FLORIDA. 



341 



" An act to keep in good repair the public roads and 

 highways in this State," approved March 7, 1881. 



An act to declare what notice shall be given to non- 

 resident parties and parties whose residence is un- 

 known upon application to sell real estate in which 

 they are interested. 



An act making appropriations for the years 1883 

 and 1884. 



An act in relation to the apportionment of the one- 

 mill State tax for school purposes. 



An act to regulate the sale of liquors, wines, and 

 beer in the State of Florida by the Boards of County 

 Commissioners of the several counties. 



An act granting aid for the construction of the 

 Thomasville, Tallahassee, and Gulf Bailroad. 



An act to incorporate an institution of learning at 

 Starke, Bradford county, Florida, under the name of 

 Orange College. 



An act to incorporate the International Eailroad and 

 Steamship Company of Florida. 



An act to incorporate the Fort Meade, Keystone, and 

 Walk-in-the-Water Eailroad Company. 



An act to incorporate the Alachua Steam Navigation 

 and Canal Company. 



An act to incorporate the Florida Ship- Canal Com- 

 pany, to locate, construct, own, and operate a ship- 

 canal and telegraph line across the Peninsula of 

 Florida, to connect the Atlantic ocean with the Gulf 

 of Mexico. 



An act to incorporate the Ocklawaha Steamboat, 

 Canal, Drainage, and River Improvement Company. 



An act to incorporate the Florida Land and Coloni- 

 zation Company. 



An act to incorporate the South Florida Eailroad 

 Company. 



An act to grant certain lands to the Jacksonville, 

 St. Augustine, and Halifax Eiver Eailway Company. 



An act to incorporate the Fernandina and Amelia 

 Beach Eailroad Company. 



An act to incorporate the Atlantic and Mexican 

 Gulf Canal Company, and to grant certain privileges 

 therein named. 



An act to incorporate the Bank of the State of 

 Florida. 



An act to incorporate the Florida and European 

 Steamship Company. 



An act to incorporate the Seville and Halifax Eiver 

 Eailroad Company. 



An act to grant certain lands to the Green Cove 

 Spring and Melrose Eailroad Company. 



Joint resolution in reference to a Constitutional 

 Convention. 



Joint resolution empowering the electors at the 

 next general election to vote for or against a con- 

 vention. 



In the bill providing for normal instruction four 

 institutions are named in which normal departments 

 shall be established the East and the West Florida 

 Seminaries, and the Union and Lincoln Academies. 

 The East Florida Seminal y and Union Academy are 

 located at Gainesville; the West Florida Seminary 

 and Lincoln Academy at Tallahassee. 



Under the provisions of the revenue law, 

 mortgages are not to be taxed ; non-bearing 

 orange-groves are not to be taxed at a fic- 

 titious value, but merely as improved lands; 

 the license-tax on physicians and lawyers has 

 been omitted, and the bill provides for an 

 ad valorem tax of five mills instead of seven, 

 and leaves it discretionary with the Governor 

 to reduce it to four mills for 1884. 



The counties for whose relief provision was 

 made are those that became involved in build- 

 ing the railroads through Middle and East 

 Florida. The bill gives the remnant of the 

 internal improvement lands proper to them, 



being upward of 175,000 acres. A bill to 

 create a railroad commission failed to pass. 



Agricultural College and University. The trustees 

 of the Agricultural College determined to re- 

 move the institution from Eau Gallic, where 

 its site had previously been fixed, though no or- 

 ganization was ever effected. The fund amounts 

 to about $140,000, invested in State bonds, and 

 yields an annual interest of nearly $9.000. The 

 act of Congress prescribes that no part of the 

 fund shall be used for the erection of build- 

 ings. These, together with 100 acres of land 

 for experimental gardens, were to be provided 

 by the locality desiring the institution. Bids 

 were submitted by Gainesville, Live Oak, Lake 

 City, Starke, Tallahassee, Ocala, and Madison, 

 varying in amounts from $10,000 to $50,000. 

 Lake City was chosen. 



The Florida University was incorporated un- 

 der a liberal charter in February. It is au- 

 thorized to have five colleges, to wit : Talla- 

 hassee College of Medicine and Surgery, College 

 of Literature and Science, Law College, Theo- 

 logical Institute, and Polytechnic and Normal 

 Institute. At present only two departments 

 are organized the West Florida Seminary 

 and Military Institute, constituting the Literary 

 Department, and the Tallahassee College of 

 Medicine and Surgery, the Medical. 



Railroad Taxation. Among the decisions of 

 the Supreme Court of the United . States was 

 one in the case of the Louisville and Nashville 

 Railroad Company, plaintiff in error, against 

 Manuel Palmes, collector, etc., in error, to the 

 Supreme Court of the State of Florida : 



The question presented by this case is whether a 

 line of railroad which was commenced, partly com- 

 pleted, and operated by the Alabama and Florida 

 Eailroad Company, and which through successive 

 transfers has finally come into the hands of the Louis- 

 ville and Nashville Eailroad Company, is or is not 

 exempt from taxation by virtue of an act passed by 

 the Legislature of Florida in 1855, and known as the 

 Internal Improvement Act. This court holds that the 

 exemption from taxation created by the 18th section 

 of the Internal Improvement Act of 1855 is in every re- 

 spect similar to that which was declared by this court 

 in the case of Morgan against -Louisiana, 93 United 

 States, 217, to be non-assignable. Such exemption, 

 therefore, did not pass from the Alabama and Florida 

 Eailroad Company to the Pensacola and Louisville 

 Eailroad Company when the former conveyed to the 

 latter its roads and franchises connected with and 

 necessary in its construction and operation. Even, 

 however, if such exemption had passed to the Pensa- 

 cola and Louisville Eailroad Company, that corpora- 

 tion would have had no power to further convey it, 

 so that the line of the railroad in its present hands is 

 properly liable to State taxation, and its present own- 

 ers can not claim immunity on the ground that the 

 act of 1875, taxing the property of all corporations, 

 was an impairment of the obligation of the contract of 

 1855. The decree of the Supreme Court of Florida 

 was affirmed with costs. 



There are two other railroad corporations 

 with like interests involved in the determina- 

 tion of the suit mentioned above. These are 

 the Florida Central and Western, assessed for 

 1883 at $2,022,799.20, and the Florida Transit 

 and Peninsular at $2,249,100; the Louisville 



