AN ACT to incorporate the town of Potosi.

BE IT ENACTED by the Council and House of Representatives of the Territory of Wisconsin:

SECTION 1. That all that district of country in the west half Limits of cor of section number three (3) the east half of section number four, poration. (4) the northeast quarter and the east half of the northwest quarter of section number nine, (9) all in township number two (2) north, range number three (3) west, also, the southeast quarter of section number thirty-three, (33) and the whole of section number thirty-four, (34) in township number three north of range number three, west of the fourth principal meridian, in the county of Grant, in the said Territory, shall be hereafter known and distinguished by the name of the town of Potosi, and the inhabitants now residing, or who may hereafter reside within the said limits, are hereby constituted a body corporate by the name "the trustees of the town of Potosi," and by that name, they and their successors forever hereafter shall and may have perpetual succession, and shall be persons in law, capable of suing and being sued, pleading and being impleaded, answering and being answered unto, defending and being defended, in all courts and places and in all suits whatsoever.

SEC. 2. It shall be lawful for the inhabitants of the said town, Election when who are qualified by law to vote, to meet at the Wisconsin House held. in said town, on the third Monday of March next, at ten of the clock in the forenoon of that day, and choose viva voce three judges of election and one clerk, and then and there to elect by ballot, one president, who shall be ex-officio a trustee, four trustees, one assessor, two constables, one treasurer and one clerk.

SEC. 3. On the third Monday of March, in each year thereafter, there shall be an annual election of the officers of the said town above specified, and the trustees shall give due notice of the time and place of holding the same; and they, or any two of them, shall preside at the same.

SEC. 4. No person shall be eligible to any of said offices, unless he is a voter and freeholder in said town.

Polls when, opened and closed.

Vacancies how filled,

Officers to qualify.

Treasurer and constable to give bond.

Duty of president.

Puty of clerk.

SEC. 5. At all elections by the voters of the town, held underthis act, the polls shall be opened at ten of the clock in the forenoon, and continue open until four of the clock in the afternoon, and the election shall be conducted in the same manner, as far as may be, as the election for delegate to Congress. A plurality of votes shall in all cases decide the election, and in case of a tie vote, a new election shall be called by the trustees as soon as may be.

SEC. 6, In case such officers, or any of them, shall not be chosen on the day appointed for the same, and in case any act or proceeding required by this act to be done or had, on any particular day, or within any particular time, shall not be done or had on such day, or within such time, the same may be done or had as soon thereafter as may be, and the corporation shall not thereby be dissolved, but vacancies in the office of president and trustees shall be filled at a special election by the voters of the town and vacancies in all other offices by appointment by the trustees.

SEC. 7. All of said officers shall hold their offices until the third Monday of March next, after their election, and until oth ers are elected and qualified in their stead.

SEC. 8. Every officer elected under this act, before he enters upon the duties of his office, and within ten days after his elec tion, shall take an oath faithfully to discharge the duties of his office, which shall be filed in the office of the clerk of the corporation, and be sufficient evidence of his having accepted said of fice.

SEC. 9. The treasurer and constables, before they enter upon the duties of their offices, shall severally give bonds to the corporation, by its corporate name, in such sum and with such sureties as the trustees, or a majority of them shall direct, conditioned for the faithful discharge of their offices respectively.

SEC. 10. It shall be the duty of the president to preside at all meetings of the trustees, to see that allby-laws and ordinances are duly observed, and to prosecute all suits which may be neces sary, in the name of the corporation.

SEC. 11. It shall be the duty of the clerk to keep a record of the doings of the board of trustees, especially of the passing of by-laws, ordinances and regulations, and also a faithful record of all the doings and votes of the inhabitants of said town, at

their annual and other legal meetings, and to keep on file all papers which may be required by law or ordered by the trustees.The records and files kept by the clerk, shall be evidence in all legal proceedings, and copies of all papers duly filed in his office and transcripts from the records of proceedings of the board of trustees, certified by him under the corporate seal, ahall be evidence in all courts of the contents of the same.

SEC. 12. The treasurer of said town shall receive all moneys which may be collected for the use of the corporation by virtue of this act, or by virtue of any by-laws or ordinances of the corporation, or which may arise from any other source and belong to the corporation, and give to the person keeping the same, his receipt therefor. All moneys shall be drawn from the treasury by warrants signed by the president, by order of the trustees, and countersigned by the clerk, who shall keep an abstract thereof, which warrant shall set forth for what purpose the amount specified therein is to be paid, and the said treasurer shall pay out the funds of the corporation in no other way whatever. He shall keep just and accurate accounts of all moneys and other things coming into his hands as treasurer, in a book provided by the corporation for that purpose, and which shall remain the property of said corporation, wherein he shall note the time when, the person from whom the amount of the several sums received and the source from whence the said sums respectively arose, and in a manner equally accurate and specific. In the same book he shall duly enter an account of all sums paid out, which book shall at all reasonable times be opened to the inspection of the voters of said town. He shall render to the board of trustees a minute account of all his receipts and payments as often as they shall require.

SEC. 13. The constables elected under this act shall have the same power, rights, duties, liabilities, and emoluments, as the constables elected in the different precincts of said county of Grant, and hereafter no constable shall be elected at the Potosi precinct for said county, except as is provided in this act.

Duty of tread

urer.

SEC. 14. The trustees shall have the following powers, to Powers of trus wit:

I. To have a common seal and to alter the same at pleasure. 1. To purchase, hold or convey any real or personal estate for the use of the corporation,

tees.

III. To make, open, keep in repair, grade, improve or dis continue streets, avenues, lanes, alleys, sewers and side walks, to keep them free from incumbrances and to protect them from injury.

IV. To organize fire companies and hook and ladder companies, to regulate their government, and the times and manner of their exercise, to provide all necessary apparatus for the extin guishment of fire, to require the owners of buildings to provide and keep suitable ladders and fire buckets which are hereby declared to be appurtenances to the real estate, and exempt from seizure, distress or sale in any manner, and if the owner refuses to procure suitable ladders or fire buckets after reasonable notice, the trustees may procure and deliver the same to him, and in default of payment therefor, may bring an action of debt against said owner, and be entitled to recover in such action the value of such ladders or fire buckets, or both, with costs of suit: to regulate the storage of gun powder and other dangerous materials: to direct the safe construction for the deposite of ashes, and severally to enter into, or appoint one or more officers to enter into, at reasonable times, and examine all dwelling houses, lots, yards, enclosures and buildings of every description in order to discover whether any of them are in a dangerous condition, and to cause such as may be dangerous to be put into a safe condition: to compel the owners of houses and buildings to have scuttles on the roofs of said houses and buildings: to regulate the manner of putting up stoves and stove pipes: to prevent the use of fireworks and fire arms within the limits of said town: to compel the inhab itants of said town to aid in the extinguishment of fires, and to pull, break and raze such buildings in the vicinity of fires as shall be directed by the trustees or any three of them who may be present at a fire, for the purpose of preventing its communication to other buildings, and any buildings so destroyed shall be paid for by the corporation: to construct and preserve reservoirs,pumps, wells and other water works, and to regulate the use thereof, and generally to establish such other measures of prudence for the prevention or extinguishment of fires as they shall deem proper.

V. To provide hospitals of their [other] asylums for the sick; to appoint a board of health when in their opinion it shall be neccssafy, who shall possess all necessary power to prevent tlie taking or

spreading of any infections, innoxions, contagions or pestilential disease or epidemic within said town: to remove any person who shall be affected with any such disease or epidemic to any such hospital or asylum.

VI. To prevent, abate, or remove nuisances.

VII. To restrain the running at large of cattle, and all other Ib. animals: to establish pounds and appoint pound masters and fence viewers, and prescribe their powers and duties.

VIII To protect trees and monuments in said town.

IX. To purchase, hold and own grave yards or cemeteries and regulate the burial of the dead.

-X. To establish and regulate markets, and restrain sales in the streets: fo establish and regulate a public scale, and appoint a weigher to attend to the same: to regulate the place and manner of selling hay and other gross commodities.

XI. To suppress disorderly, lewd or gaming houses and devices for the purpose of gambling.

XII. To call regular and special meetings of the voters of aid town.

XIII. To prescribe the compensation of all officers of the corporation except their own, and they shall receive no compensation or emolument for their services as trustees.

Ib.

XIV. To license and regulate groceries, victualling houses, Ib. taverns, shows, public exhibitions and theatrical and other entertainments, and also the sale of spirituous or strong liquors within said town, and to fix such rates of licenses and enact such bylaws on the subject with penalties for the breach thereof, as they may deem proper, and to collect such penalties in the manner hereinafter provided: Provided, That the board of county commissioners of Grant county may have authority, if in their opinion the interest of the county require it, to exact a tax to the county from any person who may be licensed by said trustees to keep a tavern or grocery, and so much of any law of the Territory as requires such person to pay a license to the county and conflicts with the provisions of this section, is hereby repealed.

XV. To tax every male resident of said town above the age of twenty-one years, and under the age of fifty years, two days labor annually, or in lieu thereof, three dollars, to be appropriated in improving the streets and roads in said town, under the direc

Ib.