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scendants of the intestate, then the one-half of the real estate, and the whole of the personal estate, shall go to such widow, as her exclusive estate for

ever.

A widow is endowed of a third part of all the lands whereof her husband was seized of an estate of inheritance at any time during the marriage.

Every devise of land bars her dower, unless otherwise expressed in the will, but she may elect, at any time within a year, whether she will take her dower or take under the will.

Dower may be barred by a jointure created before marriage, with the assent of the intended wife, evinced by her becoming a party to the conveyance, by which it shall be settled, if she be of full age, or if she be an infant, by her joining with her father or guardian in such conveyance.

A married woman may relinquish her right of dower in any of the real estate of her husband, by joining him in a deed of conveyance, and acknowledging the same, separate and apart from the husband.

The real estate of the wife may be conveyed by her joining with her husband in the deed, if she be above the age of eighteen years, and by her acknowledging the same, separate and apart from her husband.

Married women have power to dispose of their separate estate, both real and personal, by will, in the same manner as other persons.

A married woman, residing out of the State, may relinquish dower, if above eighteen years of age.

ESTRAYS.

Sec. 1. Every person who shall take up any estray horse, mare, colt, mule, or ass, after having given not less than ten nor more than fifteen days' notice, by posting up notices in three of the most public places in the justice's district in which he resides, shall take the same before some justice of the peace of the county where such estray shall be taken up, and make oath before such justice, that the same was taken up at his or her plantation or place of residence, in said county, and that the marks or brands have not been altered since the taking up.

Sec. 2. The said justice shall then summon three disinterested householders of the neighborhood, to appraise said estray, under oath, which appraisement, together with the brands, marks, stature, color, and age of such animal, shall be entered in a book to be kept by said justice, and transmitted to the clerk of the County Court within fifteen days after the same is taken up.

Sec. 3. No such animal shall be taken up and posted between the first day of April and first day of November, unless the same be found out of the range of the proper owner, or within the lawful fence or enclosure of the taker up, having broken in the same, or manifestly running away from the owner.

Sec. 4. No person not a householder of the county shall take up or post such animal.

Sec. 5. Any person who shall take up any neat cattle, sheep, hogs, or goats, shall give the notice required in Sec. 1, and shall go with some householder before a justice of the peace of the county, and make the oath required in the same section, and then such justice shall take from the householder a particular description of the animal, and cause the same to be appraised as in Sec. 2d, which description and valuation to be entered and transmitted to the clerk of the County Court, as before directed. In case the value of such animal does not exceed five dollars, the justice need not make such return to the clerk, but shall enter the description and value in his estray book, and advertise the same in three of the most public places in his neighborhood.

Sec. 6. The clerk shall cause a copy of such return to be affixed to the court-house door, within five days after the same shall be transmitted to him.

Sec. 7. No neat cattle, sheep, hogs, or goats, shall be taken up between the month of April and the first day of November, unless the same be found in the lawful fence or enclosure of the taker up, having broken the same, and for the reward of the taker up there shall be paid by the owner one dollar for every horse, mare, colt, mule, or ass, and for every head of neat cattle fifty cents, and for every hog, sheep, or goat, twenty-five cents, with all reasonable charges.

Sec. 8. If the owner shall prove and take away such animals before appraisement, he shall pay all reasonable charges of the taker up. It is not lawful for the takers up to use estrays previous to advertising them.

Sec. 9. It is the duty of the clerk of the County Court to publish the justice's return in some paper, to be designated by the governor, at the end of ten days after the same is transmitted to him, and the printer must transmit a copy of his paper to the clerks of the County Court of the several counties of the State.

Sec. 10. If no owner appears within one year after such publication, the property shall be vested in the taker up; but the former may, at any time thereafter, by proving his property, recover the valuation money, upon payment of costs and all reasonable charges.

Sec. 11. If any person shall sell or dispose of such estray within the year, he shall be liable to indictment, and shall be fined double the value of the property.

Sec. 12. When the estray is worth less than five dollars, the property vests in the taker up in one year from the time the description and value have been published at the court-house door.

Sec. 13. It is lawful for any person taking up an estray hog between the first day of November and the first day of March, after complying with the provisions of Sec. 1 and Sec. 3, and making oath that he believes said estray has strayed from some drove, if no owner shall appear to prove said estray

within the time specified in said notice, to sell said estray to the highest bidder, after giving public notice of said sale ten days previous thereto, the proceeds, after paying reasonable charges, to be paid to the county.

THE GAME LAW.

Section 1. Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois represented in the General Assembly, That it shall be unlawful for any person to kill, ensnare, or trap, any deer, fawn, wild turkey, grouse, prairie hens or chickens, or quail, between the fifteenth day of January and the first of August of each and every year.

Sec. 2. That it shall be unlawful for any person to buy, sell, or have in possession, any of the above-mentioned animals or birds, which shall have been killed, ensnared, trapped, or taken, between the first day of January and the first day of August of each and every year, as aforesaid; and that having or being in possession of any of the above-mentioned animals or birds aforesaid by any person or persons between the said first day of January and the first day of August aforesaid, shall be deemed and taken as prima facie evidence that the same was ensnared, trapped, or killed, by the person having possession of the same, in violation of the provisions of this act.

Sec. 3. Any person who shall go upon the premises of any person or persons, or corporation, whether the same be enclosed or not, with intention to hunt, or to be found hunting, entrapping, or ensnaring any of the abovementioned animals or birds, at or within the time aforesaid shall be deemed guilty of trespass, and may be prosecuted before any justice of the peace in the county wherein the said premises may lie, by the owner or person in possession of the same, in action of trespass, and fined in any sum not less than five nor more than twenty dollars, to go to the owner or occupant of said premises: Provided, however, that a judgment obtained against any person for a violation of this act, under the fourth section thereof, shall be a bar to any suit under the third section of this act.

Sec. 4. Any person who shall wilfully violate any of the provisions of this act, shall forfeit and pay a fine of fifteen dollars for each deer or fawn thus killed, ensnared, entrapped, bought, sold, or held in possession; and for any other wild game, animals, or birds enumerated, either killed, ensnared, entrapped, bought, sold, or held in possession, as aforesaid, the sum of five dollars shall be paid; to be sued for and recovered before any justice of the peace of the county in which the act shall have been violated, in an action of debt, or before any court having jurisdiction thereof; one-half of said penalty shall go to the complainant, and the other half to the school trustees of the township in which the act shall have been violated, to be added to the school fund of said township; the action to be brought in the name of said county.

Sec. 5. Provided that nothing in this act shall apply to the counties of

White, Wabash, Clay, Richland, Jasper, Lawrence, Crawford, Clark, Edgar, Coles, Moultrie, Effingham, Fayette, Bond, Cass, Menard, Pike, Schuyler, Brown, Scott, Washington, Jefferson, Marion, Hamilton, Clinton, Jackson, Franklin, Wayne, Edwards, McDonough, Alexander, Pulaski, Union, Hardin, Massac, Warren, Henderson, Monroe, Perry, Shelby, Cumberland, Jersey, Calhoun, Randolph, Pope, McLean, Knox, Fulton, Hancock, Adams, Stark. Vermilion, Montgomery, and Christian.

Sec. 6. This act shall be in force from and after its passage.

Approved, February 15, 1855.

GEOGRAPHY.

SITUATED in the centre of the United States, the state of Illinois extends from 37° to 42° 30′ latitude North, and from 87° 49' to 91° 28′ longitude West of Greenwich, or from 10° 47' to 14° 20′ longitude West of Washington. Illinois is bounded on the Northeast by Lake Michigan; on the East by Indiana, from a part of which it is separated by the Wabash river; on the South by Kentucky and Missouri, being separated from Kentucky by the Ohio, and from Missouri by the Mississippi; on.the West by Missouri, from which it is also separated by the Mississippi; on the North-west by Iowa, the Mississippi constituting the common boundary of both states, and on the North by Wisconsin.

The whole length of the Illinoisian frontier amounts to 1160 miles, 855 of which are formed by navigable waters, as Lake Michigan, the Wabash, Ohio, and Mississippi. The greatest length of the state, from South to North, from Cairo to Wisconsin, amounts to 378 miles; its greatest breadth to 212 miles. The area of the state is computed at 55,405 square miles, or 35,459,200 acres,-1,833,412 of which are so-called swamp-lands; the residue, 33,625,788 acres, being tillable, and the most part of them having a soil of unsurpassed fertility.

Illinois communicates by means of the St. Lawrence with the Atlantic ocean, and by the Mississippi with the Gulf of Mexico.

The state of Illinois forms the lower part of that slope in which is embraced the greater part of the state of Indiana, and of which Lake Michigan, with its shores, constitutes the upper part. The lowest point of this slope and of the state is the city of Cairo, situated about 350 feet above the level of the Gulf of Mexico, at the conflux of the Ohio and Mississippi, in the extreme southern portion of the state; hence, the highest place in Illinois being situated only 800 feet above the level of the sea, it will appear, that the whole state, though con

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