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c. 266, §§ 6, 12, and is by this ordinance devolved upon the superintendent. So much of the St. 1825, c. 3, as vests in the board of aldermen the locating of lights, and the determination of their character and number, seems to be unaffected by St. 1885, c. 266, that duty not being executive, but of a quasi-judicial or ministerial character. See Child v. Boston, 4 All. 41, 51; Cambridge v. Cambridge Railroad Company, 10 All. 50, 57.

Cities and towns are under no legal obligation to light their streets, and are not liable for injuries caused by their failure to do so. Randall v. Eastern R.R. Co., 106 Mass. 276, 277. — Macomber v. Taunton, 100 Mass. 255, 257.- Lyon v. Cambridge, 136 Mass. 419.

They are liable, however, for injuries caused by the negligent storage and explosion of material (as naphtha) used in lighting streets. Sullivan v. Holyoke, 135 Mass. 273.

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Appointment.
R. O. p. 102.

To complete records of births,

marriages, and deaths, prior to

1849.

R. O. p. 102.

Power to expend money, etc. R. O. p. 102.

Publication of reports of.

R. O. p. 102.

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3. Power to expend money, etc.
4. Publication of reports of.

SECTION 1. There shall be annually appointed by the mayor, subject to confirmation by the board of aldermen, two record commissioners, who shall serve without compensation.

SECT. 2. The said commissioners shall complete, so far as practicable, the record of births, marriages, and deaths in the town and city of Boston prior to the year eighteen hundred and forty-nine, and shall receive and collect all documents obtainable therefor; and all documents and records so collected shall become at once the property of the city and shall be deposited in the office of the city registrar or in such other place as the city council may direct.

SECT. 3. The said commissioners shall have no power, except by express vote of the city council, to enter into a contract or agreement in behalf of the city whereby the expenditure of money or any obligation shall be incurred, except that the chairman shall, unless other provision is made, have the charge and control of the expenditure of all moneys expressly appropriated for copying documents or records supplementary to the records of the town or city.

SECT. 4. The expense of copying or preparing and indexing all volumes of reports made by the said commissioners shall be defrayed from their general appropriation; and the expense of printing and binding such volumes shall be charged to the appropriation for printing, and shall include the expense of stereotyping such volumes as the said commissioners may deem fit. The edition of such volumes shall consist of fifteen hundred copies, which shall be bound and distributed as the said commissioners may prescribe, but no copies shall be sold.

NOTES.

The record commissioners are established under the general power conferred by § 3 of the city charter, and the manner of their appointment and removal is determined by St. 1885, c. 266, § 1.

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and subordinates.

SECTION 1. There shall be annually appointed by the Appointment mayor, subject to confirmation by the board of aldermen, a superintendent of public buildings, who shall be allowed, for R. O. p. 104. the discharge of his duties, the following subordinates:

One clerk and book-keeper,

One assistant superintendent,
One fuel clerk,

One assistant clerk,

One engineer for the City Hall.

tion to public

SECT. 2. The said superintendent shall, except as other- Duties in relawise provided, have the supervision of all the buildings buildings. belonging to the city, and of all buildings or parts of R. O. p. 104. buildings hired by the city, whether used for city or for county purposes, and shall provide therefor all necessary furniture and supplies except such as the superintendent of printing furnishes; shall keep himself acquainted with the condition thereof; shall superintend all repairs that may be ordered thereon, for which an appropriation shall be made, in accordance with the terms thereof. In case

of
any breach of contract by any contractor for work
upon any city building the superintendent shall report the
same to the mayor.

pairs; city archi

SECT. 3. The repairs upon all public buildings, for the To direct all city or county use, which do not require to be done by ordinary recontracts under the ordinances, shall be made under the tect to furnish direction of the superintendent, who shall be authorized to plans to. call upon the city architect for such plans as he may deem

necessary.

of all city prop

SECT. 4. The superintendent of public buildings shall To have charge have charge of the city property in all the armories provided erty in armories, by the city for the militia, shall report to the board of and make annual

etc.

report on same, aldermen whenever repairs thereon are needed, and shall expend such sums of money for the purposes of such armories as shall be voted therefor. He shall keep all such expenditures as items of a distinct account, and shall annually, in January, present a report to the city council containing a detailed account of his expenditures, of the kind and amount of city property in such armories, and of the leases of buildings, or portions of buildings, hired by the city for armory purposes.

May be directed

by aldermen to perform other duties.

To keep records and make

R. O. p. 104.

SECT. 5. The superintendent of public buildings may also perform any appropriate duties devolved upon him by vote of the board of aldermen, provided that the same do not interfere with the duties imposed by this ordinance, and provided that no additional compensation is given him payable out of the city treasury or by fees.

SECT. 6. He shall keep an accurate record of all buildings belonging to the city, and of the lands appurtenant to such annual report. buildings; and he shall annually, in January, present to the city council a report in relation to the same, showing the condition of such buildings and land, and the nature and amount of the expenditures that have been made during the previous year in relation thereto.

To have charge

subject, etc.

R. O. p. 105.

No building,

SECT. 7. The superintendent of public buildings shall of Faneuil Hall, have the care, custody, and management of Faneuil Hall, subject, however, to such orders in regard to its occupancy and uses as the board of aldermen may give from time to time. SECT. 8. No building and no land appurtenant to a etc., to be sold, building shall be sold except by order of the city council. or expenditure No expenditure exceeding one thousand dollars, for the altermade, except, ation or repair of a building, shall be made without an express vote of the city council, or of the board of aldermen, as the case may be, authorizing the same; except that the superintendent of public buildings may expend, at his discretion, any money voted to him specifically for general repairs on city property in his charge.

exceeding $1,000

etc.

R. O. pp. 105,

106.

Fuel for use of

city, contracts to be made by.

R. O. p. 38.

weighing, measurement,

etc.

R. O. p. 38.

SECT. 9. Contracts for all the fuel required for the use of the city shall be made annually, between the first day of May and the last day of September, by the superintendent of public buildings, in accordance with the provisions of these ordinances. The proposals shall contain, separately and distinctly, the terms upon which each particular description of fuel will be furnished, and shall provide for the delivery of the same at such times during the year and at such places as the superintendent of public buildings may require.

SECT. 10. All fuel contracted for by the city shall, before delivery, be weighed or measured by a sworn weigher or measurer, who shall give a certificate therefor as the same is delivered, and no bill for fuel shall be allowed for payment, unless it is accompanied by a receipt of delivery, indorsed upon such certificate.

NOTES.

The office of superintendent of public buildings is established under § 38 of the city charter; the manner of appointment and removal of the superintendent and his subordinates is determined by St. 1885, c. 266, ᎦᎦ 1, 5.

"The care and custody of the public buildings" is given to the city council by section 39 of the city charter, but by St. 1885, c. 266, § 6, it is vested in the appropriate executive officer, in this case the superintendent of public buildings, - under the supervision and control of the mayor. No change is, however, made by St. 1885, c. 266, in the power to lease or sell" the public buildings or other property of the city which section 39 of the city charter vests in the city council. The jail, court-house, and other county buildings belong to the city of Boston, and the board of aldermen have the same care and supervision of them that the county commissioners have of similar buildings in other counties. P. S. c. 22, §§ 3, 6, 20, 30. Special provisions relative to the power of the board of aldermen to erect, alter, or repair a county building are to be found in St. 1852, c. 266, § 4. The acts relating to the new Suffolk county court-house are St. 1880, c. 128, and St. 1885, e 377. "A city or town is not liable to a private citizen for an injury caused by any defect or want of repair in a city or town hall, or other public building erected and used solely for municipal purposes, or for negligence of its agents in the management of such buildings. * But when a city or town does not devote such building exclusively to municipal uses, but lets it or a part of it for its own advantage or emolument, by receiving rents or otherwise, it is liable, while it is let, in the same manner as a private owner would be." MORTON, J., in Worden v. New Bedford, 131 Mass. 23, 24. See also Hill v. Boston, 122 Mass. 344, and cases cited; and Benton v. Trustees City Hospital, 140 Mass. 13.

A city cannot erect buildings for business or speculative purposes, but when it has buildings built in good faith and used for municipal purposes, it may allow them to be used incidentally for other purposes, either gratuitously or for a compensation. See Worden v. New Bedford, 131 Mass. 23, 24.

SECT. 4. For the general provisions of law with reference to armories, see P. S. c. 14, §§ 92-99. See also Resolve of 1885, c. 12. By St. 1885, c. 266, §§ 6, 12, so much of the powers and duties of the board of aldermen in reference to armories as are executive are vested in the mayor, to be exercised through the appropriate executive officer, who by this ordinance is the superintendent of public buildings.

SECT. 7. Section 39 of the city charter provides that Faneuil Hall shall not be leased or sold.

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