council, payable as salaries of other officers of such city are paid. The term of office of any assessor or assessors in any city to which this law shall be or become applicable shall terminate on the first day of January following the date on which it becomes applicable to such city. If there be a deputy tax commissioner in any such city, he shall receive an annual salary to be fixed by the common council.

SECTION 2. All acts or parts of acts contravening the pro visions of this act are hereby repcaled.

SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon passage and publication.

Approved May 24, 1917.

No. 403, S.]

[Published May 26, 1917.

CHAPTER 282

AN ACT to renumber chapter 16 of the statutes, relating to the protection of the public lands, to revise the title of said chapter and to renumber, amend, revise or repeal the sections thereof and certain other sections relating to the same subject. The people of the State of Wisconsin, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:

SECTION 1. Chapter 16 of the statutes is renumbered to be chapter 26 of the statutes and the title is revised to read:

CHAPTER 26.

PROTECTION OF THE PUBLIC LANDS.

SECTION 2. A new section is added to the statutes to read: 26.01 DEFINITION. The word "commission" when used in this chapter without other word or words of description or qualification means the state conservation commission of Wisconsin.

TRESPASS AND THEFT.

SECTION 3. Section 240 of the statutes is renumbered to be section 26.02 and is amended to read:

26.02. SEIZURE AND SALE OF MATERIALS.

The

state conservation commission of Wisconsin is empowered to seize or cause to be seized, without process, any lumber, timber, bark, minerals or other materials or property which, without authority of law, has been cut upon, or dug, removed or taken from any of the public lands belonging to this state, and, after appraising such property it shall sell the same at public auction to the highest bidder, under rules and regulations prescribed by the commission. On such sale *

it may

bid

in and purchase for the state for not less than half

* *

the commission for such price as it may deem best for the interest of the state; and no part of the money realized at any such sale shall be applied on any outstanding certificate of sale.

SECTION 4. A part of section 241 of the statutes is renumbered to be section 26.03 and is amended to read:

*

**

*

26.03. TRESPASS. (1) BY STRANGER ON LANDS SUBJECT TO PRIVATE ENTRY. Any person found trespassing on any such public lands subject to private entry may purchase the same by paying twice the minimum price therefor,

together with all expenses of the seizure and taking charge of the material seized until such purchase is completed. Until such purchase and payment have been made the trespasser shall be disable to acquire any of the public lands.

(2) BY CERTIFICATE HOLDERS ON LANDS NOT PATENTED.

If such lands have been sold and the owner of the certificate of sale shall have committed such trespass, he, his heirs receive a patent for such land, only * upon his paying twice the amount then due the state

or assigns, shall

*

on such certificate together with all legal charges

and

all the expenses of seizure and care as aforesaid; (3) RELEASE OF PROPERTY SEIZED AND CAUSE OF ACTION. When such payment shall have been made in either said commission shall release to

such case such person all the materials seized which were cut, dug, removed or taken from the lands so paid for by him, and discontinue any suit commenced to recover damages for any injury done to such lands, without costs to the state;

SECTION 5. That part of section 241 of the statutes which is not incorporated in new section 26.03 is renumbered to be section 26.04 and is amended to read:

26.04. SALES OF SEIZED PROPERTY. At any sale of property seized as

(1)

provided in section 26.02 the owner of the certificate of sale of the lands from or upon which

such property
was cut, dug,
he not being the trespasser, may

taken or removed,
bid
the amount due the state for such land and the
expenses of seizure and sale, which amount shall be stated at
the sale by the person authorized to sell before making such
sale. When such bid is made by such owner the person mak-
ing such sale shall strike off the property to him, and upon

*

*

his

his paying the sum so bid to the state treasurer or other person authorized to receive the same and surrender of the said certificate of sale, the commissioners of the public lands shall execute a patent for such land to such

owner.

(2); If there shall be a dispute between bidders at the sale as to the ownership of the certificate for such lands, the property shall be sold to the contestant bidder for the highest sum bid in addition to the amount due the state, including expenses, as aforesaid, and the money shall be paid into the state treasury and remain there until the commissioners shall determine the ownership of such certificate; and for that purpose it may adopt such rules and take such evidence as it shall deem necessary to determine the fact; and upon such determination there shall be paid out of the state treasury to the rightful person so ascertained the avails of such sale, after deducting the price of such land and the expenses aforesaid; and upon the surrender of the certificate of sale said commissioners of the public lands shall execute a patent for such land to such owner.

SECTION 6. Section 242 of the statutes is renumbered to be section 26.05 and is amended to read:

26.05. POSSESSION OF SEIZED MATERIAL.

*

Any property seized by the commission under the provisions of section 26.02 may be held by it until the payments required of the trespasser by section 26.03 shall be made, even though the land affected was patented previous to the seizure but after *

the trespass;

and his assigns shall be

*

*

and every tresdisentitled

passer to the possession of any materials taken from any of the public lands until all penalties and charges ** imposed upon him by law are paid. Nothing in this chapter contained, nor the payment of any penalty herein provided, shall affect the liability of any person, whether prosecuted before or after the issuance of such patent, to punishment for any such trespass. SECTION 7. Section 243 of the statutes is renumbered to be section 26.06 and is amended by striking therefrom the word "commissioners" wherever said word appears and inserting in each place thereof the word "commission."

SECTION 8. Section 244 of the statutes is renumbered to be section 4152a and is amended to read:

PUBLIC LANDS. Section 4152a. In any civil or criminal action growing out of a trespass upon any public lands the certificate of the secretary of state, under the great or lesser

seal, that any specified piece or tract of land belongs to or is mortgaged to the state, or that the state has any interest, legal or equitable, therein,

of the facts so stated,

shall be presumptive evidence ** Also in any such action the certificate of the secretary of the conservation commission under the official seal of the commission that authority has been given to any person, naming him, to seize timber or other materials specified in this chapter shall be presumptive evidence of the fact so stated.

SECTION 9. Section 245 of the statutes is renumbered to be section 26.07 and section 1494-61 of the statutes is repealed. SECTION 10. Section 194 of the statutes is renumbered to be section 26.08 and is amended to read: 26.08. LEASES AND LICENSES. commission

not exceeding

(1). Said may, from time to time, lease for terms fifteen years, parts or par* and

*

cels of state park lands or state forest lands;

*

*

*

such leases shall contain proper covenants to guard against trespass and waste; The rents arising therefrom shall be paid into the state treasury to the credit of the proper fund. Licenses also may be granted to prospect for ore or mineral upon any of said lands; but proper security shall be taken that the licensees will fully inform the commission of every discovery of ore or mineral and will restore the surface to its former condi tion and value if no discovery of valuable deposits be made. The commission shall retain a copy of each such lease or license and file the original in the office of the commissioners of the public lands.

(2) The commission shall furnish to the commissiners of the public lands such maps, plats, surveys, valuations, information and other services as said commissioners may request respecting any of the public lands, for use by them in granting leases or licenses or in making sales under the provisions of section 24.39. SECTION 11. Section 257 of the statutes is repealed.

SECTION 12. Section 1494-60 of the statutes is renumbered to be section 26.09 and is amended to read:

has

26.09. CIVIL LIABILITY FOR FOREST TRESPASS. * The state, the county or the private owners upon whose lands ** any wilful trespass been committed, may recover in a civil action double the amount of damages suffered. This section shall not apply to the cutting of wood or timber from uncultivated woodland for the repair of a public highway or bridge upon or adjacent to the land.

SECTION 13. A new section is added to the statutes to read: 26.10. REPORTS BY THE CONSERVATION COMMISSION TO THE COMMISSIONERS OF THE PUBLIC LANDS. The state conservation commission shall report monthly to the commissioners of the public lands all trespasses committed, all materials seized, all sales made and all moneys received under any of the preceding sections of this chapter. MARSH, SWAMP, FIELD AND FOREST FIRES. SECTION 14. Section 1494 47 of the statutes is amended to read:

*

26.11. STATE AND LOCAL FIRE WARDENS. * The # commission shall * be in charge of and give suitable directions to the entire fire warden force of the state. The chairman of the town board * * of each town in the state shall be the town such town * * and

for

*

*

*

fire warden the superintendents of highways for the different road districts within the different towns shall be assistant town fire wardens for their respective towns.

* *

SECTION 15. Section 1494 47a of the statutes is renumbered to be section 26.12.

SECTION 16. Section 1494-48 of the statutes is renumbered to be section 26.13 and subsections (1) and (2) thereof are amended to read:

26.13. DUTIES OF FIRE WARDENS; POLICE POWERS; COMPENSATION AND REWARDS; TAXATION AND PAYMENT. * 1. Each fire warden, before entering upon his duties, shall take an oath of office and file the same with the state fire warden. All fire wardens shall take prompt and effective measures against the spread and illegal setting of forest, marsh or swamp fires within their towns and districts and shall have the power of sheriffs to arrest without warrant for violations of the provisions of * any sections of the statutes relating to setting, failure to extinguish or care of fires. They shall have authority to call upon any ablebodied citizen, in territory in which they act, to assist in extinguishing forest, marsh, swamp and other running fires in such manner as they may direct.

(2) Those assisting either the town or assistant town fire wardens in the extinguishing of forest, marsh, swamp and other fires shall receive compensation for their services at not more than twenty cents per hour for the time actually employed. The commission is authorized to approve for payment not to exceed fifty per cent of the clear proceeds of any fine col