any perty, prohibited. $ 4. Whenever any incorporated company shall have refused the TITLE 4. payment of any of its notes, or other evidences of debt, in specie, or Certain translawful money of the United States, it shall not be lawful for such fers of procompany, or any of its officers, to assign or transfer of the property or choses in action of such company, to any officer or stockholder of such company, directly or indirectly for the payment of any debt; and it shall not be lawful to make any transfer or assignment in contemplation of the insolvency of such company, to any person or persons whatever; and every such transfer and assignment to such officer, stockholder or other person, or in trust for them or their benefit, shall be utterly void; and whenever any incorporated company shall have remained insolvent for one whole year, or for one year solved in cershall have neglected or refused to redeem its notes or other evidences tain cases. of debt, in specie or other lawful money of the United States, or shall for one year have suspended the ordinary business of such incorporation, such company shall thereupon be deemed and adjudged to have surrendered the rights, privileges and franchises, granted by any act of incorporation, and shall be deemed to be dissolved.33 Corporations deemed dis preme court elections. $5. It shall be the duty of the supreme court, upon the application Powers of auof any person or persons or body corporate, that may be aggrieved by, respecting or may complain of, any election, or any proceeding, act or matter, in or touching the same, (reasonable notice having been given to the adverse party, or to those who are to be affected thereby, of such intended application,) to proceed forthwith and in a summary way, to hear the affidavits, proofs and allegations of the parties, or otherwise inquire into the matters or causes of complaint, and thereupon to establish the election so complained of, or to order a new election, or make such order and give such relief in the premises, as right and justice may appear to the said supreme court to require: Provided, Proceedings. That the said supreme court may, if the case shall appear to require it, either order an issue or issues to be made up in such manner and form as the supreme court may direct, in order to try the respective rights of the parties who may claim the same, to the office or offices or franchise in question; or may give leave to exhibit, or direct the attorney-general to exhibit, one or more information or informations in the nature of a quo warranto in the premises.34 laws to be 56. No by-law of the directors and managers of any incorporated Certain bycompany, regulating the election of directors or officers of such com- published. pany, shall be valid, unless the same shall have been published for at least two weeks in some newspaper in the county where such election shall be held, at least thirty days before such election; and in Evidence of all cases where the right of voting upon any share or shares of the stock of any incorporated company of this state, shall be questioned, (33) Laws of 1825, p. 450, §.6. (34) Laws of 1825, p. 451, § 9, amended pursuant to the "act concerning the Revised Statutes," passed December 10, 1828, § 15. right to vote. TITLE 4. it shall be the duty of the inspectors of the elections, to require the transfer books of said company, as evidence of stock held in the said company; and all such shares as may appear standing thereon in the name of any person or persons, shall be voted on by such person or persons, directly by themselves, or by proxy, subject to the provisions of the act of incorporation.35 Oath of inspectors of elections. On failure of election, ano appointed. $7. The inspectors who may be appointed to conduct any election of directors or any other officer of any incorporated, company of this state, shall be required, before entering on the duties of their appointment, to take or subscribe the following oath or affirmation: "I, A. B., do solemnly swear, [or affirm, as the case may be,] that I will execute the duties of an inspector for the election now to be held, with strict impartiality, and according to the best of my ability. "36 S8. If at any time hereafter, the election for directors of any bank ther day to be or other incorporated company of this state, shall not be duly held on the day designated and appointed by the act incorporating such bank or other incorporated company, it shall be the duty of the president and directors of such bank or other incorporated company, to notify and cause an election for directors to be held within sixty days imWho entitled mediately thereafter; and in all cases, no share or shares shall be such sube voted upon, except by such person or persons who may have appearquent day. ed on the transfer books of said company to have had the right to vote thereon, on the day when, by the act of incorporation of such company, the election ought to have been held; which said right so to vote shall be exercised by the persons so appearing as aforesaid upon the transfer books of such company, on any day when such election may be held.37 to vote on Corporation and its officers, &c. not to purchase discount. $9. It shall not be lawful in any company incorporated for banking purposes, its officers, agents or servants, or any of them, directly its notes at a or indirectly to purchase, or to be interested in the purchase of any promissory note, or other evidence of debt, issued by any such company, at a less sum than appears by the face thereof to be due and payable; and any person offending against the provisions of this section, shall forfeit and pay three times the nominal amount of the note or other evidence of debt so purchased, to be recovered, with costs of suit, by any person who will sue for the same, in any court of competent jurisdiction.38 Penalty. Officers, &e. of corpora loan upon $10. It shall not be lawful for any person being president, directions, not to tor, cashier, clerk, agent, or any way interested or concerned in the certain notes. management of the concerns of any such company, to discount, or directly or indirectly make any loan upon any note, bill, or other evidence of debt, which shall have been offered to such directors for Notes, & discount; and every note, bill, or other evidence of debt so discount void. (35) Laws of 1825, p. 451, § 11. (36) Ib. § 12. (37) Ib. § 13. (38) Ib. § 15. per TITLE 1. nalty. ed, or upon which any loan shall have been made by any of the sons aforesaid, knowing that such note had been so offered and refused, shall be utterly void; and the person offending herein, know- Further peing that such note had been so offered and refused, by making any discount or loan, shall, for every such offence, forfeit and pay to any person who will sue for the same, twice the amount of any such discount or loan, to be recovered by action of debt, with costs of suit, in any court of competent jurisdiction.39 $11. The provisions of this Title shall not apply to any incorporated library, or religious society; nor to any monied corporation which shall have been or shall be created, or whose charter shall be renewed or extended, after the first day of January, one thousand eight hundred and twenty-eight, and which shall be subject to the provisions of the second Title of this Chapter.40 CHAP. XIX. Of the Computation of Time, of Weights and Measures, and the Money of Account. TITLE 1.-Of the computation of time. TITLE I. OF THE COMPUTATION OF TIME. SEC. 1. Time to continue to be computed according to Gregorian or new style. be continued. 2. What to be deemed leap years; such years to consist of 366 days. 3. Year, &c. defined; added day of leap year how to be computed. 4. Term "month" to mean calendar month, unless otherwise expressed. SECTION 1. Time shall continue to be computed in this state, ac- New style to cording to the Gregorian or new style; and the first day of January, in every year, which has happened, according to such style, since the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-two, and which shall hereafter happen, shall be reckoned to be the first day of the year. S2. For the purpose of preserving the method of reckoning and computing the days of the year, in the same regular course, as near as may be, in all future times, the several years one thousand nine hundred, two thousand one hundred, two thousand two hundred, two thousand three hundred, or any other future hundredth year, of which the year two thousand shall be the first, except only every fourth hundredth year, shall not be taken to be bissextile or leap years, but shall (39) Laws of 1825, p. 452, § 16. (40) Eighteenth subdivision of § 15, of the "act concerning the Revised Statutes," passed December 10, 1828. Leap years. [PART L TITLE 2. be taken to be common years, consisting of three hundred and sixtyfive days; and the years two thousand, two thousand four hundred, two thousand eight hundred, and every other fourth hundredth year, from the year two thousand inclusive, and also every fourth year, except as first above mentioned, which, by usage in this state, is considered to be a bissextile or leap year, shall be taken to be bissextile or leap years, consisting of three hundred and sixty-six days. Year, &c. defined. $ 3. Whenever the term "year," or "years," is or shall be used in any statute, deed, verbal or written contract, or any public or private instrument whatever, the year intended shall be taken to consist of three hundred and sixty-five days; a half year of one hundred and Added day of eighty-two days; and a quarter of a year of ninety-one days; and the added day of a leap year, and the day immediately preceding, if they shall occur in any period so to be computed, shall be reckoned together as one day. leap year. Construction of term "month." $ 4. Whenever the term "month," or "months," is or shall be used in any statute, act, deed, verbal or written contract, or any public or private instrument whatever, it shall be construed to mean a calendar, and not a lunar month; unless otherwise expressed. TITLE II. OF WEIGHTS AND MEASURES. SEC. 1. But one standard of weights, &c. throughout the state. 2 & 3. Standard yard established and precisely defined. 4. Standard yard how to be prepared; how restored in case of loss. 5. Yard to be divided into feet, inches, &c. 6. Rod, pole or perch; furlong and mile defined. 7. Acre how to be measured; its contents. 8. Standard of weight to be the pound; definition of ounces. 9. Standard pound how to be made; how restored in case of loss. 10. Pound divided into ounces; definition thereof. 11. Standard of measures of capacity, to be the gallon ; definition thereof. 12. Standard gallon how to be made; how restored in case of loss. 13. All other measures of capacity to be derived from gallon. 14. Definition of the standard bushel. 15 & 16. Bushel to be the standard in heaped measure; how made and heaped. 17. Dry commodities not heaped, how to be measured, &c. 18. Future contracts to be construed in reference to standards herein established. 19. How liquors paying duties to U. S. may be sold. 20. Original standards where to be deposited. 21, 22, & 23. Copies of standards to be made; how distributed and compared. 24 & 25. Devices to be impressed on copies; how to be recorded. 26. Town sealers to compare copies once in three years. 27. Weights and measures when to be sealed and marked. 28. Fees of sealers. 29. Sealer resigning, &c. to deliver to successor all standards in his possession. 30. Like delivery by representatives of sealer dying. 31 & 32. If not delivered, successor to sue; rule of damages, &c. 33. Liability of persons using weights, &c. not conformable to this Title. 34. Surveyors to make oath to accuracy of chain used by them. 35. Hundred weight and ton defined. 36. Standard weight of certain grain established. SEC. 37. Load of heaped measure in Kings, Queens, and Richmond. 38. Fees of measurers of grain. TITLE 2 to be uni S1. There shall be but one standard of measure of length and sur- Weights, &c. face, one of weight, and one of measure of capacity, throughout this form. state.1 yard. $ 2. The unit or standard measure of length and surface, from Standard whence all other measures of extension, whether they be lineal, su, perficial, or solid, shall be derived and ascertained, shall be the yard, as used in this state on the fourth day of July, one thousand seven hundred and seventy-six.1 S3. For the precise definition of the said yard, and in order to its Ib. recovery in case of loss, it is declared (until the measure of the pendulum shall be transferred to some appropriate public building,) that such yard has been found, by experiments made with a pendulum, with a brass rod, at Columbia college, in the city of New-York, in the latitude of forty degrees, forty-two minutes, and forty-three seconds north, to bear to the pendulum of that place, vibrating seconds in a vacuum, at the temperature of melting ice, the proportion of one million, to one million eighty-six thousand one hundred and fortyone.1 $ 4. The standard yard thus defined, shall be measured in a straight It line between two points engraven upon golden disks, inserted into a straight brass rod; and in case the same shall be lost, or otherwise destroyed, defaced, or injured, it shall be restored according to the proportions mentioned in the preceding section, under the direction of the secretary of state, as state sealer of weights and measures. yard. S5. The yard shall be divided into three equal parts, called feet, Division of and each foot into twelve equal parts, called inches; and for measures of cloths, and other commodities commonly sold by the yard, it may be divided into halves, quarters, eighths, and sixteenths. and mile. $ 6. The rod, pole, or perch, shall contain five such yards and a Rod, furlong half; the furlong, two hundred and twenty such yards; and the mile, one thousand seven hundred and sixty such yards. acre. $7. The acre, for land measure, shall be measured horizontally, Contents of and shall be equal to a rectangle sixteen such perches in length, and ten in breadth, and shall contain one hundred and sixty square perches, or four thousand eight hundred and forty square yards; six hundred and forty such acres being contained in a square mile." pound defin S8. The unit or standard of weight, from which all other weights Standard shall be derived and ascertained, shall be the pound, of such magni-d tude, that the weight of a cubic foot of distilled water, at its maximum density, weighed in a vacuum with brass weights, shall be equal to sixty-two and a half such pounds. (1) 1 R. L. 376, § 1. (2) 1 R. L. 109. |