CHAP. XXIX.

-OF THE CHOICE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF CLASSED TOWNS.

The statute of December 23, 1828, enacts, "that the meetings for the choice of the representatives of such towns, as are or may be classed for that purpose, shall be called by warrant under the hands and seal of the selectmen of that town, wherein the meeting is, by law, to be holden for that year, requiring the inhabitants of said towns, qualified to vote for senators, to meet at a certain place in said town, and at a certain hour therein mentioned, and expressing the purpose of such meeting.. And the said selectmen shall post up an attested copy of such warrant, at the meeting-house or some other public place in each of said towns, fifteen days before such meeting, and return such warrant, with their doings thereon, at the time and place of such meeting."

"That the selectmen of the town wherein such meeting is to be holden, shall lodge with the town clerk of such town, and shall cause to be posted up at some public place in said town, at least fifteen days previous to said meeting an alphabetical list of all the legal voters of said town and shall at said meeting on receiving satisfactory evidence thereof enter on said list the names of all legal voters in said town not before on said list, and likewise the names of all legal voters belonging to the towns or places classed with said town for the choice of a representative who may appear at said meeting and offer to vote."

"That at the meetings afo resaid, a moderator shall be chosen, by ballot, by a majority of votes. And the said moderator and the selectmen and town clerk of the town wherein such meeting shall be holden, shall have and exercise the same powers, perform the same duties, and be subject to the same penalties and liabilites; and the le

gal voters, present at such meeting, shall have the same rights, and be subject to the same penalties and liabilities, as they respectively would by law, if such meeting were a legal meeting of the inhabitants of one town only."

"That in case there should be no town clerk of the town, wherein such meeting shall be holden, or in case of his absence, the legal voters present shall, by ballot, by a majority of votes, elect a clerk of the meeting, who shall be sworn, and shall perform the duties, by law required of town clerks in town meetings, and shall keep a fair record of the proceedings of the meeting, and shall transmit the same, duly certified, to the town clerk of said town, as soon as may be,whose duty it shall be,to record the same in the book of records of the town, in which such meeting may be holden."

"That if the selectmen of the town, wherein the meeting of the legal voters of such classed towns for the choice of a representative should, by law, be holden for that year, shall neglect to warn such meeting, or to make, post up, and lodge with the town clerk of said town, a list of the legal voters in said town, agreeably to the provisions of this act, they shall forfeit and pay the sum of fifty dollars for each offence, to the use of any person, who will sue for the same."

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CHAP. XXX.

OF THE LAWS RELATING TO THE MARKING OF SHEEP.

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The statute of December 20, 1816, enacts, แ that the owner of any sheep may ear-mark or brand the same he or she may think proper, and cause their several marks or brands to be recorded in the town clerk's office in the town in which such owner shall reside, or in which the sheep may be kept, and the town clerk shall be entitled to receive six cents for recording the same."

"That if any person shall wilfully alter, cut out or deface the mark or brand of any sheep so marked or branded as aforesaid not being the proper owner thereof, or if any person under pretence of marking his own sheep shall cut off the whole of an ear or of the ears of such sheep; every person so offending shall forfeit five dollars for every sheep, the mark or brand of which shall be so altered, cut out or defaced, or whose ear or ears shall be so cut off as aforesaid:-to be recovered by action in any court proper to try the same, the one half to him, her or them who shall prosecute the same to effect, and the other half to the treasury of the town in which the offence shall be committed."

CHAP. XXXI.

STATUTES ALLOWING PREMIUMS FOR KILLING WOLVES, WILD CATS, BEARS AND CROWS.

The statute of June 12, 1801, enacts, "that if any person shall kill any wolf or wolf's whelp within this state, and shall bring the head of such wolf or wolf's whelp to the selectmen of the town or place in which the same was killed, and if there be no selectmen in the town or place where the same was killed, then to the selectmen of the town or place next to the town or place where the same was killed, and shall prove to the satisfaction of the said selectmen, that the wolf or wolf's whelp, the head of which he hath brought to them as aforesaid, was killed by him, or by his means, or by any other person whose agent he is, the said selectmen shall cut off the ears from the head so brought to them as aforesaid, and shall otherwise disfigure it so that it may never be produced for the like purpose again, and the said selectmen shall give the person so producing the head as aforesaid a receipt for the same, and the person receiving the same receipt, on producing it to the treasurer of this state, shall receive out of the treasury of this state the sum of twenty dollars for every wolf killed as aforesaid, and the sum of ten dollars for every wolf's whelp killed as aforesaid."

"That the treasurer shall not pay for any receipt produced as aforesaid, until the next session of the general court which shall happen after procuring the same, that he may have an opportunity of inquiring into the validity thereof, which he is hereby directed to do."

The statute of June 27, 1809, enacts, "that if any person shall kill any wild cat, of that species of cats which are naturally wild, within this state, and shall bring the head of such wild cat to the selectmen of the town or place in which the same was killed, and if there be no

selectmen in the town or place where the same was kill-, ed, then the selectmen of the town or place next to the town or place where the same was killed, and shall prove to the satisfaction of said selectmen that the wild cat, the head of which he hath brought to them as aforesaid, was killed by him or by his means, or by any other person whose agent he is, the said selectmen shall cut off the ears from the head so brought to them as aforesaid, or otherwise disfigure it so that it may never be produced for the like purpose again; and the said selectmen shall give the person so producing the head as aforesaid, a receipt for the same; and the person receiving the same receipt, on producing it to the treasurer of this state, shall receive out of the treasury of this state the sum of three dollars for every wild cat killed and certified as aforesaid."

The statute of December 16, 1828, enacts, "that if any person shall kill any crow within this state, between the first day of April and the first day of July in each and every year, and shall bring the same to any one of the selectmen or treasurer of the town or place where the same was killed, or if there be no selectmen or treasurer in such town or place, then to one of the selectmen or treasurer of the town or place next adjoining thereto, and shall prove to the satisfaction of such selectman or treasurer, that he killed the crow thus brought as afore. said within such town or place aforesaid, and within the time aforesaid, the said selectman or treasurer shall cut off the head of such crow, and shall otherwise disfigure it so that it shall not be produced for the like purpose again and the said selectman or treasurer shall pay to the person who killed such crow ten cents therefor, and take such person's receipt for such payment; and the selectman or treasurer of the several towns in this state, upon presenting to the treasurer of this state their respective accounts for monies paid by them or either of them respectively to any person or persons as a premium for killing crows as aforesaid, shall receive the amount of such accounts out of the state treasury. And the treasurer of this state is hereby authorized and directed to pay the same accordingly."

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