therefore, there is an imperative public necessity and emergency that the constitutional rules requiring this bill to be read on three several days, be suspended, and that this act take effect and be in force from and after its passage, and it is so enacted.

Approved February 25, A. D. 1881.
Takes effect from passage.

CHAPTER XXI.—An act to provide for the payment of the interest due on the public debt March 1, 1881.

Section 1. Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Texas, That the sum of twenty-five thousand four hundred and fifty-five dollars be and the same is hereby appropriated out of any moneys in the State treasury not otherwise appropriated, for the purpose of paying the interest accruing on the public debt up to March 1. 1881.

Sec. 2. That no default be made in the prompt payment of the interest due on the public debt, and the brief time between the present and the 1st of March, when such interest becomes due, creates an imperative public necessity and emergency that the constitutional rules requiring this bill to be read on three several days be suspended, and that it take effect from and after its passage, and it is so enacted. Approved February 26, A. D. 1881. Takes effect from passage.

CHAPTER XXII.—An act to amend an act entitled An act to change and define the times of holding the terms of the district court in the fifth judicial district of the State of Texas, passed by the Sixteenth Legislature, and approved April 23, 1879, so that the same shall hereafter read as follows:

Section 1. Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Texas, Thathereafter the terms of the district courts of the fifth judicial district of the State of Texas shall be holden at the times hereinafter specified, to-wit: In the county of Cass on the first Mondays in February and September, and may continue in session three weeks; in the county of Bowie on the third Mondays after the first Mondays in February and September, and may continue in session three weeks; in the county of Morris on the sixth Mondays after the first Mondays in February and September, and may continue in session two weeks; in the county of Titus on the eighth Mondays after the first Mondays in February and September, and may continue in session two weeks; in the county of Franklin on the tenth Mondays after the first Mondays in February and September, and may continue in session two weeks; in the county of Camp on the twelfth Mondays after the first Mondays in February and September, and may continue in session two weeks; in the county of Marion on the fourteenth Mondays after the first Mondays in February and September, and may continue in session six weeks; provided that no jury shall be impanneled after the fourth week of said term.

Sec. 2. That writs and process returnable to said courts shall be returnable to the terms of said courts as herein defined, and all such

writs and process as have been issued, executed and returned shall be as valid as if no change had been made in said courts by the passage of this act.

Sec. 3. The fact of the near approach of the terms of the district court in the counties of the fifth judicial district that are intended to be benefited by this act, creates an imperative public necessity and emergency for the immediate passage of this act; therefore, the constitutional rule requiring this bill to be read on three several days is hereby suspended, and this act shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage.

Approved February 26, A. D. 1881.

Takes effect from passage.

CHAPTER XXIII.-An act regulating the removal of the disabilities of minors.

Section 1. Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Texas, That any minor of this State over the age of nineteen years, who may desire to have his disabilities as a minor removed, he shall, by a bill or petition, present to the district court of the county where he may reside, the cause or causes existing which make it advisable or advantageous to said minor to have his disabilities removed, which bill or petition shall be sworn to by some person cognizant of the facts set out in said bill or petition.

Sec. 2. Said petition or bill shall be docketed on the trial docket of the court, and may be heard by the court either in regular order or at any time during term time, and if it shall appear to the court that the ground or causes set out are sufficient, and that it is advisable, or will be advantageous to such minor, in person or property, to have his disabilities. as a minor removed, the court shall enter up a decree removing the disabilities of said minor, and cause it to be entered of record among the decrees and judgments of court.

Sec. 3. After the removal of such disabilities of minority, the said minor shall be deemed and held for all legal purposes, of full age, and shall be held responsible, and shall have all the privileges and advantages. as if he were of full age, saving only that he shall not vote until he arrives at the full age of twenty-one years.

Sec. 4. In all proceedings under this act, a copy of the petition shall be served upon the father of the minor, if living within the State, and, if he be dead, that fact shall be mentioned in the petition. If the father of the minor be not living, then a copy of the petition shall be served upon the county judge of the county in which the proceeding is instituted, and in all such cases the court hearing the application shall appoint a special guardian, whose duty it shall be, in connection with the county judge, to represent the true interests of the minor, as they shall understand it, in aiding or resisting the application of the minor. An allowance shall be made by the district judge presiding to the special guardian, which shall be paid out of the estate of the minor.

Approved March 2, A. D. 1881.

Takes effect ninety days after adjournment.

CHAPTER XXIV.—An act to amend chapter 3, of title 17, of the Penal Code of Texas, by adding after article 683 article 683a.

Section 1. Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Texas, That the Penal Code of Texas be amended by adding after the article 683 article 683a, which shall read as follows, viz: "That any baggage, master, express agent, stage or hack-driver, or other common carrier, whose duty it is to handle, remove, transfer or take care of trunks, valises, boxes or other baggage while loading, transporting, unloading, transferring, delivering, storing or handling the same, whether or not in the employ of any transportation company or common carrier, who shall maliciously or carelessly or recklessly break, injure or destroy the said baggage, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, on conviction, be fined in a sum not exceeding one hundred dollars; provided, that a prosecution for a misdemeanor, as provided in this section, shall not be a bar to a civil action for damages."

Approved March 5, A. D. 1881.

Takes effect ninety days after adjournment.

CHAPTER XXV.-An act to amend articles 364 and 365 of an act entitled "An act to adopt and establish a Penal Code and a Code of Criminal Procedure for the State of Texas," presented to the governor for his approval on February 27, 1879.

Section 1. Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Texas, That articles 364 and 365 of an act entitled "An act to adopt and establish a Penal Code and a Code of Criminal Precedure for the State of Texas," presented to the governor for his approval on February 27, 1879, be so amended as to hereafter read as follows:

"Article 364. If any person shall bet or wager at any gaming table, or bank, or pigeon-hole or jenny lind table, or nine or ten pin alley, such as are mentioned in the six preceding articles, or shall bet or wager any money or other thing of value at any of the games included in the six preceding articles, or at any of the following games, viz: poker-dice, jack-pot, high dice, high die, low dice, low die, dominoes, euchre with dominoes, poker with dominoes, sett with dominoes, muggins, crack-loo, crack-or-loo, or at any game of any character whatever that can be played with dice or dominoes, or on any table, bank or alley, by whatsoever name the same may be known, and without reference to how the same may be constructed or operated, he shall be fined not less than ten dollars nor more than twenty-five dollars; provided, no person shall be indicted under this section for playing any of said games with dice or dominoes at a private residence.

"Article 365. If any person shall permit any game prohibited by the provisions of this chapter to be played in his house, or a house under his control, or upon his premises, or upon premises under his control, the said house being a public place, or the said premises being appurtenances to a public place, he shall be fined not less than twenty-five nor more than one hundred dollars."

Approved March 5, A. D. 1881.

Takes effect ninety days after adjournment.

CHAPTER XXVI.-An act to repeal article 2234 of an act entitled "An act to adopt and establish the Revised Civil Statutes of the State of Texas," passed by the Sixteenth Legislature.

Section 1. Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Texas, That article 2234 of "an act to adopt and establish the Revised Civil Statutes of the State of Texas," passed by the Sixteenth Legislature, be and the same is hereby repealed.

Sec. 2. Whereas, there is apparently, a conflict between the requirements of the above named article and the provisions and intent of section 1 of "an act to define in what civil causes depositions of witnesses may be taken," approved April 21, 1879, creating a confusion and variety of opinion thereon, and rendering uncertain the rights, and endangering the interest of citizens under said last-named act; therefore an emergency is created for the suspension of the constitutional rule directing that no law shall go into force until ninety days after the adjournment of the Legislature, and said rule is hereby suspended, and this act shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage.

Approved March 9, A. D. 1881.

Takes effect ninety days after adjournment.

CHAPTER XXVII.-An act to amend article 375, chapter 4, of title 17, of the Revised Civil Statutes of the State of Texas, relating to the powers of the councils of cities and towns, over streets, alleys and public grounds.

4

Section 1. Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Texas That article 375, chapter 4, of title 17, of the Revised Civil Statutes of the State of Texas, shall be so amended as hereafter to read as follows:

"Article 375. The council shall have exclusive control and power over the streets, alleys, public grounds and highways within the corporate limits, and shall have power to abate and remove encroachments or obstructions thereon, and shall have power to open, alter, widen, extend, establish, regulate, grade, clean or otherwise improve said streets, and to cause the male inhabitants, between the ages of eighteen and forty-five years, to work thereon, not exceeding six days in any one year, or furnish a substitute, or a sum of money (not to exceed one dollar for each day's work demanded) to employ said substitute, and to enforce the same by appropriate ordinances; to put drains or sewers therein, and to prevent the incumbering thereof in any manner, and to prevent the same from injury; and to regulate and alter the grade of premises, and to require the filling up and raising the same; provided, that citizens of cities and towns, who work under the provisions of this act, shall not be liable to work upon the public roads outside of the corporate limits of said city or town under the general road law of the State.

Approved March 9, A. D. 1881.

Takes effect ninety days after adjournment.

CHAPTER XXVIII.—An act to amend section 11 of an act entitled "An act to protect the wool-growing interest of the State of Texas," approved March 25, 1879.

Section 1. Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Texas, That hereafter section 11 of the above entitled act shall read as follows, to wit:

"Section 11. The following counties are hereby exempted from the provisions of this act, viz.: Anderson, Angelina, Bowie, Cass, Chambers, Cherokee, Collin, Cooke, Dallas, Delta, Denton, Ellis, Fannin, Fayette, Fort Bend, Franklin, Freestone, Grimes, Hardin, Harris, Harrison, Henderson, Jack, Jasper, Jefferson, Johnson, Kaufman, Lamar, Lee, Liberty, Madison, Marion, Montgomery, Morris, Nacogdoches, Newton, Orange, Panola, Parker, Polk, Rains, Red River, Rusk, Sabine, San Augustine, San Jacinto, Shelby, Somervell, Tarrant, Titus, Trinity, Tyler, Van Zandt, Wood, Walker, Waller, Wharton, Young, and the unorganized counties attached to Jack and Young counties for judicial purposes. The counties of Clay, Montague and Wise, together with the unorganized counties attached to the same for judicial purposes, are also exempted from the provisions of this act."

Approved March 9, A. D. 1881.

Takes effect ninety days after adjournment.

CHAPTER XXIX.-An act to amend sections 1, 3, 5, and 7 of an act entitled "An act to protect the wool-growing interest of the State of Texas," approved March 25, 1879.

Section 1. Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Texas, That sections 1, 3, 5 and 7 of an act entitled "An act to protect the woolgrowing interest of the State of Texas," approved March 25, 1879, be and the same are hereby amended so as to read hereafter as follows:

"Section 1. Whenever it appears from the assessor's rolls that there are as many as five hundred sheep owned and assessed for taxes in any county in this State (that is not exempted from the operations of this act by the original bill), it should be the duty of the commissioners' court of such county, upon the application of one or more resident sheep owner or cwners of said county, to appoint an inspector of sheep, who shall be a resident citizen of the county and well versed in the scab and other diseases which usually affect sheep, and said inspector shall hold his office until the next general election, or until his successor in office shall have qualified; provided, the qualifications required for inspector herein shall not apply to those appointed before this act takes effect. Said inspector may appoint one or more deputies, who shall take the oath of office prescribed by the constitution, and may lawfully perform the same acts as the inspector of sheep, who may require of his deputies bonds for the faithful performance of duty.

"Sec. 3. It shall be the duty of the inspector of sheep, or the deputy inspector, to carefully and personally examine and inspect at any time during the year any flock of sheep in his county, or which may be driven into or through his county, and which he has good reason to believe or is informed by two or more creditable sheep owners, is affected with scab or any other infectious or contagious disease; provided, that when the