charter 
 and amendments thereto, or on the part of the city, or any per¬ 
 son or body corporate. 
 
 Sec. 13. Any notice, advertisement or publication re¬ 
 quired by this charter to be published shall be held to be well 
 given, made and published, when the same is published for the 
 required number of days in the newspaper doing the city print¬ 
 ing on the day of the first publication thereof. In computing 
 the number of days during which the publication is made, Sun¬ 
 days and legal holidays and all calendar days between the first 
 and last publication shall be included and counted whether 01 
 not the paper is published on such days. 
 
 Sec. 14. All city improvements of whatever kind or 
 character, including the erection of all public buildings, made 
 or to be erected) at the expense of the city, and including all 
 work to be paid for in special tax bills, and all contracts made 
 by the city or any Board, Department or officer thereof and all 
 purchases of suplies or other property for the city, except as in 
 this charter otherwise provided, shall be let by contract to the 
 lowest and best bidder as shall be prescribed bv ordinance; pro¬ 
 vided, however, that nothing in this section shall be so con¬ 
 strued as to prevent repair and maintenance by day's work of 
 streets, alleys and other public places, curbing, sidewalks, sew¬ 
 ers, culverts, buildings or other city property, so far as may be 
 necessary, under the direction of the Board or Department hav¬ 
 ing control, management or jurisdiction of such work. 
 
 Sec. 15. The Mayor, each member of the Common Coun¬ 
 cil, Chief of Police, and all Police Officers, shall be conservators 
 of the peace and all officers of the city created conservators of 
 the peace by this charter, or authorized by any ordinance, shall 
 have power to arrest, or cause to be arrested, with or withoui 
 process, any person who shall break the peace or be found vio¬ 
 lating any ordinance of the city or the laws of the State, and 
 commit for examination, and if necessary detain such person 
 or persons over night, or on the Sabbath, in the city prison or 
 any other place, or until they can be brought before the Judge 
 of the Municipal Court, or other proper officer, and shall have 
 and exercise such other powers as conservators of the peace as 
 the city may prescribe. 
 
229 
 
 Sec. 16. The City Treasurer shall, on demand of an> 
 party, give to such party a certificate signed by him showing 
 all unpaid taxes, if any, and all outstanding tax-sale certificates, 
 if any, against any lot or parcel of land mentioned in the de¬ 
 mand, as appears by the books and records in his office and 
 by the book of sales'in the Auditor’s office, or if there are none 
 the certificate shall show that fact. For such certificate a fee. 
 of ten cents for each lot or parcel of land shall be collected by 
 the City Treasurer, and 1 shall belong to the city as a part of the 
 general fund. The Treasurer shall have access at all times 
 to the books of sales to make searches for certificates. 
 
 9 
 
 Sec. 17. The City Clerk shall, on demand of any party, 
 give to such party a certificate signed by him referring to all 
 ordinances of the city, if any, for condemnation of land for pub¬ 
 lic use under which proceedings have been or may be taken, and 
 in the course of which proceedings any lot or parcel of land men¬ 
 tioned in the demand has been or is liable to be assessed with 
 special benefits. For such certificate a fee of ten cents for each 
 lot or parcel of land shall be collected by the City Clerk, and 
 shall belong to the city as a part of the general fund. 
 
 Sec. 18. In case any elective or appointive officer of the 
 
 city shall be necessarily absent from the city, or unable from 
 
 sickness or any other cause to discharge the duties of his office, 
 
 the Mayor, or if such officer shall have been elected or appointed 
 
 by any Board, Commissioner or other officer, then such Board, 
 
 Commission or other officer, may fill such office temporarily by 
 
 appointment, such appointment to be recorded by the City Clerk 
 
 and the appointee to hold and discharge the duties of the officer 
 
 whose place may be thus filled temporarily until he shall return 
 
 or become fit for and enter on duty. Officers thus temporarily 
 
 appointed shall qualify and give -such bond as may be required 
 
 bv ordinance. 
 
 * 
 
 Sec. 19. All persons holding any office under the city 
 whether elective or appointive, shall be required to engage in 
 the actual work of the office so held, to the extent that their 
 services may be necessary for the full and complete discharge 
 of the duties of said office, and a failure to do so shall be 
 grounds for removal by the proper authority. 
 
 Sec. 20. All licenses issued by the city shall expire on 
 January fourth or July fourth of each year, except as otherwise 
 provided in this charter. 
 
280 
 
 Sec. 21. All bonds given to or for the benefit of the city 
 pursuant to this charter or any city ordinance and not by this 
 charter required to be otherwise approved, must be approved 
 by the City Comptroller, and all bonds except the official bond 
 of the City Comptroller, must be filed and left with the City 
 Comptroller as the official custodian thereof. No appeal bond 
 from any judgment of any Municipal Court shall be accepted 
 unless the same be first approved by the Comptroller. The city 
 shall pay the premium on all bonds required to be given to the 
 city by officers serving without compensation, conditioned for 
 the faithful discharge of official duties. 
 
 Sec. 22. The members of Boards provided for by this 
 charter who receive no compensation for their services shall be 
 allowed their actual expenses incurred in the discharge of their 
 duties, which expenses shall be allowed and paid as other ex¬ 
 penses and disbursements of said Boards. 
 
 Sec. 23. A general election of all officers of the city 
 required to be elected by this charter, or under any ordinance 
 of the city, shall be holden on the first Tuesday after the first 
 Monday in April, in the year A.D. 1910, and every two years 
 thereafter on the same Tuesday of the same month. 
 
 All v elections shall be by ballot and continue for one day 
 
 only. 
 
 Unless otherwise provided by law, the polls shall be opened 
 at six o’clock in the morning and be closed at seven o’clock in 
 the evening, and shall not be closed during that time under any 
 pretext whatever. 
 
 All persons qualified as electors under the constitution and 
 laws of the State of Missouri, being duly registered, shall be 
 deemed qualified voters at all elections. 
 
 Sec. 24. In providing for elections, precincts shall be 
 made by the Common Council of the city of compact and con¬ 
 tiguous territory regarding ward lines. 
 
 Sec. 25. Every person who shall bet or wager by any 
 means whatever any money or other valuable thing, or shall 
 sell or purchase any pools on the result of any election autho¬ 
 rized by this charter, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, 
 and upon conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine not ex¬ 
 ceeding five hundred dollars; and any person who shall keep or 
 maintain within the city a place where such bets or wagers are 
 made, or where pools are sold and purchased on such election, 
 shall be deemed guilty of a separate misdemeanor for every 
 
231 
 
 day such place shall be so kept or maintained, and for each such 
 offense he shall be punished by a fine not exceeding five hun¬ 
 dred dollars. 
 
 Sec. ,26. The fiscal year of the city shall begin at high 
 noon on the third Monday in April of each year and extend to 
 high noon on the third Monday in April following, and shall be 
 known and designated for all purposes by the number of. the 
 calendar year in which such fiscal year begins. All elective 
 city officers provided for in this charter shall enter upon the 
 duties of their offices at the beginning of the fiscal year next 
 following their election. All appointive officers shall enter upon 
 the duties of their offices as soon as appointed and qualified. 
 
 Sec. 27. Whenever it is provided in this charter that the 
 members of any Board, Department or Commission shall so 
 classify themselves by lot that their terms of office shall expire 
 at different times, such members shall, on the day of making 
 such classification, cause the same tG be entered in the records of 
 their proceedings, and a copy thereof, certified by the Secretary 
 thereof and signed by all of said members, shall be filed with 
 the City Clerk. In every case such classification must be made 
 at the first meeting of the Board, Department or Commission. 
 
 Sec. 28. The Departments, Boards, Commissioners and 
 Officers provided for in this charter shall be entitled to the pos¬ 
 session of all papers, books, documents, maps, plats, records and 
 archives in the possession or under the control of those respect¬ 
 ively who are superseded under this charter by such Depart¬ 
 ments, Boards, Commissioners and Officers. 
 
 Sec. 29. All special elections not otherwise provided 1 for. 
 shall be held under such regulations as may be prescribed by 
 ordinance. Subject to the constitution and laws of the State 
 governing the city, provision may be made by ordinance for the 
 holding of any election for any lawful purpose, and for con¬ 
 ducting the same and ascertaining and declaring the result 
 thereof and making a proper record to evidence the results. 
 
 Sec. 30. Kansas City is hereby declared to be the legal 
 successor of the City of Kansas and 1 shall be entitled to all the 
 property and rights of every nature whatsoever standing in the 
 name of or belonging to the City of Kansas, and the same shall 
 inure to and be vested in Kansas City. All proceedings now 
 pending in the name of the City of Kansas shall be continued 
 in such name and shall remain unaffected by the adoption of this 
 
charter. And Kansas City shall be held to be a continuous body 
 politic and corporate without interruption under each and all 
 the successive charters and amendments thereof from the origi¬ 
 nal incorporation of the City of Kansas, and the City of Kansas 
 City as well as under this charter. 
 
 Sec. 31. The Common Council may by ordinance, from 
 time to time, within the limits of and in ponformity with the 
 provisions of the constitution of the State, as now amended, or 
 as it may hereafter be amended, submit to the qualified voters 
 of the city, at any special or general election, a proposition or 
 propositions that the city issue its bonds to an amount not ex¬ 
 ceeding the limit authorized by the constitution of the State of 
 Missouri, as now amended, or as it may hereafter be amended; 
 provided, that such bonds shall not be sold for less than their 
 par value; and provided, further, that the proceeds of said bonds 
 shall be applied to the construction of public sewers within the 
 limits of the city, or to such outlets outside the limits of- the 
 city, or to acquiring the right-of-way therefor, as may be 
 deemed by the Common Council necessary to secure proper 
 drainage; or to the purchase of lands within or without the 
 limits of the city, for public parks or boulevards, or to improv¬ 
 ing, adorning or beautifying public parks'or boulevards; or to 
 the purchase of lands for public squares; or to the purchase of 
 sites for market houses; or to the construction, equipment, im¬ 
 provement, extension or enlargement of market houses; or to 
 the purchase of sites for hospitals, or to the construction, equip¬ 
 ment, improvement, extension or enlargement of hospitals; or 
 to the making of extensions, enlargements, improvements, or 
 betterments of the waterworks; or to the payment for land or 
 right-of-way acquired by purchase or condemnation, within or 
 without the limits of the city, or within or without the limits 
 of the State of Missouri, for the waterworks; or to any other pub¬ 
 lic improvement or purpose, of any nature vor kind whatsoever, 
 whether herein specifically enumerated or not; and provided, 
 further, that the Common Council shall, in submitting any such 
 proposition or propositions, to issue bonds, expressly specify the 
 amount of bonds to be issued for each particular purpose. 
 
 And, provided, further, that within the meaning of the pro¬ 
 viso, next immediately preceding, the construction of public 
 sewers within the limits of the city, and the construction of out¬ 
 lets therefor outside the limits of the city, and the acquiring of 
 the rights-of-way therefor, or any one or more of said objects 
 shall be deemed one particular purpose; the purchase of lands 
 within and without the limits of the said city for public park^ 
 or boulevards, or both, or any one or more of said objects, shall 
 
283 
 
 be deemed one particular purpose; the improving, adorning and 
 beautifying parks or boulevards, or both, or any one or more 
 of said objects shall be deemed one particular purpose; the pur¬ 
 chase of land for public squares shall be deemed one particular 
 purpose;.the purchase of sites for market houses, and the con¬ 
 struction, equipment, improvement, extension and enlargement 
 of market houses, or any one or more of said objects shall be 
 deemed one particular purpose; the purchase of sites for hospi¬ 
 tals, and the construction, equipment, improvement, extension 
 and enlargement of hospitals, or any one or more of said objects, 
 shall be deemed one particular purpose; the making of exten¬ 
 sions, enlargements, improvements and betterments of the water¬ 
 works, and the payment for land and the right-of-way acquired 
 by purchase or condemnation or both, within or without the 
 limits of the city, and within or without the limits of the State 
 of Missouri for waterworks, or any one or more of said objects, 
 shall be deemed one particular purpose. 
 
 The amount of bonds issued by the city, bearing date July 
 1, 1895, for acquiring waterworks, and all bonds hereafter issued 
 in renewal of said bonds, or any portion thereof, shall not be 
 included in the computation of the existing bonded indebtedness 
 of said city in determining the amount of bonds authorized to 
 be issued by said city, with the assent of two-thirds of the voters 
 under the provisions of Article ten (X) of the Constitution of 
 the State of Missouri, as now amended or as the same may 
 hereafter be legally amended; but the city shall be authorized to 
 issue bonds with the assent aforesaid to an amount including 
 outstanding indebtedness, other than that above named, to the 
 amount of five per centum of the value of the taxable property 
 in said city, to be ascertained in the manner provided by the 
 said constitution of the State of Missouri, by the assessment 
 next before the last assessment for state and county purposes, 
 previous to the incurring of such indebtedness. Such bonds 
 shall be in denominations of not less than one hundred dollars 
 ($100.00) nor more than one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) 
 each, payable to bearer, in not less than five (5) nor more than 
 twenty (20) years from the date thereof, with interest from 
 date not exceeding five (5) per cent per annum, payable semi¬ 
 annually; and shall have interest coupons attached to conform 
 to the face of the bonds; and such bonds shall be under the seal 
 of the city, signed by the Mayor, attested by the City Clerk, 
 countersigned by the City Comptroller, and in all respects shall 
 be in such form, and issued and sold in such manner as may be 
 prescribed by ordinance. 
 
 The city shall, before or at the time of issuing such bonds, 
 
234 
 
 provide for the collection of an annual tax, sufficient to pav 
 the interest on the bonds as it falls due, and also to constitute a 
 sinking fund for the payment of the principal thereof at ma¬ 
 turity. 
 
 Sec. 32. All provisions contained in this charter which 
 are the same as provisions contained in the charter of the citv 
 or any amendment thereof, which this charter supersedes, shall 
 be taken, held 1 and construed as continuing such provisions of 
 said superseded charter and amendments in uninterrupted force 
 and effect, and all acts, things and proceedings done or had 
 thereunder are hereby reaffirmed in all things, whether the same 
 have been completed or are in process of being carried out, or 
 have been merely authorized and the same authorized to com¬ 
 plete all such acts, things and proceedings shall continue as if 
 said superseded charter and amendments thereof ha^ 1 not been 
 superseded by this charter. 
 
 Sec. 33. The second Thursday in May of each year is 
 hereby named as a day to be known and observed in Kansas 
 City as “Charity Day, on which appropriate measures may be 
 taken for alleviating the condition of the poor and needy. 
 
 Sec. 34. This charter may be amended at any time by a 
 proposal therefor made by the law-making authorities of the 
 city, published for at least thirty days in three newspapers of 
 the largest circulation in the city, one of which shall be a news¬ 
 paper printed in the German language, and accepted by three- 
 fifths of the qualified voters of the city voting at a general or 
 special election. The city may, by ordinance, subject to all laws, 
 provide as to the form of submitting to such voters at any elec¬ 
 tion any proposed amendment, -and for ascertaining the results 
 of the election on such proposed amendment, and making proper 
 record of the fact. 
 
 Sec. 35. In case there be filed with the City Clerk at any 
 time a petition or petitions signed by qualified electors of Kan¬ 
 sas City, numbering not less than ten per cent of the whole num¬ 
 ber of votes cast for all candidates for Mayor at the last pre¬ 
 ceding city election, requesting the law making authorities of the 
 city to submit to the qualified electors of the city a proposal for 
 an amendment to this charter as in said petition or petitions 
 set forth, the said law-making authorities of the city may sub¬ 
 mit such proposal for an amendment in the manner provided in 
 the next preceding section. 
 
285 
 
 Sec. 36. This charter is declared to be a public act, and 
 may be read in evidence in all courts of this State without 
 proof. 
 
 Done at Kansas City, this 6th day of July, A.D. 1908. 
 
 J. V. C. Karnes, 
 
 Walter J. Bales, 
 
 Wm. P. Borland, 
 
 L Charles Campbell, 
 
 Franklin D. Crabbs, 
 
 Andrew F. Evans, 
 
 R. J. Ingraham, 
 
 Robert B. Middlebook, 
 
 John A. Moore, 
 
 John H. Thacher, 
 
 Frank W. Tuttle. 
 
 The Board of Freeholders further returns the two following 
 sections to be submitted and presented for the choice of the 
 voters, in the alternative, to be voted on separately, and! accepted 
 or rejected separately, without prejudice to other articles or sec¬ 
 tions of this charter, and, if either of said sections be adopted, 
 it shall be known as section thirty of Article IV of this charter, 
 to-wit 
 
 
 
 
 > 
 
 
 
 # 
 
 / 
 
 % 
 
230 
 
 ALTERNATIVE SECTION THIRTY, ARTICLE IV. 
 
 ALTERNATIVE NUMBER ONE. 
 
 Sec. 30. In addition to the method otherwise provided in 
 this charter for the removal of elective officers, the holder of 
 any elective office may be removed at any time by the electors 
 entitled to vote for a successor of such incumbent. The pro¬ 
 cedure to affect the removal of an incumbent of an elective 
 office shall be as follows: 
 
 A petition signed by electors entitled to vote for a successor 
 to the incumbent sought to be removed, equal in number to at 
 least thirty per cent of the entire vote for all candidates for the 
 office, the incumbent of which is sought to be removed, cast at 
 the last preceding general municipal election, demanding an elec¬ 
 tion of a successor to the person sought to be removed, shall 
 be addressed to the Comon Council and filed with the City Clerk 
 and said petition shall contain a general statement of the grounds 
 for the removal as sought. The signatures to the petition need 
 not be appended to one petition, but each signer shall add to 
 his signature, his place of residence, giving the street and num¬ 
 ber. Each such paper shall have added thereto the affidavit of 
 a registered voter of the city, stating that all the signatures to 
 the paper were made in his presence, and that to the best of his 
 knowledge and belief, each signature to the paper appended is 
 the genuine signature of the person whose name purports to be 
 thereto subscribed. Within ten days from the date of filing such 
 petition, the said Clerk shall examine and ascertain whether or 
 not said petition has a requisite number of signatures, and if 
 necessary, the Council shall allow him extra help for that pur¬ 
 pose, and he shall attach to the petition his certificate of the 
 result of such examination, and deliver the same to the Council. 
 If by the Clerk’s certificate the petition is shown to be insuffi¬ 
 cient it may be amended within ten days from the delivery of 
 such petition and certificate to the Council. The Clerk shall, 
 within ten days after such amendment, make like examination 
 of the amended petition and if his certificate shall show the 
 same to be insufficient, it shall be returned to the person filing 
 the same, without prejudice, however, to the filing of a new 
 petition to the same effect. If the petition shall be found to be 
 sufficient the Clerk shall submit the same to the Council without 
 delay, and the Council shall thereupon order a day for holding 
 the said election, not less than thirty days nor more than forty 
 days from the date of the Clerk’s certificate to the Council that 
 a sufficient petition is filed. 
 
 The City Council shall make, or cause to be made, publi- 
 
 / 
 
237 
 
 cation of notice, and all arrangements for the holding of such 
 election, and the same shall be conducted, returned, and results 
 thereof declared in all respects as for other city elections. « The 
 successor of any officer so removed, shall hold office during the 
 unexpired term of his predecessor. Any person sought to be 
 removed may be a candidate to succeed himself, and unless he 
 requests otherwise in writing, the Clerk shall place his name on 
 the official ballot without nomination. In any such removal 
 election, the candidate receiving the highest number of votes 
 shall be declared elected. At such election if some other person 
 than the incumbent receives the highest number of votes the 
 incumbent shall thereupon be deemed removed from his office 
 upon the qualification of his successor. In case the party who 
 receives the highest number of votes shall fail to qualify within 
 ten days after receiving notification of election, the office shall 
 be deemed vacant. If the incumbent receives the highest num¬ 
 ber of votes he shall continue in office. 
 
 ALTERNATIVE SECTION THIRTY, ARTICLE IV. 
 
 ALTERNATIVE NUMBER TWO. 
 
 Sec. 30. City officers elected by the people shall retain 
 their official positions to the end of their respective terms of 
 office, and until their successors are elected and qualified, unless 
 sooner removed for cause, and shall not be subject to removal on 
 petition of electors. 
 
 Done this 6th day of July, A.D. 1908. 
 
 J. V. C. Karnes, 
 
 • Walter J. Bales, 
 
 Wm. P. Borland, 
 
 Charles Campbell, 
 
 Franklin D. Crabbs, 
 
 Andrew F. Evans, 
 
 R. J. Ingraham, 
 
 Robert B. Middlebook, 
 
 John A. Moore, 
 
 John H. Thacher, 
 
 Frank W. Tuttle. 
 
 
 
 C. J. Hubbard and D. J. Haff as two of the Freeholders- 
 elect participated in the preparation of the above charter, but on 
 account of their absence from the State at the time the charter 
 is returned, have been unable to sign the same. 
 
/ 
 
 238 
 
 Received this 6th day of July, 1908, the foregoing draft 
 of the proposed charter for Kansas City, Missouri. 
 
 Thomas T. Crittenden, Jr., 
 
 Attest: Wm. Clough, Mayor . 
 
 City Clerk . , A \ 
 
 (Seal of Kansas City, Missouri.) i. y