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becomes necessary to take private property for such public
use, jnst compensation shall be paid to the owners thereof,
which shall be ascertained and assessed by six disinterested
commissioners, who shall be qualified voters of the town, and
who shall be selected by the Mayor ; such proceedings shall be
conducted by the Mayor, or in his absence or inability to act, or
in case he be interested, then by some disinterested member of the
Council designated by him ; and while in the discharge of such
duty the person conducting the same shall have and exercise
the powers of the Circuit Court for the preservation of order
and enforcing process issued in the course of the proceedings,
and may summon and compel the attendance of witnesses and
jurors, preside at the investigation, pass on the competency of
evidence, and instruct the Commissioners as to the law. (b)
When any ordinance shall provide for taking private property
for any public use, it shall describe said property. The Mayor
or member of the Council designated as above provided shall
thereupon appoint a day and place for impanelling the Com-
missioners to ascertain the compensation for the property to be
taken, and to make assessments to pay for the same. The town
clerk shall then issue a notice under his hand and the seal of the
town, which shall give the name of the owners at the date of
the ordinance of the property to be taken; shall state the date
and purpose of the ordinance and shall state that their prop-
erty will be taken for the purpose specified in the ordinance
and that commissioners will be impanelled to ascertain said
compensation, and on the day and at the place fixed by the
Mayor or member of the Council, as the case may be, said
notice shall be served by the bailiff by delivering to such
owner a copy thereof or by leaving such a copy for such
owner at his usual place of abode with some member of his
family over the age of fifteen years. Corporations shall be
served with such notice in like manner as with summons in
ordinary civil action. If service cannot be made on all or
any of the parties aforesaid within the town the return shall
so state, and be prima facie evidence of the facts stated
therein. Whereupon said notice shall be published once in a
week for three weeks before the day for the sitting of said
commissioners in some newspaper having a general circulation
in said town ; an affidavit of the publisher of said notice shall
be evidence of the facts ; service of the notice shall be made at
least six days before the commissioners meet; it shall be suffi-
cient to bring in the owners of and all persons claiming any
interest in the property affected by such proceedings, who may
be the owners or be interested therein at the time the ordinance
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Compensa-
tion given.
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