1852.

incorporated City or Town, or during his absence or other disqualifications, such person as the Board of Aldermen President of may elect, shall be President of such Board of Health in

Physician.

Port Inspector, fees of.

Quarantine order.

Key West.

Repeal.

such incorporated City or Town, and that such person shall be President of the Board of Health in any such Justice's Districts as may be elected by such Justices of the Peace for such Districts respectively.

SEC. 3. Be it further enacted, That said Board of Health be and are hereby empowered, and required to appoint a Port Inspector who shall be a regularly licensed Physician, whose duty it shall be to board all vessels coming into the Ports of which he may be appointed such Inspector, and report to the Board of Health, if any contagious, malignant, pestilential, or infectious diseases have occurred on board, or if any such diseases are prevailing on board said vessel, to order the same into quarantine at such place or places as may be designated by the Board of Health.

SEC. 4. Be it further enacted, That said Board of Health be and are hereby fully empowered to fix the rate of compensation or fees to be paid to said Port Inspector, for all services performed by him as such, which shall be paid by the master or owner of any vessel so visited by him as aforesaid, and on failure of any master or owner of any vessel to pay the fees as fixed by said Board of Health, the said Port Inspector may proceed to collect the same by action of debt before any Justice of the Peace of the County in which such port may be situated.

SEC. 5. Be it further enacted, That any master or owner or purser of any vessel who shall refuse to obey the order of any Port Physician, directing such vessel to remain in quarantine under the by-laws, rules and regulations of such Board of Health, shall be liable to indictment, and on conviction, shall be fined in a sum not exceeding one thousand dollars, or imprisoned not exceeding six months, at the discretion of the jury.

SEC. 6. Be it further enacted, That the jurisdiction of the Board of Health for the City of Key West shall extend to and include the whole Island upon which said City is situated.

SEC. 7. Be it further enacted, That all acts or parts of acts conflicting with the provisions of this act, be and the same are hereby repealed.

[Passed the Senate, December 23, 1852. Passed the House of Representatives, December 29, 1852. Approved by the Governor, January 8, 1853.]

1852.

CHAPTER 509.-[No. 30.]

AN ACT to provide for the location of the two Seminaries of Learning to be established in this State.

WHEREAS, By an act approved January 24th, 1851, the establishment of two Seminaries of Learning was authorised: And whereas, the citizens of the town of Ocala, in Marion county, have, by their special agent, Mr. S. S. Preamble. Burton, offered to give to the Seminary to be located East of the Suwannee river sixteen town lots in a square, valued at two hundred dollars each, also a building standing thereon, built in the form of an L, with two fronts of fifty feet each, and twenty feet wide, together with two other buildings erected on the said lots, twenty by thirty feet each, the three valued at three thousand eight hundred dollars, also one thousand and six hundred dollars in money, and the whole amount of the donation being eight thousand six hundred dollars; And whereas, the town of Ocala offers central position, accessibility, and a large, respectable, and thriving school in being, with various other considerations. Therefore,

SECTION 1. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Seminary East Representatives of the State of Florida in General As- where located. sembly convened, That the Seminary to be located East of the Suwannee river shall be located at Ocala, on condition that proper and authorized conveyance or conveyences of said town lots and buildings be made, and the said amount of money be paid to such Board of Education as the Governor may appoint for said Seminary, under the Act of January 24, 1851.

SEC. 2. Be it further enacted, That the property con- Property of. veyed as required in the 1st section of this Act, shall be used only for the Seminary located at Ocala, and shall revert to the donors whenever the Seminary shall be removed from Ocala.

SEC. 3. Be it further enacted, That the Governor be and Board of Eduhe is hereby authorized and required to appoint a Board cation. of Education as specified in the Act of January 24, 1851, and submit their names to the Senate, for their concurrence, immediately after the passage and approval of the same.

SEC. 4. Be it further enacted, That the Governor shall appoint six Commissioners residing in Middle and West West. Florida, whose duty it shall be to select a suitable place for the location of the Seminary West of the Suwannee

Seminary

1852.

missioners.

River, and should the said Commissioners not agree as to the place for such location, they are hereby authorized to choose a person who shall decide as to the matter of their disagreement: Provided, That at least three of the Commissioners herein required to be appointed, shall reside in West Florida.

[Passed the Senate, January 5, 1853. Passed the House of Representatives, January 5, 1853. Approved by the Governor, January 6, 1853.]

CHAPTER 510.-[No. 31.]

AN ACT to establish Common Schools, and to repeal certain Acts in relation thereto.

SECTION 1. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of School Com- Representatives of the State of Florida in General Assembly convened, That the several Judges of Probates and County Commissioners of this State shall be, and are hereby, constituted ex officio School Commissioners for their respective Counties, and each Judge of Probate shall be President of the Board and Superintendent of Schools for his County.

Children, census of.

SEC. 2. Be it further enacted, That it shall be the duty of the Tax Assessor of each County, at the time of assessing the taxes of his County, to take the census of all the children of the County between the ages of five and eighteen years, and if any of them be deaf mutes that he so state, and report the same on oath to the County Superintendent on or before the first day of June next, and each and every year thereafter; for which said service, he shall receive five cents for each child reported to the County Superintendent; and upon failure of the Tax Assessor to perform the duties herein and above required, he shall forfeit the sum of fifty dollars, to be deducted from the sum which the County Commissioners may allow him for assessing and collecting the taxes of his County; and it shall be the duty of the County Superintendent on the first day of June next, and on the first day of said month in every year thereafter, to forward a duplicate copy of the report of the census made by the Tax Assessor to the Register of the Public State SuperinLands of this State, who is hereby declared ex officio Sutendent, who. perintendent of Schools for the State; and on or before the first day of June, 1854, and on the first day of said month in every year thereafter, the County Superintendent of Schools in his report shall specify not only the number of children residing in his County between the ages aforesaid,

1852.

but also the number of those children who have attended school during the year ending on the day of the date of the report, the name of each teacher employed by the Superintendent, the length of time each teacher has taught, the amount of compensation paid or contracted to be paid to each, the number of children each teacher has taught, giving the name of each child that has attended school, and the length of time each child has attended, also the sum apportioned by the State Superintendent for schools in his County during the preceding year, the sum appropriated by the County Commissioners for schools in his County during said year, and the amount received from all other sources, specifying the source and the manner in which the same has been expended.

SEC. 3. Be it further enacted, That it shall be the duty State Superin of the State Superintendent on the first day of July next, tendent. and on the first day of said month in every year thereafter, to ascertain from the Comptroller and Treasurer of the State the amount of School money subject to distribution on that day, and thereupon to apportion the same among the several Counties of the State in proportion to the number of children reported to him in pursuance of the second section of this Act, and forthwith to certify the same to the Comptroller of the State, and inform each County Superintendent of such apportionment.

to

SEC. 4. Be it further enacted, That it shall be the duty of the County Commissioners, at their first meeting after Amounts ap plicable the receipt of the report of the State Superintendent, School purpo provided for in the foregoing section, or as soon thereafter ses. as shall be convenient, to add to the sum apportioned to the County by the State, any sum which they may deem proper to be paid out of the County Treasury; and having ascertained the whole amount which will be applicable to school purposes in their County, both from the State and County Treasury, it shall be the duty of the County Commissioners, according to the best of their judgment and discretion for the promotion of the cause of Common School Education, to designate the place or places at which a school or schools shall be kept, and the length of time a school shall be kept at each; the amount of salary that shall be paid to the teacher or teachers; the number of places and teachers to be governed by the sum that has been appropriated for schools in the County.

SEC. 5. Be it further enacted, That thereupon it shall Teacher, conbe the duty of each County Superintendent to contract in tract with.

1852.

Payment of.

County Super

of.

writing with each Teacher, whom he wishes to employ, after a thorough examination as to his or her fitness and qualifications, and to specify in said contract the place or places where he or she is to teach, the length of time during which he or she is to teach, and the amount of compensation to be paid.

SEC. 6. Be it further enacted, That it shall be the duty of each Teacher, at the end of the time for which he or she may be employed, to make out, under oath, against the County Superintendent of his or her County, his or her account for the amount due him or her for services as aforesaid, specifying in said account the name of each child. taught by him or her during their engagement, and the number of days each child has attended school during that time, and present the same to the County Superintendent, whose duty it shall be, if he finds said account to be correct, to cause a duplicate original thereof to be filed in the office of the Judge of Probate, and to certify, on the original account, authenticating his certificate with the seal of the Judge of Probate, that he finds said account to be correct, and order the same to be paid out of the State or County Treasury, as shall be most convenient, and said account shall be paid at the Treasury designated in said certificate, if presented at any time within one year after the date of said certificate, but not after; and the County Treasurer paying the same, or the State Comptroller auditing the same, shall carefully file and preserve said account in his office as his voucher.

SEC. 7. Be it further enacted, That the County Comintendent, pay missioners shall allow to the County Superintendent a remuneration sufficient to cover the expenses necessarily incurred in the discharge of the duties of his office, and such other remuneration as they may deem reasonable and proper, to be paid out of the County Treasury, like other County expenses; and said County Commissioners shall have power to appropriate from the County Treasury, from time to time, any sum or sums which they may think proper, to purchase, hire, build, or fit up any school house or school houses; they shall also have power, and it is hereby made their duty, to commission, under the seal of the Judge of Probate, three Trustees of each School, to be seTrustees of lected from among the Patrons of said School, and said Trustees shall have power to hear complaints from the Teachers, and expel any child from School, when it shall appear that he or she cannot be persuaded or coerced by

School.