A Bill for an Act to incorporate Agricultural Societies

^Sect[Section] 1^ Be it enacted by the people of the state of Illinois represented in the General Assembly That the County Commissioners Court in each and every county in this state shall at their June term of Court in the year eighteen hundred and thirty nine, and at the June term of the court every year thereafter until an agricultural society shall be formed within their county, cause notice to be given in such maner as may be best calculated to give publicity throughout the county, that there will be held at the usual place of holding courts in said county, on some day to be named in said notice, which said court shall think most advisable, a meeting of the citizens of said county for the purpose of organising a county, Agricultural society; and when said meeting shall convene, it shall be the duty of some Justice of the peace or some other person appointed by the court for that purpose, to have a vote taken of said meeting to determine whether they will form an agricultural society or not; and if twenty or more persons citizens so convened, shall decide in favor of forming such society, the meeting may immediately appoint a chairman and secretary and proceed to the election of officers and the organization of a county Agricultural society

Sec[Section] 2 The officers of each society shall be, a president, vice president, secretary, treasurer, and seven directors, and such subordinate off[icers]

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as the president and Directors shall from time to time appoint, for the purpose of determining between competitors for prizes and awarding the same.

Sec. 3 The Treasurer shall give bond in such sum and with such freehold security as the president and directors shall approve conditioned for the payment of all moneys entrusted to him, to all such person or persons as may be by law entitled to the same, and for the faithful discharge of his duties as treasurer; which bond shall be recorded in the recorders office of the county and filed in the office of clerk of the county commissioners court

Sec. 4 At the first meeting of the society, and ^at^ each annual meeting thereafter, the society shall determine by vote, what shall be the amount to be paid by each member for the ensuing year

Sec 5 So soon ^as^ a certificate signed by the chairman and secretary, that a meeting and election of a president, vice president, secretary, Treasurer and seven directors have been had in conformity with the provisions of this act, is recorded in the recorders office of the county, they and their successors shall be in law and and in fact, a body corporate and politic by the name and style of the Agricultural Society of county And1 by such corprate name and style,

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to sue and be sued, implead and be impleaded, answer and be answered unto, defend and be defended, in all manner of suits, actions, pleas, causes, matters, and demands, of whatever kind and nature they may be, in as full and effectual a manner as any person or persons, bodies corporate or politic, may or can do

Sec 6 Said president and directors shall have power to make and alter bye lawsA majority of whom shall form a quorem to do business, to determine on what articles, animals, mode of husbandry or other improvements of any kind connected with agriculture, domestic manufactures, or mechanism they will confer prizes, and the amount thereof, to fix the day ^and place^ of exhibition, to fill vacancies in their own body or in any office pertaining to the society which may happen between anual elections[,] to provide for the admission of other members, to direct the mode of holding future election of the time and place of holding said elections of which at least ten days, notice shall be given by the secretary of said society, either by publishing publication in some public newspaper printed in the county, or by putting up written notices in five of the most public places in said county. Provided no by-law of said society shall be in violation of the constitution of the United States, nor of the Constitution of this state

Sec 7 said President and Directors may have common seal with which all their official ^acts^ shall be sealed and they may alter and revoke at pleasure said seal at pleasure, and institute another instead thereof

Sec. 8. Such corporation may receive donations or make purchase of land, or other property, for the use of said said society. Provided that no such corporation shall hold any greater amount ^quantiy^ of real estate than the one hundred and sixty acres of land at any one time

Sec 9 The president, or in his absence the vice president, shall preside at the meetings of the directors and have a casting vote on all questions; and in case of the absnce of both these officers, the directors may choose a president pro tem from their own body

Sec 102 No money shall be appropriated by said corporation to any other purpose but for the promotion of Agriculture, domestic manufactures or mechanism; and the necessary contingent expences of said society.

Sec. 113 Nothing in this act shall be so construed as to prevent any member of any agricultural society, to be formed in conformity to the provision of this act, from withdrawing therfrom on his giving notice thereof to the Treasurer and paying up all dues. This act to take effect from and be in force from and after its passage