shall, at the next succeeding term, hear and deterimine such appeal, and the decision of the district court shall be certified to the court of probate, which shall carry the same into effect.

SEC. 28. The chief justice of each county shall procure, at the expense of the county, an appropriate seal for the court of probate, and the said seal shall be fixed to all papers issuing

from said court.

SEC. 29. The chief justices shall receive three dollars for every day they are attending to hold a probate court according to law, to be paid on the certificate of the clerk of said court out of the county treasury; and for all other duties they are authorized or required to perform, they shall receive such compensation as may be provided by law, and the associate justices shall receive, for every day they are required to attend a probate court, the same pay as the chief justice.

Sec. 30. The clerks of the county courts shall be clerks of the courts of probate for their respective counties, and shall record all wills and testaments and other instruments of writing, required by law to be recorded in their offices, shall give certi'fied copies of all papers in their offices to any person applying for the same, and shall receive for all duties required to be performed by them, by virtue of their offices, such fees as may be prescribed by law.

SEC. 31. All probate business heretofore pending before the primary courts, shall be transferred to, and completed in the probate court, for the county established by this act; and any of the primary judges heretofore acting, who shall refuse or neglect to transinit all such business, and all records and papers apportaining thereto, shall be procceded against in the same man der and under the same penaltics as provided in the eleventh Rection of the act establishing the jurisdiction and powers of the district courts.

Sec. 32. It shall be the duty of the several probate courts to compel a settlement of all estates heretofore administered on, within twelve months, and may require now security to be given, if by them cemed necessary, within six months from the passage of this law.

Sac. 33. It shall be the duty of the judge of the first instance, of each and every county to deposite in the office of the clerk of the county court of his county, every matter of record, paper, document, or thing heretofore filed in the office, not by required to be transmitted to the district court, or to ins tices of the peace.

NOTARIES PUBLIC.

Bec. 34. The chief justices of the several county courts, shall be, ex officio, notaries public for their respective counties; they shall have power to administer oaths and affirmations in all matters relating to their notarial office, shall have power to receive the proof or acknowledgments of all instruments of writing relating to commerce or navigation, and also to make declarations and testify to the truth thereof, under their seal of office, concerning all matters done by them in virtue of their offices; they shall keep a register of all official acts done by virtue of their offices, and, when required, shall give a certified copy of any record of their offices to any one applying for the same; and for all acts done by them, as notary, they shall receive such fees as may be provided by law; the seal of the county court shall be the notarial seal, and shall be fixed to all instruments and attestations of the respective notaries.

RECORDERS.

SEC. 35. The clerks of the county courts shall be the re corders for their respective counties, and it shall be their duty to record all deeds, conveyances, mortgages, and other liens, and all other instruments of writing required by law to be recorded in their offices, which are presented to them, provided one of the witnesses of the number required by law shall swear to the ignature of the signer, or he himself shall acknowledge the same, which shall be certified by the recorder, and form part of the record; and all deeds, conveyances, mortgages, and other liens shall be recorded in the county where the property is situated.

SEC. 36. It shall be the duty of the recorder to give attested copies whenever demanded, of all papers recorded in his office; and the recorder shall receive, for all such copies, and all other writing required of him by virtue of his office, such fees as may be provided by law.

SEC. 37. Any person who owns or claims land of any description, by deed, lien, or any other color of title, shall, within twelve months from the first day of April next, have the same proven in open court, and recorded in the office of the clerk of the county court in which said land is situated; but if a tract of land lies on the county line, the title may be recorded in the County in which a part of said land lies.

SEC, 38, All titles, liens, mortgages, or other color of title,

2412

before they can be admitted upon record, must be proven by at feast two subscribing witnesses, if living in the county, and if not so living in the county, then the hand writing shall be proven either before some county judge, or before the clerk of the county court in whose office such record is proposed to be made; and in all cases the certificate of any county judge, that the said witness appeared before him and acknowledged his signature, or that the hand writing of the same was duly proven, shall be -uficient evidence to authorize the clerk.of the county court to enter such title, lien, mortgage, or other color of title upon record; and the said clerk for recording the same, shall be enfitled to charge and receive the sum of twenty cents for every handred words.

SEC. 39. Any actual settler, who is a citizen of this republic, who may have and hold peaceable possession of any tract or parcel of land under a color of title duly proven and recorded in the proper county, for a term of five years from and after recording of said color of title or titles, his, her, or their claim hall be considered good and valid, burring the claim or claims of any and every person or persons whatsoever, minors, feine coverts, and persoas noa compos mentis excepted, who shall, Jave, and be allowed two years after their maturity, marriage, or return to a souad mind, to demand and commence an action for his, her, or their claims, and no more. A peaceable posses• sion can only be interrupted by an actual suit being instituted and prosecuted agreeably to the due forms of law, against the holder or holders thereof; provided that this act shall not affect the rights of any person who may have been prevented from complying with the provisions of dis law, by reason of an cnomy having lnd possession of the commity, or for want of a proper court or ofeer having been established in due time: and provided farther, that this act shall not give validity to claims unlawfully obtained from government.

Sec. 19. No deed, conveyance, Hen, or other instrument of writing, shall take effect as regards the interests and rights of third parties, until the same shall have been duly proven and prescated to the court, as required by this act, for the recording of land titles. And it shall be the duty of the clerk to pote particularly the time when such deed, conveyance. lien, or other instrument is presented, and to record them in the order in which they are presented.

Sec. 41. The common law of England, as now, practiced gad understood, shall, in its application to juries and to evidence,

178041

be followed and practiced by the courts of this republic, se far as the same may not be inconsistent with this act, or any other law passed by this congress.

IRA INGRAM,

Speaker of the house of representatives.
RICHARD ELLIS,

President pro tem. of the senate.

Approved Dec. 20, 1836.

SAM. HOUSTON,

AN ACT,

Supplementary to an act organizing the Inferior Courts, ing the powers and jurisdiction of the sams.

Be it enacted by the senate and house of representatives of the republic of Texus, in congress assembled, That the representativeS of each county of this republic, or either of them, be, and are hereby authorized and required to administer the necessary oath of office to the different chief justices and justices of the peace for the different counties, so soon as they may have been elected. in conformity to the provisions of this act.

IRA INGRAM,

Speaker of the house of representatives.
RICHARD ELLIS,

President pro tem. of the senate.

Approved, Dec. 20, 1538.

Top 260/40

AN ACT,

SAM. HOUSTON.

Authorizing and requiring County Courts to regulate Roads, op point Overseers, and establish. Ferries, &c.

Sec. 1. Be it enacted by the senate and house of representatives of the republic of Texas, in congress assembled,. That the county courts of the several counties of this republic, shall have full power to order the laying out public roads, when necessary, and to discontinue or alter such roads as shall at any time prove useless.

SEC. 2. Be it further enacted, That whenever it shall be deemed necessary to lay out any new road, the county court shall appoint at least five freeholders or householders, who shall be

intrusted by the court to lay out the road so ordered, to the greatest advantage of the inhabitants, and as little as may be to the prejudice of enclosures; which road shall be opened thirty feet in width.

SEC. 3. Be it further enacted, That all free males, Indians excepted, between the age of eighteen and forty-five years, and all male slaves over sixteen and under fifty years of age, shall be liable to work on public roads.

SEC. 4. Be it further engeted, That the county courts of the several counties are hereby authorized and required to lay off all public roads into precincts, and shall, at the first session of their courts in each and every year, appoint one overseer for each precinct, and shall at the same time apportion and designate the hands liable to work on public roads, and under overseers of the several precincts.

Se. 5. Be it further enacted, That it shall be the duty of the clerk of the county courts, to make out and deliver, within ten days after the adjournment of the court, to the sheriff of his county, a copy of the order of court, appointing the several overseers, and the hands liable to work under them; and the sheriff shall, within twenty days after the reception of the order, deliver to, or leave the same at the common residence of the overseer, and on failure of the clerk or sheriff to deliver such order herein directed, each shall forfeit and pay for every such failure, ten dollars, which fines shall be recovered by judgment, on motion of the solicitor of the superior court of the county in which the defaulter shall reside. The said defaulter having three days notice of said motion, without the interposition of a jury, except the defaulter shall require it.

SEC. 6. Be it further enacted, That it shall be the duty of the clerks of the county courts, to put up in their respective court houses, a list of the names of the overseers and their respective precincts, in their county; and on neglect thereof shall forfeit and pay the sum of ten dollars, to be recovered in the manner prescribed in the fifth section of this act.

SEC. 7. Be it further enacted, That if any overseer so appointed shall refuse to serve without a reasonable excuse to be judged by the county court, he shall forfeit and pay the sum of twenty-five dollars, to be recovered in the manner prescribed in the fifth section of this act.

SEC. 8. Be it further enacted, That overseers of the roads shall have power to call out all persons liable to work on public roads in their precinct, at any time when it may appear neces