United States Statutes at Large/Volume 4/Appendices/Appendix 1/Chapter 5
Extracts from the Charter of the Potowmac Company, granted November, 1784.
Charter of the Potowmac Company.Sec. 4. And be it enacted, That the said president and directors, so elected, and their successors, or a majority of them assembled, shall have full power and authority to agree with any person or persons, on behalf of the said company, to cut such canals, and erect such locks, and perform such other works as they may judge necessary, for opening, improving, and extending the navigation of the said river, above tide water, to the highest part of the North Branch, to which navigation can be extended, and carrying on the same from place to place, and from time to time, and upon such terms, and in such manner, as they shall think fit; and out of the money arising from the subscriptions and the tolls, and other aids hereinafter given, to pay for the same; and to repair and keep in order the said canals, locks, and other works, necessary thereto.
Sec. 11. And whereas it is necessary for the making of the said canal, locks, and other works, that a provision should be made for condemning a quantity of land for the purpose: Be it enacted, That it shall and may be lawful for the said president and directors, or a majority of them, to agree with the owners of any land through which the said canal is intended to pass, for the purchase thereof; and in case of disagreement, or in case the owner thereof shall be a femme covert, under age, non-compos, or out of the state, on application to any two justices of the county in which such land shall lie, the said justices shall issue their warrant, under their hands, to the sheriff of their county, to summon a jury of twenty-four inhabitants of their county, of property and reputation, not related to the parties, nor in any manner interested, to meet on the land to be valued, at a day to be expressed in the warrant, not less than ten, nor more than twenty days thereafter, and the sheriff, upon receiving the said warrant, shall forthwith summon the said jury; and when met, shall administer an oath, or affirmation, to every juryman that shall appear, that he will faithfully, justly, and impartially, value the land, (not exceeding in any case the width of two hundred feet,) and all damages the owner thereof shall sustain, by the cutting the canal through such land, according to the best of his skill and judgment: and that in such valuation he will not spare any person for favour or affection, nor any person grieve for hatred, malice, or ill-will; and the inquisition thereupon taken shall be signed by the sheriff, and some twelve or more of the jury, and returned by the sheriff to the clerk of his county, to be by him recorded. And upon every such valuation, the jury is hereby directed to describe and ascertain the bounds of the land by them valued, and their valuation shall be conclusive on all persons, and shall be paid by the said president and directors to the owner of the land, or his legal representatives; and on payment thereof, the said company shall be seised in fee of such land, as if conveyed by the owner to them and their successors by legal conveyance.
Sec. 12. And be it enacted, That the said president and directors, or a majority of them, are hereby authorized to agree with the proprietor, for the purchase of a quantity of land, at or near such of the places of receipt of tolls aforesaid, for the purpose of erecting necessary buildings; and in case of disagreement, or any of the disabilities aforesaid, or the proprietor being out of the state, then such land may be valued, condemned, and paid for as aforesaid, for the purpose aforesaid; and the said company shall, upon the payment of the valuation of the said land, be seized thereof in fee simple, as aforesaid.
Sec. 13. And whereas some of the places through which it may be necessary to conduct the said canals may be convenient for erecting mills, forges, or other water-works, and the persons possessors of such situation may design to improve the same; and it is the intention of this act not to interfere with private property, but for the purpose of improving and perfecting the said navigation—Be it enacted, That the water, or any part thereof, conveyed through any canal or cut made by the said company, shall not be used for any purpose but navigation, unless the consent of the proprietors of the land, through which the same shall be led, be first had.