No. 4.] REPORT OF STATE FORESTER. 405 



of its energy during the past year to organizing branch associa- 

 tions in various cities and towns of the Commonwealth, with the 

 hope that an aroused local interest would result in the establish- 

 ment of municipal forests in conformity to the public domain 

 act as amended last year through the efforts of that association. 

 The act as amended follows: — 



AcT3 OF 1913, Chapter 564. 

 An Act relative to Public Domain. 

 Be it enacted, etc., as follows: 



Section 1. Section twenty- three of chapter twenty-eight of the Re- 

 vised Laws is hereby amended by striking out the word "a", before the 

 word "town", in the second line, and inserting in place thereof the words: 



— an annual, — by inserting after the word "therefor", in the eighth line, 

 the words : — but the indebtedness so incurred shall be Umited to an 

 amount not exceeding one half of one per cent of the last preceding assessed 

 valuation of the city or town, — and by striking out the words "common- 

 wealth for the benefit of the", in the eleventh line, so as to read as follows: 



— Section 23. A town, by a vote of two thirds of the legal voters present 

 and voting at an annual town meeting, or a city in which the city council 

 consists of two branches, by a vote of two thirds of the members of each 

 branch, and a city in which there is a single legislative board, by a vote of 

 two thirds of the members thereof, present and voting thereon, may take 

 or purchase land within their Umits, which shall be a pubUc domain, and 

 may appropriate money and accept gifts of money and land therefor; but 

 the indebtedness so incurred shall be limited to an amount not exceeding 

 one half of one per cent of the last preceding assessed valuation of the 

 city or town. Such pubUc domain shall be devoted to the culture of forest 

 trees, or to the preservation of the water supply of such city or town and 

 the title thereto shall vest in the city or town in which it lies. 



Section 2. Said chapter twenty-eight is hereby further amended by 

 striking out section twenty-five and inserting in place thereof the following: 



— Section 25. The city or town forester in each city or town, with one or 

 more keepers appointed by him, shall have the management and charge 

 of all such public domain in that city or town, and within such public 

 domain shall have the powers of constables and police ofiicers in towns. 

 But a town by a vote of two thirds of the legal voters present and voting 

 at an annual towna meeting, or a city in which the city council consists of 

 two branches, by a vote of two thirds of the members of each branch, and 

 a city in which there is a single legislative board, by a vote of two thirds of 

 the members thereof present and voting thereon, may place all such pubUc 

 domain within its Umits under the general supervision and control of the 

 state forester, who shall thereupon, upon notification thereof, make regu- 

 lations for the care and use of such pubUc domain and for the planting and 

 cultivating of trees therein, and the city or town forester in such case and 



