Section
1. That the action of the President of the United States in
creating
the Philippine Commission and authorizing said Commission to exercise
the
powers of government to the extent and in the manner and form and
subject
to the regulation and control set forth in the instructions of the
President
to the Philippine Commission, dated April seventh, nineteen hundred,
and
in creating the offices of Civil Governor and Vice-Governor of the
Philippine
Islands, and authorizing said Civil Governor and Vice-Governor to
exercise
the powers of government to the extent and in the manner and form set
forth
in the Executive order dated June twenty-first, nineteen hundred and
one,
and is establishing four Executive Departments of government in said
Islands
as set forth in the Act of the Philippine Commission entitled "An Act
providing
an organization for the Departments of the Interior, of Commerce and
Police,
of Finance and Justice, and of Public Instruction," enacted September
sixth,
nineteen hundred and one, is hereby approved, ratified, and confirmed,
and until otherwise provided by law the said Islands shall continue to
be governed as thereby and herein provided, and all laws passed
hereafter
by the Philippine Commission shall have an enacting clause as follows.
"By authority of the United States, be it enacted by the Philippine
Commission."
The provisions of section eighteen hundred and ninety-one of the
Revised
Statutes of eighteen hundred and seventy eight shall not apply to the
Philippine
Islands.
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Future
appointments of Civil Governor, Vice-Governor, members of said
Commission
and heads of Executive Departments shall be made by the President, by
and
with the advice and consent of the Senate.
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Sec.
2. That the action of the
President of the United States heretofore taken by virtue of the
authority
vested in him as Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy, as set forth
in his order of July twelfth, eighteen hundred and ninety-eight,
whereby
a land of duties and taxes as set forth by said order was to be levied
and collected at all ports and places in the Philippine Islands upon
passing
into the occupation and possession of the forces of the United States,
together with the subsequent amendments of said order, are hereby
approved,
ratified, and confirmed, and the actions of the authorities of the
Government
of the Philippine Islands taken in accordance with the provisions of
said
order and subsequent amendments, are hereby approved: Provided, That
nothing
contained in this section shall be held to amend or repeal an Act
entitled
"An Act temporarily to provide revenue for the Philippine Islands, and
for other purposes," approved March eighth, nineteen hundred and two.
Sec.
3. That the President of
the United States, during such time as and whenever the sovereignty and
authority of the United States encounter armed resistance in the
Philippine
Islands, until otherwise provided by Congress, shall continue to
regulate
and control commercial intercourse with and within said Islands by such
general rules and regulations as he, in his discretion, may deem more
conducive
to the public interests and the general welfare.
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Sec.
4. That all inhabitants
of the Philippine Islands continuing to reside therein who were Spanish
subjects on the eleventh day of April, eighteen hundred and
ninety-nine,
and then resided in the Philippine Islands, and their children born
subsequent
thereto, shall be deemed and held to be citizens of the Philippine
Islands
and as such entitled to the protection of the United States, except
such
as shall have elected to preserve their allegiance to the Crown of
Spain
in accordance with the provisions of the treaty of peace between the
United
States and Spain signed at Paris December tenth, eighteen hundred and
ninety-eight.
Sec.
5. That no law shall be
enacted in said Islands which shall deprive any person of life,
liberty,
or property without due process of law, or deny to any person therein
the
equal protection of the laws.
That
in all criminal prosecutions the accused shall enjoy the right to be
heard
by himself and counsel, to demand the nature and cause of the
accusation
against him, to have a speedy and public trial, to meet the witnesses
face
to face, and to have compulsory process to compel the attendance of
witnesses
in his behalf.
That
no person shall be held to answer for a criminal offense without due
process
of law; and no person for the same offense shall be twice put in
jeopardy
of punishment, nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a
witness
against himself.
That
all persons shall before conviction be bailable by sufficient sureties,
except for capital offenses.
That
no law impairing the obligation of contracts shall be enacted.
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That
no person shall be imprisoned for debt.
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That
the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended,
unless
when in cases of rebellion, insurrection, or invasion the public safety
may require it, in either of which events the same may be suspended by
the President, or by the Governor, with the approval of the Philippine
Commission, wherever during such period the necessity for such
suspension
shall exist.
That
no ex post facto law or bill of attainder shall be enacted.
That
no law granting a title of nobility shall be enacted, and no person
holding
any office of profit or trust in said Islands, shall without the
consent
of the Congress of the United States, accept any present, emolument,
office,
or title of any kind whatever from any king, queen, prince, or foreign
State.
That
excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor
cruel and unusual punishment inflicted.
That
the right to be secure against unreasonable searches and seizures shall
not be violated.
That
neither slavery, nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for
crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist in
said Islands.
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That
no law shall be passed abridging the freedom of speech or of the press,
or the right of the people peaceably to assemble and petition the
Government
for redress of grievances.
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That
no law shall be made respecting an establishment of religion or
prohibiting
the free exercise thereof, and that the free exercise and enjoyment of
religious profession and worship, without discrimination or preference,
shall forever be allowed.
That
no money shall be paid out of the Treasury except in pursuance of an
appropriation
by law.
That
the rule of taxation in said Islands shall be uniform.
That
no private or local bill which may be enacted into law shall embrace
more
than one subject, and that subject shall be expressed in the title of
the
bill.
That
no warrant shall issue but upon probable cause, supported by oath or
affirmation,
and particularly describing the place to be searched and the person or
things to be seized.
That
all money collected on any tax levied or assessed for a special purpose
shall be treated as a special fund in the Treasury and paid out for
such
purpose only.
Sec.
6. That whenever the existing
insurrection in the Philippine Islands shall have ceased and a
condition
of general and complete peace shall have been established therein and
the
fact shall be certified to the President by the Philippine Commission,
the President, upon being satisfied thereof, shall order a census of
the
Philippine Islands to be taken by said Philippine Commission; such
census
in its inquiries relating to the population shall take and make so far
as practicable full report for all the inhabitants, of name, age, sex,
race, or tribe, whether native or foreign born, literacy in Spanish
native
dialect, or language, or in English, school attendance, ownership of
homes,
industrial and social statistics, and such other information separately
for each island, each province, and municipality, or other civil
division,
as the President and said Commission may deem necessary: Provided, That
the President may, upon the request of said Commission, in his
discretion,
employ the service of the Census Bureau in compiling and promulgating
the
statistical information above provided for, and may commit to such
Bureau
any part or portion of such labor as to him may seem wise.
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Sec.
7. That two years after
the completion and publication of the census, in case such condition of
general and complete peace with recognition of the authority of the
United
States shall have continued in the territory of said Islands not
inhabited
by Moros or other non-Christian tribes and such facts shall have been
certified
to the President by the Philippine Commission, the President upon being
satisfied thereof shall direct Commission to call, and the Commission
shall
call, a general election for the choice of delegates to a popular
assembly
of the people of said territory in the Philippine Islands, which shall
be known as the Philippine Assembly. After said Assembly shall have
convened
and organized, all the legislative power heretofore conferred on the
Philippine
Commission in all that part of said Islands not inhabited by Moros or
other
non-Christian tribes shall be vested in a Legislature consisting of two
Houses — the Philippine Commission and the Philippine Assembly. Said
Assembly
shall consist of not less than fifty nor more than one hundred members
to be apportioned by said Commission among the provinces as nearly as
practicable
according to population: Provided, That no province shall have less
than
one member: And provided further, That provinces entitled by population
to more than one member may be divided into such convenient district as
the said Commission may deem best.
Public
notice of such division shall be given at least ninety days prior to
such
election, and the election shall be held under rules and regulations to
be prescribed by law. The qualification of electors of such election
shall
be the same as is now provided by law in case of electors in municipal
elections. The members of Assembly shall hold office for two years from
the first day of January next following their election, and their
successors
shall be chosen by the people every second year thereafter. No person
shall
be eligible to such election who is not a qualified elector of the
election
district in which he may be chosen, owing allegiance to the United
States
and twenty-five years of age.
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The
Legislature shall hold annual sessions, commencing on the first Monday
of February in each year and continuing not exceeding ninety days
thereafter
(Sundays and holidays not included); Provided, That the first meeting
of
the Legislature shall be held upon the call of the Governor within
ninety
days after the first election: And provided further, That if at the
termination
of any session the appropriations necessary for the support of
Government
shall not have been made, an amount equal to the sums appropriated in
the
last appropriation bills for such purposes shall be deemed to be
appropriated;
and until the Legislature shall act in such behalf the Treasurer may,
with
the advice of the Governor, make the payments necessary for the
purposes
aforesaid.
The
Legislature may be called in special session at any time by the Civil
Governor
for general legislation, or for action on such specific subjects as he
may designate. No special session shall continue longer than thirty
days,
exclusive of Sundays.
The
Assembly shall be the judge of the elections, returns, and
qualifications
of its members. A majority shall constitute a quorum to do business,
but
a smaller number may adjourn from day to day and may be authorized to
compel
the attendance of absent members. It shall choose its Speaker and other
officers, and the salaries of its members and officers shall be fixed
by
law. It may determine the rule of its proceedings, punish its members
for
disorderly behavior, and with the concurrence of two-thirds expel a
member.
It shall keep a journal of its proceedings, which shall be published,
and
the yeas and nays of the members on any question shall, on the demand
of
one-fifth of those present, be entered on the journal.
Sec.
8. That at the same time
with the first meeting of the Philippine Legislature, and biennially
thereafter,
there shall be chosen by said Legislature, each House voting
separately,
two resident Commissioners to the United States, who shall be entitled
to an official recognition as such by all departments upon presentation
to the President of a certificate of election by the Civil Governor of
said Islands, and each of whom shall be entitled to a salary payable
monthly
by the United States at the rate of five thousand dollars per annum,
and
two thousand dollars additional to cover all expenses: Provided, That
no
person shall be eligible to such election who is not a qualified
elector
of said Islands, owing allegiance to the United States, and who is not
thirty years of age.
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Sec.
9. That the Supreme Court
and the Courts of First Instance of the Philippine Islands shall
possess
and exercise jurisdiction as heretofore provided and such additional
jurisdiction
as shall hereafter be prescribed by the Government of said Islands,
subject
to the power of said Government to change the practice and method of
procedure.
The municipal courts of said Islands shall possess and exercise
jurisdiction
as heretofore provided by the Philippine Commission, subject in all
matters
to such alteration and amendment as may be hereafter enacted by law;
and
the Chief Justice and Associate Justices of the Supreme Court shall
hereafter
be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of
the
Senate, and shall receive the compensation heretofore prescribed by the
Commission until otherwise provided by Congress. The judges of the
Court
of First Instance shall be appointed by the Civil Governor, by and with
the advice and consent of the Philippine Commission: Provided, That the
admiralty jurisdiction of the Supreme Court and Courts of First
Instance
shall not be changed except by Act of Congress.
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Sec.
10. That the Supreme Court
of the United States shall have jurisdiction to review, revise,
reverse,
modify, or affirm the final judgments and decrees of the Supreme Court
of the Philippine Islands in all actions, cases, causes, and
proceedings
now pending therein or hereafter determined thereby in which the
Constitution
or any statute, treaty, title, right, or privilege of the United States
is involved, or in causes in which the value in controversy exceeds
twenty-five
thousand dollars, or in which the title or possession of real estate
exceeding
in value the sum of twenty-five thousand dollars, to be ascertained by
the oath of either party or of other competent witnesses, is involved
or
brought in question; and such final judgments or decrees may and can be
reviewed, revised, reversed, modified, or affirmed by said Supreme
Court
of the United States on appeal or writ of error by the party aggrieved,
in the same manner, under the same regulations, and by the same
procedure,
as far as applicable, as the final judgments and decrees of the Circuit
Courts of the United States.
Sec.
11. That the Government
of the Philippine Islands is hereby authorized to provide for the needs
of commerce by improving the harbors and navigable waters of said
Islands
and to construct and maintain in said navigable waters and upon the
shore
adjacent thereto bonded warehouses, wharves, piers, light-houses,
signal
and life-saving stations, buoys, and like instruments of commerce, and
to adopt and enforce regulations in regard thereto, including bonded
warehouses
wherein articles not intended to be imported into said Islands nor
mingled
with the property therein, but brought into a port of said Islands for
reshipment to another country may be deposited in bond and reshipped to
another country without the payment of customs duties or charges.
Sec.
12. That all the property
and rights which may have been acquired in the Philippine Islands by
the
United States under the treaty of peace with Spain, signed December
tenth,
eighteen hundred and ninety-eight, except such land or other property
as
shall be designated by the President of the United States for military
and other reservations of the Government of the United States, are
hereby
placed under the control of the Government of said Islands, to be
administered
for the benefit of the inhabitants thereof, except as provided in this
Act.
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robles virtual law library
Sec.
13. That the Government
of the Philippine Islands, subject to the provisions of this Act and
except
as herein provided, shall classify according to its agricultural
character
and productiveness, and shall immediately make rules and regulations
for
the lease, sale, or other disposition of the public lands other than
timber
or mineral lands, but such rules and regulations shall not go into
effect
or have the force of law until they have received the approval of the
President,
and when approved by the President they shall be submitted by him to
Congress
at the beginning of the next ensuing session thereof and unless
disapproved
or amended by Congress at said session they shall at the close of such
period have the force and effect of law in the Philippine Islands:
Provided,
That a single homestead entry shall not exceed sixteen hectares in
extent.
Sec.
14. That the Government
of the Philippine Islands is hereby authorized and empowered to enact
rules
and regulations and to prescribe terms and conditions to enable persons
to perfect their title to public lands in said Islands, who, prior to
the
transfer of sovereignty from Spain to the United States, had fulfilled
all or some of the conditions required by the Spanish laws and royal
decrees
of the Kingdom of Spain for the acquisition of legal title thereto, yet
failed to secure conveyance of title; and the Philippine Commission is
authorized to issue patents, without compensation, to any native of
said
Islands, conveying title to any tract of land not more than sixteen
hectares
in extent, which were public lands and had been actually occupied by
such
native or his ancestors prior to and on the thirteenth of August,
eighteen
hundred and ninety-eight.
Sec.
15. That the Government
of the Philippine Islands is hereby authorized and empowered, on such
terms
as it may prescribe, by general legislation, to provide for the
granting
or sale and conveyance to actual occupants and settlers and other
citizens
of said Islands such parts and portions of the public domain, other
than
timber and mineral lands, of the United States in said Islands as it
may
deem wise, not exceeding sixteen hectares to any one person and for the
sale and conveyance of not more than one thousand and twenty-four
hectares
to any corporation or association of persons: Provided, That the grant
or sale of such lands, whether the purchase price be paid at once or in
partial payments, shall be conditioned upon actual and continued
occupancy,
improvement, and cultivation of the premises sold for a period of not
less
than five years, during which time the purchaser or grantee can not
alienate
or encumber said land or the title thereto; but such restriction shall
not apply to transfers of rights and title of inheritance under the
laws
for the distribution of the estates of decedents.
Sec.
16. That in granting or
selling any part of the public domain under the provisions of the last
preceding section, preference in all cases shall be given to actual
occupants
and settlers; and such public lands of the United States in the actual
possession or occupancy of any native of the Philippine Islands shall
not
be sold by said Government to any other person without the consent
thereto
of said prior occupant or settler first had and obtained: Provided,
That
the prior right hereby secured to an occupant of land, who can show no
other proof of title than possession, shall not apply to more than
sixteen
hectares in any one tract.
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Sec.
17. That timber, trees,
forests, and forest products on lands leased or demised by the
Government
of the Philippine Islands under the provisions of this Act shall not be
cut, destroyed, removed, or appropriated except by special permission
of
said Government and under such regulations as it may prescribe.
All
moneys obtained from lease or sale of any portion of the public domain
or from licenses to cut timber by the Government of the Philippine
Islands
shall be covered into the Insular Treasury and be subject only to
appropriation
for insular purposes according to law.
Sec.
18. That the forest laws
and regulations now in force in the Philippine Islands, with such
modifications
and amendments as may be made by the Government of said Islands, are
hereby
continued in force, and no timber lands forming part of the public
domain
shall be sold, leased, or entered until the Government of said Islands,
upon the certification of the Forestry Bureau that said lands are more
valuable for agriculture than for forest uses, shall declare such lands
so certified to be agricultural in character: Provided, That the said
Government
shall have the right and is hereby empowered to issue licenses to cut,
harvest, or collect timber or other forest products on reserved or
unreserved
public lands in said Islands in accordance with the forest laws and
regulations
hereinbefore mentioned and under the provisions of this Act, and the
said
Government may lease land to any person or persons holding such
licenses,
sufficient for a mill site, not to exceed four hectares in extent, and
may grant rights of way to enable such person or persons to get access
to the lands to which such licenses apply.
Sec.
19. That the beneficial
use shall be the basis, the measure, and the limit of all rights to
water
in said Islands, and the Government of said Islands is hereby
authorized
to make such rules and regulations for the use of water, and to make
such
reservations of public lands for the protection of the water supply,
and
for other public purposes not in conflict with the provisions of this
Act,
as it may deem best for the public good.
Sec.
20. That in all cases public
lands in the Philippine Islands valuable for minerals shall be reserved
from sale, except as otherwise expressly directed by law.
Sec.
21. That all valuable mineral
deposits in public lands in the Philippine Islands, both surveyed and
unsurveyed,
are hereby declared to be free and open to exploration, occupation, and
purchase, and the land in which they are found to occupation and
purchase,
by citizens of the United States, or of said Islands: Provided, That
when
on any lands in said Islands entered and occupied as agricultural lands
under the provisions of this Act, but not patented, mineral deposits
have
been found, the working of such mineral deposits is hereby forbidden
until
the person, association, or corporation who or which has entered and is
occupying such lands shall have paid to the Government of said Islands
such additional sum or sums as will make the total amount paid for the
mineral claim or claims in which said deposits are located equal to the
amount charged by the Government for the same as mineral claims.
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Sec.
22. That mining claims
upon land containing veins or lodes of quartz or other rock in place
bearing
gold, silver, cinnabar, lead, tin, copper, or other valuable deposits,
located after the passage of this Act, whether located by one or more
persons
qualified to locate the same under the preceding section, shall be
located
in the following manner and under the following conditions: Any person
so qualified desiring to locate a mineral claim shall, subject to the
provisions
of this Act with respect to land which may be used for mining, enter
upon
the same and locate a plot of ground measuring, where possible, but not
exceeding, one thousand feet in length by one thousand feet in breadth,
in as nearly as possible a rectangular form; that is to say: All angles
shall be right angles, except in cases where a boundary line of a
previously
surveyed claim is adopted as common to both claims, but the lines need
not necessarily be meridional. In defining the size of a mineral claim,
it shall be measured horizontally, irrespective of inequalities of the
surface of the ground.
Sec.
23. That a mineral claim
shall be marked by two posts placed as nearly as possible on the line
of
the ledge or vein, and the posts shall be numbered one and two, and the
distance between posts numbered one and two shall not exceed one
thousand
feet, the line between posts numbered one and two to be known as the
location
line; and upon posts numbered one and two shall be written the name
given
to the mineral claim, the name of the locator, and the date of the
location.
Upon post numbered one there shall be written, in addition to the
foregoing,
"Initial post," the approximate compass bearing of post numbered two,
and
a statement of the number of feet lying to the right and to the left of
the line from post numbered one to post numbered two, thus: "Initial
post
Direction of post numbered two _________ feet of this claim lie on the
right and ____________ feet on the left of the line from number one to
number two post." All the particulars required to be put on number one
and number two posts shall be furnished by the locator to the
provincial
secretary, or such other officer as by the Philippine Government may be
described as mining recorder, in writing, at the time the claim is
recorded,
and shall form a part of the record of the sum claim.
Sec.
24. That when a claim has
been located the holder shall immediately mark the line between posts
numbered
one and two so that it can be distinctly seen. The locator shall also
place
a post at the point where he has found minerals in place, on which
shall
be written "Discovery post:" Provided, That when the claim is surveyed
the surveyor shall be guided by the records of the claim, the sketch
plan
on the back of the declaration made by the owner when the claim was
recorded,
posts numbered one and two, and the notice on number one, initial post.
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Sec.
25.That it shall not be lawful to
move number one post, but number two post may be moved by the deputy
mineral
surveyor when the distance between posts numbered one and two exceeds
one
thousand feet, in order to place number two post one thousand feet from
number one post on the line of location. When the distance between
posts
numbered one and two is less than one thousand feet the deputy mineral
surveyor shall have no authority to extend the claim beyond number two.
Sec.
26. That the "location
line" shall govern the direction of one side of the claim, upon which
the
survey shall be extended according to this Act.
Sec.
27. That the holder of
a mineral claim shall be entitled to all minerals which may lie within
his claim, but he shall not be entitled to mine outside the boundary
lines
of his claim continued vertically downward: Provided, That this Act
shall
not prejudice the rights of claim owners nor claim holders whose claims
have been located under existing laws prior to this Act.
Sec.
28. That no mineral claim
of the full size shall be recorded without the application being
accompanied
by an affidavit made by the applicant or some person on his behalf
cognizant
of the facts — that the legal notices and posts have been put up; that
mineral has been found in place on the claim proposed to be recorded;
that
the ground applied for is unoccupied by any other person. In the said
declaration
shall be set out the name of the applicant and the date of the location
of the claim. The words written on the number one and number two posts
shall be set out in full, and as accurate a description as possible of
the position of the claim given with reference to some natural object
or
permanent monuments.
Sec.
29. That no mineral claim
which at the date of its record is known by the locator to be less than
a full-sized mineral claim shall be recorded without the word
"fraction"
being added to the name of the claim, and the application being
accompanied
by an affidavit or solemn declaration made by applicant or some person
on his behalf cognizant of the facts: That the legal posts and notices
have been put up; that mineral has been found in place on the
fractional
claim proposed to be recorded; that the ground applied for is
unoccupied
by any other person. In the said declaration shall be set out the name
of the applicant and the date of the location of the claim. The words
written
on the posts numbered one and two shall be set out in full, and as
accurate
a description as possible of the position of the claim given. A sketch
plan shall be drawn by the applicant on the back of the declaration,
showing
as near as may be the position of the adjoining mineral claims and the
shape and size, expressed in feet, of the claim or fraction desired to
be recorded: Provided, That the failure on the part of the locator of a
mineral claim to comply with any of the foregoing provisions of this
section
shall not be deemed to invalidate such location, if upon the facts it
shall
appear that such locator has actually discovered mineral in place on
said
location, and that there has been on his part a bona fide attempt to
comply
with the provisions of this Act, and that the nonobservance of the
formalities
hereinbefore referred to is not of a character calculated to mislead
other
persons desiring to locate claims in the vicinity.
Sec.
30. That in cases where,
from the nature or shape of the ground, it is impossible to mark the
location
line of the claim as provided by this Act, then the claim may be marked
by placing posts as nearly as possible to the location line, and noting
the distance and direction such posts may be from such location line,
which
distance and direction shall be set out in the record of the claim.
Sec.
31. That every person locating
a mineral claim shall record the same with the provincial secretary or
such other officer as by the Government of the Philippine Islands may
be
described as mining recorder of the district within which the same is
situated,
within thirty days after the location thereof. Such record shall be
made
in a book to be kept for the purpose in the office of the said
provincial
secretary or such other officer as by said Government described as
mining
recorder, in which shall be inserted the name of the claim, the name of
each locator, the locality of the mine, the direction of the location
line,
the length in feet, the date of location, and the date of the record. A
claim which shall not have been recorded within the prescribed period
shall
be deemed to have been abandoned.
Sec.
32. That in case of any
dispute as to the location of a mineral claim the title to the claim
shall
be recognized according to the priority of such location, subject to
any
question as to the validity of the record itself and subject to the
holder
having complied with all the terms and conditions of this Act.
Sec.
33. That no holder shall
be entitled to hold in his, its or their own name or in the name of any
other person, corporation or association more than one mineral claim on
the same vein or lode.
Sec.
34. That a holder may at
any time abandon any mineral claim by giving notice, in writing, or
such
intention to abandon, to the provincial secretary or such other officer
as by the Government of the Philippine Islands may be described as
mining
recorder; and from the date of the record of such notice all his
interest
in such claim shall cease.
Sec.
35. That proof of citizenship
under the clauses of this Act relating to mineral lands may consist in
the case of an individual, of his own affidavit thereof; in the case of
an association of persons unincorporated, of the affidavit of their
authorized
agent made on his own knowledge or upon information and belief, and in
case of a corporation organized under the laws of the United States, or
of any State or Territory thereof, or of the Philippine Islands, by the
filing of a certified copy of their charter or certificate of
incorporation.
Sec.
36. That the United States
Philippine Commission or its successors may make regulations, not in
conflict
with the provision of this Act, governing the location, manner of
recording,
and amount of work necessary to hold possession of a mining claim,
subject
to the following requirements:
On
each claim located after the passage of this Act, and until a patent
has
been issued therefor, not less than one hundred dollars' worth of labor
shall be performed or improvements made during each year: Provided,
That
upon a failure to comply with these conditions the claim or mine upon
which
such failure occurred shall be open to relocation in the same manner as
if no location of the same had ever been made, provided that the
original
locators, their heirs, assigns, or legal representatives have not
resumed
work upon the claim after failure and before such location. Upon the
failure
of any one of several co-owners to contribute his proportion of the
expenditures
required thereby, the co-owners who have performed the labor or made
the
improvements may, at the expiration of the year, give such delinquent
co-owner
personal notice in writing or notice by publication in the newspaper
published
nearest the claim, and in two newspapers published at Manila, one in
the
English language and the other in the Spanish language, to be
designated
by the Chief of the Philippine Insular Bureau of Public Lands, for at
least
once a week for ninety days, and, if at the expiration of ninety days
after
such notice in writing or by publication such delinquent shall fail or
refuse to contribute his proportion of the expenditure required by this
section his interest in the claim shall become the property of his
co-owners
who have made the required expenditures. The period within which the
work
required to be done annually on all unpatented mineral claims shall
commence
on the first day of January succeeding the date of location of such
claim.
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Sec.
37. That a patent for any
land claimed and located for valuable mineral deposits may be obtained
in the following manner: Any person, association, or corporation
authorized
to locate a claim under this Act, having claimed and located a piece of
land for such purposes, who has or have complied with the terms of this
Act may file in the office of the provincial secretary, or such other
officer
as by the Government of said Islands may be described as mining
recorder
of the province wherein the land claimed is located, an application for
a patent, under oath showing such compliance, together with a plat and
field notes of the claim or claims in common, made by or under the
direction
of the Chief of the Philippine Insular Bureau of Public Lands, showing
accurately the boundaries of the claim, which shall be distinctly
marked
by monuments on the ground, and shall post a copy of such plat,
together
with a notice of such application for a patent, in a conspicuous place
on the land embraced in such plat previous to the filing of the
application
for a patent, and shall file an affidavit of at least two persons that
such notice has been duly posted, and shall file a copy of the notice
in
such office, and shall thereupon be entitled to a patent for the land,
in the manner following: The provincial secretary, or such other
officer
as by the Philippine Government may be described as mining recorder,
upon
the filing of such application, plat, field notes, notices, and
affidavits,
shall publish a notice that such an application has been made, once a
week
for the period of sixty days, in a newspaper to be by him designated as
nearest to such claim and in two newspapers published at Manila, one in
the English language and one in the Spanish language, to be designated
by the Chief of the Philippine Insular Bureau of Public Lands; and he
shall
also post such notice in his office for the same period. The claimant
at
the time of filing this application, or at any time thereafter within
the
sixty days of publication, shall file with the provincial secretary or
such other officer as by the Philippine Government may be described as
mining recorder a certificate of the Chief of the Philippine Insular
Bureau
of Public Lands that five hundred dollars' worth of labor has been
expended
or improvements made upon the claim by himself or grantors; that the
plat
is correct, with such further description by such reference to natural
objects or permanent monuments as shall identify the claim, and furnish
an accurate description to be incorporated in the patent. At the
expiration
of the sixty days of publication the claimant shall file his affidavit,
showing that the plat and notice have been posted in a conspicuous
place
on the claim during such period of publication. If no adverse claim
shall
have been filed with the provincial secretary or such other officer as
by the Government of said Islands may be described as mining recorder
at
the expiration of the sixty days of publication, it shall be assumed
that
the applicant is entitled to a patent upon the payment to the
provincial
treasurer or the collector of internal revenue of five dollars per acre
and that no adverse claim exists, and thereafter no objection from
third
parties to the issuance of a patent shall be heard, except it be shown
that the applicant has failed to comply with the terms of this Act:
Provided,
That where the claimant for a patent is not a resident of or within the
province wherein the land containing the vein, ledge, or deposit sought
to be patented is located, the application for patent and the
affidavits
required to be made in this section by the claimant for such patent may
be made by his, her, or its authorized agent where said agent is
conversant
with the facts sought to be established by said affidavits.
Sec.
38. That applicants for
mineral patents, if residing beyond the limits of the province or
military
department wherein the claim is situated, may make the oath or
affidavit
required for proof of citizenship before the clerk of any court of
record,
or before any notary public of any province of the Philippine Islands,
or any other official in said Islands authorized by law to administer
oaths.
Sec.
39. That where an adverse
claim is filed during the period of publication it shall be upon oath
of
the person or persons making the same, and shall show the nature,
boundaries,
and extent of such adverse claim, and all proceedings, except the
publication
of notice and making and filing of the affidavits thereof, shall be
stayed
until the controversy shall have been settled or decided by a court of
competent jurisdiction or the adverse claim waived. It shall be the
duty
of the adverse claimant, within thirty days after filing his claim, to
commence proceedings in a court of competent jurisdiction to determine
the question of the right of possession, and prosecute the same with
reasonable
diligence to final judgment, and a failure so to do shall be a waiver
of
his adverse claim. After such judgment shall have been rendered the
party
entitled to the possession of the claim, or any portion thereof, may,
without
giving further notice, file a certified copy of the judgment roll with
the provincial secretary or such other officer as by the Government of
the Philippine Islands may be described as mining recorder, together
with
the certificate of the Chief of the Philippine Insular Bureau of Public
Lands that the requisite amount of labor has been expended or
improvements
made thereon, and the description required in other cases, and shall
pay
to the provincial treasurer or the collector of internal revenue of the
province in which the claim is situated, as the case may be, five
dollars
per acre for his claim, together with the proper fees, whereupon the
whole
proceedings and the judgment roll shall be certified by the provincial
secretary or such other officer as by said Government may described as
mining recorder to the Secretary of the Interior of the Philippine
Islands,
and a patent shall issue thereon for the claim, or such portion thereof
as the applicant shall appear, from the decision of the court, rightly
to possess. The adverse claim may be verified by the oath of any duly
authorized
agent or attorney in fact of the adverse claimant cognizant of the
facts
stated; and the adverse claimant, if residing or at the time being
beyond
the limits of the province wherein the claim is situated, may make oath
to the adverse claim before the clerk of any court of record, or any
notary
public of any province or military department of the Philippine
Islands,
or any other officer authorized to administer oaths where the adverse
claimant
may then be. If it appears from the decision of the court that several
parties are entitled to separate and different portions of the claim,
each
party may pay for his portion of the claim, with the proper fees, and
file
the certificate and description by the Chief of the Philippine Insular
Bureau of Public Lands, whereupon the provincial secretary or such
other
officer as by the Government of said Islands may be described as mining
recorder shall certify the proceedings and judgment roll to the
Secretary
of the Interior for the Philippine Islands, as in the preceding case,
and
patents shall issue to the several parties according to their
respective
rights. If in any action brought pursuant to this section, title to the
ground in controversy shall not be established by either party, the
court
shall so find, and judgment shall be entered accordingly. In such case
costs shall not be allowed to either party, and the claimant shall
proceed
in the office of the provincial secretary or such other officer as by
the
Government of said Islands may be described as mining recorder or be
entitled
to a patent for the ground in controversy until he shall have perfected
his title. Nothing herein contained shall be construed to prevent the
alienation
of a title conveyed by a patent for a mining claim to any person
whatever.
Sec.
40. That the description
of mineral claims upon surveyed lands shall designate the location of
the
claim with reference to the lines of the public surveys, but need not
conform
therewith; but where a patent shall be issued for claims upon
unsurveyed
lands, the Chief of the Philippine Insular Bureau of Public Lands in
extending
the surveys shall adjust the same to the boundaries of such patented
claim
according to the plat or description thereof, but so as in no case to
interfere
with or change the location of any patented claim.
Sec.
41. That any person authorized
to enter lands under this Act may enter and obtain patent to lands that
are chiefly valuable for building stone under the provisions of this
Act
relative to placer mineral claims.
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Sec.
42. That any person authorized
to enter lands under this Act may enter and obtain patent to lands
containing
petroleum or other mineral oils and chiefly valuable therefor under the
provisions of this Act relative to parcel mineral claims.
Sec.
43. That no location of
a placer claim shall exceed sixty-four hectares for any association of
persons, irrespective of the number of persons composing such
association,
and no such location shall include more than eight hectares for an
individual
claimant. Such locations shall conform to the laws of the United States
Philippine Commission, or its successors, with reference to public
surveys,
and nothing in this section contained shall defeat or impair any bona
fide
ownership of land for agricultural purposes or authorize the sale of
the
improvements of any bona fide settler to any purchase.
Sec.
44. That where placer claims
are located upon surveyed lands and conform to legal subdivisions,
further
survey or plat shall be required, and all placer mining claims located
after the date of passage of this Act shall conform as nearly as
practicable
to the Philippine system of public-land surveys and the regular
subdivision
of such surveys; but where placer claims can not be conformed to legal
subdivisions, survey and plat shall be made as on unsurveyed lands; and
where by the segregation of mineral lands in any legal subdivision a
quantity
of agricultural land less than sixteen hectares shall remain, such
fractional
portion of agricultural land may be entered by any party qualified by
law
for homestead purposes.
Sec.
45. That where such person
or association, they and their grantors have held and worked their
claims
for a period equal to the time prescribed by the statute of limitations
of the Philippine Islands, evidence of such possession and working of
the
claims for such period shall be sufficient to establish a right to a
patent
thereto under this Act, in the absence of any adverse claim; but
nothing
in this Act shall be deemed to impair any lien which may have attached
in any way whatever prior to the issuance of a patent.
Sec.
46. That the Chief of the
Philippine Insular Bureau of Public Lands may appoint competent deputy
mineral surveyors to survey mining claims. The expenses of the survey
of
vein or lode claims and of the survey of placer claims, together with
the
cost of publication of notices, shall be paid by the applicants, and
they
shall be at liberty to obtain the same at the most reasonable rates,
and
they shall also be at liberty to employ any such deputy mineral
surveyor
to make the survey. The Chief of the Philippine Insular Bureau of
Public
Lands shall also have power to establish the maximum charges for
surveys
and publication of notices under this Act; and in case of excessive
charges
for publication he may designate any newspaper published in a province
where mines are situated, or in Manila, for the publication of mining
notices
and fix the rates to be charged by such paper; and to the end that the
Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands may be fully informed on the
subject
such applicant shall file with the provincial secretary, or such other
officer as by the Government of the Philippine Islands may be described
as mining recorder, a sworn statement of all charges and fees paid by
such
applicant for publication and surveys, and of all fees and money paid
the
provincial treasurer or the collector of internal revenue, as the case
may be, which statement shall be transmitted, with the other papers in
the case, to the Secretary of the Interior for the Philippine
Islands.
Sec.
47. That all affidavits
required to be made under this Act may be verified before any officer
authorized
to administer oaths within the province or military department where
the
claims may be situated, and all testimony and proofs may be taken
before
any such officer, and, when duly certified by the officer taking the
same,
shall have the same force and effect as if taken before the proper
provincial
secretary or such other officer as by the Government of the Philippine
Islands may be described as mining recorder. In cases of contest as to
the mineral or agricultural character of land the testimony and proofs
may be taken as herein provided on personal notice of at least ten days
to the opposing party; or if such party can not be found, then by
publication
at least once a week for thirty days in a newspaper to be designated by
the provincial secretary or such other officer as by said Government
may
be described as mining recorder published nearest to the location of
such
land and in two newspapers published in Manila, one in the English
language
and one in the Spanish language, to be designated by the Chief of the
Philippine
Insular Bureau of Public Lands; and the provincial secretary or such
other
officer as by said Government may be described as mining recorder shall
require proofs that such notice has been given.
Sec.
48. That where nonmineral
land not contiguous to the vein or lode is used or occupied by the
proprietor
of such vein or lode for mining or milling purposes, such nonadjacent
surface
ground may be embraced and included in an application for a patent for
such vein or lode, and the same may be patented therewith, subject to
the
same preliminary requirements as to survey and notice as are applicable
to veins or lodes; but no location of such nonadjacent land shall
exceed
two hectares, and payment for the same must be made at the same rate as
fixed by this Act for the superficies of the lode. The owner of a
quartz
mill or reduction works not owning a mine in connection therewith may
also
receive a patent for his mill site as provided in this section.
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Sec.
49. That as a condition
of sale the Government of the Philippine Islands may provide rules for
working, policing, and sanitation of mines, and rules concerning
easements,
drainage, water rights, right of way, right of Government survey and
inspection,
and other necessary means to their complete development not
inconsistent
with the provisions of this Act, and those conditions shall be fully
expressed
in the patent. The Philippine Commission or its successors are hereby
further
empowered to fix the bonds of deputy mineral surveyors.
Sec.
50. That whenever by priority
of possession rights to the use of water for mining, agricultural,
manufacturing,
or other purposes have vested and accrued and the same are recognized
and
acknowledged by the local customs, laws, and the decisions of courts,
the
possessors and owners of such vested rights shall be maintained and
protected
in the same, and the right of way for the construction of ditches and
canals
for the purposes herein specified is acknowledged and confirmed, but
whenever
any person, in the construction of any ditch or canal, injures or
damages
the possession of any settler on the public domain, the party
committing
such injury or damage shall be liable to the party injured for such
injury
or damage.
Sec.
51. That all patents granted
shall be subject to any vested and accrued water rights, or rights to
ditches
and reservoirs used in connection with such water rights as may have
been
acquired under or recognized by the preceding section.
Sec.
52. That the Government
of the Philippine Islands is authorized to establish land districts and
provide for the appointment of the necessary officers wherever they may
deem the same necessary for the public convenience, and to further
provide
that in districts where land offices are established proceedings
required
by this Act to be had before provincial officers shall be had before
the
proper officers of such land offices.
Sec.
53. That every person above
the age of twenty-one years, who is a citizen of the United States, or
of the Philippine Islands, or who has acquired the rights of a native
of
said Islands under and by virtue of the treaty of Paris, or any
association
of persons severally qualified as above, shall, upon application to the
proper provincial treasurer, have the right to enter any quality of
vacant
coal lands of said Islands not otherwise appropriated or reserved by
competent
authority, not exceeding sixty-four hectares to such individual person,
or one hundred and twenty-eight hectares to such association, upon
payment
to the provincial treasurer or the collector of internal revenue, as
the
case may be, of not less than twenty-five dollars per hectare for such
lands, where the same shall be situated more than fifteen miles from
any
completed railroad or available harbor or navigable stream, and not
less
than fifty dollars per hectare for such lands as shall be within
fifteen
miles of such road, harbor, or stream: Provided, That such entries
shall
be taken in squares of sixteen or sixty-four hectares, in conformity
with
the rules and regulations governing the public-land surveys of the said
Islands in plotting legal subdivisions.
Sec.
54. That any person or
association of persons, severally qualified as above provided, who have
opened and improved, or shall hereafter open and improve, any coal mine
or mines upon the public lands, and shall be in actual possession of
the
same, shall be entitled to a preference right of entry under the
preceding
section of the mines so opened and improved.
Sec.
55. That all claims under
the preceding section must be presented to the proper provincial
secretary
within sixty days after the date of actual possession and the
commencement
of improvements on the land by the filing of a declaratory statement
therefor;
and where the improvements shall have been made prior to the expiration
of three months from the date of the passage of this Act, sixty days
from
the expiration of such three months shall be allowed for the filing of
a declaratory statement; and no sale under the provisions of this Act
shall
be allowed until the expiration of six months from the date of the
passage
of this Act.
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Sec.
56. That the three preceding
sections shall be held to authorize only one entry by the same person
or
association of persons; and no association of persons, any member of
which
shall have taken the benefit of such sections, either as an individual
or as a member of any other association, shall enter or hold any other
lands under the provisions thereof; and no member of any association
which
shall have taken the benefit of such section shall enter or hold any
other
lands under their provisions; and all persons claiming under section
fifty-eight
shall be required to prove their respective rights and pay for the
lands
filed upon within one year from the time prescribed for filing their
respective
claims; and upon failure to file the proper notice or to pay for the
land
within the required period, the same shall be subject to entry by any
other
qualified applicant.
Sec.
57. That in case of conflicting
claims upon coal lands where the improvements shall be commenced after
the date of the passage of this Act, priority of possession and
improvement,
followed by proper filing and continued good faith, shall determine the
preference right to purchase. And also where improvements have already
been made prior to the passage of this Act, division of the land
claimed
may be made by legal subdivisions, which shall conform as nearly as
practicable
with the subdivisions of land provided for in this Act, to include as
near
as may be the valuable improvements of the respective parties. The
Government
of the Philippine Islands is authorized to issue all needful rules and
regulations for carrying into effect the provisions of this and
preceding
sections relating to mineral lands.
Sec.
58. That whenever it shall
be made to appear to the secretary of any province or the commander of
any military department in the Philippine Islands that any lands within
the province are saline in character, it shall be the duty of said
provincial
secretary or commander, under the regulations of the Government of the
Philippine Islands, to take testimony in reference to such lands, to
ascertain
their true character, and to report the same to the Secretary of the
Interior
for the Philippine Islands; and if, upon such testimony, the Secretary
of the Interior shall find that such lands are saline and incapable of
being purchased under any of the laws relative to the public domain,
then
and in such case said lands shall be offered for sale at the office of
the provincial secretary or such other officer as by the said
Government
may be described as mining recorder of the province or department in
which
the same shall be situated, as the case may be, under such regulations
as may be prescribed by said Government and sold to the highest bidder,
for cash, at a price of not less than three dollars per hectare; and in
case such lands fail to sell when so offered, then the same shall be
subject
to private sale at such office, for cash, at a price not less than
three
dollars per hectare, in the same manner as other lands in the said
Islands
are sold. All executive proclamations relating to the sales of public
saline
lands shall be published in only two newspapers, one printed in the
English
language and one in the Spanish language, at Manila, which shall be
designated
by said Secretary of the Interior.
Sec.
59. That no Act granting
lands to provinces, districts, or municipalities to aid in the
construction
of roads, or for other public purposes, shall be so construed as to
embrace
mineral lands, which, in all cases, are reserved exclusively, unless
otherwise
specially provided in the Act or Acts making the grant.
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Sec.
60. That nothing in this
Act shall be construed to affect the rights of any person, partnership,
or corporation having a valid, perfected mining concession granted
prior
to April eleventh, eighteen hundred and ninety-nine, but all such
concessions
shall be conducted under the provisions of the law in force at the time
they were granted, subject at all times to cancellation by reason of
illegality
in the procedure by which they were obtained, or for failure to comply
with the conditions prescribed as requisite to their retention in the
laws
under which they were granted: Provided, That the owner or owners of
every
such concession shall cause the corners made by its boundaries to be
distinctly
marked with permanent monuments within six months after this Act has
been
promulgated in the Philippine Islands, and that any concessions the
boundaries
of which are not so marked within this period shall be free and open to
exploration and purchase under the provisions of this Act.
Sec.
61. That mining rights
on public lands in the Philippine Islands shall, after the passage of
this
Act, be acquired only in accordance with its provisions.
Sec.
62. That all proceedings
for the cancellation of perfected Spanish concessions shall be
conducted
in the courts of the Philippine Islands having jurisdiction of the
subject-matter
and of the parties, unless the United States Philippine Commission, or
its successors, shall create special tribunals for the determination of
such controversies.
Authority
for the Philippine Islands Government to Purchase Lands of Religious
Orders
and Others and Issue Bonds for Purchase Price.
Sec.
63. That the Government
of the Philippine Islands is hereby authorized, subject to the
limitations
and conditions prescribed in this Act, to acquire, receive, hold,
maintain,
and convey title to real and personal property, and may acquire real
estate
for public uses by the exercise of the right of eminent domain.
Sec.
64. That the powers hereinbefore
conferred in section sixty-three may also be exercised in respect of
any
lands, easements, appurtenances, and hereditaments which, on the
thirteenth
of August, eighteen hundred and ninety-eight, were owned or held by
associations,
corporations, communities, religious orders, or private individuals in
such large tracts or parcels and in such manner as in the opinion of
the
Commission injuriously to affect the peace and welfare of the people of
the Philippine Islands. And for the purpose of providing funds to
acquire
the lands mentioned in this section said Government of the Philippine
Islands
is hereby empowered to incur indebtedness, to borrow money, and to
issue,
and to sell at not less than par value, in gold coin of the United
States
of the present standard value or the equivalent in value in money of
said
Islands, upon such terms and conditions as it may deem best, registered
or coupon bonds of said Government for such amount as may be necessary,
said bonds to be in denominations of fifty dollars or any multiple
thereof,
bearing interest at a rate not exceeding four and a half per centum per
annum, payable quarterly, and to be payable at the pleasure of said
Government
after dates named in said bonds not less than five nor more than thirty
years from the date of their issue, together with interest thereon, in
gold coin of the United States of the present standard value or the
equivalent
in value in money of said Islands; and said bonds shall be exempt from
the payment of all taxes or duties of said Government, or any local
authority
therein, or of the Government of the United States, as well as from
taxation
in any form by or under State, municipal, or local authority in the
United
States or the Philippine Islands. The moneys which may be realized or
received
from the issue and sale of said bonds shall be applied by the
Government
of the Philippine Islands to the acquisition of the property authorized
by this section, and to no other purposes.
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Sec.
65. That all lands acquired
by virtue of the preceding section shall constitute a part and portion
of the public property of the Government of the Philippine Islands, and
may be held, sold, and conveyed, or leased temporarily for a period not
exceeding three years after their acquisition by said Government on
such
terms and conditions as it may prescribe, subject to the limitations
and
conditions provided for in this Act: Provided, That all deferred
payments
and the interest thereon shall be payable in the money prescribed for
the
payment of principal and interest of the bonds authorized to be issued
in payment of said lands by the preceding section and said deferred
payments
shall bear interest at the rate borne by the bonds. All moneys realized
or received from sales or other disposition of said lands or by reason
thereof shall constitute a trust fund for the payment of principal and
interest of said bonds, and also constitute a sinking fund for the
payment
of said bonds at their maturity. Actual settlers and occupants at the
time
said lands are acquired by the Government shall have the preference
over
all others to lease, purchase, or acquire their holdings within such
reasonable
time as may be determined by said Government.
Municipal
Bonds
for Public Improvements
Sec.
66. That for the purpose
of providing funds to construct sewers, to furnish adequate sewer and
drainage
facilities, to secure a sufficient supply of water, and to provide all
kinds of municipal betterments and improvements in municipalities, the
Government of the Philippine Islands, under such limitations, terms,
and
conditions as it may prescribe, with the consent and approval of the
President
and the Congress of the United States, may permit any municipality of
said
Islands to incur indebtedness, borrow money, and to issue and sell (at
not less than par value in gold coin of the United States) registered
or
coupon bonds in such amount and payable at such time as may be
determined
by the Government of said Islands, with interest thereon not to exceed
five per centum per annum: Provided, That the entire indebtedness of
any
municipality under this section shall not exceed five per centum of the
assessed valuation of the property in said municipality and any
obligation
in excess of such limit shall be null and void.
Sec.
67. That all municipal
bonds shall be in denominations of fifty dollars, or any multiple
thereof,
bearing interest at a rate not exceeding five per centum per annum,
payable
quarterly, such bonds to be payable at the pleasure of the Government
of
the Philippine Islands, after dates named in said bonds not less than
five
nor more than thirty years from the date of their issue, together with
the interest thereon, in gold coin of the United States of the present
standard of value, or its equivalent in value in money of the said
Islands:
and said bonds shall be exempt from the payment of all taxes or duties
of the Government of the Philippine Islands, or any local authority
therein,
or the Government of the United States.
Sec.
68. That all moneys which
may be realized or received from the issue and sale of said bonds shall
be utilized under authorization of the Government of the Philippine
Islands
in providing the municipal improvements and betterment which induced
the
issue and sale of said bonds, and for no other purpose.
Sec.
69. That the Government
of the Philippine Islands shall, by the levy and collection of taxes on
the municipality, its inhabitants and their property, or by other
means,
make adequate provision to meet the obligation of the bonds of such
municipality,
and shall create a sinking fund sufficient to retire them and pay the
interest
thereon in accordance with the terms of issue: Provided, That if said
bonds
or any portion thereof shall be paid out of the funds of the Government
of said Islands, such municipality shall reimburse said Government for
the sum thus paid, and said Government is hereby empowered to collect
said
sum by the levy and collection of taxes on such municipality.
Sec.
70. That for the purpose
of providing funds to construct sewers in the city of Manila and to
furnish
it with an adequate sewer and drainage system and supply of water the
Government
of the Philippine Islands, with the approval of the President of the
United
States first had, is hereby authorized to permit the city of Manila to
incur indebtedness, to borrow money, and to issue and sell (at not less
than par value in gold coin of the United States), upon such terms and
conditions as it may deem best, registered or coupon bonds of the city
of Manila to an amount not exceeding four million dollars, lawful money
of the United States, payable at such time or times as may be
determined
by said Government, with interest thereon not to exceed five per centum
per annum.
Sec.
71. That said coupon or
registered bonds shall be in denominations of fifty dollars or any
multiple
thereof, bearing interest at a rate not exceeding five per centum per
annum,
payable quarterly, such bonds to be payable at the pleasure of the
Government
of the Philippine Islands, after dates named in said bonds not less
than
five nor more than thirty years from the date of their issue, together
with the interest thereon in gold coin of the United States of the
present
standard value, or the equivalent in value in money of the said
Islands;
and said bonds shall be exempt from the payment of all taxes or duties
of the Government of the said Islands, or of any local authority
therein,
or of the Government of the United States.
Sec.
72. That all moneys which
may be realized or received from the issue and sale of said bonds shall
be utilized under authorization of said Government of the Philippine
Islands
in providing a suitable sewer and drainage system and adequate supply
of
water for the city of Manila and for no other purpose.
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Sec.
73. That the Government
of the Philippine Islands shall, by the levy and collection of taxes on
the city of Manila, its inhabitants and their property, or by other
means,
make adequate provision to meet the obligation of said bonds and shall
create a sinking fund sufficient to retire them and pay the interest
thereon
in accordance with the terms of issue: Provided, That if said bonds or
any portion thereof shall be paid out of the funds of the Government of
said Islands, said city shall reimburse said Government for the sum
thus
paid, and said Government is hereby empowered to collect said sum by
the
levy and collection of taxes on said city.
Franchises
Sec.
74. That the Government
of the Philippine Islands may grant franchises; privileges, and
concessions,
including the authority to exercise the right of eminent domain for the
construction and operation of works of public utility and service, and
may authorize said works to be constructed and maintained over and
across
the public property of the United States, including streets, highways,
squares, and reservations, and over similar property of the Government
of said Islands, and may adopt rules and regulations under which the
provincial
and municipal governments of the Islands may grant the right to use and
occupy such public property belonging to said provinces or
municipalities:
Provided, That no private property shall be taken for any purpose under
this section without just compensation paid or tendered therefor, and
that
such authority to take and occupy land shall not authorize the taking,
use, or occupation of any land except such as is required for the
actual
necessary purposes for which the franchise is granted, and that no
franchise,
privilege, or concession shall be granted to any corporation except
under
the conditions that it shall be subject to amendment, alteration, or
repeal
by the Congress of the United States, and that lands or rights of use
and
occupation of lands thus granted shall revert to the Governments by
which
they were respectively granted upon the termination of the franchises
and
concession under which they were granted or upon their revocation or
repeal.
That all franchises, privileges, or concessions granted under this Act
shall forbid the issue of stock or bonds except in exchange for actual
cash, or for property at a fair valuation, equal to the par value of
the
stock or bonds so issued; shall forbid the declaring of stock or bond
dividends,
and, in the case of public-service corporations, shall provide for the
effective regulation of the charges thereof, for the official
inspection
and regulation of the books and accounts of such corporations, and for
the payment of a reasonable percentage of gross earnings into the
Treasury
of the Philippine Islands or of the province or municipality within
which
such franchises are granted and exercised: Provided further, That it
shall
be unlawful for any corporation organized under this Act, or for any
person,
company, or corporation receiving any grant, franchise, or concession
from
the Government of said Islands, to use, employ, or contract for the
labor
of persons claimed or alleged to be held in involuntary servitude; and
any person, company, or corporation so violating the provisions of this
Act shall forfeit all charters, grants, franchises, and concessions for
doing business in said Islands, and in addition shall be deemed guilty
of an offense, and shall be punished by a fine of not less than ten
thousand
dollars.
Sec.
75. That no corporation
shall be authorized to conduct the business of buying and selling real
estate or be permitted to hold or own real estate except such as may be
reasonably necessary to enable it to carry out the purposes for which
it
is created, and every corporation authorized to engage in agriculture
shall
by its charter be restricted to the ownership and control of not to
exceed
one thousand and twenty-four hectares of land; and it shall be unlawful
for any member of a corporation engaged in agriculture or mining and
for
any corporation organized for any purpose except irrigation to be in
any
wise interested in any other corporation engaged in agriculture or in
mining.
Corporations, however, may loan funds upon real-estate security and
purchase
real estate when necessary for the collection of loans, but they shall
dispose of real state so obtained within five years after receiving the
title. Corporations not organized in the Philippine Islands, and doing
business therein shall be bound by the provisions of this section so
far
as they are applicable.
Coinage
Sec.
76. That the Government
of the Philippine Islands is hereby authorized to establish a mint at
the
city of Manila, in said Islands, for coinage purposes, and the coins
hereinafter
authorized may be coined at said mint. And the said Government is
hereby
authorized to enact laws necessary for such establishment: Provided,
That
the laws of the United States relating to mints and coinage, so far as
applicable, are hereby extended to the coinage of said Islands.
Sec.
77. That the Government
of the Philippine Islands is authorized to coin, for use in said
Islands,
a coin of the denomination of fifty centavos and of the weight of one
hundred
and ninety-two and nine-tenths grains, a coin of the denomination of
twenty
centavos and of the weight of seventy-seven and sixteen one-hundredths
grains, and a coin of the denomination of ten centavos and of the
weight
of thirty-eight and fifty-eight one-hundredths grains, and the
standards
of said silver coins shall be such that of one thousand parts by weight
nine hundred shall be of pure metal and one hundred of alloy, and the
alloy
shall be of copper.
Sec.
78. That the subsidiary
silver coins authorized by the preceding section shall be coined under
the authority of the Government of the Philippine Islands in such
amounts
as it may determine, with the approval of the Secretary of War of the
United
States, from silver bullion purchased by said Government, with the
approval
of the Secretary of War of the United States: Provided, That said
Government
may in addition and in its discretion recoin the Spanish-Filipino
dollars
and subsidiary silver coins issued under the authority of the Spanish
Government
for use in said Islands into the subsidiary coins provided for in the
preceding
section at such rate and under such regulations as it may prescribe,
and
the subsidiary silver coins authorized by this section shall be legal
tender
in said Islands to the amount of ten dollars.
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Sec.
79. That the Government
of the Philippine Islands is also authorized to issue minor coins of
the
denominations of one-half centavo, one centavo, and five centavos, and
such minor coins shall be legal tender in said Islands for amounts not
exceeding one dollar. The alloy of the five-centavo piece shall be of
copper
and nickel, to be composed of three fourths copper and one-fourth
nickel.
The alloy of the one-centavo and one-half-centavo pieces shall be
ninety-five
per centum of copper and five per centum of tin and zinc, in such
proportions
as shall be determined by said Government. The weight of the
five-centavo
piece shall be seventy-seven and sixteen-hundredths grains troy, and of
the one-centavo piece eighty grains troy, and of the one-half centavo
piece
forty grains troy.
Sec.
80. That for the purchase
of metal for the subsidiary and minor coinage, authorized by the
preceding
sections, an appropriation may be made by the Government of the
Philippine
Islands from its current funds, which shall be reimbursed from the
coinage
under said sections; and the gain or seigniorage arising therefrom
shall
be paid into the Treasury of said Islands.
Sec.
81. That the subsidiary
and minor coinage hereinbefore authorized may be coined at the mint of
the Government of the Philippine Islands at Manila, or arrangements may
be made by the said Government with the Secretary of the Treasury of
the
United States for their coinage at any of the mints of the United
States,
at a charge covering the reasonable cost of the work.
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Sec.
82. That the subsidiary
and minor coinage hereinbefore authorized shall bear devices and
inscriptions
to be prescribed by the Government of the Philippines Islands, and such
devices and inscriptions shall express the sovereignty of the United
States,
that it is a coin of the Philippine Islands, the denomination of the
coin,
and the year of the coinage.
Sec.
83. That the Government
of the Philippine Islands shall have the power to make all necessary
appropriations
and all proper regulations for the redemption and reissue of worn or
defective
coins and for carrying out all other provisions of this Act relating to
coinage.
Sec.
84. That the laws relating
to entry, clearance, and manifests of steamships and other vessels
arriving
from or going to foreign ports shall apply to voyages each way between
the Philippine Islands and the United States and the possessions
thereof,
and all laws relating to the collection and protection of customs
duties
not inconsistent with the Act of Congress of March eighth, nineteen
hundred
and two, "temporarily to provide revenue for the Philippine Islands,"
shall
apply in the case of vessels and goods arriving from said Islands in
the
United States and its aforesaid possessions.
The
laws relating to seamen on foreign voyages shall apply to seamen on
vessels
going from the United States and its possessions aforesaid to said
Islands,
the customs officers there being for this purpose substituted for
consular
officers in foreign ports.
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The
provisions of chapters six and seven, title forty-eight, Revised
Statutes,
so far as now in force, and any amendments thereof, shall apply to
vessels
making voyages either way between ports of the United States or its
aforesaid
possessions and ports in said Islands; and the provisions of law
relating
to the public health and quarantine shall apply in the case of all
vessels
entering a port of the United States or its aforesaid possessions from
said Islands, where the customs officers at the port of departure shall
perform the duties required by such law of consular officers in foreign
ports.
Section
three thousand and five, Revised Statutes, as amended, and other
existing
laws concerning the transit of merchandise through the United States,
shall
apply to merchandise arriving at any port of the United States destined
for any of its insular and continental possessions or destined from any
of them to foreign countries.
Nothing
in this Act shall be held to repeal or alter any part of the Act of
March
eighth, nineteen hundred and two, aforesaid, or to apply to Guam,
Tutuila,
or Manua, except that section eight of an Act entitled "An Act to
revise
and amend the tariff laws of the Philippine Archipelago," enacted by
the
Philippine Commission on the seventeenth of September, nineteen hundred
and one, and approved by an Act entitled "An Act temporarily to provide
revenues for the Philippine Islands, and for other purposes," approved
March eighth, nineteen hundred and two, is hereby amended so as to
authorize
the Civil Governor thereof in his discretion to establish the
equivalent
rates of the money in circulation in said Islands with the money of the
United States as often as once in ten days.
Sec.
85. That the Treasury of
the Philippine Islands and such banking associations in said Islands
with
a paid-up capital of not less than two million dollars and chartered by
the United States or any State thereof as may be designated by the
Secretary
of War and the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States shall be
depositories of public money of the United States, subject to the
provisions
of existing law governing such depositories in the United States:
Provided,
That
the Treasury of the Government of said Islands shall not be required to
deposit bonds in the Treasury of the United States, or to give other
specific
securities for the safe-keeping of public money except as prescribed,
in
his discretion, by the Secretary of War.
Sec.
86. That all laws passed
by the Government of the Philippine Islands shall be reported to
Congress,
which hereby reserves the power and authority to annul the same, and
the
Philippine Commission is hereby directed to make annual report of all
its
receipts and expenditures to the Secretary of War.
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Bureau of
Insular
Affairs
Sec.
87. That the Division of
Insular Affairs of the War Department, organized by the Secretary of
War,
is hereby continued until otherwise provided, and shall hereafter be
known
as the Bureau of Insular Affairs of the War Department. The business
assigned
to said Bureau shall embrace all matters pertaining to civil government
in the island possessions of the United States subject to the
jurisdiction
of the War Department; and the Secretary of War is hereby authorized to
detail an officer of the Army whom he may consider especially well
qualified,
to act under the authority of the Secretary of War as the chief of said
Bureau, and said officer while acting under said detail shall have the
rank, pay, and allowances of a colonel.
Sec.
88. That all Acts and parts
of Acts inconsistent with this Act are hereby repealed.
Approved:
July
1, 1902. |