shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction shall be punished by fine and imprisonment, at the discretion of the court, and his office shall, by such conviction, be ipso facto vacated.

1855-41.

State to be ap

SEC. 387. The Governor of the State is authorized to appoint A commisone or more persons of known integrity and learning as commis- sioner for each sioners for each one of the States and Territories of the Union, pointed by the who shall reside therein. Their term of office shall continue for Governor. four years from the date of their appointment, and they shall take the oath of office as prescribed by the Constitution and laws of this State and file the same, and the impress of their seal of office, in the office of the Secretary of State of this State.

Term of office.

SEC. 388. It shall be their duty to take depositions in virtue Their powers of any commission that may be directed to them by the courts and duties. of this State. They are also authorized and empowered to take the acknowledgment and proof of any deed, mortgage or conveyance of any lands, tenements or real property lying and being in the State of Louisiana, and to take the acknowledgment and proof of the execution of any instrument of writing for the sale, transfer or assignment of any property, movable or immovable, and of rights and debts, and also of any power of attorney or other writing to be used or proved in this State, before any court or public officer, and to administer an oath or affirmation for like purposes to any person desirous to make the same.

To authenti

cate the official character and

SEC. 389. The commissioners are authorized and empowered to authenticate and attest the signature, official capacity and official acts of any judge, justice of the peace or other public offi- acts of officers. cer holding a commission or acting under the authority of the State or Territory in which he shall reside, and for which he shall have been appointed.

SEC. 390. The power and authority of the commissioner, except in taking testimony under a commission, shall extend only to cases in which the party or person making the acknowledg ment or proof, oath or affirmation, shall reside within the State or Territory in which the commissioner resides, and for which he has been appointed.

Limitation of their powers.

In executing

commissions, to

SEC. 391. The commissioner, in executing commissions, shall coniorm to the conform, in all respects, to the legislation of this State in refer

laws of this

State.

Duplicates of

the signature and seal to be

deposited with the Secretary

of State.

Certain offi.

ence thereto, and shall sign every verbal process or deposition taken by them, and affix thereto their seal of office, bearing the impress of their names, official capacity, and the name of the State or Territory within the jurisdiction of which they shall be authorized to act.

SEC. 392. The duplicate original of the signature and seal of office of each commissioner appointed in the different states and Territories of the Union shall be deposited in the office of the Secretary of State of Louisiana.

SEC. 393. All American ministers, charges d'affaires, consuls cers authorized general, consuls, vice-consuls and commercial agents, in any for eign country, are authorized to act as commissioners under this act, and empowered to use their respective seals of office instead of the commissioner's seal herein before described.

to act as com. missioners.

Acknowledg.

ment before

commissioners

⚫vidence.

SEC. 394. Every acknowledgment or proof of any deed, conveyance, mortgage, sale, transfer or assignment, oath or affirma to be authentic tion, taken or made before a commissioner, minister, charge d'af faires, consul general, consul, vice-consul or commercial agent, and every attestation or authentication made by them, when duly certified as above provided, shall have the force and effect of an authentic act executed in this State.

Testimony in

used in other

States, how taken.

SEC. 395. Whenever it shall be necessary to take the deposi this State to be tion of witnesses in this State under commission from any other State or Territory, to be used as evidence in suits depending therein, it shall be lawful for any justice of the peace within this State, on the application to that effect made by the commissioner of such State or Territory, to use, if necessary, the same compulsory process to cause witnesses to appear and depose as in cases arising under the jurisdiction of any of the courts of this State.

COMMISSIONERS TO TAKE TESTIMONY OUT OF
COURT.

1868-114.

Clerks of courts may take deposi

SEC. 396. In the several parishes of the State (the parish of Orleans excepted) the clerks of the several district courts are hereby constituted commissioners for the taking of depositions tlons in certain of witnesses to be used in any of the courts of this State.

cases.

SEC. 397. Whenever a party to a suit pending in any of the Applicant shall apply to courts of this State shall desire to have the depositions of wit- the clerk. nesses, on whose testimony he relies, taken in writing, said party shall apply to the clerk of the court in which said suit is pending, to take the testimony of his witnesses in writing, and thereupon said clerk shall proceed to take the testimony of such witnesses in writing, either by himself or some other disinterested person, in his presence, after giving to the opposite party or parties, or their attorneys, at least two days' previous notice of the time and place specified in said notice; and if the party, or his counsel, reside out of the parish, ten days' notice shall be given, to date from the service of notice, which depositions, when so reduced to writing, as aforesaid, shall be sworn to and signed by each witness, if he knows how to write; if not, by his ordinary mark, attested by the clerk taking the same, which depositions, when so taken, shall be certified to by the clerk taking the same, under the seal of the court attached thereto, and forthwith filed in the records of the suit.

Testimony, how verified."

Parties mak

testimony.

SEC. 398. Should any objection be made by either of the parties, or their attorneys, to the taking of any part or the whole of ing objection to the deposition of any witness, it shall be the duty of the clerk to take down the question of the party, the answer of the witness thereto, as well as the objections made to the same, stating by whom such objection is made, as a part of the proceedings had, the regularity of which, or any part of which objection, shall be determined by the court in which the depositions are to be read on the trial of the cause.

testimony on

trial.

SEC. 399. All depositions of witnesses taken as aforesaid shall Depositions be evidence for either party desiring to use the same on the trial to be used as of the suit in which they are taken, subject to the rejection by the court of such portion or the whole thereof, as may have been objected to at the taking of the same, or such other legal objection as may be made to the introduction thereof at the trial of

the cause.

Clerks may

ance of witnesses.

SEC. 400. For the purpose of carrying this act into effect, the clerks of the courts are hereby empowered to compel attend- compel attendance of witnesses by subpoena or attachment, as the case may be, issued in the case and in the name of the court where the testimony is to be taken.

SEC. 401. All notices, subpœnas or attachments issued by said clerk shall be served by the sheriff of the parish or by his deputy, or by a constable, in case of the absence of the sheriff or his deputy, who shall make due return of the mode and manmanner of the service.

Sheriff or

constable shall serve subpoenas

Fees for serv

SEC. 402. The sheriff or constable serving such notice, subpœna or attachment shall be entitled to charge the same fees and ices of clerk. mileage allowed by the fee bill for serving subpoenas, and the clerk taking such depositions shall be allowed to charge and receive the following fees, and no more, to wit:

For issuing each notice to parties, with seal, twenty-five cents, including copy of the same.

For issuing each subpoena or attachment, with seal, twenty-five cents, including copy of the same.

For swearing each witness, twenty cents.

Notaries and clerks in the parish of Or

commissioners.

For writing each caption and deposition of each witness and certificate, for each one hundred words, twenty cents.

For affixing seal, twenty-five cents, which fee shall be charged like other costs, with the costs of the suit in which they are taken.

SEC. 403. Within the parish of Orleans, any notary public or clerk of a district court is hereby appointed commissioner to leans appointed take testimony of witnesses in suits pending in the courts of the parish of Orleans, before either of whom the parties to any suit pending in any court of the parish of Orleans may proceed to have the testimony of witnesses taken in the mode and manner herein before specified, and said commissioners shall be vested with all the powers herein granted to the clerks of the courts out of the parish of Orleans; and provided, That said commissioners, or either of them, may proceed to take such deposition, on giving twenty-four hours' notice to the opposite party, or his counsel, of the time and place of taking the deposition; for this purpose notaries public are authorized to administer oaths and to execute commissions to take testimony issued from other States or parishes of this State in the manner required by law.

SEC. 404. Said commissioners shall, on the completion of the deposition taken before them, securely inclose the same in an envelope and deliver the same to the clerk of the court in which the suit is pending.

SEC. 405. The civil sheriff of the parish of Orleans, or any of his lawful deputies, or any constable of said parish shall serve all notices, subpoenas, attachments or other process herein authorized to be issued, who shall make due return of the mode and manner of service to the commissioner who issued it, and for which he shall be entitled to demand and receive the following fees, and no more;

For serving each notice or subpoena, fifty cents.

For serving each attachment, one dollar.

SEC. 406. Each of said commissioners shall be authorized to charge and receive the following fees, and no more, to wit:

For issuing each notice, twenty-five cents, including copy of the same.

For each subpoena or attachment, twenty-five-cents, including copy of the same.

For writing depositions of witnesses, with caption and certifi cate, for each one hundred words, twenty cents.

For affixing official seal, twenty-five cents.

For swearing each witness, twenty cents, to be charged like other costs, with the costs of the suit in which the testimony is taken; the above fees and no more may be charged when exe cuting commissions from other parishes or States.

SEC. 407. The State of Louisiana is divided into six congres- 1874-116. sional districts, and the qualified electors of each district shall Congressional choose one representative to Congress, as follows:

The first district shall comprise the parishes of Plaquemines, St. Bernard, and that portion of the parish of Orleans lying on the right bank of the Mississippi river, and that portion on the left below Julia street and the new canal, comprising wards three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine and fifteen of the city of New Orleans.

The second congressional district shall comprise that portion of the parish of Orleans lying above Julia street and the new canal, comprising the second, first, tenth, eleventh, twelfth, thirteenth and fourteenth wards of the city of New Orleans, and the parishes of Jefferson, St. Charles, St. John and St. James. The third congressional district shall comprise the parishes of Iberville, Ascension, Assumption, Lafourche, Terrebonne, St. Mary, Iberia, St. Martin, Lafayette, Vermilion, Cameron, Cal

casieu.

districts.

First district.

Second dis

trict.

Third dis

trict.

trict.

The fourth congressional district shall be composed of the Fourth disparishes of Rapides, Vernon, Sabine, Natchitoches, Grant, Winn, Red River, De Soto, Caddo, Bossier, Webster, Bienville.

The fifth congressional district shall be composed of the parishes of oncordia, Caldwell, Franklin, Tensas, Madison, Richland, Ouachita, Jackson, Lincoln, Union, Morehouse, East Carroll, West Carroll, Claiborne, Catahoula.

Fifth district.

The sixth congressional district shall be composed of the Sixth district. parishes of Avoyelles, St. Landry, Pointe Coupee, West Feliciana, East Feliciana, West Baton Rouge, East Baton Rouge, St. Helena, Livington, Tangipahoa, Washington, St. Tammany.