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ceasing in the estimate the sum of £20 shall be done and entered upon by Public Tender and such tender shall be addressed to the Chairman of the Board, and be opened at a duly constituted meeting of the Board and any person who shall be guilty of opening such tender before the time appointed or having obtained any information as to the amount of any such tender shall give information to any person before the time appointed for opening shall forfeit and pay a penalty not exceeding £50.

Resident Magistrate not to be disqualified because a ratepayer.

39. No Resident Magistrate or Justice of the Peace shall be disqualified by being a ratepayer from performing any duty required by this Act.

Penalty for injuring public works.

40. Any person wilfully injuring or destroying any milestone post road footpath drain bridge or other work erected or made by any district Trustees shall in addition to any other punishment or penalty which he may have incurred be liable to a penalty not exceeding Five Pounds over and above the cost of repairing such damage which penalty and damage shall be recoverable summarily before any Resident Magistrate or two Justices of the Peace on the complaint of any district Trustee.

Provision for closing useless roads.

41. If any public road or highway shall have become or be useless or of no importance to the public it shall be lawful for the Superintendent upon the recommendation of the district Trustees and with the consent of all the owners of land abutting on the said public road or highway by proclamation in the Provincial Government Gazette to declare that the said road shall on and after a day to be named in such proclamation not being earlier than three calendar months from the date thereof be no longer a public highway.

If Trustees fail to repair roads Superintendent may do so and impose rate.

42. If the Electors or Trustees of any District shall fail to fix any or a sufficient rate or if the Trustees of any district shall neglect or refuse to repair and maintain the public highways of such district they having monies in their hands or under their control for that purpose it shall be lawful for the Superintendent or such other person as may be appointed by the Superintendent for that purpose upon the complaint of any three qualified electors in such district and upon the report of the Provincial Engineer or such other person as the Superintendent may appoint in that behalf that such public highways or any of them are not in the state of repair required by the traffic on such highway to cause such highway to be repaired and for such purpose at any time to levy a rate not exceeding 6d. in the pound on the estimated value to sell of the lands and tenements within such district such rate to be assessed payable and levied as nearly as may be in conformity with provisions of sections 22 to 30 of this Act the Superintendent performing as nearly as may be the various duties of the Trustees therein mentioned.

AS TO WEEDS AND WATERCOURSES ACT.

Certain persons to destroy weeds, &c.

43. It shall be the duty of every occupier of any lands or tenements or a tenancy of one year or upwards or having any greater estate or interest therein if such lands or tenements abut upon or are intersected by any Highway or Road Reserve and of every owner of any lands or tenements if unoccupied or occupied by tenants for a less term than one year to eradicate remove and destroy all noxious thistles furze and briars Bathurst burr and docks which may from time to time grow on any such Highway or Road Reserve opposite his land to the extent of one-half the width of such Highway or Road Reserve in the case of abuttal and to the extent of the whole width of such Highway or Road Reserve in the case of intersection.

And to clear watercourses.

44. It shall be the duty of every owner or occupier as aforesaid to keep clear and free from obstruction all ditches and watercourses upon and adjoining to any such Highway or Road Reserve to the extent of such frontage as aforesaid.

And to clear ditches.

45. It shall be the duty of any owner or occupier of lands abutting on any highway to keep all ditches and drains free and clear in such manner as to provide proper drainage for such of the road on which such lands shall abut.

Penalty for neglect.

46. Any owner or occupier who shall neglect or delay to eradicate and remove such thistles furze briars Bathurst burr and docks as aforesaid or to clear such ditches and watercourses for ten days after receiving a notice in the form hereunto annexed shall be deemed guilty of an offence against this Act and shall thereupon be liable to a penalty not exceeding One Pound besides the cost of such eradication or clearing to be recovered in a summary way.

Highway Trustees to enforce Act.

47. In all districts within the Province wherein this Act shall be in operation it shall be the duty of the Highway Trustees of the District to enforce the provisions of this Act and any cost thereby incurred by them may be defrayed out of the Rate authorised in this Act.