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OPINIONS.

OPINIONS.

Corporation Purpose of Organization - Buying and Selling Real Estate.

The Commissioner of Corporations has no authority to approve the incorporation of certain persons for the purchase of waste, undeveloped or partially developed lands with a view to their development and sale, such purpose being forbidden by St. 1903, c. 437, § 7, as amended by St. 1906, c. 286, § 1, that "three or more persons may associate themselves with the intention of forming a corporation under the general laws for any lawful purpose to buy and sell real estate."

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JAN. 21, 1909.

Hon. WILLIAM D. T. TREFRY, Commissioner of Corporations.

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DEAR SIR: In a letter of Jan. 21, 1909, you have requested my opinion as to whether or not you have authority to approve the incorporation of certain persons for purposes as follows:

To buy and make waste, undeveloped and partially developed land into useful property; to survey and divide the same into building lots and roads, to build factories thereon and sell, or develop a manufacturing business in the same, or improve it in any other way; to accept pay therefor in stocks, or mortgages. To sell houselots for cash, or on land contracts, or bonds. To establish parks and pleasure grounds on the same, and to make, vend, buy and sell any and all kinds of manufactured articles and to do any and all other things necessary or convenient to carry out the general purposes specified, so far as the same shall not conflict with the laws of the Commonwealth.

The provision of the statute upon the subject is clear and definite. St. 1903, c. 437, § 7, as amended by St. 1906, c. 286, provides as follows:

Three or more persons may associate themselves by a written agreement of association with the intention of forming a corporation under the general laws for any lawful purpose which is not excluded by the provision of section one except to buy and sell real estate.

Among the purposes of the proposed corporation is the purpose to buy and sell real estate, which is obviously not a purpose for which incorporation is permitted by the statute.

In my opinion, therefore, you are quite correct in your ruling to the effect that you had no authority to approve of the incorporation proposed for the purposes described.

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Right to enter Schools — Inspectors of Health.

A local board of health may, under its general authority conferred by R. L., c. 75, if in fact a contagious disease as a cause of sickness is found in a school, or if such board has reasonable and proper grounds for believing that a contagious disease may be found therein, enter such school and make all necessary examinations in the premises, and, if pupils suffering from contagious diseases dangerous to the public health are found, may remove such pupils to a hospital or quarantine station, but, in the absence of any reasonable grounds for believing that contagious disease existed in a school, such board or its agents would have no authority to enter therein for the purpose of making an examination of the physical condition of the pupils in attendance.

State inspectors of health, acting under their general powers as defined in St. 1907, c. 537, § 3, providing that such inspectors "shall gather all information possible concerning the prevalence of tuberculosis and other diseases dangerous to the public health within his district," would not be authorized to enter a school or hospital for the purpose of making a physical examination of individual pupils or patients.

JAN. 22, 1909.

WILLIAM C. HANSON, M.D., Acting Secretary, State Board of Health.

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DEAR SIR: You require my opinion upon the question "whether a local board of health, or its agent, acting under its general powers in investigating causes of sickness within its town and removing or preventing the same, has authority to enter public schools for the purpose of detecting causes of sickness, and, in case of discovery of infection in a pupil, to exclude such pupil from the school, and to make such further quarantine regulations as it may in case of disease in a house for the protection of the public."

I assume that your inquiry is directed to the exercise by local boards of health of the general powers conferred upon such

boards, with respect to causes of sickness, by R. L., c. 75, § 65, which is as follows:

The board of health shall examine into all nuisances, sources of filth and causes of sickness within its town, or on board of vessels within the harbor of such town, which may in its opinion be injurious to the public health, shall destroy, remove or prevent the same as the case may require and shall make regulations for the public health and safety relative thereto and relative to articles which are capable of containing or conveying infection or contagion or of creating sickness which are brought into or conveyed from its town, or into or from any vessel. Whoever violates any such regulation shall forfeit not more than one hundred dollars.

and that your inquiry is further limited to the authority of a local board of health, where contagious diseases have been found actually to exist, to enter a school and discover whether or not such disease is actually present among the pupils attending such school. If it be further assumed that entries into such school for purposes involving an examination of the physical condition of the scholars therein are based upon reasonable grounds for believing that cases of sickness, which are in fact and effect causes of sickness, exist in such school, I am of opinion that local boards of health have the necessary power in the premises. Where sources of sickness actually exist, the powers of local boards of health are broad and comprehensive. See Belmont v. New England Brick Co., 190 Mass. 442; Stone v. Heath, 179 Mass. 385. And such powers are not weakened where the causes of sickness are cases of contagious disease so numerous as to form an epidemic. See Oliver v. Gale, 182 Mass. 39, 40. Chapter 75 of the Revised Laws itself contains provisions for dealing with diseases dangerous to the public health, and gives to a local board of health the power to remove or to quarantine a person suffering from a disease of that character. See sections 42, 43, 44

and 45.

It follows, therefore, that if in fact contagious disease as a cause of sickness is found in a school, or if a local board of health has reasonable and proper grounds for believing that such contagious disease may be found therein, such board has authority to enter such school and to make all necessary examinations in the premises, and if pupils suffering from contagious diseases dangerous to the public health are found therein, to remove them to a hospital or quarantine station, in accordance with the pro

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