KENTUCKY. 



451 



such companies in the same manner as those specified 

 in the foregoing section. 



SEC. 11. Said commissioners shall, on or before the 

 first day of December in each year, and oftener if 

 required by the Governor to do so, make a report to 

 the Governor of their doings for the preceding year, 

 containing such facts as will disclose the practical 

 workings of the system of railroad transportation in 

 this State, and such suggestions in relation thereto as 

 to them may seem appropriate. 



SEC. 12. Said commissioners shall examine into the 

 condition, management, and all other matters con- 

 cerning the business of railroads in this State, so far 

 as the same pertain to the relation of such railroads to 

 the public ; and whether such railroad corporations, 

 their officers, and employe's, comply with the laws of 

 this State. And whenever it shall come to their 

 knowledge, or they shall have reason to believe that 

 the laws Wrecting railroad corporations in their busi- 

 ness relations to the public have been violated, they 

 shall prosecute, or cause to be prosecuted, the corpo- 

 rations or persons guilty of such violation. 



SEC. 13. Said commissioners shall have power to 

 examine, under oath, the directors, officers, agents, 

 and employes of any railroad corporation concerning 

 the management of its affairs, and to obtain informa- 

 tion pursuant to this act; and shall have power to 

 issue subpoenas for the attendance of witnesses, and to 

 administer oaths. In case any person shall willfully 

 refuse or fail to obey such subpoena, it shall be the 

 duty of the circuit court, or any court of similar juris- 

 diction of the county, upon application of said com- 

 missioners, to issue an attachment for such wltnessess 

 and compel them to attend before the commissioner, 

 and give testimony upon such matters as may be law- 

 fully required of them, and may punish for contempt 

 as in other cases. 



SEC. 15. Every corporation, and every oflicer or 

 agent that shall willfully neglect or refuse to make any 

 report required in this act at the time herein required:, 

 or who snail intentionally hinder and obstruct said 

 commissioners in the discharge of the duties hereby 

 imposed upon them, shall be fined in the sum of not 

 less than fifty nor more than one hundred dollars, to 

 be recovered upon an indictment, or by an action in 

 the name of the Commonwealth, to be instituted by 

 said commissioners. 



SEC. 17. This act shall not apply to any street rail- 

 road. 



SEC. 18. The term railroad corporation, as used in 

 this act, shall be construed to include any person, 

 association, or company operating a railroad, whether 

 incorporated or not. And any association, company, 

 or corporation extorted upon, or discriminated against, 

 shall be included in the term person, as used in this act.- 



SEO. 19. Said commissioners shall hear and de- 

 termine complaints under the first and second sec- 

 tions of this act. Such complaints shall be made to 

 said commissioners in writing, and they shall give the 

 company complained of not less than ten days' notice 

 of the time and place of hearing the same. They shall 

 hear the evidence of the parties, and award judgment 

 as authorized by this act. Unless the same be satis- 

 fied, the chairman shall, within ten days, file a copy 

 of said award in the office of the clerk of the circuit 

 court of the county which, under the Code of Practice, 

 would have jurisdiction of such controversy, on which 

 execution shall issue as on other judgments : Pro- 

 vided, That any party dissatisfied with said award 

 may, within ten days, file a traverse thereof with the 

 clerk of said court, who shall docket the same for trial 

 at the next term. If the matter in controversy shall 

 exceed twenty dollars, said court, on demand 01 either 

 party, shall impanel a jury to try the same. If it 

 does not exceed that sum, the court shall hear and 

 summarily decide the same without the intervention 

 of a jury. 



D. Howard Smith, W. B. Machen, and W. 

 M. Beckner, were appointed commissioners 



under this act, and the board was organized in 

 May. 



Acts were also passed repealing the capitation 

 tax of one dollar on each male colored person 

 above the age of twenty-one years ; providing 

 for the assessment and collection of a tax upon 

 distilled spirits ; providing for taking the sense 

 of the people at the next general election for 

 representatives, as to the propriety of calling a 

 convention to revise the Constitution. 



A joint committee from the Senate and 

 House was created during the session to visit 

 the convicts leased to contractors and worked 

 without the walls of the Penitentiary, to in- 

 vestigate their treatment and management, and 

 to ascertain whether or not they were clothed 

 and dieted, and given medical attention, guard- 

 ed, housed, and worked as required by law. 



They made a report of which the following 

 is the concluding portion : " We unhesitatingly 

 recommend an immediate repeal of the law 

 establishing the leasing system ; that the con- 

 tracts with the lessees, violated in every par- 

 ticular, be immediately annulled, and the con- 

 victs withdrawn." 



STATISTICS. The Auditor's report shows: 

 That 8,772 sheep, valued at $21,080, were killed 

 by dogs in 1881. That there were 461,226 hogs 

 over six months old, a decrease of 222,851 as 

 compared with 1880. That there were 308,- 

 492 white voters in 1881, and 51,776 negro 

 voters; the former being an increase of 1,638, 

 and the latter a decrease of 4,869, since 1880. 

 That the average valuation of property as- 

 sessed to each male over twenty-one years of 

 age was $940.50 in 1880, and $741.25 in 1881, 

 being a decrease of $199.25. That there were 

 412,028 white school-children between six and 

 twenty years of age, and 47,924 colored in 

 1880, but only 406,095 white and 44,930 col- 

 ored in 1881. That Christian County raises 

 the most corn, and Madison next, while Bour- 

 bon, Boyle, Fayette, Jackson, Johnson, Mer- 

 cer, and Oldham raised none either in 1880 or 

 1881. 



The assessed value of railroad property in 

 1882 was $34,171, 857; miles assessed, 1,675. 



One hundred and two insurance companies 

 were doing business in the State at the begin- 

 ning of 1881. Of this number ninety-two were 

 fire and ten life insurance companies. 



The paid-up capital of the fire companies, 

 including $200,000 deposit of each of the for- 

 eign companies, was $47,707,200, being an in- 

 crease, as compared with the previous year, of 

 $6,399,990. The risks written in the State 

 during the year 1881 amounted to $128,208,- 

 661. Total premiums received by the compa- 

 nies, $1,558,957.94. Total losses paid, $654,- 

 528.50, showing net receipts of companies of 

 $904,529.44. The business of fire insurance 

 shows a large increase during the year. 



The ten life companies held at the beginning 

 of the year on lives of citizens of the State, 

 11,152 policies, insuring $28,766,383. At the 

 end of the year there were in force 11,820 



