the grantee and his heirs, except as otherwise provided in this section; and on the death of the grantee shall descend to his heirs-at-law, or to such of them, or to such other person or persons, or to such other class or classes of persons, as may be desig nated in such conveyance. An heir may release to the other heirs, and a joint owner may release to the other joint owners, his interest therein, on conditions specified in the release, which shall be filed in the office of the corporation. The title of a grantee, or his heirs, shall not be affected by the dissolution of the corporation, or its non-user of its corporate rights and franchises, or any act of forfeiture on its part, or any alienation of its property or incumbrance thereon made or suffered by it. If no burial be made in any such lot, or if all the dead bodies buried therein be lawfully removed therefrom, the owners thereof may, with the consent of the corporation, sell the use of such lot. The secretary of the cemetery corporation shall file and record in its books all deeds of transfer. A lot owner may reconvey or devise to the corporation his right and title in and to any lot theretofore conveyed to him by such corporation. [L. 1847, ch. 133, §§ 4, 7, 11; R. S., 8th ed., 1936; as am. by L. 1891, ch. 382, § 1; R. S., 8th ed. (Supp.), 3293. L. 1880, ch. 566, §§ 2, 3, 4; R. S., 8th ed., 1944. L. 1891, ch. 344; R. S., 8th ed. (Supp.), 3513. The clause providing that sales shall be made to any person, and at uniform prices, is new. The provision authorizing the sale of the use only of the lot is new. The provision that the title of the lot-owner shall not be affected by the dissolution of the corporation or by any alienation or incumbrance made by it is new. L. 1847, ch. 133, § 7 made all the lots indivisible, while by this section the lots can be divided with the consent of the lot-owner and the corporation.] § 50. Application of proceeds of sales of lots.- At least onehalf of the proceeds of the sales of the use of all lots and plats shall be applied to the payment of the purchase-money of the real property acquired by the corporation until such purchase-money is paid, and the residue thereof shall be applied to preserving, improving and embellishing the cemetery grounds and the avenues and roads leading thereto, and to defraying the incidental expenses and liabilities of the corporation. After the payment of such purchase-money, and the expense of surveying and laying out the cemetery; the proceeds of all sales of the use of lots and plats thereafter shall be applied only to the improvement, preservation and embellishment of such cemetery and the incidental expenses of the corporation. Such corporation may agree with a person from whom any lands are purchased for a cemetery, to pay therefor a specified share not exceeding one-half of the proceeds of all sales of the use of lots and plats made from such land, and such share shall be first applied to the payment of such purchasemoney, and the residue thereof shall be applied to the preservation, improvement, and embellishment of the cemetery, and the incidental expenses of the corporation. Where lands have been so purchased, and are to be paid for as provided by this section, the prices of the use of lots and plats fixed by the directors and in force when such purchase was made, shall not be changed, while the purchase-price remains unpaid, without the written consent of a majority in interest of the persons from whom the lands were purchased, their heirs, representatives or assigns. [L. 1847, ch. 133, § 7; R. S., 8th ed., 1937, § 51. Burials and removals.-If there be more than one lot owner of a lot in the cemetery of a cemetery corporation, no body of a dead person shall be buried therein without the consent of all the owners of such lot, unless such person, at the time of his death, was an owner of the lot, or a relative, wife or husband of an owner, or a relative of such wife or husband. A dead body lawfully buried in a lot in such a cemetery may be removed therefrom, with the consent of the corporation, and the written consent of the owners of such lot, and of the surviving wife, husband, children, if of full age, and parents of the deceased. If the consent of any such person can not be obtained, or if the corporation refuses its consent, the consent of the county court of the county or the supreme court, at a special term, held in the district, where the cemetery is situated, shall be sufficient. Notice of the application for the consent of the court must be given, at least, eight days prior thereto, personally, or, at least, sixteen days prior thereto, by mail, to the corporation or to the person not consenting, and to every other person on whom service of notice may be required by the court. [L. 1847, ch. 133, § 11; R. S., 8th ed., 1938, § 52. Taxation of lot owners by corporation.- If the funds of a cemetery corporation applicable to the improvement of its cemetery wholly outside of a city, or applicable to the construction of a receiving vault therein for the common use of lot owners, be insufficient for such purposes, the directors of the corporation, not oftener than once in any year and for such purposes only, may levy a tax of one dollar on the owners of each lot, or, with the written consent of two-thirds of the lot owners, or with the concurring vote of a majority of the lot owners at an annual meeting, or at a special meeting duly called for such purpose, may levy a tax on the lot owners at a rate not exceeding five dollars for each lot of average value proportionately to the prices at which the lots were respectively sold by the corporation. Notice of such tax shall be served on the lot owners, or where two or more persons are owners of the same lot, on one of them, either personally, or by leaving it at his residence with a person of mature age and discretion, or by mail, if he resides in a city, town or village where the office of the corporation is not located. If such tax shall remain unpaid for more than thirty days after service of such notice, the president and secretary of the corporation may issue a warrant to the treasurer of the corporation, requiring him to collect such tax in the same manner as school collectors are required to collect school taxes; and such treasurer shall have the same power and be subject to the same liabilities in executing such warrant as a collector of school taxes has or is subject to by law in executing a warrant for the collection of school taxes. [L. 1868, ch. 402, §§ 1-3; R. S., 8th ed., 1940, The present law provides for the collection of taxes by the school district collector of the district in which the cemetery is situated, and if he refuses to act, allows the trustees of the cor poration to appoint a person to collect the same. The duty properly belongs to the treasurer of the corporation as provided by this section. The change will greatly simplify the procedure. The provision requiring the notice to be given to lot owners is new.] § 53. Expenses of improving vacated lot. Whenever a person having a lot in the cemetery of a cemetery corporation shall vacate the same by a removal of all the dead buried therein, and leave such lot in a broken and unimproved condition for a period of one month or more from the date of such removal, the corporation may grade, cut, fill or otherwise change the surface thereof, for the improvement of the lot and the general improvement of the cemetery grounds, without reducing the area of the lot. The expense of such improvement, not exceeding ten dollars, shall be chargeable to such lot. If the owners of such lot shall not, within six months after such expense has been incurred, repay to the corporation the amount chargeable to the lot, the corporation may sell the lot at public auction upon the cemetery grounds, previous notice of such sale having been posted at the main entrance of the cemetery, and mailed to the owners of such lot at their last-known post-office address, at least ten days prior to the day of sale, and shall pay the surplus, if any, of the proceeds of such sale over such amount, on demand, to the owners of such lot. [L. 1871, ch. 378, §§ 1-2; R. S., 8th ed., 1942, without change of substance.] 54. Certificates of indebtedness.- If a cemetery corporation be indebted for lands purchased for cemetery purposes, or for services rendered or materials furnished in preserving or improving its cemetery, the directors thereof, by the concurring vote of a majority of their whole number, may, with the consent of the creditor to whom any such indebtedness is owing, issue certificates under the corporate seal, signed by the president and secretary, for the amount of such indebtedness, or a part thereof, payable at such times and drawing such a rate of interest and in such sums as may be agreed on with such creditor; but the amount of any certificate shall not be less than one hundred dollars, nor the rate of interest higher than the rate authorized by law. The certificate shall be transferable by delivery, unless otherwise provided on the face thereof; and the directors shall keep in the books of the corporation an exact and true account of the number and amount of such certificates, the persons to whom issued, the time of maturity and the rate of interest. A separate account shall be kept in the books of the corporation of the certificates issued for the purchase-money of lands, and the certificates issued for debts incurred in preserving and improving the cemetery. The directors shall set aside from the proceeds of sales of the use of lots and plats, such sums as they may deem necessary to pay said certificates at their maturity. Until such certificates are paid each holder thereof shall be entitled at all meetings of the corporation, to one vote for each one hundred dollars of such indebtedness held by him. The certificates issued pursuant to this section shall not be a lien upon any lot belonging to a lot owner. L. 1860, ch. 163, §§ 1-4; R. S., 8th ed., 1939. L. 1884, ch. 433. By L. 1860, ch. 163, § 2, indebtedness can be funded by a vote of all the trustees, changed in this section to a vote of a maturity.] 55. Certificates of stock heretofore issued. If a cemetery corporation, incorporated under a law repealed by this chapter, has converted its outstanding indebtedness or certificates of indebtedness into certificates of stock, in pursuance of law, no interest shall accrue to the holders of such stock, but they shall receive annually or semi-annually a dividend thereon for their proportional part of the entire surplus or net receipts of the corporation over and above current expenses; or if the proportion of the net receipts or surplus which stockholder shall be entitled to receive shall have been fixed by agreement at the time of issuing such stock, such stockholders shall be entitled to receive dividends in accordance with such agreement. Such certificates of stock shall be transferable only on the books of the corporation on 'the surrender of the certificate, unless |