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istered by the trustees thereof; and such directions shall be followed by the trustees. The trustees of an incorporated church to which this article is applicable, shall have no power to settle or remove or fix the salary of the minister, or without the consent of a corporate meeting, to incur debts beyond what is necessary for the care of the property of the corporation; or to fix or change the time, nature or order of the public or social worship of such church, except when such trustees are also the spiritual officers of such church.

[L. 1813, ch. 60, § 8; R. S., 8th ed., 1887.

L. 1876, ch. 329, § 6; R. S., 8th ed., 1911.

The express prohibition against settling or removing the minister, now applicable to Baptist churches only, is extended.

Section 11 of general corporation law provides that by-laws adopted by the corporation shall control the action of its trustees.

For powers of trustees in relation to the property of the corporation see §§ 4, 5 and 11, ante, and notes.

For powers of trustees in relation to minister, see note to § 5 under head " Minister."]

§ 91. Trustees of a church in connection with the United Brethren in Christ.-If any church connected with the denomination known as the United Brethren in Christ shall neglect or omit to elect trustees at any annual election at which trustees should have been elected, the quarterly conference of the circuit, station or mission of such denomination may elect such trustees for full terms, or to fill vacancies, in accordance with the rules and usages of such denomination.

[L. 1826, ch. 47, § 1; R. S., 8th ed., 1892.
Without change of substance.]

892 Trusts for Shakers and Friends.-All deeds or declara tions of trust of real or personal property, executed and deliv ered before January first, eighteen hundred and thirty, or since May fifth, eighteen hundred and thirty-nine, to any person in trust for any united society of Shakers, or heretofore executed and delivered, shall be vested in the trustees* the legal estates and religious society of Friends, shall be valid. Trusts of real or personal property, for the benefit and use of the members of any

So in the original.

united society of Shakers, or of any meeting of the religious society of Friends, may hereafter be created, according to the religious constitution of such society of Shakers, or the regulatious and rules of discipline of such society of Friends. Such deeds or declarations of trust, heretofore or hereafter executed and delivered, shall vest in the trustees the legal estates and interests purported to be conveyed or declared thereby, to and for the uses and purposes declared therein; and such legal estates and trusts, and all legal authority with which the original trustees were vested by virtue of their appointment and conferred powers, shall descend to their successors in office or trust, who may be chosen in conformity to the constitution of such society, or the directions of such meeting. This section does not impair or diminish the rights of any person, meeting or association claiming to be a meeting of the religious society of Friends, which such person, meeting or association claiming to be a meeting, had to any real or personal property held in trust for the use and benefit of any meeting of such society, before the division of such society which took place at the annual meeting held in the city of New York in May, eighteen hundred and twenty-eight. No society of Shakers, or meeting of Friends, shall become beneficially interested in real or personal property, the clear annual value or income of which exceeds twenty-five thousand dollars. No person shall be a trustee at the same time, of more than one society of Shakers or meeting of Friends. A society of Shakers includes all persons of the religious belief of the people called Shakers, resident within the same county.

[L. 1839, ch. 174; R. S., 8th ed., 2441.
L. 1839, ch. 181; R. S., 8th ed., 2441.
Without change in substance.

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The Shaker community may be sued through its trustees, designating the defendant as trustees of the mutual society called Shakers." The trustees are to be regarded as a corporate body holding property in trust for the society. White v. Miller, 71 N. Y. 118.J

§ 93. Conveyance of trust property of Friends.-The trustee or trustees, or survivor of any trustees, of any meeting of the religious society of Friends, appointed pursuant to the last preceding section, may seli, convey and grant, or demise any or all

of the trust property described in said trust deed or declaration of trust, to any person absolutely or in trust for such meeting, whenever any meeting of said society by resolution so directs. Any conveyance of real estate or property so held in trust by a meeting of the religious society of Friends, which is hereafter made in pursuance of a resolution of such meeting as provided herein, shall be as valid and effectual for the conveyance of the title of any real estate so held in trust, as if the heirs of any trustee who has died prior to the passage of such resolution had joined in the execution of such conveyance or demise. Any instrument for the sale or demise of such property shall embody such resolution, and be executed by such trustee or trustees; and in such acknowledgment such trustee or trustees shall make an affidavit that the person or persons executing such conveyance or demise are the trustee or trustees of the trust property, and that the resolution embodied in such conveyance or demise was duly passed by such meeting. Such affidavit shall be prima facie evidence of the facts therein stated.

[L. 1839, ch. 184, § 4; R. S., 8th ed., 2442.

Without change of substance.]

ARTICLE VI.

Special Provisions for the Incorporation and Government of Two or More Unincorporated Churches as a Union Church. Section 100. Joint meeting for the purposes of incorporation. 101. Government of incorporated union churches.

Section 100. Joint meeting for the purposes of incorporation.Two or more unincorporated churches, which separately agree on a plan of union and determine to meet together for the pur pose of being incorporated as a union church, may be incorporated as a union church in pursuance of the provisions of the next preceding article, and thereafter such union church shall be governed by the general provisions of such article, as near as may be, except as otherwise provided in this article. A notice of such joint meeting shall be given to the congregation of each

church, in pursuance of the provisions of the next preceding arti cle of this chapter, relating to notice of meeting for incorporations in every respect, as if it were a notice of a meeting for the separate incorporation of such church under such article, except that the notice shall state in substance that a joint meeting of such incorporated churches, which shall be specified in the notice, will be held for the purpose of incorporating such churches as a union church, and electing trustees thereof at a time and place specified in the notice, which place may be the usual place of worship of either of such churches or any other reasonably convenient place. Such notice must be signed by at least six per sons from each of such churches who would be authorized to sign a notice for the meeting of each church, respectively, for the purpose of incorporating it under such article.

The provisions of the next preceding article of this chapter shall be applicable to the organization and conduct of such meeting, the matters to be determined upon and the certificate of incorporation to be executed and filed accordingly, except that the presiding officer of such joint meeting shall be the oldest person present at such meeting who would be entitled to preside at a meeting of either of such churches singly for the purposes of incorporation in pursuance of such article. All persons who would be qualified to vote at such meeting of either of such churches held singly, shall be qualified voters at such joint meet. ing, and the number of trustees of the union church after incorporation, to be selected from each such church, may be agreed on by such unincorporated churches, and the trustees shall be selected by each of such churches accordingly.

The certificate of incorporation shall set forth the plan of union agreed on and the number of trustees of the incorporated union church to be selected by each unincorporated church.

[See form, No. 21.

L. 1881, ch. 327, & 1; R. S., Sth ed., 1911, amplified without material change of substance.

See notes to sections of preceding article.]

§ 101. Government of incorporated union churches.-Any union church or society having a common place of worship or holding property belonging jointly to the several societies com

posing the same, but the sole right of occupancy of which is reserved to each of them in proportion to their interest in such property, or the money originally paid therefor by each, or in accordance with their plan of union agreed on, may, if any one or more of the churches or societies comprising such union church or society has ceased to exist, on the request of such remaining churches or society, redistribute and divide the time of occupancy among such remaining societies in proportion to their contributions to such property respectively, or in accordance with a new plan of union agreed on by them. Such redistribution shall be made by the trustees of said union church or society on written notice to the societies which it is alleged have ceased to exist; but no such society shall be deemed to have ceased to exist unless it has failed or neglected for a period of five consecutive years next preceding such request for redistribution, to hold meetings and have a clerk or secretary, and keep a list or registry of its members, or to have preaching, prayer or conference meetings, or other religious services in keeping with the usages of the denomi nation to which it belongs.

Any one of the societies composing a union church or society, which shall have built a church edifice in the same village or neighborhood in which it holds its religious services, shall not thereby lose or forfeit in any way any of its rights or privileges in such union society, and the maintaining of divine worship, or contributing to its support in its own building, shall be regarded the same as if it held its meetings in the church building of such union societies. Any notice for the election of trus tees of the union society or for any other purpose which the law requires to be read or given at the time of divine service, may be read or given in the church edifice so built by any one of such societies, if at the time religious services are not held in the church edifice of such union society. But such notice must be posted on the outer door of such union church edifice at least fifteen days before the meeting. If any society composing any such church union or society has a greater interest in the occupancy of the church building than others, unless the several churches composing the union church or society have agreed otherwise, the number of trustees shall be odd, and the trustees shall

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