4 authorized to repair and keep in order the highways 5 therein, respectively, shall meet at the mayor's office 6 in such city, if the highway shall be on the line between 7 a city and town, or a city and village, or at the office of 8 the town clerk of the town, if it be on a line between a 9 town and village, on the first Monday in May in each · 10 year at twelve o'clock, noon, and divide such highway, 11 and allot one part thereof to such city and one part 12 thereof to such town or village, or one part thereof to 13 such village and the other part thereof to such town, as 14 the case may require, in such manner that the labor and 15 expense of making and repairing such highway may be 16 equal, as near as may be. Upon the neglect or failure 17 to attend on the part of any such officers, at such time 18 and place, the officers who shall attend may perform 19 such duty, and the division made by them shall be of 20 the same force and effect as if made by the joint action 21 of all such officers. The statement of the division so 22 made, shall be reduced to writing, properly authenti23 cated by the officers making the same, and within ten 24 days filed in the office of the city clerk of the city, the 25 clerk of the town and the clerk of the village, between 26 whom such division shall be made. R. S., 933, L. 1870, ch. 311. ARTICLE VI. MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS. SECTION 150. Papers, where filed. 151. When commissioners do not act. 152. Costs on motion. 153. Injuries to highways. 154. When town not liable for bridge breaking. 155. Steam traction engine on highway. 156. Trees, to whom they belong. 157. Carriages meeting, to turn to the right. 158. Intemperate drivers. 159. Drivers, when to be discharged. 160. Leaving horses without being tied. . XIX 154, 161 SECTION 161. Liability of owners of carriages for acts of drivers. 1 162. Term "carriage" defined. 163. Entitled to free use of highways. 164. Penalties, how recovered. § 154. When town not liable for bridge breaking.- No 2 town shall be liable for any damage resulting to person 3 or property, by reason of the breaking of any bridge by 4 transportation on the same, of any vehicle and load, 5 together weighing five tons or over. Any owner of such 6 vehicle or load, or other person engaged in transporting 7 or driving the same over any bridge, shall be liable for 8 all damages resulting therefrom. L. 1890, ch. 210. 1 § 161. Liability of owners of carriages for acts of drivers. 2 The owners of every carriage running or traveling upon 3 any turnpike road, or highway, for the conveyance of 4 passengers, shall be liable jointly and severally, to the 5 party injured, for all injuries and damages done by any 6 person in the employment of such owners as a driver, 7 while driving such carriage, whether the act occasioning 8 such injury or damage be willful.or negligent, or other9 wise, in the same manner as such driver would be liable. 1666 THE TOWN LAW. AN Act to amend the town law. The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows: The letters, figures and characters (R. S., p. 905), occurring between sections 107 and 108 of the town law are stricken therefrom. Section 182 of the town law is repealed, to take effect immediately. Article XI of the town law shall hereafter be numbered article XII, and sections of the town law heretofore numbered 240, 241, 242 and 243 in article XI, shall hereafter be numbered respectively sections 260, 261, 262 and 263, in article XII. Such change of numbering to take effect immediately. The several parts and sections of the town law corresponding to those hereinafter specified, are amended to read respectively as follows, to take effect immediately: CHAPTER XX OF THE GENERAL LAWS. THE TOWN LAW. ARTICLE 1. Towns as corporations. (§§ 1-6.) 2. Town meetings, and the election and tenure of town officers. (§§ 10-42.) 3. Qualification of town officers. ($$ 50-67.) 4. General duties of town officers. (§§ 80-86.) 5. Division fences. (§§ 100-108.) 6. Strays and chattels doing damage, floating timbers and wrecks. (§§ 120-150.) 7. The town board. (§§ 160-183.) 8. Town-houses, lock-ups and burial grounds. (S$ 190-195.) 9. The municipal debt law. (§§ 210-214.) 10. Town business in counties containing more than 300,000 inhabitants. (§§ 220-232.) 11. Drainage. (§§ 240-248.) 12. Repealing and other clauses. (§§ 260-263.) ARTICLE I. TOWNS AS CORPORATIONS. SECTION 1. Short title. 1 2. Town a municipal corporation. 3. Actions and contracts in corporate name. 4. Disposition of town property upon alteration of town boundaries. 5. Apportionment of debts. 6. Meetings of town boards in two or more towns. $3. Actions and contracts in corporate name.- Any action 2 or special proceeding for the benefit of a town, upon a 3 contract lawfully made with any of its town officers, to 4 enforce any liability created or duty enjoined upon 5 those officers, or the town represented by them, or to 6 recover any penalty or forfeiture given to such officers, 7 or the town represented by them, or to recover damages 8 for injury to the property or rights of such officers, or 9 the town represented by them, shall be in the name of 10 the town. Any action or special proceeding to enforce 11 the liability of the town upon any such contract, or for 12 any liability of the town for any act or omission of its 13 town officers, shall be in the name of the town; and all 14 contracts made by such officers for and in behalf of 15 their towns, shall be in the name of the town. When 16 such contracts are otherwise lawfully made, they shall 17 be deemed the contracts of the town, notwithstanding 18 it is omitted to be stated therein that they are in the 19 name of the town. 1 Former section 182, unchanged. § 4. Disposition of town property upon alteration of town 2 boundaries.- When the boundaries of a town owning 3 real or personal property shall be altered, either by a 4 division of a town into two or more towns, or by the 5 annexation of a part of its territory to another town or 6 towns, the town boards of the several towns affected by 7 such alterations shall meet as soon as may be after the 8 first town meetings subsequently held in such towns, and 9 shall make such agreement concerning the disposition to 10 be made of such real and personal property, and the 11 apportionment of the proceeds, as they shall deem equit12 able, and take all measures and execute all conveyances 13 necessary to carry such agreement into effect. If no such 14 agreement shall be made within six months after such 15 town meetings, the town board of each town in which any 16 portion of such real property, or in whose possession 17 any of such personal property shall be, shall, as soon as 18 may be, sell and convey such part of the real property 19 as shall be included within the limits of the town as 20 fixed by such alteration, and such of the personal 21 property as may be in its possession; and the proceeds 22 arising from the sale shall be apportioned between the 23 several towns interested therein, by the town boards of 24 all the towns, according to the amount of the taxable 25 property of the town, divided or altered, as the same 26 existed immediately before such division or alteration, 27 to be ascertained by the last assessment-roll of such 28 town. But no town cemetery or burial ground shall be 29 sold or divided, but the same shall belong to the town 30 within which it may be situated, after a division of the 31 town shall have been made; and no lots heretofore 32 granted by the people of this state, to any town for 33 the support of the gospel and of schools, commonly 34 called the gospel and school lots, shall be so sold or 35 apportioned. 1 Former section 3, unchanged. § 5. Apportionment of debts.-The debts of a town so 2 divided or altered, except bonded indebtedness, shall 3 be apportioned in the same manner as its personal 4 property. Each town shall thereafter be charged with 5 its share of such debts, according to the apportionment. 6 When a town shall be formed from a town having a 7 bonded indebtedness, or the line of any such town 8 shall be changed, the new town so formed, or the part |