1852.

LAWS OF MARYLAND.

CHAP. 369.

cutting and felling the same, injure the wires, cords,
post or posts of such line of telegraphs, he or she shall
not be liable to an action for damages, unless it shall
appear, that the owner, in cutting and, felling or in
having; the same cut and felled, wilfully and intention-
ally injured such wires, cords and posts.

Increase of
capital stock.

SEC. 8. And be it enacted, That it shall be lawful
for any association of persons organised under this act,
by their articles of association, to provide for an increase

of their capital and the number of the association.

Stockholders

jointly liable
for debts of
association.

SEC. 9. And be it enacted. That the stockholders
of every association organised in pursuance of this act,
shall be jointly and severally personally liable for the
payment of all debts and demands against such asso-
ciation, which shall be contracted, or which shall be, or
or shall become due during the time of their holding
such stock, but such liability of any stockholder shall
not exceed twenty-five pet centum, in amount, the
amount of stock held by him, and no stockholder shall
be proceeded against for the collection of any debt or
demand against such association until judgment there-
on shall been obtained against the association, and
an execution on such judgment shall have been return-
ed unsatisfied, in whole or in part, or unless such asso-
ciation shall be dissolved.

Transmitting
despatches.

SEC. 10 And be it enacted, That it shall be the
duty of the owner, or the association owning any tele-
graph line, doing business within this Slate, to receive
despatches from and for other telegraph lines and asso-
ciations, and from and for any individual, for trans-
mitting despatches, as established by the rules and regu-
lations of such telegraph line, to transmit, the same with
impartiality and good faith, under the penalty of one
hundred dollars to every neglect or refusal so to do, to
be recovered with costs of suit, in the name and for
the benefit of the person or persons sending or desiring
to send such despatch.

Despatches to
be transmitted
in the order in
which they are
received.

SEC. 11. And be it enacted, That it shall likewise
be the duty of every such owner or association to trans-
mit all despatches in the order in which they are receiv-
ed, under the like penally of one hundred dollars to be
recovered, with costs of suit, by the person or persons
whose despatch is postponed out of its order as herein

Proviso.

prescribed; Provided, however, that arrangements may
be made with the proprietors or publishers of newspa-
pers for the transmission, for the purpose of publica-
tion of intelligence of general and public interest out of
its regular order.