The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1884-02-14
LAWS OF THE EXTRA SESSION
The General Road Bill.


1866, 1857, 1870, 437I, 1872, 1876, 1879
1884, 1887, 1889 and 1890, OF title 81
chapter 1, and to add thereto 439Ca
439Ob, 1890. and also to amend arti
Gle 1902, of chapter 2, and article
44l8, of chapter 4. title 81, of the re
vised civil statutes, relating to pub.
lie roads; and to enforce the pro.
visions Of article 4390a, of this bill
and to provide adequate penalties
Therefor.
Section 1. Be it enacted by the
Legislature of the State Of Texas
That articles 4390a, 4390b, 1890 be
added to chapter /, title 81, of the re-
vised civil statutes. and that articles
1880, 1861, 1856, 1857, 1870, 4371, 1872
1915, 1879, 1884, 1889 and 1890 of said
chapter and title, and article 1892,
chapter 2, and article 4418, chapter 4,
| title 81, be so amended as to hereafter
read as follows:
Article 1850. The commissioners
courts Of the several counties shall
have full power, and it shall be their
duty, to order the laying out and open
| ing of public roads when necessary,
and to discontinue or alter any road,
whenever it shall be deemed expe-
dent, as hereinafter prescribed; pro.
vided, that hereafter no public road
shall be altered or changed except
for the purpose of shortening the dis
lance from the point of beginning to
the point of dest nation.
Art. 1851. 1t shall be the duty of
the commissioners court to classify
| all public roads in their counties into
first, second and third-class roads, and
| to act as supervisors of roads in their
| respective precincts as hereinafter
provided, and the commissioners
court may, on their own motion,
where it is deemed necessary, open
new roads or straighten existing ones.
Art. 1885. All applications for a
new road, and all application to dis
continue an existing one, shall be by
| petition to the commissioners court,
signed by at least eight free holders in
the precinct or precincts in which
such road is desired to be made or dis
continued, specifying in such petition
the beginning and termination of such
road proposed to be opened UT discon-
tinued; provided that where one or
more persons live within any en-
| closure, either or all of them may Pc
tition the commissioners court for a
third-class or neighborhood road to
their nearest ira ling point. mills, gins,
school and church houses and county
seats, and the court shall open such
roads as hereinafter provided in the
opening of third-clasS roads; and pro-
vided further. that no part Of ptb-
lie road shall be discontinued, unless a
new road connecting that part of such
road, not discontinued shall first be
opened; and provided further, that no
part of a first or second class road
shall be reduced to road Of a lower
class.
Art. 1867. All roads hereinafter
ordered to be made shall be laid out
by jury of free holders of the county
to be appointed by the commissioners
court. Said jury shall consist of five
persons, majority of whom may
proceed with the county surveyor to
lay out survey and describe such road
to the greatest advantage to the pub
lie, and So, that the same can be traced
with ceFy.l, Siiii and the field notes of
such survey Inscription OF the
road shall be inc - the report of
the jury, and if adopted shall be re-
corded in the minutes of the comI4ls-
sioners' courts.
Art. 1870. The jury of freeholders,
provided for in article 1867, shall issue
notice in writing to ,the land owners
through whose lands such proposed
road may run, or to his agent or attor-
ney. of the time when they will pro-
coed to lay out such road. or when
they will assess the damages inciden-
tai to the opening of the same, which
notice shall be served upon suoh owner
his agent or attorney, at least five
days before the day therein named. If
such owner is a nonresident of the
county the notice may be given by
publication In newspaper published
in the county, as notices are required
to be given to non-residents as to
action in the district or county court,
and the road may be established after
four weeks of publication, the cost of
publishing to be paid as directed by
the judgment of the court:
Art. 4371. The owner of any such
land may at any time stated in such
notice or previously thereto present to
the jury statement in writing of
the damage claimed by him, if any,
incidental to the opening Of such road
and thereupon the Jury shall proceed
to assess the damages, returning their
assessment and the claimants state
ment with their report to the COM
missioners' court.
Art. 1872. If the commissioners
court shall approve of the report and
order such road to be opened, they
shall consider the assessment of dam
ages by the jury and the claimants
statement thereof, and allow to such
owner just damages and adequate
compensation for the land taken, and
when paid or secured by deposit with
the county treasurer to the credit of
such owner, they may proceed to haye
such road opened. If the owner of
the land is not satisfied with the
assessment by the commissioners
court, he may appeal therefrom, as in
cases of appeal from Judgment of JUS
tees court, but such appeal shall not
prevent the road from being opened,
but shall be only to fix the amount of
damage. If no claim of damages is
filed with such jury after notice, as
provided in the preceding article, the
same shall be considered as waived.
Art. 1875. The commissioners court
may alter or change the course of any
public road in accordance with article
1850 of this chapter, after notice and
upon application in the same manner
as provided III this chapter for the
of a road, except that
the application need not he signed by
more than one freeholder of the pre-
cinct in which such alteration or
change is proposed to be made.
Art. 1879. For the further and bet
ter providing for public roads, any
lines between different persons. or
owners of land. any section line, or |
any direct line through an enclosure |
containing 1880 acres of land or more, |
may, upon the condition provided for |
in the following articles OF this chap |
ter, be deemed public highways and |
left open and free from all obstruc- |
tons for fifteen feet on either side of |
said lines, but the marked trees and |
other objects used to designate said |
lines and corners of surveys shall not |
be removed or defaced.
Art. 1884. AT regular term of the |
court, after due service of notice as |
provided in the preceding article, the |
commissioners court may, in its dis
cretion, should it deem the road of |
sufficient public Importance, issue an |
order declaring the lines designated in |
the application to be public highways, |
and direct that the same be opened by |
the owners thereof and left open for a
space of fifteen feet on each side of |
said line.
Art. 1887. All costs attending the
provided for in relation
to opening of neighborhood roads |
shall be paid by the county, ii the ap-