c. 29. 1845. roads are be made, or be turned or altered. any 5 WM. IV. one part of the island to another, or from one part of a parish to Island Act. another part, in the same or any other parish, or to church or market, or to any known spring, river, or watering place, or to the nearest shipping place, or from one property or part of required to a property to another, or that old roads may be altered with old ones to greater convenience to the public, or the party applying, upon application in writing, signed by three freeholders, to any justice of the peace of the parish in which the proposed road or alterations, or the major part thereof, shall be situated, such justice shall issue his warrant to the next or any lawful constable of the same parish to summon a jury of freeholders of the neighbourhood, although in different parishes, to attend and meet at some convenient place and time therein to be mentioned, when and where the same or some other justice in his stead, in case of any disability of the former, shall be present; and out of the freeholders attending, the first twelve of the panel as they shall appear shall constitute a jury to view and lay out or alter such parts or roads: Provided, That no freeholder who signed the application shall be capable of being on the jury. Proviso. 4. And whereas it is requisite that a scheme or diagram of such intended new road or such alterations should be prepared previously to the meeting of the jury: It is hereby enacted, That the justice to whom application in this case shall be made, shall have full power to authorize, by warrant, any sworn surveyor, at the expense of the party at whose instance the application is made, to make such traverses as may be necessary for laying out the best and most convenient track for such new road or alterations, in order that a scheme thereof may be laid before the jury; and no person shall obstruct such surveyor in making such traverses, or otherwise prevent him from laying out such track, under the penalty of fifty pounds. 5. The justice and jurors being assembled at the time and place appointed, the said justice shall administer an oath to the jury that they will view the proposed new road or alterations, and examine, according to their judgment and information, whether the same is or are necessary, or will be expedient and useful to the public, or is a road of private communication "to the party applying;" and if it shall appear to them to be so, they will according to their skill and judgment, with the most convenience to the public, or (if a private road) "to the party applying," and the least damage or prejudice to any particular person, lay out or alter such path or road, and determine concerning the several maters which shall come before them, according to conscience, and without partiality or favour; and if the jury shall adjudge that the proposed road or alterations will not be necessary or useful to the public, "or to the person applying" (as the case may be) they shall certify the same under their hands and seals, to be filed in the clerk of the peace's office but c. 29. WILL. IV. Island Act. 1845. if they shall otherwise judge and proceed to lay out such road or 5 alterations, they shall make a return of their verdict, in the form hereafter directed, to the justices at the next quarter-sessions of the parish in which the said road shall chiefly lie, together with a diagram of the road to be made at the cost of the applicant: Provided, That in case the road, for laying out or altering as Proviso. aforesaid, shall go through lands, making part of any plantation or settlement under cultivation, or in case any road or bridge constructed at the expense of the owner of the land, shall be used, or form part of, or be required for, the new read, ten days' notice at the least, shall be given in writing to the owner thereof, his agent, attorney, or overseer, of the time and place of the meeting of the jury; and the justice shall not swear the jury, or proceed to the laying out or altering such road, until he shall have had proof, on oath of the constable, with the panel annexed, that such notice hath been given, under the penalty of fifty pounds; and the justice shall, in such case, receive evidence on oath, on behalf of the owners of the land or bridge, if such evidence shall be tendered, and shall summon any persons capable of giving evidence, if thereunto required, and examine such witnesses on oath, as well concerning the propriety of the track proposed to be made, as concerning the value of the land intended to be laid into road, or the road or bridge intended to be used as part of the new road, and the compensation which ought to be made to the owners in consequence thereof, for the government of the jury, who, taking into consideration all the advantages and disadvantages that will arise to such owners from the road so proposed, shall fix such compensation, and give verdict for the same, to the best of their judgment, which verdict shall be attested by the justice and annexed to the return to the quartersessions, as before directed; and which return shall be in the form following: at "JAMAICA, SS. "An inquisition held and taken for our sovereign lady the queen in the parish of in the island aforesaid, the day of and county of twelve freeholders then and there summoned, and met in obedience esquire, one of his majesty's justices in the island aforesaid, the esquire, have, to a warrant issued by to 5 WILL. IV. hereunto set their hands and seals, the day and year first above c. 29. Island Act. written." 1845. And when compensation is allowed, the verdict shall be as follows: "JAMAICA, Ss. "We, the jurors named in the return hereunto annexed, having been summoned, returned, and empanelled, and sworn, according to law, by esquire, one of her majesty's justices of the peace, for laying out or altering a certain highway or road, in the return described, and having laid out or altered the said highway or road accordingly, in manner as in the said return and diagram thereunto subjoined is particularly described, we the said jurors, taking into our consideration the advantages and disadvantages to arise to A. B. and C. D. in respect to lands belonging to the said A. B. and C. D., laid out for the said road, or "to a road or bridge constructed by them, at their own expense, and appropriated to the public use, in forming the said road;" and the compensation which ought to be made to each of them in consequence thereof, find as follows: That the said A. B. is entitled to the sum of being at the rate of land, and the said C. D. is entitled to the sum of per acre, for being at the rate of per acre, for land, (or if a road or bridge) to the sum of acres of acres of being the compensation for a road or bridge (as the case may be) appropri ated to the public use, and that the said A. B. is entitled to the further sum of the further sum of making gates and fences: and that the suid C. D. is entitled to , for damages in removing and In witness whereof we, the said jurors, have hereunto respectively set our hands and seals this of the peace." Justices and 7. No person shall obstruct or hinder the justice and jury jury not to from going to and laying out such road, pursuant to this act, under the penalty of £100. structed. 8. If a sufficient number of freeholders for a jury should not be conveniently found, or if any of the witnesses should not for a jury, reside in the parish for which the justices shall act, any justice of any adjoining parish or precinct, or of the parish in which such witnesses shall reside, shall, if required, endorse the warrants of the justice aforesaid, which endorsement shall authorize the constable to whom such warrants shall be directed, to summon freeholders and witnesses in such parish or precinct as fully as if such warrants had been issued by any magistrate thereof. Jurors or witnesses 9. In case any person who shall be personally warned to serve not attend as a juror or witness, shall refuse or neglect to attend, he shall ing liable to forfeit £10; to be levied by warrant of distress and sale of his be fined. c. 29. 1845. goods, to be immediately issued by the justice, upon proof on 5 WILL. IV. oath by the constable of the service of such notice; and if any Island Act. freeholder warned to serve as a juror, or any person summoned to give evidence, refusing or neglecting to attend, shall not reside in the parish in which such justice shall act, any justice of the peace for the parish or precinct in which such freeholder or witness shall reside, shall, upon receiving a certificate under the hand and seal of the presiding justice aforesaid, that such fine has been incurred by virtue of this act, immediately issue his warrant to any constable of his parish, to levy the same by distress and sale of the goods of the offender: Provided, That Proviso. nothing herein shall be construed to authorize any person to serve as a juror in laying out or altering any road, who is not a freeholder of some parish. others pro their per 10. The magistrate, clerk of the peace, jurors, witnesses, and Jurors, wit constable, or any other person summoned and actually attending nesses, and as aforesaid, are hereby protected in their persons, servants, car- tected in riages, horses, and mules, for the space of forty-eight hours pre- sons, &c. vious to, and forty-eight hours after, the day on which such meeting is held, against all mesne and judicial process in civil causes. corded, and raise a tax of compen 11. On the return of the proceedings to the justices in sessions Proceedings and by them confirmed, the same shall be recorded, and the vestry of the next subsequent year, for any parish in which any vestry to compensation shall be directed, shall, under the penalty of £50 for payment on each magistate and vestryman, raise an additional sum in sation., their parish for paying the compensation to the parties awarded, and shall issue an order for the same on the collecting constable for the value of the land, upon proof that such verdict has been confirmed by the quarter-sessions, and that the part of the road for which the compensation is demanded has been actually opened aud made passable, and they shall issue another order on the collecting constable of the parish,upon proof made that the fences and gates intended by the jury have been actually made and erected to the extent and value set forth in the verdict, and not before: Provided, That such compensation (in case of a road Proviso. of private communication) shall be awarded and paid to the owner of the road or bridge, at the expense of the party applying therefor before the same is opened: And provided, That Proviso. such road shall not be deemed a king's road. jury to be each parish, 12. And when it shall happen that in laying out or altering Return and roads by a jury, they shall go through the lands of different verdict of parishes, Be it enacted, That the return and verdict of the jury recorded in shall be recorded in each parish; and each parish shall make &c. good the proportion of the compensation allowed by the jury, according to the quantity and the value of the land taken up by S 5 WILL. IV. the road in each parish, to be ascertained by the jury at the time Island Act of laying out the road, and estimating the damages. c. 29. 1845. Fees to clerks of vestries. stables for serving warrants and summonses. 13. The clerks of the peace in the several parishes (who are hereby obliged, under the penalty of £50, upon receiving notice from any justice of the peace of their respective precincts, to attend such justices and the jury in laying out or altering any road in the manner aforesaid) shall not, under the like penalty of £50, ask or receive more than five pounds for drawing out the proceedings and attending the justices and jury, and five shillings per mile for every mile they shall be obliged to travel from their common place of residence to the places where they shall attend such justices and jury, in laying out or altering any road, and recording the same; or more than one pound six shillings and eight pence for each attested copy of the return and verdict which may be required to be recorded in any other parish, to be paid by the party at whose instance application has been made for laying out or altering the road. Also to con- 14. The constable to whom any warrant or warrants for warning a jury or summoning witnesses shall be issued by any justice of the peace, or any notices be delivered, to be served on the owners or holders of land in manner hereinbefore declared, shall be entitled to, from the party at whose instance application has been made, £5 for his trouble in performing his duty, and no more, which sum, and also the sum to the clerk of the peace, shall be recovered in a summary manner before any two magistrates of the parish. Penalty on constable neglecting his duty. Proceedings not to be certiorari. 15. In case such constable shall refuse or neglect to perform his duty with due diligence, and to attend the justices and jury at the time and place in the warrant appointed, in order to make a return on oath of the names of the jurors by him warned, and to prove on oath the services hereby directed, such justice may impose a fine on such constable in a sum not exceeding £20, as to his discretion shall seem proper, and may commit the offender to the common gaol until such fine be paid. 16. The proceedings held before the justice and jury as aforeremoved by said, shall not be removed by certiorari, or otherwise, until the person or persons applying for such writ shall have entered into good and sufficient security to the crown to prosecute and carry into effect the same; and in case such proceedings be confirmed by the court, the party applying for such certiorari shall pay to the person defending the same, costs out of purse, provided the judges shall certify that there was not probable cause for such application. |