SECTION 1. Fines shall be imposed upon towns for neglect to make or repair highways in the following cases:

1. If any town shall unreasonably neglect to make and put in good repair any new highway laid out therein.

2. If any town shall unreasonably neglect to alter and put in good repair any highway which has been widened and straight

ened therein.

3. If any town shall unreasonably neglect to grade the hills in any highway therein agreeably to the judgment of the court of common pleas.

4. If any town shall neglect to cause any dangerous causeway or embankment in any highway therein to be securely railed.

5. If any town shall neglect to keep any highway therein in good repair and suitable for the travel passing thereon.

SEC. 2. The grand jury may indict, or the attorney general or solicitor may file an information against any such town for either of said offences; and a summons shall thereupon be issued to such town, which shall be served by giving to one of the selectmen and to the town clerk, or leaving at their usual places of abode respectively, an attested copy thereof with a like attested copy of the officer's return thereon, thirty days before the court at which the same is returnable.

SEC. 3. If such town shall not appear at said court, or shall be found guilty by verdict or otherwise, the court shall impose on such town a fine sufficient to put such highway in good repair, and to defray all the expenses connected therewith, and render judgment against such town for costs.

SEC. 4. No fees for witnesses shall be taxed against such town, except such as have attended as witnesses in such prosecution by order of the attorney general or solicitor.

SEC. 5. All such fines and costs shall be levied and collected by execution in the same manner as executions against towns are levied in civil cases. Such fine shall be paid over to the agent appointed as is herein prescribed, and the costs to the attorney general or solicitor.

SEC. 6. One or more agents shall be appointed by the court to superintend the collection of such fine, who shall apply the same to make, alter, repair, grade or secure such road as the case may require, and who shall seasonably make return of his doings in the application and expenditure thereof to said court for their allow

ance.

SEC. 7. No highway that has not been laid out agreeably to statute law shall be deemed a public highway unless the same has been used by the public for a term of time not less than twenty years; and no highway thrown open to the public, the use of which would not be necessary for public travel, excepting for the purposes of travel over a toll bridge, shall ever be deemed a public highway, unless the same shall be laid out agreeably to statute

law.

SECTION 1. Any town at a legal meeting holden for the purpose, may discontinue any highway in such town.

SEC. 2. No vote of discontinuance shall be effectual without the consent of the court of common pleas, if such road was not laid out by the selectmen, or if it was laid out by the selectmen during the pendency of any petition in the court of common pleas for the laying out thereof, or if an indictment or information is pending against such town for neglect to make or repair such highway.

SEC. 3. If any person is injured by the discontinuance of any highway, he may petition the court of common pleas for redress; and the court, after due notice to others interested, may award such damages and costs as may be just, and issue execution therefor against the town.

17. Tax not needed in district, where to 19. Expense of repairs made by county,

be worked out.

18. Time of travelling allowed.

when.

20. Such expense, how paid.

SECTION 1. Every town at their annual or other meeting shall raise such sum of money as they may judge necessary for making and repairing the highways and bridges therein for that year, and the same shall be assessed on polls and estates in the same manner as state taxes are by law assessed.

SEC. 2. The town may determine the prices to be allowed for labor, utensils and materials applied in repairing highways; otherwise such prices shall be fixed by the selectmen.

SEC. 3. The town may choose as many surveyors of highways as they shall judge proper, who shall enter on their duties on the first day of May; and in case no election shall be made, the selectmen shall appoint such surveyors.

SEC. 4. The selectmen, on or before the first day of May, shall limit the several surveyors' districts, and give to each a list of the several persons in his district, with the highway tax assessed to each, and a warrant to collect the same.

SEC. 5. Every surveyor shall give personal notice to or leave a notice at the usual place of abode of each person named in his list, of the amount of his tax, and of the time when, the place where, and the tools with which he shall attend to work out his tax, four days before the time appointed, and may require any person to work any part of his tax, not exceeding one half, in labor of oxen or horses.

SEC. 6. In cases of sudden emergency which may require immediate remedy, the surveyor may give such notice to any person to attend forthwith.

SEC. 7. If any person so notified shall neglect or refuse to attend in person, or by one or more suitable laborers, the surveyor shall levy the delinquent's tax by distress in the same manner as collectors may levy and collect the state tax.

SEC. 8. If any delinquent shall within four days after the time so appointed, render to the surveyor a sufficient excuse for his neglect, he shall be notified to work at some other time.

SEC. 9. Every surveyor shall render an account of the tax to him committed, and pay over the balance not expended on the highways, to the selectmen agreeably to the requirement of his

warrant.

SEC. 10. If any surveyor shall neglect to render such account and pay over such balance, the selectmen may proceed with such surveyor in the same manner they may by law proceed with collectors of taxes who are delinquent in collecting and paying over the taxes committed to them to collect.

SEC. 11. The selectmen may order any surveyor to cause the taxes then due on his list to be worked out in any other district in

which the taxes from any unforeseen accident shall be found insufficient; and if the taxes then due shall be insufficient, the selectmen shall cause the road or bridge affected by such accident to be put in repair at the expense of the town.

SEC. 12. The selectmen may, whenever they may deem it proper, permit any person who may not reside upon a public highway to expend the whole or any part of his highway tax upon any private way leading from the public highway to the dwelling house of such person. (Laws of 1848, chap. 743.)

SEC. 13. Any town may order any highway tax then voted to be raised, to be collected by the collector of taxes in money; and such tax shall be paid over to the treasurer or selectmen and expended in repairing the highways, under the direction of the selectmen or surveyors of highways, as the town may direct. (R. S., sec. 12.) SEC. 14. The collector of taxes shall have the same powers and be subject to the same duties and liabilities in relation to any tax so voted as he has in relation to the state tax. (R. S., sec. 13.) SEC. 15. Surveyors of highways may purchase all such timber, plank and other materials as are necessary for repairing the highways and bridges in their respective districts at the cost and charge of the town. (R. S., sec. 14.)

SEC. 16. Every surveyor shall have power within his district to remove any gravel, sand, rocks or other material from the travelled part of any highway therein, without damage or injury to the adjoining land, to any other part of the highways in said district for the purpose of repairing and grading the same; but he or those under him shall not for any purpose make an uncovered trench or ditch by the side of the travelled part of any highway next and opposite to any dwelling house or yard situate thereon, or in any way obstruct the passage to and from the same. (R. S., sec. 15.)

SEC. 17. Whenever the whole tax in any surveyor's list is not in the opinion of the selectmen needed for repairing the highways in bis district, they may direct the surveyor to cause the same to be worked out in any other district. (R. S., sec. 16.)

SEC. 18. The surveyor shall allow every person resident in his district performing labor or service on the highways, for the time necessarily occupied in travelling from his home to the place where such labor is performed and in returning therefrom. (R. S., sec. 17.)

SEC. 19. The court of common pleas upon petition may order any part of the expense of repairing any highway to be paid from the county treasury, in case they shall judge the expense of such repairs to be unjustly burdensome to such town, or in case the county convention shall be of opinion that any part of such expense should be paid by the county. (R. S., sec. 18.)

SEC. 20. The court may direct such sum as they may order to be paid by the county to be paid to the town, or may cause such highway to be put in repair in such manner as they may think proper, and draw their order for said sum upon the county treasurer. (R. S., sec. 19.)

CHAPTER 60.

OF MAKING AND REPAIRING HIGHWAYS NOT IN ANY TOWN.

SECTION 1. Highways not within the limits of any town shall be made and repaired by the owners of the lands through which they pass; and all the owners of any land holden under one title from the State or province, shall pay their proportion according to their interest of all costs of making and repairing the highways through any part of such land.

SEC. 2. The court of common pleas, whenever they shall lay out any highway through such land, shall cause notice thereof to be published in some newspaper four weeks successively, describing such highway and requiring the owners of the land to make said highway passable within such reasonable time as they may order, and said court may order the whole or any part of the expense of making or repairing said highway to be paid by the county.

SEC. 3. If such highway shall not be made as required by such notice, the said court shall assess such land so much by the acre as they may judge necessary to make the same.

SEC. 4. The county treasurer shall advertise such tax in some newspaper four weeks, requiring the owners of such land to pay the same to him in sixty days from the first publication of such advertisement, and notifying the owners that such land will otherwise be sold at auction at a certain time and place mentioned therein.

SEC. 5. The owner of any part of or interest in such tract may pay said tax for the same, and take a receipt describing the part or interest for which he pays.

SEC. 6. If said tax is not paid within said sixty days on any part of such land, the county treasurer shall sell the part or interest of the delinquent at the time and place mentioned in such advertisement, or so much thereof as may be necessary to pay said tax with incidental charges.

SEC. 7. The county treasurer shall make a deed of the land so