held or used for churches, hospitals, schools, colleges, orphan asylums, parsonages, or cemetery purposes, or to corporations organized other than for profit, when the land is timber land, and not exceeding one hundred and sixty acres in extent, and is held or used for the purposes of the organizations, in which case said land shall be subject to all laws regulating the preservation of forests. SEC. 2. This act to take effect immediately. CHAPTER XIII. An act to add a new section to the Political Code, to be known as section number seven hundred and ninety-three, relating to notaries public. [Approved February 16, 1899.] The people of the state of California, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows: SECTION 1. A new section is hereby added to the Political Code, to be known as section seven hundred and ninety-three, to read as follows: 793. The term of office of a notary public is four (4) years Term of from and after the date of his commission. SEC. 2. This act shall take effect immediately. notaries public. CHAPTER XIV. An act to provide for the appointment by the supreme court of five commissioners, to be known as commissioners of the supreme court, to appoint a secretary, and to appropriate money therefor. [Approved February 17, 1899.] The people of the state of California, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows: mission. SECTION 1. The supreme court of the state of California Supreme shall, immediately upon the expiration of the term of office of court comthe present supreme court commissioners, appoint five persons of legal learning and personal worth as commissioners of said court. It shall be the duty of said commissioners, under such rules and regulations as said court may adopt, to assist in the performance of its duties, and in the disposition of the numerous causes now pending in said court undetermined. The said commissioners shall hold office for the term of two years from and after their appointment, during which time they shall not engage in the practice of the law. They shall each receive a salary equal to the salary of a judge of said court, Salary. Secretary. Appropriation. payable at the same time and in the same manner. Before entering upon the discharge of their duties, they shall each take an oath to support the constitution of the United States and the constitution of the state of California, and to faithfully discharge the duties of the office of commissioner of the supreme court to the best of their ability. The said court shall have power to remove any and all members of said commission at any time, by an order entered on the minutes of said court, and all vacancies in said commission shall be filled in like manner. SEC. 2. Upon the appointment of said commissioners, as in this act provided, said court is hereby authorized to appoint a secretary for such commission, who shall hold office during the pleasure of the court, not to exceed the term of said commission, and who shall have a salary of two hundred dollars per month, payable at the same time and in the same manner as said commission. SEC. 3. The sum of sixty-seven thousand dollars is hereby appropriated out of any money that is, or may be, in the state treasury not otherwise appropriated, for the purpose of paying the salary of said commission and secretary for the remainder of the fiftieth fiscal year, and for the fifty-first and fifty-second fiscal years; and the controller is hereby authorized to draw monthly warrants upon the state treasury in favor of said commissioners and secretary in the sum of five hundred dollars for each of said commissioners, and in the sum of two hundred dollars for said secretary. SEC. 4. This act shall take effect from and after its passage. Appropriation for of senate. CHAPTER XV. An act making an appropriation for the contingent expenses of the senate for the thirty-third session of the legislature. [Approved February 17, 1899.] The people of the state of California, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows: SECTION 1. The sum of eighteen thousand dollars is hereby contingent appropriated out of any money in the state treasury not otherexpenses wise appropriated, for contingent expenses of the senate for the thirty-third session of the legislature; and the controller of the state is authorized to draw his warrants for the same. and the treasurer of the state is directed to pay the same. SEC. 2. This act shall take effect immediately. CHAPTER XVI. An act providing for the dissolution and annulment of swamp and overflowed land reclamation districts and protection districts for nonuser of corporate powers. [Approved February 17, 1899.] The people of the state of California, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows: lamation SECTION 1. All swamp and overflowed land reclamation Dissoludistricts and protection districts heretofore organized under tion of rec any law of this state, which have, for more than five years, districts. failed or neglected to use their corporate powers, and are free from debt, or against which all claims are barred by the provisions of the Code of Civil Procedure of this state, may be dissolved and annulled by the judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction on proper proceedings had therefor. The action or proceeding may be brought against said district by any person owning lands therein. The summons shall be served upon a majority of the last elected and acting trustees of the district, if living; if not living, then it may be served generally by publication. SEC. 2. All acts and parts of acts in conflict with this act are hereby repealed. SEC. 3. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage. CHAPTER XVII. An act to amend an act entitled "An act to provide for the disincorporation of municipal corporations of the sixth class," approved March 26, 1895, by amending sections one and two thereof. [Approved February 17, 1899.] The people of the state of California, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows: SECTION 1. Section one of an act entitled "An act to provide for the disincorporation of municipal corporations of the sixth class," approved March twenty-sixth, eighteen hundred and ninety-five, is hereby amended to read as follows: tions of Section 1. A municipal corporation of the sixth class may Municipal disincorporate after proceedings had as required in this act. corpora The council, board of trustees, or other legislative body of such sixth class. corporation shall, upon receiving a petition therefor, signed by Disincornot less than half of the qualified electors thereof, as shown by poration. the vote cast at the last municipal election held therein, submit to the electors of such corporation the question whether such municipal corporation shall disincorporate. Such ques corporations of sixth class. Disincorporation. Municipal tion shall be submitted at a special election to be held for that purpose, and such legislative body shall give notice thereof by publication in a newspaper printed or published in such corporation, or if there is no newspaper published in said corporation, then in some newspaper published in the county in which said corporation is situated, for a period of thirty days prior to such election. Said notice shall state that the question of disincorporating said corporation will be submitted to the legal voters of the same at the time appointed for such election, and the electors shall be invited thereby to vote upon such proposition by placing upon their ballots the cross, as provided by law, after the words "For disincorporation," or "Against disincorporation." Such legislative body shall also designate in said notice the place or places at which the polls will be open in said municipal corporation; and shall also appoint and designate in such notice the names of the officers of election. The vote at said election shall be taken, canvassed, and returned in the same manner as in other municipal elections. Such legislative body shall meet on the Monday next succeeding the day of such election, and proceed to canvass the votes cast thereat. If it be found by the canvass of said votes that less than two thirds of the votes cast were in favor of disincorporation, such legislative body shall declare the petition for disincorporation denied, in which case no new election shall be held on the question of disincorporating the corporation involved in said petition and vote until after the expiration of two years from the date of the election so held. In case it shall appear from said canvass that two thirds of all the votes cast were in favor of disincorporation, said legislative body shall, under their hands, make and file in their office, and cause to be entered upon their record of proceedings, an order that the petition for such disincorporation be granted, and declaring that such corporation be disincorporated; said order to take effect at the time hereinafter provided. Said legislative body shall, in case said corporation is so disincorporated, forthwith cause their clerk, or other officer performing the duties of clerk, by an order entered in their minutes, to make and transmit to the secretary of state and board of supervisors of the county in which said corporation is situated, a certified copy and abstract of the notice of election herein before provided for, the whole number of electors voting for said disincorporation, and the number of electors voting against said disincorporation. Thirty days from and after the holding of the election, in case two thirds of the said votes were cast in favor of said disincorporation, said municipal corporation shall be forever disincorporated. Said legislative body shall forthwith, after ascertaining by said canvass that said disincorporation has been carried, determine the amount of the indebtedness of said municipal corporation, the amount of money in the treasury thereof, and the amount of any tax levy made by said corporation unpaid or not due, and all other indebtedness due or coming due to said corporation, and within thirty days from the date of said election shall transmit a certified statement of said amount to the board of supervisors corpora poration. of the county in which said municipal corporation is situated; Municipal and the treasurer of said corporation shall, before the expiration tions of of said thirty days, turn over to the treasurer of said county sixth class. all moneys of said municipal corporation in his possession, Disincorand said county treasurer shall place said moneys in a special fund, to be drawn upon as hereinafter provided for. Upon the disincorporation of said municipal corporation, every public officer of said corporation shall immediately turn over to the board of supervisors of the county in which said corporation is situated all public property of every nature and description in their possession; provided, however, that all court records of the recorder's court of the said municipal corporation shall be retained by said recorder as justice of the peace of the township, and as such justice of the peace he shall have authority to execute and complete all unfinished business standing on the same. Nothing contained in this act shall be held to relieve said municipal corporation, or the territory included within it, from any liability for any debt contracted by such municipal corporation prior to its disincorporation. All warrants for said indebtedness shall be drawn by the board of supervisors of the county in which said municipal corporation is situated, on the fund hereinabove provided for in the county treasury. If, at the time of said disincorporation, a tax shall have been levied by said municipal corporation, and remains uncollected, it shall be the duty of the tax collector of the county in which said municipal corporation was situated to collect said tax when due, and pay the same into the county treasury. All property upon which any municipal tax has been levied and the same has become delinquent, either before or after the date of such disincorporation, and all property sold for any tax levied by said municipal corporation, may be redeemed by any party interested, by the payment to the county treasurer, upon the estimates of the auditor, of the money that would have been necessary to redeem such property, had said city not disincorporated. All moneys paid into the county treasury under the provisions of this act shall be placed to the credit of the special fund herein before provided for. If, at any time after the disincorporation of such municipal corporation, it should be found that there is not sufficient money in the treasury to the credit of the fund herein above provided for, with which to pay any indebtedness of said municipal corporation, the board of supervisors of said county shall have the power, and it shall be their duty to levy, and there shall be collected from the territory formerly included within said municipal corporation, a tax or taxes sufficient in amount to pay the said indebtedness of said municipal corporation, as the same shall become due; such tax or taxes, assessments, and collections, shall be made in the same manner and at the same time that other taxes of said county are levied and collected, and shall be an additional tax upon the property included within said territory for the payment of said debts. If, after payment of the debts of said municipal corporation, there shall remain any surplus in the hands of said county treasurer to the credit of |