Consolidation of railroad corporations.

Railroad and Warehouse Commissioners of this State shall be applicable in the conduct of any legal proceeding commenced by such commissioners under this Act.

recovered.

195. 4. Any railroad company so refusing or neglect- Penalty--How ing as aforesaid shall be liable to a penalty of not less than $100 nor more than $500 for each neglect or refusal as aforesaid, to be recovered in an action of assumpsit in the name of the People of the State of Illinois, for the use of the county in which such act or acts of neglect or refusal shall occur, and it shall be the duty of the Railroad and Warehouse Commissioners to cause prosecutions for such penaities to be instituted and prosecuted.

CONSOLIDATION OF RAILROAD CORPORATIONS.

A BILL for an Act to increase the powers of railroad corporations. [Approved June 30, 1885; in force July 1, 1885. L. 1885; Legal News Ed., p. 179.

corporations.

196. § I. Be it enacted by the People of the State of Consolidation Illinois, represented in the General Assembly: That all rail- of railroad road companies now organized, or hereafter to be organized, under the laws of this State, which now are, or hereafter may be in possession of, and operating in connection with, or extension of their own railway lines, any other railroad or railroads, in this State or any other state or states, or owning and operating a railroad which connects at the boundary line of this State with a railroad in another state, are hereby authorized and empowered to purchase and hold in fee simple or otherwise, and to use and enjoy the railway property, corporate rights and franchises of the company or companies owning such other road or roads, upon such terms and conditions as may be agreed upon between the directors, and approved by the stockholders; owning not less thån two-thirds in amount of the capital stock of the respective corporations becoming parties to such purchase and sale; such approval may be given at any annual or special meeting, upon sixty days' notice being given to all shareholders, of the question to be acted on, by publication in some newspaper published in the county where the principal business office of the corporation is situated: Provided, that notice of any special meeting called to act upon such question shall be given to each shareholder whose postoffice address is known, by depositing in the postoffice. at least thirty days before the time appointed for such meeting, a notice properly addressed and stamped, signed by the secretary of the company, stating the time, place and object of such meeting: And, provided further, that no railroad corporation shall be permitted to purchase any railroad which is a parallel or competing line with anv line owned or operated by such corporation.

Body cor

Consolidation of railroad corporations.

Consolidat ed 197. § 2. Any railroad company now organized or Company hereafter to be organized under the laws of this State, shall porate have power from time to time to borrow such sums of Power of Illinois money as may be necessary for the funding of its indebtedCentral. ness, paying for constructing, completing, improving or maintaining its lines of railroad, and to issue bonds therefor, and to mortgage its corporate property, rights, powers, privileges and franchises, including the right to be a corporation, to secure the payment of any debt contracted for such purposes; and to increase its capital stock to any amount required for the purposes aforesaid, not exceeding the cost of the roads and works owned or constructed and equipped by it; such increase of capital stock to be made in such manner and in accordance with and subject to such regulations, preferences, privileges and conditions as the company at any general or special meeting of its shareholders, held at the time such creation of new shares may be authorized, shall think fit: Provided, that no stock or bonds shall be issued, except for money, labor or property actually received and applied to the purposes for which such corporation was created; nor shall the capital stock be increased for any purpose except upon giving sixty days' public notice in the manner provided in the first section of this Act: And, provided further, that nothing contained in this Act shall be held or construed to alter, modify, release or impair the rights of this State as now reserved to it in any railroad charter heretofore granted, or to affect in any way the rights or obligations of any railroad company derived from, or imposed by such charter: And, provided further, that nothing herein contained shall be so construed as to authorize or permit the Illinois Central Railroad Company to sell the railway constructed under its charter, approved Feb. 10, 1851, or to mortgage the same, except subject to the rights of the State under its contract with said company, contained in its said charter, or to dissolve its corporate existence, or to relieve itself or its corporate property from its obligations to this State, under the provisions of said charter; nor shall anything herein contained be so construed as to in any manner relieve or discharge any railroad company, organized under the laws of this State, from the duties or obligations imposed by virtue of any statute now in force or hereafter enacted: And, provided further, that nothing in this Act shall be so construed as to authorize any corporation, other than those organized in and under the laws of this State, to purchase or otherwise become the owner, owners, 'lessee or lessees of any railroad within this State.

AN ACT to ratify consolidations and sales and purchases between railroad companies of this State and railroad companies of other states, and to confirm in the purchasing companies or in the companies formed by such consolidations, as the case may be, during the term of their corporate existence, and of any extensions thereof, all the corporate right, franchises, privileges and immunities, sold and purchased, or belonging or pertaining to the constituent companies, and to define the term of the corporate existence of such consolidated companies, and to authorize them to renew their corporate existence. [Approved and in force July 9, 1897. L. 1897, p. 281; Legal News Ed., p. 198.

tion of

ratified.

198. I. Be it enacted by the People of the State of Consolida§ Illinois, represented in the General Assembly: That every companies agreement, whether in form of deed of sale, articles of consolidation or otherwise, made and entered into between the first day of July in the year Anno Domini one thousand eight hundred and seventy-four and the first day of July, Anno Domini one thousand eight hundred and eighty-three, by and between any railroad company organized under the laws of this State, or of this State and any other state or states, and any railroad company or companies organized under the laws of any other state or states, providing or purporting to provide for the consolidation or merger of the capital stocks, corporate and other franchises, privileges and property of the respective companies parties thereto, and under which the consolidated company thereby created or attempted to be created, or its successor or lessee, now owns, controls or operates, or is in possession of the several railway lines of the respective companies parties to such agreement, be, and the same is hereby ratified, approved and confirmed; and all the corporate rights, franchises, privileges and immunities of the several and respective companies parties to every such agreement, are hereby granted, vested and confirmed in the consolidated company thereby created or attempted to be created for and during the term of its corporate existence and of any renewal thereof.

between railroad

ratified, approved and confirmed.

199. § 2. That every agreement between any railroad Agreement company of this State, or of this State and any other state or states, and any railroad company or companies organized companes under the laws of any other state or states, made between the first day of July, Anno Domini one thousand eight hundred and seventy-four, and the first day of July, Anno Domini one thousand eight hundred and eighty-three, and providing or attempting to provide for the purchase of any such corporation of this State or of this State and any other state or states, of the property, corporate and other franchises, privileges and immunities of railroad corporations of any other state or states and under which any such corporation of this State, or of this State and any other state or states, now owns, controls or operates, or is in possession of

Term of existence

Redemption of drawback checks.

the rai road, railroads and appurtenances sought to be conveyed, is hereby ratified, approved and confirmed.

200. 3. That whenever, in the articles of consolidaof consoli- tion or other instrument creating or purporting to create dated com- such consolidated company, the term of the corporate exrenewal of istence of said consolidated company shall have been fixed

pany

corporate existence.

Emergency.

for any term of years, not exceeding fifty years, said term so fixed shall be held and deemed to be the lawful term of the corporate existence of said consolidated company; and the said consolidated company shall be, and is hereby authorized to renew its corporate existence from time to time in such manner as shall be provided for by law for periods not longer than fifty years.

201. § 4. Whereas, an emergency exists for the immediate taking effect of this Act, therefore, the same shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage.

REDEMPTION OF DRAWBACK CHECKS.

AN ACT to regulate and enforce the redemption of drawback checks issued by railroad corporations. [Approved June 1, 1889; in force July 1, 1889. L. 1889, p. 225; Legal News Ed., p. 139.

Drawback

checksredemp

tion of.

The term

"railroad corporation."

202. § I. Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly: That where any railroad corporation issues or cause's to be issued or delivered, by a conductor or other authorized agent, what is known as a drawback check to any passenger on account of the overpayment of cash fare by such passenger for transportation over any part of such railroad, such drawback check shall be redeemed by said corporation upon its presentation by the holder at any ticket office of such corporation, within ten years after such drawback check may have been issued; and upon refusal of the agent of such corporation in charge of such ticket office to redeem the same upon such presentation, the holder of such drawback check may maintain an action against such corporation in any court of competent jurisdiction for the recovery of the amount of money stipulated in such drawback check, together with costs of suit and a reasonable attorney's fee, to be fixed by the court where the cause is heard on appeal or otherwise, and taxed as a part of the costs of suit.

§

203. 2. The term railroad corporation contained in this Act shall be deemed and taken to include all companies, lessees, contractors, persons or associations of persons, whether incorporated or otherwise owning, operating or using any railroads in this State.

Stealing journal bearings, etc.

STEALING JOURNAL BEARINGS, ETC.

AN ACT to punish the crime of stealing or malicious removal of journal bearings, fixtures or attachments from locomotives, tenders, freight or passenger cars. [Approved June 1, 1889; in force July 1, 1889. L. 1889, p. 115; Legal News Ed., p. 140.

journal bearings, etc.

Penalty.

204. § I. Be it enacted by the People of the State of Removal of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly: That any person or persons who shall remove, take, steal, change, add to, take from, or in any manner interfere with any journal bearings or brasses, or any of the parts or attachments of any locomotive, tender or cars, or any fixture or attachments belonging to, connected with, or used in operating any locomotive, tender or car owned, leased or used by any railroad or transportation company in this State, shall be subject to punishment by imprisonment in the penitentiary not less than one, nor more than five years, in the discretion of the court or jury before whom the cause is tried: Provided, that upon a plea of guilty being entered, the court may fix the penalty prescribed herein: Provided, further, that if the removal of such journal bearings or brasses, fixtures or attachments as aforesaid, shall be the cause of wrecking any train, locomotive or other car in this State whereby the life or lives of any person or persons shall be lost as the result of the felonious or malicious stealing, interfering with or removal of the fixtures as aforesaid, the person or persons, found guilty thereof shall be liable for murder as in other For punishment for malicious mischief, see Criminal Code, ch. 38, sec. 8.

cases.

RE-LOCATION OF RAILROAD TO RUN THROUGH COUNTY SEAT.

AN ACT to enable any railroad company whose main line runs near to any county seat to change and re-locate such line so as to run through such county seat. [Approved May 5, 1891; in force July 1, 1891. L. 1891, p. 183; Legal News Ed., p. 125.

-county seat.

205. I. Be it enacted by the People of the State of Re-location § Illinois, represented in the General Assembly: That each of railroad and every railroad corporation organized in this State, or doing business therein, which has a branch of its railway running through any county seat and is compelled by law to run all trains passing over the line used by it as its main line upon or over said branch to such couny seat, be and is hereby authorized to relocate and change the line used by it as its main line of railway and bring it into or through such county seat, so that all trains running over said main line shall pass into or through such county seat on said main line and stop thereat to receive and let off passengers and to put on and take off freight.

206. § 2. Whenever any railroad corporation shall Re-location. have re-located and changed the line used by it as its main line of railway, as provided in section I of this Act, and Depot.

-Running trainsMain line