§ 2. All orders made by any court authorizing the mortgage or sale of real estate by any of such religious societies, so far as the validity thereof depends upon the record of such certificate, are hereby ratified and in all respects confirmed.

52. Religious corporations may consolidate.

(Laws of 1874, ch. 37.)

SECTION 1. Any two religious corporations incorporated under the provisions of the third section of the act entitled "An act to provide for the incorporation of religious societies," passed April fifth, eighteen hundred and thirteen, and the several acts amendatory thereof or supplemental thereto, are hereby authorized to unite and consolidate themselves into a single corporation in the manner following.

53. Agreement; what to contain.

§ 2. The said two corporations may enter into an agree ment under their respective corporate seals for the union and consolidation of the said corporations, setting forth the terms and conditions thereof, the name of the proposed new corporation, the names of the persons who shall be its church-wardens and vestry-men, minister, elders and deacons or trustees, or other officers, as the case may be, until the first annual election of the proposed new corporation, and fixing the day of its annual election.

54. Petition to supreme court, what to contain.

3. Each of the said corporations may make its separate petition to the supreme court for an order for such union and consolidation, setting forth in such petition the reasons for such union and consolidation, the agreement made pursuant to the second section of this

act, all its property, real and personal, all its debts and liabilities, and the amount and sources of its annual in

come.

55. Meeting, notice of; proposed union, how approved.

§ 4. A meeting of each of said two corporations to consider and act upon the proposed union and consolidation, and the agreement and petition therefor, shall be called by a notice given in the same manner and for the same length of time, as is provided for notices of election of trustees in the said third section of the act hereby amended; and in case the proposed union and consolidation, and the agreement and petition therefor shall receive the approval of three fourths of the persons entitled to vote at an election of trustees of each of the two corporations, assembled at such meeting, or at an adjourned meeting, or a subsequent meeting called in like manner, then, and not otherwise, the proposed union and consolidation may be proceeded with and the petition presented to the court.

56. Supreme court may make an order for consolidation.

§ 5. Upon such petitions from each of such corporations so proposing to be united and consolidated, and upon the said agreement, and the proceedings of the meetings prescribed in the fourth section, satisfactorily proved or certified, the supreme court may, in case it shall deem it proper, make an order for the union and consolidation of such corporations, determining all the terms, conditions and provisions thereof. All parties interested therein may be heard on such petition.

57. Consolidation, when perfected; rights and powers of new corporation.

§ 6. When such order is made and entered, according

to the practice of the court, the said two corporations shall be united and consolidated into one corporation by the name designated by the order, and it shall have all the rights and powers, and be subject to all the obligations of religious corporations under the act to which this is supplementary, and the acts amendatory thereof and supplementary thereto.

58. Property transferred to new corporation.

§ 7. And thereupon all the estate, rights and property of whatsoever nature belonging to either of said two corporations shall, withouut further act or deed, be vested in and transferred to the new corporation as effectually as they were vested in or belonged to the former corporations, and the said new corporation shall be liable for all the debts and liabilities of the former corporations, in the same manner and as effectually as if said debts or liabilities had been contracted or incurred by it.*

59. Term of office of trustees.

(Laws of 1875, ch. 79.)

SECTION 1. Trustees elected under the provisions of section three of chapter sixty of the laws of eighteen hundred and thirteen, entitled "An act to provide for the incorporation of religious societies," shall hold their offices during the term for which they were elected, and until their successors are chosen. And that whenever hereafter any church, congregation or society, incorporated under and by virtue of the provisions of section three of chapter sixty of the laws of eighteen hundred and thirteen, may desire to alter the time of the election of its trustees, or to alter the dates upon which the terms of office of such trustees shall begin and end, such church, congregation or society may make such change

* See Laws of 1875, ch. 209, and Laws of 1876, ch. 176, post,

or alteration; and at any regular meeting of the members of such church, congregation or society, by a resolution of a majority of such members present and voting, may fix and prescribe the time when such election of trustees shall take place, or the dates when the terms of office of such trustees shall respectively begin and end; but the same previous notice of such meeting, and the object thereof, must be given that is now required by law for a meeting at which the election of trustees is to take place; provided that nothing in this act shall affect trustees already elected, and that nothing herein contained shall be construed to permit an election of trustees for a longer period than is now allowed by law. [Thus amended by Laws of 1879, ch. 463.]

60. Trusteeship, when to be declared vacant.

§ 2. Whenever a trustee elected under the provisions of said section three of the above-mentioned act ceases to be a member of the church, congregation or society, by removal or otherwise, or ceases to statedly attend upon and support its services, he shall at the same time, and for such cause, cease to be a trustee, and his place shall be declared vacant by a notice of the board of trustees to the church, congregation or society, and said church, congregation or society, shall proceed to fill the vacancy, as provided for in the above-mentioned act.

61. Bequests and devises.

3. Any religious society, organized under the laws of this state, may take and receive by bequest or devise any real or personal estate, the net annual income of which shall not exceed twelve thousand dollars, subject, however, to the provisions of chapter three hundred and sixty of the laws of eighteen hundred and sixty, entitled "An

act relating to wills." [Thus amended by Laws of 1875, ch. 443.]*

62. Temporalities, how administered,

§ 4. The trustees of any church, congregation or religious society, incorporated under said section three of the above-mentioned act, shall administer the temporalities thereof, and hold and apply the estate and property belonging thereto, and the revenues of the same, for the benefit of such corporation, according to the discipline, rules and usages of the denomination to which the church members of the corporation belong; and it shall not be lawful for the trustees to divert such estate, property or revenues to any other purpose except toward the support and maintenance of any religious, benevolent or other institution connected with such church, congregation or religious society.

63. Pew rent.

§ 5. Each and every of the corporations aforesaid may receive, use and apply all rents or income derived from pews, in addition to the annual income limited by the aforesaid act, or any amendment thereof.

64. Jurisdiction of courts of equity.

§ 6. The jurisdiction of courts of equity in this state is hereby extended over such corporations, so far as may be necessary to enforce the provisions of this act.

* This section is probably the one intended by the act of 1875, although the latter act describes it as section three of an act entitled "An act to amend an act entitled 'An act to provide for the incorporation of religious societies,' passed April fifth, eighteen hundred and thirteen, and supplementary thereto," passed March twenty-ninth, eighteen hundred and seventy-five. For the act of 1860, see ante, 39.