Year: 1865

Iy
by said Commissioners under his hand and seal


and be by him delivered to the Clerk of the


Circuit Court for Baltimore county, to be by him


kept and preserved as all:other records in his
office. a8a


/ Sec. 3. And be 1t enacted, That the said Com
mlssloners shall have and exercise all the
4 powers which are now possessed by the Judges
of the Circuit Courts of the several counties oil
the State, to issue and compel process for the
attendance of witnesses, as we'll as parties who
appear upon the records, papers, dockets and
| indexes, or other instruments of writing to be
interested in property lying in said county, or
| who may have been connected with any decd,


suit, bonds bill Of SALE mortgage or other instru


ments of writing, or cause depending in said
/ Circuit Court for Baltimore county, therecord


of which has been either wholly or partial
/ ly destroyed by the fire which occurred in the


office of the Clerk of the said Circuit Court for
| Baltimore county, to serve such process, for
| which service he shall be entitled to receive
/ the same fees as are now allowed by law for
| like services, to be paid either by the parties


interested or by the county, as the said Com
| missioner may prescribe. ~


Sec. a. And be 1T enacted, That after the Com
| missioner shall have notified, by circular or
otherwise, all persons having original deeds or


other instruments of writing or papers which
l have been recorded in the office of the Clerk of


the Circuit Court of said county, we'll as those


who appear IN anywise connected with the re-


cords, dockets, papers, indexes or other instru-
| Inents of writing, or causes of action the record


of which has been wholly or partially destroy


ed by fire, to file said originals with the Clerk
Of the said Circuit Court after having prescrb-
cd the time and place of the sitting Of the
Commissioner, which shall be at the court


house in said Baltimore county, and after hav-
| ing issued summons to those interested in any


manner according to the records, dockets, pa
| pers, indexes or other instruments of writing,
| in the Office of said Clerk, when the summons
| process issued TO the Sheriff of said county
| shall be by him returned summoned, and the
| party so returned summoned shall tfail to ap-
| pear or give such excuse for his failure to ap-
| pear as shall seem reasonable in the discretion
| of the said Commissioner, that then the said
Commissioner is hereby authorized, empowered
and directed, to impose a fine upon each and
| every person notified and summoned, from five
| to fifty dollars in the discretion Of the Com
missioner, including all costs.


| Sec. 5. A1,d be 1t enacted, That every fine i'm


posed according to the. provisions of this act
including costs, upon any person or persons,
shall be regarded as judgment in law, and
it shall be the duty of the said Commissioner


to collect each and every judgment entered by


him against any person or persons by execu-
ton or attachment, or other process authorized


by the laws of this State, for the collection and


enforcement of judgments, and pay The same
over to the Treasurer of the said county, who





shall be the duty of the Treasurer of the said


county, to place the sum or sums so authorized
to be paid to him, to the credit of the fund ap-
propriated for the restoration of the records in


dexes, dockets, or other instruments of writing


in the Office of the said Clerk of the Circuit
Court for Baltimore county.


Sec. 6. And be 1T enacted, That in all cases


where, in the judgment of the Commissioner
appointed by this act, any record in the office


of the Clerk Of said county, shall have been so


burnt or defaced, as to be wholly destroyed by
fire, and the indexes to such record, or the gen


eral index may supply the titling to such re-
cord, he shall take and accept such index as
/ auxiliary evidence, and shall, if the original
papers, or certified copy thereof, properly ev-
idenced as Of record, be produced, order and
direct such original paper, or copy, as the case


may be, to be recorded anew, and shall endorse
such order on said paper, and then record the
same, which endorsement and new record of
such paper shall be prinaG facie evidence of the
verify of the record so made, and available for


all purposes for which the original record, if it
had not been destroyed by fire, would have
been available in evidence. 1
Sec. Z. And be it enacted, That in all cases


where any record or paper shall be wholly de-
stroyed by fire, and the original or certified
copy thereof cannot be procured, 1T shall be the
duty of the Commissioner, if the said record
be found indexed, to hear and receive such 9TH
er evidence, if any their be within the record


Office either to be derived from the remains of


the burnt record or otherwise, and such extrin-


sic evidence as the parties interested may sup
ply, and shall determine and adiudge in the


premises, whether the said record or paper be
fully established, and if satisfied by such evil


dence, it shall be his duty, if the party or par
ties grantor shall supply new instrument,
correspondent to the one destroyed by fire and


confrmatory of the same, to accept such instru-
ment and to order and direct the same to be
H.. Il
order, which record and endorsement shall Sc
cure to the party or parties concerned, all the
rights, title and interest which was designed
and intended to be vested by the original paper


or instrument of writing, as fully as if the re-
cord thereof had not been destroyed by lire,


but if for any reason, the grantor or grantors


should not supply rev or confrmatory deed


or other instrument of writing, as the case may


be, corresponding with the one destroyed by
fire, then the said Commissioner shall execute
and deliver in his capacity of Commissioner,


new and confirmatory deed or instrument of


writing, under his hand and seal, properly ac-
knowledged, to take the place of the record


destroyed by fire, and shall order and direct


the same to be recorded, after endorsement,


which shall secure to the parties interested, the
same rights title, and interest which was de-
signed and intended to be vested by the origi
nal paper or instrument of writing and record


thereof as fully and effectually as if the record


had not been destroyed-by fire.
Sec. 8. And be ii enacted, That IN all cases


where the records have been only partially de-


stroyed or injured by fire, so that they may be


restored by their own intrinsic evidence or by
the aid of other evidence accessible to the said
Commissioner, it shall be the duty OF the said


Commissioner to cause the said records to be


restored to their original condition, and to be


recorded anew and for the purpose of preserv-
ing theasaid records as continuously together
as they were before being burnt the said Com
missioner is hereby authorized, if he see fit, to
cause the binding of any of the record books
to be removed, so that the tolios may be sepa-


rated, the burnt portions deta ched and the new


record thereof and corresponding thereto, be


substituted in the place of said burnt part, and
to have the said record book thus restored to
its original condition, rebound, and certif-


cate to that effect recorded therein.


Sec. Q. A,,d be 1t enacted, That in all cases


wherein process may be issued to summons


parties before the said Commissioner, which


shall be returned non est, no final order shall


be passed in the premises until public notice


shall have been first given in some newspaper


published in said county once week for at
least three weeks, and no order shall be passed


upon any record or paper alleged to have been
destroyed or injured by fire, which shall in


anywise have the effect to impair or interfere


with the rights of third parties not appearing


to or contesting any issue before the said Com


missioner, and any party to any issue or ex-


animation had before said Commissioner shall


have the right at any time within thirty days


to appeal from any order passed by him to the


circuit Judge for said county, and the said


Commissioners shall be and he is hereby requir-


ed to carry into effect the order of the said


Judge in the premises.


Sec. 10. And be 1t enacted, That when any


docket shall have been wholly or partially de-


stroyed by fire, the said Commissioner shall


cause the same to be made anew from the trial


papers, auxiliary doekets or any evidence in


said county,which may be accessible from the


burnt remains Of any docket or papers, or 9TH


wise, and when such dockets shall have been


made up the Commissioner shall certify the


same under his hand and seal to the Judge of
| rhan hn tho Int Of