PHILLIPS LEE GOLDSBOROUGH, ESQ., GOVERNOR. 1599

in criminal cases to the justices of the peace assigned to sit at
the police station houses in Baltimore City.

SEC. 4. And be it further enacted, That all acts and parts
of acts inconsistent with this act be and the same are hereby
repealed.

SEC. 5. And be it further enacted. That this act shall take
effect on the 2nd day of May, 1912.

Approved April 11, 1912.

CHAPTER 824.

AN ACT for the regulation and control of Fraternal Beneficiary
Associations, and to repeal sections 210 to 225, both inclusive,
of the Code of Public General Laws of Maryland, title "Cor-
porations," sub-title "Fraternal Beneficiary Associations,"
revision of 1904.

SECTION 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Mary-
land, That the following sections, designated 1A to 22A, inclu-
sive, and 24A to 3 2A, inclusive, be added to the Code of Public
General Laws of Maryland, under title "Corporations," sub-
title "Fraternal Beneficiary Associations," to take the place of
sections 210 to 225, both inclusive, of said title and sub-title,
in said Code of Public General Laws, revision of 1904:

SEC. 1A. (Fraternal Beneficiary Associations Defined.)
Any corporation, society, order or association, without capital
stock, organized and carried on solely for the mutual benefit of
its members and their beneficiaries, and not for profit, and hav-
ing a lodge system with ritualistic form of work and representa-
tive form of government, and which shall make provision for
the payment of benefits in accordance with section 5A hereof,
is hereby declared to be a fraternal beneficiary association.

SEC. 2A. (Lodge System Defined.) Any association hav-
ing a supreme governing or legislative body and subordinate
lodges or branches by whatever name known, into which mem-
bers shall be elected, initiated and admitted in accordance with
its constitution, laws, rules, regulations and prescribed ritu-
alistic ceremonies which subordinate lodges or branches shall
be required by the laws of such association to hold regular or
stated meetings at least once in each month, shall be deemed
to be operating on the lodge system.

SEC. 3A. (Representative Form of Government Defined.)
Any such association shall be deemed to have a representative
form of government when it shall provide in its constitution and