with the secretary of state, and a duplicate thereof, with the town clerk of the town, or clerk of the village or city, in which said corporation is to transact its business; and said secretary of state, and town clerk shall record the same, in books to be kept by them for that purpose; and within thirty days after the payment of any installment called for by the directors of such corp ration, a certificate thereof shall be made, signed, deposited and recorded, as aforesaid.

SEC. 18. If any such corporation shall increase its Increase of capital stock as before provided, the president and direc- capital stock. tors shall, within thirty days thereafter, make a certificate thereof, which shall be signed, deposited and recorded, as in the preceding section is provided.

SEC. 19. Every such corporation shall annually, in the Certificate of month of January or of July, make a certificate containing capital the amount of their capital, actually paid in, the amount of their debts and credits at the time of the making of such certificate, as nearly as the same can be ascertained, with the name of each stockholder, and the number of shares held by him at the date of such certificate, which certificate shall be signed by the president and secretary of said company, and deposited with the town clerk of the town, or clerk of the city or village in which such corporation transact their business; and whenever any stockholder Notice of shall transfer his stock in any such corporation, a certificate transfer. of such transfer shall forthwith be deposited with the clerk as aforesaid, who shall note the time of said deposite, and record it at full length, in a book kept by him for that purpose; and no transfer of stock shall be valid as against When noś any creditor of such stockholder, until such certificate has been so deposited; and all certificates of transfers of stock made pursuant to the provisions of this section, shall be When valid valid without being verified by the oath or affirmation of the person subscribing the same.

valid.

oath.

SEC. 20. The certificates required by the three preced-Certificates ng sections, except certificates of transfer of stock, shall required on be made under oath or affirmation, by the person subscribing the same; and if any person shall, as to any mate Penalty for rial facts, knowingly swear or affirm falsely, he shall be false swearing deemed guilty of perjury, and be punished accordingly.

SEC. 21. If the capital stock of any such corporation Liability of shall be withdrawn, and refunded to the stockholders, be- stockholder ore the payment of all the debts of the corporation, for which said stock would have been liable, the stockholders

Proviso.

Liability of directors.

Liability of president, ditary, &c.

rectors, secre

Penalty for violation of

law.

shall be liable to any such creditor, of such corporation, in an action founded on this statute, to the amount of the sum refunded to them respectively, as aforesaid: Provided always, That if any such stockholder shall be compelled by any such action to pay the debts of any creditor, or any part thereof, he shall have the right by bill in equity, to call upon all the stockholders to whom any part of said stock has been refunded, to contribute their proportional part of the sum paid by him as aforesaid.

SEC. 22. If the directors of any such corporation shall declare and pay a dividend when the corporation is insolvent, or any dividend, the payment of which would render it insolvent, knowing such corporation to be insolvent, or that such dividend would render it so, the directors assenting therennto shall be jointly of severally liable in an action founded on this statute, for all debts due from such corporation at the time of such dividend.

SEC. 23. If the president, directors, or secretary of any such corporation shall intentionally neglect or refuse to comply with the provisions of, and to perform the duties required of them, respectively, by the 17th, 18th, and 19th, sections of this act, such of them so neglecting or refusing, shall jointly and severally, be liable, in an action founded on this statute, for all debts of such corporation contracted during the period of any such neglect and refusal.

SEC. 24. If any corporation organized and established under authority of this act, shall violate any of its provisions, and shall thereby become insolvent, the directors ordering or assenting to such violation, shall jointly and severally, be liable in an action founded on this statute, for all debts contracted after such violation as aforesaid.

Liability of SEC. 25. The stockholders of any corporation, organstockholders. ized under the provisions of this act, shall be jointly and severally liable for all debts that may be due or owing to all their laborers, servants and apprentices, for service performed by them for such corporation, within six months next preceding the demand made for any such debt, if any stockholder is compelled to pay such debts, he shall have his remedy by bill in equity, or otherwise, to obtain a contribution from the other stockholders of their tion of such debt.

Legislature may rescind

and

propor

SEC. 26. The legislature may at any time, for just cause rescind the powers of any corporation organized under this

act, and prescribe such mode as may be necessary for the powers of corsettlement of its affairs. poration.

SEC. 27. Chapter 51 of the revised statutes of this state, and all other laws conflicting with the provisions as herein established for the organization and government of joint stock companies, are hereby repealed. Approved, April 2, 1853.

An Act to prohibit the circulation of unauthorized Bank paper.
The people of the State of Wisconsin, represented in
Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:

Chap. 69

unauthorized

SECTION 1. No No person or persons, shall issue, pay Circulation of out or pass, and no body corporate, shall issue, pay bank paper out or pass, or receive in this state as money, or as an prohibited. equivolent for money, any promissory note, draft, order, bill of exchange, certificate of deposit, or other paper of any form whatever, in the similitude of bank paper, circulating or inteded to circulate as money or banking currency, that is not at the time of such issuing, paying outpassing, or receiving, expressly authorized by some pos, tive law of the United States, or one of the United States or of Canada, and redeemable in current gold and silver coin, at the place where it purports to have been issued. And the burden of proving the existence of such law, and the redemptionof the promissory note, bill of exchange, draft, order, certificate of deposit, as aforesaid, at the place of issue, shall rest upon the person or body corporate, paying out, passing, receiving or issuing the same.

SEC. 2. From and after the first day of January, A. D. Of a sum less 1854, no person or persons, or body corporate shall pay, give than five dol or receive in payment, or in any way, circulate as money, any bank bill, promissory note, check, draft, or other evidence of debt, which shall purport to be for the payment of a less sum than five dollars, and which may have been issued by any banking association or corporation out of this state, and any person or persons, or body corporate offending against any of the provisions of this section, shall forfeit and pay for every such offence not less than five, nor more than one hundred dollars, to be recovered by any person, sueing therefor, as debts of the like amount are by law recoverable, one half for his own use and the other half to be paid into the county treasurer.

Penalty on person violating.

Body corpor ate violating.

Person informing.

Justice of the peace to have jurisdiction.

Effect on contracts.

SEO. 3. Any person who shall knowingly violate the provisions of the first section of this act, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall upon conviction be punished by fine of not less than ten; nor more than one hundred dollars, or by imprisonment in the county jail for a term of not less than one, nor more than six months, or by such fine and imprisonment, in the discretion of the court.

SEC. 4. Any body corporate that shall violate the provisions contained in the first section of this act, shall forfeit all the rights privi eges and franchises conferred by the charter or act of incorporation of such body corporate, and shall also forfeit and pay for every such violation, for the use of the school fund of this state, the sum of five hundred dollars, to be recovered by an action of debt in any court of competent jurisdiction in the name of the state of Wisconsin, on the relation of any person who may see fit to prosecute the same. And any officer, director, stockholder or agent, of such body corporate, who shall in the name of such corporation or otherwise, violate any of the provisions of said first section, shall be subject to all the pains and penalties prescribed in the second section of this act, the same as if said violation had been committed in his individual capacity; and any such offence committed by any person named in this section, may be prosecuted in any county of this state where any of said paper may be found circulating.

SEC. 5. Any person who shall inform against, and cause to be prosecuted to conviction any person, or who shall on his own relation cause to be prosecuted to judg ment any body corporate for violating the provisions contained in the first section of this act, shall be entitled to receive one half of the fine or forfeiture imposed for such violation when collected.

SEC. 6. Justices of the peace shall have full power and concurrent jurisdiction to try and determine all misdemeanors, arising under the provisions of this act, upon complant on oath being made for that purpose, by any person, in the same manner, and with same privilege of trial by jury to the accused, as provided in chapter eighty-nine of the revised statutes of Wisconsin.

SEC. 7. All contracts that shall be made or entered into of any kind whatever, the consideration of which, in whole or in part, shall consist of any such circulating pa per as is prohibited by the first and second sections of this

act, and all payments made in any such unauthorized paper shall be null and void for any purpose whatever.

SEC. 8. The certificate of the secretary of state of any of the several states of the United States, and his hand and seal, shall be legal evidence of the corporate existence of any and all banking corporations within such state.

SEC. 9. This act shall be immediately published by the secretary of state, and take effect and be in full force from and after the first day of July, 1853: The secreItary of state, shall cause this act to be published in every newspaper in this state.

Approved, April 2, 1853.

An Act for the encouragement of Agriculture, and its kindred arts, in this Chap. 70.

State.

The people of the State of Wisconsin, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:

SECTION 1. There is hereby annually appropriated, until Sum appropri the legislature shall by law otherwise direct, to the Wiscon-ated. sin state agricultural society, the sum of one thousand dollars, to be expended by said society, in such manner as it may deem best calculated to promote and improve the condition of agriculture, horticulture, and the mechanical, manufacturing and household arts in this state, either for the payment of premiums, at the annual cattle shows and fairs of the society, or in the purchase and distribution of choice seeds, cuttings, plants or tubers, which have been tested and found adapted to the soil and climate of this state, or to the prosecution of scientific investigations and experiments, and the collection and diffusion of information tending to develop the natural and agricultural resources of Wisconsin.

mittee.

SEC. 2. It shall be the duty of the executive com- Duty of exmittee, of the said Wisconsin state agricultural so- ecutive comciety, to keep an accurate account of the manner of expenditure of the said sum of money hereby appropriated, and transmit the same, together with the vouchers therefor, to the governor of this state, in the month of January, in each year, to be by him laid before the legislature.

SEC. 3. It shall also be the duty of the said executive committee of the Wisconsin state agricultural society, to collect, arrange, and collate all the information in their power in relation to the nature, origin and preparation of