uses and trusts hereafter specified, that is to say, in trust to permit and suffer my nieces, Emma Curtis and Abigail Curtis, to use, occupy, possess and enjoy the same, and every part thereof, for and during their joint lives, and to permit and suffer the survivor of them to use, occupy, possess and enjoy the same, and every part thereof, for and during her natural life, or if the said Emma Curtis and Abigail Curtis, or the survivor of them, shall at any time see proper so to do, then in trust to permit and suffer them, or the survivor of them, to lease out the said real estate, or any part thereof, from year to year, and to receive and take the rents, issues and profits thereof, they, the said Emma Curtis and Abigail Curtis, paying the taxes and keeping the property in repair; and after the death of the survivor of my said nieces, Emma Curtis and Abigail Curtis, then in trust to permit and suffer my nephew, George W. Curtis, to use, occupy, possess and enjoy the same, and every part thereof, for and during his natural life, or if the said George W. Curtis shall at any time see proper so to do, then in trust to permit and suffer him to lease out the said real estate, or any part thereof, from year to year, and to receive and take the rents, issues and profits thereof, he, the said George W. Curtis, paying the taxes and keeping the property in repair; and after the death of the said George W. Curtis, then in trust for the said Isaac Barton and John R. Slack, or the survivor of them, or the executors, administrators or heirs of such survivor, to convey the same, and every part thereof, unto all the children of my said nieces, Emma Curtis and Abigail Curtis, and my nephew, George W. Curtis, share and share alike, the children of any deceased child to take his, her or their parents' share, equally between them, if more than one;" which said last will and testament of said Margaret Curtis, since her decease, to wit, on or about the sixteenth day of July, Anno Domini eighteen hundred and sixty, was duly proved before the surrogate of the county of Burlington, and letters testamentary thereon issued to the said Isaac Barton and John R. Slack, the executors therein named; and whereas, the said Emma Curtis, being, as aforesaid, seized of the undivided one-third part of said house and lot, on or about the twenty-third day of March, Anno Domini eighteen hundred and sixty-two, departed this life intestate and without leaving any lawful issue; and whereas, the said Emma Curtis was a natural child by the said Isaac

Interest of

state in house and lot re

leased.

Proviso.

Antrim Curtis, and therefore by the laws of this state could not leave any collateral heirs capable of inheriting the said real estate; but the said Emma Curtis left her surviving the said George W. Curtis a brother, and Abigail Curtis a sister, the only lawful children of the said Isaac Antrim Curtis deceased, who, together with their children, are the cestui que trusts under the will of said Margaret Curtis deceased, and are now in the possession and enjoyment of said house and lot of land, and it appears to be right and just that the interest in said house and lot of land, which by reason of the premises hath escheated to the state, should be secured for the benefit of her brother and sister, the said George W. Curtis and Abigail Curtis, and their children, in the same manner as the interest therein of the said Margaret Curtis is secured to them under her said last will and testament-now, therefore, 1. BE IT ENACTED by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey, That the rights, title and interest of the state, which now or hereafter may exist, by reason of the facts herein before stated, of, in and to the dwelling house and lot of land situated on the southerly side of Water street, in Mount Holly, in the county of Burlington, (being a part of the same premises which were devised by the will of Thomas Curtis, deceased, to his three children, as aforesaid, and the same, the undivided two-third parts of which were devised by the will of Margaret Curtis, deceased, to Isaac Barton and John R. Slack, and to the survivor of them, and to the heirs, executors and administrators of such survivor, upon and to and for the uses and trusts therein and herein before specified) be, and the same is hereby released to the said Isaac Barton and John R. Slack, and to the survivor of them, and to the executors, administrators and heirs of such survivor, to have and to hold the same, upon and to and for the uses and trusts set forth and declared in the will of said Margaret Curtis, deceased, and hereinbefore recited; provided always, that nothing in this act shall interfere with the lawful claims of any other person or persons to said house and lot of land, other than those claiming from and under this state.

2. And be it enacted, That this act shall take effect immediately.

Approved March 25, 1863.

CHAPTER CCLXXI.

AN ACT to incorporate the Firemen of the City of Elizabeth.

WHEREAS, the firemen of the city of Elizabeth have, by their Preamble. petition to the legislature, prayed to be incorporated, the more effectually to enable them to provide adequate funds for the relief of disabled and indigent firemen, and for the purpose of extinguishing fires-therefore,

1. BE IT ENACTED by the Senate and General Assembly of Incorporation the State of New Jersey, That all such persons as now are or hereafter shall be engineers of the fire department, or firemen belonging to any of the fire companies of the city of Elizabeth, shall be and are hereby ordained, constituted and declared to be and continue, until the first Tuesday in April, one thousand eight hundred and seventy-three, a body politic, in fact and in name, by the name of "The Fire Department of the City of Elizabeth," and that by that name they and their successors, for the term aforesaid, shall and may have succession, and shall be persons in law capable of suing and being sued, pleading and being impleaded, answering and being answered unto, defending and being defended in all courts and places whatsoever, in all manner of actions, suits, complaints, matters and causes whatsoever; and that they and their successors may have a common seal, and may change and alter the same at their pleasure; and also that they and their successors, by the name of "The Fire Department of the City of Elizabeth," shall be in law capable of purchasing, holding and conveying any estate, real or personal, for the use of the said corporation; provided, that the amount of real Proviso. and personal estate of the said corporation shall not at any time exceed the sum of twenty thousand dollars.

2. And be it enacted, That the engineers and foremen belonging to the said fire department shall, on or before the tives chosen. first day of May, in every year, choose one representative, and each company of firemen three representatives, who shall have and exercise all such powers as are hereinafter committed to them.

tatives.

3. And be it enacted, That the said representatives shall First represen choose, on the second Monday of May in every year, by ballot, out of their own body, a president, who shall be ex

officio a member of the board of trustees, and a vice president, and out of the whole body of the firemen or exempt firemen, three trustees, a treasurer and secretary; that the first representatives shall be Levi R. Barnard, Matthias L. Darby, John J. Williams, William McDermott, John N. Lewis, Stephen H. Grinsted, Lewis M. Brown, Lewis E. Monteagle, Edward P. Edwards, John R. Rommel, Robert Caldwell, Lewis L. Miller, Timothy Dixon, Charles West, George Blake, Patrick Dockray, Michael Kreig, Charles J. Ogden, William A. Morrell, John Bainbridge, Frederick Lum, Robert Rea, William A. Loveland, John C. Patterson; that John N. Lewis shall be the first president; that Lewis E. Monteagle shall be the first vice president; that I. Augustus Dix, Timothy Dixon, William A. Morrell, James Rollo, James T. Wiley and Robert Caldwell shall be the first trustees; that Michael Kreig shall be the first treasurer; that Matthias L. Darby shall be the first secretary; to hold their respective offices and places until others are appointed in their stead, agreeably to the provisions of this act; that the said trustees shall class themselves into two classes; number one shall go out of office the first year, and number two the second year; that the said trustees shall manage the affairs and dispose of the funds of the corporation, according to the by-laws, rules and regulations of the said corporation, from time to time made and established by the said representatives; that the said trustees shall choose a president, who shall have a right to convene them when he thinks proper, at least once a year; that the treasurer shall give security to the trustees for the faithful performance of his trust, and shall, at every annual meeting of the representatives, render them an account of the state of the funds; that the representatives shall, at their meeting, have a right to inquire into and control the application of their funds, and to displace any of the trustees and officers, if guilty of mal-conduct, and elect others in their stead; that a majority of the said representatives, and also of the trustees, shall respectively be a quorum to do business; that in case of a vacancy in the office of representative, such vacancy shall be filled up by the company from which he is deputed, for the remainder of the year, by a special election to be held for that purpose; and that in case of a vacancy in the office of president, vice president, treasurer, secretary, or of any of the trustees, such vacancy shall be filled up by the representatives for the remainder of the year, by a special election to be held for that purpose.

4. And be it enacted, That two-thirds of the said representatives shall have full power to make and prescribe such by-laws, rules, ordinances and regulations as to them from time to time shall appear needful and proper, touching the management and disposition of their funds, for the purposes aforesaid, and touching the meetings of the said corporation, both special and ordinary, except the second Monday in May in every year, which is hereby declared to be their annual meeting; and touching the duties and conduct of their officers and trustees, and touching all such other matters as appertain to the business and purpose for which the said corporation is by this act instituted, and for no other purpose whatsoever; provided, that such by-laws, rules, ordinances or regulations be not repugnant to the constitution or laws of the United States or of this state.

May make by

not dissolved

elect.

5. And be it enacted, That in case any election shall not be Corporation made on the day when pursuant to this act it ought to have for failure to been made, the said corporation shall not on that account be deemed to be dissolved, but that it shall and may be lawful on any other day to hold and make such election, in such manner as shall have been regulated by the by-laws and ordinances of the said corporation.

appropriated.

6. And be it enacted, That the funds of the said corpora- Funds, how tion, which shall arise from chimney fines, certificates and donations, and from such other objects as may have been heretofore or may be hereafter agreed upon by the respective fire companies, shall be appropriated to the relief of such indigent or disabled firemen, or their families, as may be interested therein, and who may, in the opinion of a majority of the trustees, be worthy of assistance; but if they shall amount to a greater sum than the trustees may think necessary to apply to the said purposes, then the said representatives shall have power to apply such surplus to the purpose of extinguishing fires, under such limitations and restrictions as they may, with the sanction of the corporation of the city of Elizabeth, deem proper.

7. And be it enacted, That this act is hereby declared to be Public act. a public act, and that the same shall be construed in all courts and places benignly and favorably for every beneficial purpose hereby intended.

8. And be it enacted, That this act shall take effect imme- Repealer. diately, and that all acts or parts of acts which are inconsistent with this act, or any part thereof, are hereby repealed. Approved March 25, 1863.