Counties and county matters. contempt by fine or imprisonment, and to adjourn from day to day; provided, all testimony submitted on the part of the contestants shall be taken within forty days from the day of the election contested. Any citizen of the county in which the election was held, who voted in said election, shall have the right to appear and resist the proceedings to contest; provided, that where more than one person appears and resists such contest, they shall act jointly and not severally in making defense to said contest. The contestees, or those resisting the proceedings to contest, shall be allowed fifteen days after the closing of contestants' testimony to submit and take testimony in rebuttal, or on cross grounds. 87. § 6065. Fees of officer.-The judicial officer presiding shall be a. 1897, p. allowed $2 per day for his services, and the clerk who takes down the testimony $2 per day for his services, which, with the cost of service of notice and subpoenas herein provided for, may be enforced and collected by execution issued by the judicial officer presiding in said contest against the party at whose instance the testimony is taken or subpoenas issued. 87. § 6066. Exceptions.-Either party may appear in person or by A. 1897, p. attorney, or both, and examine and cross-examine witnesses and have certified all legal exceptions to the admissibility of testimony submitted by the opposite party, which exceptions shall be passed upon by the court finally determining said contest. 87. 6067. Cross grounds, notice, etc.-The contestee, or person re- A. 1897, p. sisting contest proceedings, may file cross-grounds of contest, in which case he shall give like notice as is required to be given by the contestant, and the testimony on such cross-grounds of contest shall be taken after the close of contestant's testimony, and within fifteen days thereafter, upon the same notice and in the same manner as is herein prescribed for the taking of testimony for the contestants, and certified by the presiding officer as such. 87 6068. Rebuttal evidence.-The contestants shall have five days A. 1897, p. after the close of the contestee's evidence to introduce evidence in rebuttal. § 6069. Papers and proceedings, transmission of.—All papers and proceedings, or copies of them, duly certified by the presiding officer, must be transmitted within ten days after the closing of the testimony so taken, to the Secretary of State, who shall hear and determine the same, after giving reasonable notice to contestants and contestees, or parties resisting such contest, or their counsel, of the time and place of hearing, and said Secretary of State shall enter upon his finding in writing, and consider said contest proceedings and his judgment thereon in connection with the returns of said election, and certify by written certificate the number of legal votes properly and legally cast at said election for removal, and to what place, and the number of legal votes properly and legally cast against removal. The Secretary of State shall keep on file and preserve all the papers A. 1897, p. 87. A. 1897, p. 87. A. 1898, p. 105. A. 1898, p. 105. A. 1899, p. 68. A. 1898, p. 105. A. 1897, p. 82. A. 1897, p. 82. Counties and county matters. in such contested cases, and transmit the same to the General Assembly when required. § 6070. Code § 108 applies.-Section 108 of the revised code of 1895, of this State, specifying the method of obtaining and examining suspected ballots, is hereby made applicable to contests arising under and by virtue of this Act. § 6071. Bonds of county officers.-All county officers of this State, including those elected at the last election, shall have until the first day of January next after the election, to file their several bonds as now required by law. § 6072. Funds of county, how expended.-No ordinary, county commissioner, or board of county commissioners of any county of this State, or any other officer empowered by law with the expenditure of public funds, shall purchase from any store, corporation, or individual in which he is interested directly or indirectly, nor from any store, corporation or individual where such officer or any member of the board to which he belongs is related by blood or marriage to such individual or any one owning an interest in said store or property or employed in or by said store, corporation, or individuals, any article or property of any kind, whether real or personal, for county purposes [ ]. § 6073. Illegal contracts.-Any county official violating the provisions of this Act shall be removed from office upon proper proceeding instituted by any taxpayer of said county, and any contract made in violation of the provisions of this Act is hereby declared to be illegal. § 6074. Validation of bonds.-When any county, municipality, or division desiring to incur any bonded debt, as prescribed in paragraphs 1 and 2, section 7, article 7, of the Constitution of 1877, shall hold an election in accordance with the provisions of said Constitution, and in accordance with the laws of the State of Georgia. now of force, or which may hereafter be of force, controlling and regulating such elections, and the returns of said election shall show prima facie that such election is in favor of the issuance of said bonds, the officer or officers of such county, municipality or division, charged by law with the duty of declaring the result of said election, shall, within twenty days after so declaring the result of said election, notify the solicitor-general of the judicial circuit in which such county, municipality or division shall lie, in writing, of the fact that an election for the issuance of bonds was held in such county, municipality or division, and that said election was in favor of the issuance of such bonds, and the service of said notice shall be personal upon said solicitor-general, and in the event he is absent from the said circuit, then said notice shall be served in person upon the AttorneyGeneral of the State of Georgia. $ 6075. Petition to be filed, contents of.-Within twenty days from the date of such services as is provided in the preceding sec Counties and county matters. tion, the said solicitor-general, or the Attorney-General of the State of Georgia, as the case may be, shall prepare and file in the office of the clerk of the superior court of the county in which said election was held a petition, directed to the superior court of said county, in the name of the State of Georgia, and against such county, municipality or division, desiring to issue bonds under such election, setting forth the service of said notice, as provided in the preceding section, the name of the county, municipality or division seeking to issue said bonds, the amount of bonds to be issued, for what purpose to be issued, what interest they are to bear, how much principal and interest to be paid annually, when to be paid in full, and the further fact that an election was held for the issuance of said bonds, and that said election is prima facie in favor of the issuance of said bonds, and shall obtain from the judge of said court an order requiring said county, municipality or division, by its proper officers, to show cause at such time and place, within twenty days from the filing of said petition, as the judge of said court may direct, why said bonds should not be confirmed and validated, which said petition and order shall be served in the manner now provided by law for the service of petitions upon counties, municipalities or divisions, and to such petition the officers of such county, municipality or division shall make sworn answer within the time prescribed herein. 82. § 6076. Appeal to Supreme Court.-Within the time prescribed a. 1897, p. in said order the judge of said superior court shall proceed to hear and determine all of the questions of law and of fact in said cause, and shall render judgment thereon, and in the event his judg ment shall be in favor of the issuance of said bonds, a judgment and order shall be entered to that effect, and any citizen of the State of Georgia, resident in such county, municipality or division, so desiring to issue said bonds, may become a party to said proceedings, and if dissatisfied with the judgment of said court confirming and validating the issuance of said bonds, may except thereto within twenty days from said judgment, as in the case of injunctions, and upon the hearing in the Supreme Court such bill of exception shall be heard in accordance with the practice regulating the hearing of bills of exceptions in criminal cases. 82. 6077. Validation conclusive.-In the event no bill of excep- A. 1897, p. tions is filed within the time prescribed herein, or, if filed, is affirmed by the Supreme Court, the judgment of said superior court, so confirming and validating the issuance of said bonds, shall be forever conclusive upon the validity of said bonds against the said county, municipality, or division, and the validity of said bonds shall never be called in question in any court in this State. 82. $6078. Proof of validation.-Said bonds, when issued under the A. 1897, p. provisions of this Act, shall each and every of them have stamped or written thereon by the proper officers of such county, municipality or division issuing the same, or their agents or servants, A. 1897, p. 82. A. 1897, p. 82. A. 1897, p. 82. A. 1898, p. 88. Roads and bridges. the words: "Validated and confirmed by judgment of the superior court," specifying also the date when such judgment was rendered, and the court in which it was rendered, which shall be signed by the clerk of the superior court in which the judgment was rendered, which said entry shall be original evidence of the fact of such judgment and shall be received as original evidence in any court in this State. 8 6079. Notice of proceedings to validate.-Prior to the hearing of said cause, as herein provided for, the clerk of the superior court of the county in which said cause is to be heard, shall publish in a newspaper at least twice before the hearing of said cause a notice to the public that on the day specified in the order providing for the hearing of said cause the same will be heard. $6080. Costs of proceeding. All the costs of said cause shall be borne and paid in any event by the county, municipality or division desiring to issue said bonds, and in addition to said costs. shall also pay the solicitor-general the sum of twenty-five dollars for his entire services in such cause. § 6081. Previous elections, bonds issued under.-Where any county, municipality, or division has already submitted to the qualified voters of such county, municipality or division the question. of incurring any bonded indebtedness at an election called for that purpose, and such election has already been declared to have resulted in favor of the issuance of such bonds, and said bonds have not been issued or disposed of, then such county, municipality or division may proceed to issue such bonds, and no court in this State shall have power to inquire into the validity of said bonds by any proceeding at law or in equity which may be brought, unless the same is interposed within thirty days from the date of the passage of this act. $ 6082. Venue in cases between counties.-In all suits by one. county against another county, now pending or hereafter brought in the county sued, the Judge presiding shall change the venue to a county adjoining the one in which suit is brought, on the motion of the plaintiff, supported by the oath of the Ordinary, Chairman, or other presiding officials of the Board of County Commissioners, Commissioners of Roads and Revenues, or other body having jurisdiction and management of county affairs (as the case may be) of the county bringing such suit, that in his opinion a fair and impartial trial cannot be had in the county in which such suit is brought. A. 1898, p. 93. PART I. TITLE IV. ROADS AND BRIDGES. $6082a. Commissioners of roads and revenues; vacancies, how filled. All vacancies now existing, or that may hereafter exist, Roads and bridges. in the office of commissioners of roads and revenues in any county in this State, in which the special act creating a board of commissioners of roads and revenues for said county makes no provision for succession to fill such vacancy, the judge of the superior court of the county shall have power to appoint a successor to fill said unexpired term. 66. 107. § 6083. Authority to condemn land for.-In all cases when it A. 1900, p. shall become necessary to condemn land in any county of this State A. 1897, p. for the purpose of grading, improving, turnpiking, paving, widening or macadamizing public roads, for the use and convenience of the public, the county authorities, consisting of the ordinary, or county commissioners, as the case may be, shall have power and authority to condemn the lands of private persons or corporations so as to increase the width of said roads to a width, as in the judg ment of such county authorities shall be proper, not to exceed a width of fifty feet at the base of said road. 66. $6084. Procedure; notice to owner; expenses county to bear. A. 1900, p. Whenever it shall become necessary to condemn lands, under the first section of this Act, the manner of procedure shall be as under the existing laws of this State, as set forth in section 4657 of the Civil Code of 1895, and the sections following said section, relating to condemnation of private property, appointment of assessors, hearing before assessors and appeal, final judgment, etc., with the exception that five days' notice to the owner or owners of land sought to be condemned under this Act shall be deemed sufficient; and provided further, that the county shall bear the expense of condemnation. § 6085. Costs where county refuses to buy under award made.The county authorities, at any time after the award of the assessors or the final judgment fixing the damages to be paid by reason of said condemnation, may decline to accept the land so sought to be condemned, but in the event of such declination the county whose authorities are seeking to condemn said land shall pay all costs of said proceedings up to the time of said declination. A. 1900, p. 66. 66. § 6086. Notice of proceedings.-Whenever the authorities of any A. 1900, p. county shall seek to avail themselves of the provisions of this Act, the notice prescribed by existing laws of this State to be served upon the owner of the property, or upon the owner of any remainder, reversion, mortgage, lease, security-deed or other interest therein, shall be signed by the county commissioners of said county, or a majority of them, and if there be no county commissioners in said county, then by the ordinary thereof, and such notice shall be held and deemed to be the official decision and action of said county in regard to the commencement of said condemnation proceedings. 78. § 6087. Public roads, how worked; election, petition for.-On A. 1896, p. the filing of any petition with any ordinary in this State, signed by one hundred and fifty or more voters of the county of such ordinary, asking for an election to be held to determine whether the |