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SEC. 5. At all times other than as before provided, and on Sundays, thanksgiving days and fast days, passengers and freight shall and may, on payment or tender of double ferriage, be conveyed across said ferries; except that at Bristol ferry they shall be conveyed across between sunrise and eight o'clock, P. M. upon payment of single ferriage, except from the first day of December to the first day of March, when from sunrise until six o'clock, P. M. they shall be conveyed for single ferriage; and before and after those hours, upon the tender or payment of double ferriage: provided, however, that all physicians, surgeons and midwives on their professional duties, and persons going for them, shall at all times be conveyed for single ferriage.

SEC. 6. If any ferryman shall refuse or neglect to keep his boat afloat and in readiness as aforesaid, or shall refuse or neglect to convey or transport any persons applying for passage, or conveyance of freight, and tendering or paying lawful ferriage therefor according to the provisions aforesaid, the proprietor of such ferry where such refusal or neglect shall happen, shall forfeit and pay for each neglect or refusal, the sum of ten dollars; one moiety thereof to the state and the other moiety to the person who shall sue for the same.

SEC. 7. It shall be the duty of the ferryman at each of the said ferries, to put off the boat whenever it shall appear that the boat from the other side is on her passage or nearly arriving at that side where the boat is at the wharf, under the penalty of one dollar; to be recovered by an action of debt in any court proper to try the same.

SEC. 8. No proprietor or keeper of said ferries shall cause or suffer his ferry-boat to be absent from the said ferry on any pretence whatever, excepting for necessary repairs, under the penalty of thirty dollars for every three hours absence therefrom; to be recovered in an action of debt in any court of record proper to try the same; one half thereof to the use of the state, and the other half to the use of him who shall sue for the same.

SEC. 9. The proprietors of each of said ferries shall keep their respective ferry-wharves in good repair, so that at common low water their respective boats can receive on board freight and passengers afloat, and come to, sail and proceed across said ferries, weather permitting.

SEC. 10. If the said proprietors or either of them shall neglect to keep their respective wharves in suitable repair, the proprietor or proprietors so neglecting shall forfeit and pay, to and for the use of the state, the sum of ten dollars for each

and every month's neglect; such neglect to be ascertained by a committee, to be annually appointed in May, as other state officers are, whose duty it shall be to report at the May and October sessions of the general assembly; and all such penalties as they shall report forfeited as aforesaid shall be sued for and recovered in an action of debt by the general treasurer, SEC. 11. No person shall transport passengers or freight across either of said ferries, except the proprietors thereof or their agents, or take off or land the same at or from either of the said ferry wharves, except as before provided, under the penalty of fifty dollars; one half thereof to the use of the person who shall prosecute and sue for the same, and the other half to the use of the state; to be recovered in an action of debt in any court proper to try the same.

SEC. 12. The proprietors of the said ferries are and shall be entitled to receive the following rates of ferriage and no more, to wit:

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For each hog,

Newport and
South Ferry.

Bristol

Ferry.

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3

32

2230

For each sheep or lamb,

But no ferriage shall be charged at Bristol
ferry for a lamb with the ewe.

For all heavy goods per hundred weight,
For every horse and carriage with the persons

in it, at Newport and South ferry,

At Bristol ferry the following rates for the following persons and things and no more:

For every coach, barouche, wagon or other four wheel carriage drawn by two horses, with the persons in the same,

For every additional horse with such coach, barouche, wagon or other four wheeled carriage,

For every chaise or sulkey, and for every carryall or pleasure carriage, and for every wagon hung on or supported by springs of iron and

6 5

85

75

16

steel or either, drawn by one horse, with the persons therein, not exceeding two over twelve years of age, and the horse,

For every additional person in such last mentioned chaise, sulkey, carryall, pleasure carriage or wagon,

For every horse and wagon not hung on or supported by springs of iron and steel or either, and drawn by one horse with one person therein,

For every additional person in such last mentioned wagon,

For every ox wagon or cart and team, without a load or with a load not exceeding a ton, and the person or persons with the same, not exceeding two,

For every hundred weight over one ton in such ox wagon or cart, per hundred weight,

50

8

35

8

50

4

SEC. 13. The proprietors of the several ferries shall keep constantly posted up in their respective ferry houses in some public room or place, a printed abstract of the several laws regulating said ferries, and a schedule of the legal rates of ferriage, the condition in which the boats and wharves are to be kept, and generally the duties of said proprietors and of the ferrymen, and of the penalties for a breach thereof. And every proprietor or occupier of a ferry who shall neglect to comply with the foregoing provisions, shall forfeit and pay the sum of five dollars for every such offence, to and for the use of the town within which his ferry is located: provided, that the space of five days after any complaint, shall be allowed to such proprietors or occupiers within which to comply with the laws, before he shall be again made liable for the same offence.

SEC. 14. It shall be the duty of the town treasurers of the several towns in which ferries are established, to sue for and recover all penalties incurred by breaches of any of the laws relating to ferries, except where provision is herein made to the contrary; and if any such town treasurer shall refuse or neglect to prosecute therefor, upon information given to him in writing, by any person competent to prove the breach complained of, or who shall name to him competent witnesses to prove the same, such town treasurer shall for every such offence forfeit and pay the sum of fifteen dollars, to be recovered by the person by whom the information was

given to said town treasurer; and it shall further be the duty of said town treasurers to make report to the general assembly, when in session, of all complaints laid before them, and of their proceedings thereon.

An Act in relation to Turnpike Roads and Toll Bridges, and Keepers of Toll Gates.

SECTION

1. Gates on turnpikes and bridges may be opened if road or bridge be not in suitable repair.

2. Penalty on keeper for taking unlawful toll.

SECTION

3. Corporation shall keep account of tolls. 4. Corporation prohibited from holding land, unless such as authorized by its charter-exception.

It is enacted by the General Assembly, as follows:

SECTION 1. If at any time any turnpike road or toll bridge shall not be in suitable and proper repair, any justice of the supreme court, or any justice of the court of common pleas in the same county with said road, upon complaint to him made for that purpose, is authorized and empowered to cause the gate or gates on said road or bridge to be opened; and to remain open until, in the opinion of the said justice, the said road or bridge shall be put in proper and suitable repair; and the cost of said complaint shall be paid by the company owning said road or bridge, if in the opinion of the said justice the same shall be well founded; otherwise by the complainant.

SEC. 2. The keeper of every toll gate on any turnpike road or toll bridge, who shall hereafter demand and receive any greater toll for passing through the gate whereof he is keeper than is by law allowed, shall forfeit and pay for the first offence a sum not less than two dollars, nor more than five dollars; and for each and every subsequent offence the sum of twenty dollars; to be recovered by action of debt before any justice of the peace in the town where said gate is, to and for the use of the complainant: provided, however, the action shall in all cases be commenced within three months from the time of the commission of the offence.

SEC. 3. Each turnpike road and toll bridge corporation shall keep an accurate account of the toll actually received at its gate or gates, and have such account at all times in readiness for the examination of the general assembly.

SEC. 4. No turnpike corporation or bridge corporation shall be capable in law to take or hold any land in this state

in fee, or for life or lives, or for term of years, or by any other title or tenure, for any other use than such as is expressly provided in the charter of such corporation; and all deeds and instruments of whatever description, made to any such corporation, contrary to the true intent and meaning of this act, shall be null and void: provided, that nothing in this act shall be construed to affect any title already acquired by any such corporation, in conformity to power expressly contained in its charter.

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It is enacted by the General Assembly, as follows:

SECTION 1. Every rail road company incorporated under the authority of this state shall cause a bell of at least thirtytwo pounds in weight to be placed on each locomotive engine passing upon their road; and the said bell shall be rung at the distance of at least eighty rods from the place where said rail road crosses any turnpike, highway or public way upon the same level with the rail road, and shall be kept ringing until the engine has crossed such turnpike or road.

SEC. 2. Every such rail road company shall cause boards to be placed, well supported by posts or otherwise, and constantly maintained, across each turnpike, highway or public way, where it is crossed by the rail road upon the same level therewith; the said posts and boards to be of such height as shall be easily seen by travellers, without obstructing the travel; and on each side of said boards the following inscription shall be painted in capital letters, of at least the size of nine inches each, “Rail Road Crossing-Look out for the Engine while the Bell rings."

SEC. 3. If any rail road company shall unreasonably neglect or refuse to comply with the requisitions contained in this act, they shall forfeit for every such neglect or refusal a sum not exceeding one thousand dollars; to be recovered in an action of debt before any court proper to try the same;

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