The relation of master and servant does not exist between a minister regularly installed and the congregation or the trustees. Brister v. Burr, 120 N. Y. 427.

The court will not interfere to prevent the trustees of religious societies from employing a clergyman whose religious tenets are at variance with those of the original founders of the society. Baptist Church v. Witherell, 3 Paige, 296, but this decision was before L. 1875, ch. 79, giving to churches a denominational character.]

§ 6. Acquisition of property by religious corporations for branch institutions; management thereof.-Any religious corporation may acquire property for associate-houses, church buildings, chapels, mission-houses, school-houses for Sunday or par chial schools, or dispensaries of medicine for the poor, or property for the residence of its ministers, teachers or employes. The persons attending public worship in any such associate-house, mission-house, church building or chapel connected therewith, shall not, by reason thereof, have any rights as members of the parent corporation. The persons statedly worshipping in any such house, mission-house, church building or chapel, may with the consent of the trustees of such corporation, become separately ircorporated as a church, and the parert corporation may, in pursuance of the provisions of law regulating the disposition of real property by religious corporations, rent or convey to the new corporation with or without consideration, any such associate-house, church building, chapel, mission-house, school-house or dispensary and the lot connected therewith, subject to such regulations as the trustees of the parent corporation may make.

[L. 1850, ch. 122, § 2; R. S., 8th ed., 1897.

L. 1867, ch. 657, §§ 1-3; R. S., 8th ed., 1899.

Without change of substance except that the provision of the act of 1867 requiring seats to be forever free is omitted. If the branch institution becomes a corporation, it must proceed as provided in this chapter for the incorporation of the parent society.

Chapter 122 of L. 1850, applied to churches incorporated under L. 1801, ch. 79. Church of the Redemption v. Grace Church, 68 N. Y. 570.

If the associate society incorporates without the consent of the parent society, real property purchased by the parent society for the use of the branch society, even though paid for in part by the funds of the associate society, vests exclusively in the parent society. Id.

The mere authority of the parent society to incorporation does not

operate to convey the real property of the parent society occupied by the associate society. Alexander Pres. Church v., Fifth Ave. Pres. Church, 64 N. Y. 274.

It seems that the consent of the parent society should be in writing. Ch. of Redemption v. Grace Church, 68 N. Y. 570.

A parent society can not retain personal property purchased by the members of the associate society in view of separate incorporation, after such incorporation is perfected, even though without the consent of the parent society. Id.

A subscription for the erection of Sunday school building of a church and paid to the treasurer of the church is recoverable by the parent corporation, even though the Sunday school had a separate organization, and part of the subscribers were members of the separate organization and directed defendant not to pay over the funds. The Rector v. Crawford, 43 N. Y. 476; followed in First Baptist of Franklindale v. Pryor, 23 Hun, 271.

A religious society cannot divide its real estate and vest a portion of it in a part of its congregation organized as an associate body, but a resolution of the governing body of the parent society, purporting to transfer a portion of its real estate to the associate congregation may lay the foundation of an adverse possession, upon the incorporation of the associate congregation. Reformed Church v. Schoolcraft, 65 N. Y. 134.]

§ 7. Acquisition of property by religious corporations for cemetery purposes; management thereof.-A religious corporation may take and hold, by purchase, grant, gift or devise, real property for the purposes of a cemetery; or such lot or lots in any cemetery connected with it, as may be conveyed or devised to it, with or without provisions limiting interments therein to particular persons or classes of persons; and may take and hold any property granted, given, devised or bequeathed to it in trust to apply the same or the income or proceeds thereof, under the direction of the trustees of the corporation, for the improvement or embellishment of such cemetery or any lot therein, including the erection, repair, preservation or removal of tombs, monuments, gravestones, fences, railings or other erections, or the planting or cultivation of trees, shrubs, plants, or flowers in or around any such cemetery or cemetery lots.

A religious corporation may erect upon any property held by it for cemetery purposes, a suitable building for religious ser vices for the burial of the dead, or for the use of the keepers or other persons employed in connection therewith, and may sell

and convey lots in such cemetery for burial purposes, subject to such conditions and restrictions as may be imposed by the instrument by which the same was acquired, or by the rules and regulations adopted by such corporation. Every such conveyance of a lot or plat for burial purposes, signed, sealed and acknowledged in the same manner as a deed to be recorded, may be recorded in like manner and with like effect as a deed of real property.

[L. 1842, ch. 153, § 1; R. S., 8th ed., 1894.
L. 1842, ch. 215, § 1; R. S., 8th ed., 1895.
L. 1850, ch. 122, § 3; R. S., 8th ed., 1898.
L. 1881, ch. 501, § 1; R. S., 8th ed., 1912.
L. 1884, ch. 198, §§ 1-3; R. S., Sth ed., 1896.

The only material change is allowing deeds of cemetery lots, when sealed and acknowledged, to be recorded in county clerk's office.]

8. Removal of human remains from one cemetery of a religious corporation to another cemetery owned by it.-A religious corporation, notwithstanding the restrictions contained in any conveyance or devise to it, may remove the human remains buried in a cemetery owned by it, to another cemetery owned by it, if the trustees thereof so determine, and if either three-fourths of the members of such corporation, qualified to vote at its corporate meetings, sign and acknowledge and cause to be recorded in the office of the clerk of the county in which such cemetery or a part thereof is situated, a written consent thereto, or if three-fourths of the members of such corporation qualified to vote, and present and voting, at a corporate meeting of such corporation, specially called for that purpose, shall approve thereof. But if such corporation be a church, previous notice of the object of such meeting shall be published for at least four successive weeks in a newspaper of the town, village or city in which the cemetery frota which the removal is proposed, is situated, or if no newspaper is published therein, then in a newspaper designated by the county judge of such county. Such removal shall be made in an appropriate manner and in accordance with such directions as to the manner thereof as may be given by the board of health of the town, village or city in which the cemetery from which the removal is made, is situ

ated. All tombstones, monuments or other erections at or upon any grave from which any remains are removed, shall be properly replaced or raised at the grave where the remains are reinterred. [See form, No. 3.

L. 1842, ch. 215, § 2; R. S., 8th ed., 1895.

L. 1878, ch. 349, §§ 1-4; R. S., 8th ed., 1895,
Without material change in substance.]

9. Acquisition of property by two or more religious corporations for a common parsonage.— Two or more religious corporations may acquire such real property as may be necessary for use as a parsonage, and the right, title and interest of each corporation therein shall be in proportion to its contribution to the cost of such property. The trustees of each corporation shall, from time to time, appoint one of their number to be a trustee of such common parsonage property, to hold office during the pleasure of the appointing trustees or until his successor be appointed. The trustees so appointed shall have the care and management of such property and may make such improvements thereupon as they deem necessary, and determine the proportion of the expense of the maintenance thereof which each corporation shall bear. If at any time either of such corporations acquires or desires to acquire for its own exclusive use as a par sonage other real property, it may, in pursuance of the provisions of law, relating to the disposition of real property by religious corporations, sell and convey its interest in such common parsonage property to any one or more of the other corporations having an interest therein.

[L. 1875, ch. 408, §§ 1-9; R. S., 8th ed., 1906.

By present law, trustees of parsonage property are made an independent corporation, taking legal title to the property. This section, as to future cases, makes the contributing corporations tenants in common of the parsonage property, and the trustees appointed by the contributing corporations managing agents thereof. The provision allowing a corporation to withdraw and sell to the others is new. The method of selecting trustees is materially changed and much simplified.]

§ 10. Correction and confirmation of conveyances to religious corporations. If, in a conveyance of real property, or in any

instrument intended to operate as such, heretofore or hereafter made to a religious corporation, its corporate name is not stated or is not correctly stated, but such conveyance or instrument indicates the intention of the grantor therein to convey such property to such corporation, and such corporation has entered into possession and occupation of such property, any officer of the corporation authorized so to do by its trustees, may file in the office of the clerk of the county where such property is situ ated, a statement, signed and verified by him, setting forth the date of such conveyance or instrument, the date of record and the number and page of the book of record thereof, the name of the grantor, a description of the property conveyed or intended to be conveyed, the name of the grantee as expressed in such conveyance or instrument, the correct name of such corporation, the fact of authorization by the trustees of the corporation to make and file such statement, and that the grantors in such conveyance or instrument intended thereby to convey such property to such corporation as he verily believes, with the reasons for such belief. Such statement shall be recorded with the records of deeds in such office, and indexed as a deed from the grantee as named in such instrument or in such conveyance to such corporation. The clerk shall note the filing and recording of such statement on the margin of the record of such conveyance, and for his services, shall be entitled to receive the fees allowed for recording deeds. Such statement so filed and recorded shall be presumptive evidence that such matters therein stated are true, and that such corporation was the grantee in the original instrument or conveyance.

All conveyances heretofore made, or by any instrument intended to be made, to a religious corporation of real property appropriated to the use of such corporation, or entitled to be so appropriated, are hereby confirmed and declared valid and effectual, notwithstanding any defect in the form of the conveyance or the description of the grantee therein, but this section shall not affect any suit or proceeding pending on the thirty-first day of January, eighteen hundred and seventy-one.

[See form, No. 4.

L. 1863, ch. 45, § 1, sub 5; R. S., 8th ed., 1890.