JAMES THOMAS, ESQUIRE, GOVERNOR.

1832.

struct or erect all works necessary for the completion of
said road.

CHAP. 290.

Sec. 9. And be it enacted, That the President and Di-
rectors of said company or a majority of them, or their
agents may agree with the owner or owners of any land,
earth, timber, gravel, stone or other materials, or any im-
provements for the construction or repair of said road or

May agree with

owner of lands

its works, or for the purchase or use and occupation'of the
same; and in case they cannot agree, or if the owner or
owners or any of them be a feme covert, under age, non

Case of non-

agreement.

compos mentis, or out of the county in which the property
wanted may lie, when such land or materials may be need-
ed, on application to a justice of the peace of such coun-
ty, he shall issue hjs warrant, under his hand and seal, di-
rected to the Sheriff of said county, requiring him to sum-
mon a jury of twenty inhabitants of said county, to meet
on the land to be valued, on a day specified in said war-
rant, not less than five, nor more than ten days after issuing
the same, and in case any of the jurors aforesaid, do not
attend, the said Sheriff shall instanter summon as many
jurors as may be necessary with the jurors in attendance
to furnish a pannel of twenty jurors in attendance, and
from them each party, his, her or their agent, and if either
be not present in person or by agent, the Sheriff may strike
off four jurors, for each of the absent parties, and the re-
maining twelve shall act as the jury of inquest of damages,
and before they act as such, the said Sheriff shall admin-
ister to each of them an oath or affirmation, as the case
may be, that he will justly and impartially value the dam-
ages which the owner or owners of said land will sustain
by the use or occupation of the same, required by the com-
pany, and the jury in estimating such damages shall take
into the estimate, the benefit resulting to the said owner or
owners from conducting such Rail Road through, or along
the property of the said owner or owners, but only in ex-
tinguishment of the claim of damages, and the said jury
shall reduce their inquisition to writing, and shall sign and
seal the same, and it shall then be returned by said Sheriff
to the clerk of his county, and by such clerk filed in his
court, and shall be confirmed by said court, at its next ses-
sion, if no sufficient cause to the contrary be shewn, and
when confirmed shall be recorded by said clerk at the ex-
pense of the said company, but if set aside the court may
direct another inquisition to take place in the mode before
prescribed, and such inquisition shall describe the property
taken, or the bounds of the land condemned, and the quan-

Proceeding direc-

ted.