the same, is afterwards incorporated under the statute, this latter society is considered a new society, and not entitled to the grant. (Cox v. Walker, 26 Maine R. 504.)

§ 334. The minister of a parish or religious society, and the deacons, elders, trustees, stewards, and other presiding officers of a religious society or church, having by its usages no settled minister, may take in succession any estate granted to the minister and his successors, or for the use of the ministry, or poor of the church; and may prosecute and defend all suits respecting it; but they cannot legally so take, while the clear annual income of prior grants is three thousand dollars. No conveyance of such estate by a minister will be valid longer than he is in the ministry; or by such deacons or other officers, longer than they are in office, if made by them without the consent of the church, or by church wardens without the consent of the vestry. (R. S. Ch. 12, Secs. 18 and 19.)

§335. The records of a parish are required to be open to the inspection of its members and to clerks of other parishes; and each clerk must furnish attested copies of such records, on request, for a reasonable compensation. (Ib. Sec. 20.)

§ 336. When a parish or religious society lawfully raises money by taxation, such parish or religious society may appoint its treasurer a collector of taxes, who will possess the same powers of a town collector; and such parish or religious society may allow a similar discount on taxes paid within the time fixed by it at a legal meeting, and the treasurer must give like public notice thereof; and all other taxes must be collected by him as town taxes are. When the treasurer and collector is qualified, the assessors are required to deposit with him a list of the taxes, with the warrant for their collection. (Ib., Sec. 21.)

§ 337. The overseers of each monthly meeting of the Quakers may take and hold, in sucession, all grants of real, personal or mixed estate made to them, to or for the use of their monthly meetings, to the preparation meetings constituting them, or to the poor thereof: and also all grants of real estate situated within the limits of their monthly meetings, and donations of personal estate given by persons living within said limits, made to or for the use of any of the quarterly meetings of said Quakers, to said overseers for their use, or to the poor thereof; and may convey and manage such estate according to the terms and conditions on which it was given, and may sue in their own names for any right that has vested in the grantees or donees, though the annual income thereof to one meeting for such uses does not exceed five thousand dollars. (Ib. Sec. 22.)

CHAPTER XXVI.

RELIGIOUS SOCIETIES IN MAINE-CORPORATIONS FOR MAINTAINING MEETING-HOUSES- -THEIR POWERS--PEW-HOLDERSMEETINGS-ALTERATION OR SALE OF MEETING-HOUSES-TIME OF OCCUPYING MEETING-HOUSES HOW DIVIDED MINISTERIAL LANDS.

§338. Any persons, for the purpose of erecting a meetinghouse, or the majority in interest of the owners of a meeting-house, not a parish, may incorporate themselves the same as parishes may, and choose officers and do all other acts that a parish may lawfully do. A majority of the pew owners or proprietors of a meeting-house present at a legal meeting called for that purpose, may repair, remodel or sell and convey their house, or the land used with it, or remove

or rebuild it. Any meeting relating thereto may be called by an application to a justice of the peace, by such pewowners or proprietors, who must issue his warrant to one of them, stating the time, place and purpose of the meeting, and directing him to notify said pew-owners or proprietors, by posting up a certified copy of such warrant fourteen days on the principal outer door of their house of worship, and in one or more other public places in the same town; or the warrant may be published in a newspaper printed in the county, at least fourteen days before the meeting, which will dispense with the posting of a certified copy thereof as aforesaid. (Rev. Stat. of 1857, Ch. 12, Secs. 23 and 24.)

§339. Before such alteration or sale is made, however, an appraisal of the relative value of the pews must be made by three discreet persons, under oath, to be elected by ballot at a legal meeting of said owners or proprietors. If a sale of the house and land is made, it may be private or public, as said meeting determines, and the moneys must be applied to pay the expenses of the sale and the debts and just claims against the property, and the balance must be paid to the pew-owners or proprietors in proportion to their interest by the appraisal. If the meeting-house is altered or rebuilt, the appraisers, after the work is completed, must assign to the former pew-holders, pews to conform as near as practicable to those previously held by them; and the other pews may be sold to defray the expenses of the repairs and alterations, or otherwise disposed of as the proprietors or pewowners determine. They may choose officers, raise and assess taxes on the pews, and collect them, for the purpose of making such repairs and alterations, and do all things that a parish can lawfully do, and appoint some suitable agent or agents to make such sale and conveyance, or repairs and alterations, and a treasurer or trustees to receive and

distribute the proceeds of sale in manner aforesaid. (Ib. Sec. 25.)

§ 340. When it is decided to repair, remodel or rebuild a meeting-house, any owner or proprietor dissenting from the action of the majority, and declining to take any interest in the house as altered, may demand and receive of such majority the appraised value of his interest, after deducting his proportion of debts against the property, to be recov ered in an action for money had and received, which cannot legally be commenced till thirty days after such demand, nor after the lapse of a year after notice is posted three successive weeks on the meeting-house door, and some other conspicuous place in its precinct, stating the persons to whom the money is to be paid, the amount to each, and the time limited for payment. If such sums are not demanded within said time, it will be forfeited to the majority, for parish uses. (Ib., Sec. 26.)

§ 341. The owners of a meeting-house or building for public worship, and the pew-owners, may be incorporated, when a majority of them apply to a justice of the peace therefor, who must issue his warrant to one of them, stating the time, place and purpose of the meeting, and directing him to notify said owners by posting up a certified copy of it fourteen days, on the principal outer door of such building, and in one or more other public places in the same town. When so assembled they may choose a moderator and clerk, who must perform the usual duties of such officers; and thereupon such owners are constituted a corporation to be known by such name as they adopt, and they may agree on the mode of calling future meetings. (Ib., Secs. 27 and 28.)

§342. Such corporation, by a major vote of its members,

may use and control the meeting-house or building for public worship. But the provisions of law stated in this and the last preceding section are not to affect the rights of owners of houses of worship built by different religious denominations. (Ib., Sec. 29.)

§ 343. When a house of public worship is owned by persons of different denominations, and when an organized society, or its members, own five pews therein, one or more of the minority, owning not less than five pews, may apply to a justice of the peace and quorum to obtain a division of the time of occupying the house; and must call a meeting of the owners by posting up a notice, in a public place in or about the meeting-house, thirty days, at least, before the meeting, stating the time, place and object of the meeting. At such meeting the owners, who are not applicants, or if they refuse or neglect, the justice who called the meeting, may designate another justice, and the two may appoint the third person, who is disinterested, and not an inhabitant of the town in which the house is located, or belonging to the denomination of either party interested; and the three will be a board, before which the owners may exhibit the amount they own in the house; and the minority, owning at least five pews, must have their part allotted to them, as nearly as may be in proportion to the amount they own in the house; and the board must designate which weeks in each year the minority, if they please, may occupy the house; if they do not, the majority may. (Ib., Secs. 30 and 31.)

§ 344. The board must appraise the value of the minority's proportion of the house, allowing no more for a pew than was actually paid for it by the owner; make a record of their proceedings, and, within ten days, cause it to be transcribed into the records of the town where the house is located. All the reasonable expenses must be paid by the