Sec. 1. Be it ordained by the City Council of the City of , that there shall be one or more city Auctioneers appointed by this council, who shall, after the passage of this act, and within thirty days after his or their appointment, produce and give bond to the Mayor and Council, with two good securities, in the sum of two thousand dollars, for the honest and due performance of all the duties required by law.

Sec. 2. That no person or persons whatsoever, save and except as set forth in the 6th Sec. of this Ordinance, shall, after the passage of this act, sell or dispose to sale, by way of vendue, or auction, any property, real of personal, within the City of , except he or they be authorized by the Mayor or City Council, and subject to the same laws that refer to the city auctioneer or auctioneers, and that if any person or persons shall be found selling or disposing of any property, real or personal, within said , by way of vendue or auction, otherwise than as in manner herein prescribed, such person or persons so offending, and being thereof lawfully convicted, shall forfeit and pay to the corporation, a sum not exceeding twenty five dollars for every lot which he or they shall have so sold, as also the auctioneer’s fees and duties, specified in this act, upon any sale or sales which may have been made by such person or persons before detection, one half to go to the corporation and the other half to the informer.

Sec. 3. That every auctioneer or auctioneers who may be appointed for this , shall receive all articles which he or they shall be required to sell at auction, giving his or their receipt for the same, if required, and within two days after any sale made, shall deliver a fair account of the same, and pay the amount thereof to the person or persons entitled thereto, deducting therefrom the duties, fees, commissions and charges hereafter allowed, that is to say, to said auctioneer or auctioneers, on the amount of every sale of property of any description, where the amount of sales shall not exceed the sum of fifty dollars, or commission, fee, or sum at the rate of ten per cent where the amount of sales shall exceed fifty dollars, and not exceed one hundred dollars, five per cent on the amount over the first fifty dollars, and where the amount of sales shall be over one hundred dollars, three per cent on the amount so over; and when any auctioneer shall let by auction or vendue, any real property, or ground rent, he shall be entitled to receive for his use a commission or fee on a sum equal to ten years’ amount of such rent, and in all cases when any article or articles, or property whatever, shall be actually exposed to sale, which shall not be sold by reason of its not producing the price at which it may be limited, it shall be lawful for the auctioneer, so exposing the same, to demand and receive, on the sum at which such article, articles, or property shall have been struck off, one fourth of the commission or fee which said auctioneer would have been entitled to receive for his use had it been actually sold; and every auctioneer who shall demand or receive any fees or commissions not allowed by law, or greater fees or commissions than are so allowed, shall forfeit four times the amount of fees and commissions so demanded or received, one half to go to the use of the person or persons on whom such demand shall be made, or from whom such fees or commissions shall be received, and the other half to the use of this corporation, Provided that nothing herein contained shall be construed to prevent said auctioneer from charging and receiving for his use repayment of expenditures or advances made, and a reasonable compensation for storage, and extra trouble, for services rendered.

Sec. 4. That no auctioneer shall wilfully and knowingly recieve goods for sale, of any servant or minor, unless accompanied by a certiffcate from the owner or owners thereof, nor expose to public sale any real or personal property, without first making out in writing, and signing, and publicly reading the conditions of sale nor without advertising the property intended for sale, and the time and place of sale in a newspaper, or by posting up notices in three public places in the ; and also giving notice of the same by a crier and the ringing of a bell.

Sec. 5. That no auctioneer of this shall put up or sell by vendue, or auction, liquors of any kind in less quantities than five gallons, under the penalty of five dollars for every offence.

Sec. 6. That from and after the passage of this act, there shall be levied and paid to this corporation, or duty on the amount of all sales at auction by the city auctioneer or auctioneers at the following rates, that is to say, upon all real estate, public securities, Bank and other incorporated stocks, at the rate of one half of one per cent, upon all watches, jewelry, cutlery, perfumery and stationary, at the rate of five per cent; and other goods, articles, or things, of whatever sort or kind, whether in the raw or manufactured state, at the rate of one per cent, except on sales of any property at auction, made under any order, ordinance, decree, sentence, or judgment of any court of the , or of any justice of the peace, or by virtue of any distress for rent, all of which are hereby exempted from the duties imposed by this act and may be sold by all public officers legally authorized so to do; Provided that nothing herein contained shall be so construed as to prevent any administrator, executor guardian, or persons by them employed in due course of law from selling by vendue or auction.

Sec. 7. That it shall be incumbent on said city auctioneer or auctioneers to deduct from the proceeds of all sales made by him or them, the duties herinbefore directed to be levied, and to pay over the same to the treasurer of this corporation, for its use and benefit, once in every three months; and in accounting for such duties, it shall also be incumbent on said city auctioneer or auctioneers to make his or their return under the solemn sanction of an oath or affirmation, and to exhibit to the treasurer aforesaid, whenever required by him, the books of sales of such auctioneer or auctioneers, in order to enable the treasurer to ascertain the correctness of the returns aforesaid; and in case any auctioneer shall fail strictly to perform the duties hereby imposed on him, or to account accurately for, and pay over, as above prescribed, the revenue payable to this corporation on sales at auction by him, or to exhibit his books, as aforesaid, he shall forfeit his office, and be, moreover, liable to a penalty of fifty dollars, and to a further penalty of fifteen dollars for every two days which shall elapse after a default shall be made in the payment of the said duties, or in rendering his returns, or in exhibiting his books, agreeable to this section, until he shall comply with the directions it contains; and all penalties accruing under it shall be for the sole use and benefit of this corporation.

Sec. 8. That in case any person or persons who shall have become the surety or sureties for the faithful performance of the duties of any city auctioneer shall die, remove from the city of , or become insolvent, the Mayor shall, and he is hereby authorized and empowered, to demand other satisfactory security or securities for the due performance of such duties; & in case such satisfactory security or securities shall not be given within eight days, the appointment of said auctioneer shall thenceforth become, and is hereby declared to be null and void, to all intents and purposes as if the same had never been granted; and whenever the Mayor shall have been informed that the said auctioneer shall have so failed to comply with the requisitions of the law, the Mayor shall, at the expiration of eight days, give public notice thereof.

Sec. 9. That every city auctioneer within this city shall constantly keep a fair copy of this law in some conspicuous place in his auction room, for the inspection of the public, and if he shall fail so to do, he shall forfeit and pay a penalty not exceeding twenty dollars, at the discretion of the Mayor, Alderman, or Municipal Court, before whom the same may come for trial.

Passed July 12, 1842.

, Recorder. [p. [1]]