Firemen. Their duty, And privile ges. Their names to be regter ed with clerk. May be removed. Common council to make rules ernment. or recorder of the said city to convene the said common council at such other place within the said city as the said mayor or recorder shall appoint. VII. And be it further enacted, That it shall be lawful for the common council from time to time to appoint, during their pleasure, a competent number of able and reputable inhabitants of the said city, being citizens, to take the care and management of the fire-engines and other tools and implements which are or may be procur ed by the common council for extinguishing fires within the said city; and that the persons so appointed shall be called "The firemen of the city of Albany," and be ready at all times with the said engines, tools and implements committed to their care, to aid in extinguishing any fire which may happen within the said city; and that the said firemen shall be and hereby are declared to be exempted and privileged from serving in the office of commissioner or overseer of the highways or constable, and from militia duty, except in cases of invasion or other imminent danger, and that for this purpose the name of each fireman to be appointed as aforesaid shall be registered and entered with the clerk of the common council of the said city, and his certificate shall be sufficient evidence in all courts and cases of such privilege and exemption; And further, That it shall be lawful for the mayor, aldermen and commonalty of the said city in common council convened, or the major part of them, to remove and displace all or any of the firemen now appointed, or to be appointed by virtue of this act, as often as they shall think fit, and to appoint others in their stead. VIII. And be it further enacted, That it shall be lawful for the mayor, aldermen and commonalty of the said city, for their gov. or the major part of them, to make such rules and regula tions for the government of the said firemen, in the using and frequent exercising the said fire-engines, and to impose such reasonable fines and forfeitures upon them or any of them for default of the duties and services thereby to be required of them, as the mayor, aldermen and commonalty of the same city, or the major part of them, shall from time to time think proper. Duty of the heriff, his deputies, conftables and marthus in IX. And be it further enacted, That upon the breaking out of any fire within the said city, the sheriff, deputysheriffs, constables and marshals, then being in the said mates of fire, city, upon due notice thereof, shall immediately repair to the place where such fire shall happen, with their staves and other badges of authority, and be aiding and assisting as well in the extinguishing of the said fires and causing the persons attending the same to work, as in preventing any goods or household furniture from being stolen at such fires; and the officers aforesaid shall also give their utmost assistance to the inhabitants in removing and secur ing their said goods and furniture; and in the execution of the duties required of them by this act, shall in all respects be obedient to the orders and directions of the mayor, recorder, aldermen and assistants of the said city, or such of them as shall from time to time be present at such fires. require citi vide fire X. And be it further enacted, That it shall be lawful Common for the mayor, aldermen and commonalty of the said council may city, if they shall deem it proper, to require the inhabi- zens to protants or owners of houses and other buildings in the said buckets, city to provide themselves with such and so many firebuckets, to be ready in their respective houses and other buildings for the purposes of extinguishing fires which may happen in the said city, and to impose such reason- And impofe. able fines and forfeitures for every default or disobedience penalties for neglect. thereof, as the said mayor, aldermen and commonalty of the said city shall deem necessary. rules and or XI. And be it further enacted, That it shall be lawful And make for the common council of the said city from time to time ders to regu to make such rules and orders for the better regulating late buildings, ftreets, and arranging with uniformity such new buildings as wharves and shall after the passing of this act be erected for habita- lips. tions or for the purposes of trade and commerce within the said city; and also for regulating and altering the streets, wharves and slips within the said city, in such manner as shall be most commodious for shipping and transportation; and also to nominate and appoint one or And to ap more fit persons, being inhabitants of the said city, to be point furvey the surveyors of the buildings, streets, wharves and slips of the said city, whose duty it shall be to direct and see that all Their duty,' buildings, streets, wharves and slips, to be laid out or altered in the said city, be regulated with uniformity for the accommodation of habitations, shipping, trade and commerce, according to such rules and orders as by the common council of the said city shall be for that purpose made; which said surveyors shall respectively, before they enter upon the duties of their said offices, take the following oath or affirmation, before the mayor or recorder, viz. ors thereof. "I appointed a surveyor of the city of Albany, do swear And bath. (or, affirm, as the case may be) in the presence of Almighty God, that I will faithfully, truly and impartially execute the office of one of the surveyors of the same city?" erected in any street. XII. Provided always, and be it further enacted, That no No public public buildings shall be erected in any of the streets of building to be the city of Albany. XIII. And be it further enacted, That it shall be lawful Commón for the mayor, aldermen and commonalty of the said city council may to prevent the erecting any building that may encroach encroachupon any street within the said city, and if in the doing any treas thereof or in laying out any streets, wharves or slips, they shall require for such purposes the ground of any person, VOL. II. U prevent any ments upo require the ground of perfon for streets, &c. any how to proceed and make compenfation therefor. If they fhall they shall give notice thereof to the owner or parties in terested therein, or to his or their agent or legal representative, and the said common council shall treat with such person for the same, and if any such person shall refuse to treat for such ground, it shall be lawful for the mayor or recorder and any two or more aldermen, by a precept under their hands and seals, to command the sheriff of the city and county of Albany, to impannel and return, and he is hereby required to impannel and return a jury, to appear before the mayor's court of the said city, at any term thereafter, not less than three weeks from the date of such precept, to inquire and assess the damages and recompence due to the owner or owners of such ground, and at the same time to summon the owner or owners of such ground, or his or their agent or legal representative, by notice to be left at his or their most usual place of abode, to appear before such mayor's court, on the day and at the place in such precept to be specified; which jury, being first duly sworn faithfully and impartially to inquire into and assess the damages in question, and having viewed the premises, if necessary, shall inquire of and assess such damages and recompence as they shall under all the circumstances judge fit to be awarded to the owner or owners of such ground for their respective losses, according to their several interests and estates therein; and of conclufive the verdict of such jury and the judgment of the said mayor's court thereon, and the payment of the sum of money so awarded and adjudged to the owner or owners thereof, or tender and refusal thereof, shall be conclusive and binding against the said owner and owners, his and their respective heirs, executors, administrators and assigns, claiming any estate or interest of, in or to the same ground, and it shall thereupon be lawful for the said mayor, aldermen and commonalty, to cause the same ground to be converted to and used for the purposes aforesaid. Payment or tender there. against the owner. Common Council to order and regulare common fewers, and the pitching and paving of Areets, &c. Expenfes thereof how to be estimat. ed and paid. XIV. And be it further enacted, That it shall be lawful for the said mayor, aldermen and commonalty, to cause common sewers, drains and vaults to be made in any part of the said city, and to order and direct the pitching and paving the streets thereof, and the cutting into any drain or sewer, and the altering, amending, cleansing and scour ing of any street, vault, sink or common sewer within the same city, and to cause to be made estimates of the expense of conforming to such regulations, and a just and equitable assessment thereof among the owners or occupants of all the houses and lots intended to be benefitted thereby, in proportion as nearly as may be to the advantages which each shall be deemed to acquire; and the said common council shall appoint five disinterested freeholders to make every such estimate and assessment, who before they enter upon the execution of their trust, shall be duly sworn before the said mayor or recorder, to make the said estimate and assessment fairly and impartially according to the best of their skill and judgment, and a certificate in writing of such estimate and assessment being returned to the said common council and ratified by them, shall be binding and conclusive upon the owners and occupants of such lots so to be assessed respectively, and such owners and occupants shall also be respectively liable upon demand to pay to such persons as shall be authorized by the said common council to receive the same, the sum at which such house or lot shall be so assessed, to be applied towards the making, altering, amending, pitching, paving, cleansing and scouring such streets, and making and repairing such vaults, drains and sewers as aforesaid; and in default of such payment or any part thereof, it In default of shall be lawful for the mayor, recorder and aldermen of payment how the same city, or any five of them, of whom the mayor or recorder always to be one, by warrant under their hands and seals, to levy the same by distress and sale of the goods and chattels of such owner or occupant refusing or neglecting to pay the same, rendering the overplus, if any, after deducting the charges of such distress and sale, to such owner or occupant or his legal representatives. to be levied. this act to af tween land be recovered er perfon who XV. Provided always, and be it further enacted, That Nothing in nothing in this act contained shall affect any agreement fect any abetween any landlord and tenant respecting the payment greement be of any such charges, but they shall be answerable to each ford and tenother in the same manner as if this act had never been aut made; And further, That if any money so to be assessed How fuch shall be paid by any person, when by agreement or by law; charges may the same ought to have been borne and paid by some other from any othperson, then it shall be lawful for the person paying the ought to pay same to sue for and recover the same with interest and the fame. costs of suit, in any court having cognizance thereof, as so much money paid for the use of the person who ought to have paid the same; and the assessment aforesaid with proof of payment shall be conclusive evidence in such suit. XVI. And be it further enacted, That when the said mayor, aldermen and commonalty shall make a general regulation in any part of the said city for raising, reducing, levelling or fencing in any vacant lot or lots adjoining each other, it shall be lawful for the said mayor, aldermen and commonalty, in case the same shall not be complied with, to cause an estimate of the whole expense of conforming to such regulations with respect to each lot which the owner thereof shall refuse or neglect to put in the order thereby required, to be made, assessed and certified for that purpose and sworn in manner aforesaid, and the same being approved by the said mayor, aldermen and commonalty, they shall cause the same to be advertised in two or more of the public newspapers printed in the said city for six months, thereby requiring the owners of be not com In cafe any general regu fation relative to vacant lots plied with, an the expenfe fhall be made & published;: estimate of Form. Mafter and wardens to keep an office and an entry of their proceedings. Duties of djuk. "I will well, truly and faithfully, according to the best of my skill and understanding, execute the powers and duties vested in or enjoined on me by law as master, (or, one of the wardens, as the case may be) of the port of NewYork, so help me God.” X. And be it further enacted, That the said master and wardens shall keep an office in the city of New-York, and shall cause to be made in a book to be kept for that purpose an entry of all their proceedings by virtue of this act, to which all persons may have recourse, and they shall appoint a clerk who may receive all pilotage money which shall become due to any pilot or deputy pilot, and on neglect or refusal of payment by the person who ought to pay the same, may sue for and recover the same in his own name with costs before any court having cognizance thereof; and the said clerk shall keep a separate account with each pilot of all monies received to his use, and shall once in every three months pay the same to them respectively, after deducting five per cent for his trouble; and all fines and forfeitures arising under this act, except the forfeited recognizances of pilots and deputy pilots, shall be sued for and recovered as aforesaid by and in the name of such clerk, and no such suit shall discontinue or abate by the death, resignation or removal from office of such clerk; and all such fines and forfeitures, and the sums recovered penalties how on any forfeited recognizance and not applied in discharge of damages as herein after mentioned, shall be paid to the said master and wardens and be by them applied towards defraying the necessary expenses arising in Clerk to give the execution of their trust; and every such clerk shall enter into bond with one or more sureties to the said master and wardens in the sum of one thousand two hundred and fifty dollars, conditioned that he will well and faithfully discharge the trusts reposed in him by this act. Fines and applied. bond. Branch and XI. And be it further enacted, That every branch pilot 1 |