1

[No. 245. ]

AN ACT to organize the township of Hancock, in Houghton
county.

SECTION 1. The People of the State of Michigan enact, That

all that part of the township of Portage, known as fractional Bundaries.
township fifty-six north, of range thirty-four west, and all that
part of township fifty-five north, of range thirty-four west, lying
north and east of Portage lake and creek, and all of township
fifty-five north, of range thirty-three west, situated on the north
side of Portage lake, except sections twenty-four, twenty-five,
twenty six, twenty-seven and twenty eight, thirty-three, thirty-
four, thirty-five, thirty-six, of range thirty-three west, and also
township thirty-six north, of range thirty-three west, be and
the same is hereby set off from the residue of said respec-
tive townships, and organize the same into a separate township
by the name of Hancock.

Fiat elec

of e ection.

Sec. 2. That the first election in said township of Hancock
shall be held at the hall of William Lapp; John Ryan, S. W. Inspectors
Hill and J. R. Raison, are hereby constituted and appointed in-
spectors of the said first election, to be held at the said hall of
Will am Lapp, in the village of Hancock, on the first Monday
of May next, and the said election shall be conducted accord-
ing to the law in such cases made and provided.

[This act is ordered to.take immediate effect.]
Approved March 16, 1861.

[ No. 246. ]

AN ACT to provide for the erection and maintenance of shutes
for the passage of fish through the dams across the streams
of this State.

he main

SECTION 1. The People of the Stale of Michigan enact, There shall be erected and maintained in each dam across any she to stream which by law is a public highway within this State, a fine ja sufficient shute or shutes to admit the free passage of fish in

dams

on refusal of

owner to

comply.

such stream, during the months of March, April and May, in each Proceedings year; and if the owner or occupant of any such dam shall neglect or refuse to construct and maintain such shute, the board of supervisors of any county in which such dam may be situate, are hereby authorized to cause to be erected and maintained such shute, at the expense of the owner or occupant of such dam, and may recover all the expenses of erecting such shute from such owner or occupant, by suit in the name of such board of supervisors, before any court of competent jurisdiction.

Approved March 16, 1861.

amendment.

[ No. 247. ]

AN ACT to amend act No. two hundred and fifty-five of the laws of eighteen hundred and fifty-nine, approved February fifteenth, eighteen hundred and fifty-nine, entitled an act to provide for laying out and establishing a State road from Midland City, in the county of Midland, to St. Charles, in the county of Saginaw.

SECTION 1. The People of the State of Michigan enact, That Repeal and section four, of act number two hundred and fifty-five, of the laws of eignteen hundred and fifty-nine, approved February fifteenth, eighteen hundred and fifty-nine, entitled an act to provide for laying out and establishing a State road from Midland City, in the county of Midland, to St. Charles, in the county of Saginaw, be and the same is hereby repealed, and that section seven and section thirteen be and the same are hereby amended so as to read as follows:

Compensa

tion of com.

Sec. 7. The said commissioners shall be paid each the sum of missioners. one dollar and fifty cents per day for their services, out of the fund appropriated by law for the construction and improvement of said road.

List of lands

to be furnishel Co. treasurer.

Sec. 13. It shall be the duty of said commissioners, as soon as practicable, after making a survey of said road, to make out a list of the non-resident lands coming within the provisions of this act, and deliver the same to the county treasurer of the county

credit road

in which said lands are situated; and thereupon said county treasurer shall place to the credit of said road all taxes Treasurer to assessed on the lands contained in said list as non-resident high- with taxes. way tax, for the year eighteen hundred and fifty-nine, and for two years next thereafter, which said tax shall constitute a highway fund, to be known and designated as the Midland City and St. Charles State road fund, which said fund shall be used in the construction and improvement of said road, and for no

other purposе.

Sec. 2. That the following two sections be and the same are New section hereby added to said act, and numbered section fourteen and

section fifteen:

route au

lands to be

Sec. 14. Harvey Lyon, of Midland City, B. G. Beden, of In-Commissioners appointgersoll, and Orsamas Doty, of St. Charles, are hereby appointed ed. special commissioners for the purpose of constructing and improving said road. Said special commissioners shall have power, and they are hereby authorized, if they shall deem it expedient, to re-survey and change the location of any portion of Resurvey of said road: Provided, If they shall do so, they shall, as soon thorized. thereafter as practicable, file a new list of the non-resident New list of lands embraced in a section, any part of which section shall be filed. within two miles of the center of said road, as surveyed and established by them, with the treasurer of the county in which such lands are situated; and the non-resident highway tax as-Road fund. sessed on the lands embraced in such new list, shall constitute the Midland City and St. Charles State road fund, as aforesaid, and shall be appropriated and used as specified in the last pre-ceding section.

Action of former com

declared

Sec. 15. All expenses which may have accrued to the commissioners appointed by and under the act of eighteen hundred and missioners fifty-nine, to which this is amendatory, or to persons in their valid. employ, in laying out and establishing said road, shall be and the same are a valid claim against the Midland City and St. Charles State road fund, and all orders drawn by them for the payment thereof shall be paid by the treasurers of the counties in which said road is located, out of any moneys in their hands

belonging to said fund; and said road shall be and continue a valid road, as located by them, until its location shall be changed by the special commissioners, as provided in the last preceding section.

Approved March 16, 1861.

Beet ons amended.

Provee 'ings

de texy

fined

[No. 248 ]

AN ACT to amend and add to chapter one hundred and thirtytwo of the compiled laws, entitled of homestead exemption.

SECTION 1. The People of the State of Michigan enact, That sections three, four and five, of said chapter, be amended so that they shall read as follows:

Sec. 3. Whenever a levy shall be made upon, or any circuit when he court commissioner shall advertise for sale, under any decree to be a e upon the forecl sure of any mortgage, not valid as against the homestead, the lands and tenements of a honseholder, whose homestead has not been selected and set apart by metes and bounds, such householder may notify the officer at the time of making such levy, or at the time of such advertising for sale, what he regards as his homestead, with a description thereof, within the limits above prescribed, and the remainder alone shall be subject to sale under such levy or decree.

Duty of offi te to evy

ia

How officer

convey.

Sec. 4. If the plaintiff in execution, or complainant in said decree, shall be dissatisfied with the quantity of land selected and set apart as aforesaid, the officer making the levy or advertising for sale shall cause the same to be surveyed, beginning at a point to be designated by the owner and set off in compact form, including the dwelling house and its appurtenances, to the amount spec.fied in the first section of this act, and the expense of such survey shall be chargeable on the execution or decree, and collected thereupon.

Sec 5. After the survey shall have been made, the officer may ad sell the property levied upon or included in the decree, and not included in the set off, in the same manner as provided in other like cases for the sale of real estate; and in giving a deed of

the same he may describe it according to the original levy or as described in the decree, excepting therefrom by metes and bounds, according to the certificate of the survey, the quantity as set off as aforesaid.

when home.

ce du

Sec. 2. Whenever the homestead of any debtor in any such plocevinga case, shall exceed in value the amount of fifteen hundred dol- exlars, the debtor shall not for that reason lose the benefit inten- value $1500. ded to be secured to him or her by said chapter and act; but in all such cases, when in the opinions of the creditors or officer holding an execution or decree as aforesaid, against such householder, the premises claimed by him as exempt are worth more than fifteen hundred dollars, such officer shall summon six persons qualified to act as jurors, who shall upon oath, to be administered to them by said officer, appraise the said premises; and in case the value thereof shall be more than fifteen hundred dollars, and cannot be divided, they shall make and sign an ap- Appraisal praisal of its value, and deliver the same to the officer, who shall of for B.plus. deliver a copy thereof to the debtor, or to some of his family of suitable age to understand the nature thereof, with a notice thereto attached, that unless the said debtor shall pay the said officer the surplus, over and above the fifteen hundred dollars, or the amount due on said execution or decree, within sixty days thereafter, that such premises will be sold.

ave tie

set for

Ku plus.

Sec. 3. In case such surplus, or the amount due on said exe-Officer to cution or decree, shall not be paid within the sixty days, it shall be lawful for the officer to proceed to advertise and sell the said premises, and out of the proceeds of said sale to pay such debtor the said sum of fifteen hundred dollars, which shall be exempt from execution for one year thereafter, and apply the balance on said execution: Provided however, That no sale shall Provisa be made in the case last mentioned, unless a greater sum than fifteen hundred dollars shall be bid therefor, in which case the officer may return said execution for want of property, or report the facts to the court in which said decree was rendered, as the case may require: And provided also, That this and the Proviso