Secretary to cause said share or shares of such delinquent proprietor to be sold by auction to the highest bidder. Provided always, that at any such sale, and immediately after the highest bidder shall be ascertained, the Directors may, if they think proper, exercise the right of pre-emption given to the Corporation by Article 5th of the By-Laws, and purchase said share for the use and benefit of the Corporation, at the discount therein established; and provided further, that in case the proceeds of said share shall exceed the amount of fines, taxes and assessments due from such delinquent proprietor, the surplus, after the payment of such fines, taxes and assessments, shall be paid over to such delinquent proprietor.

ART. 5. The shares of said Corporation shall be assignable and transferable as hereinafter mentioned; provided always, that the Corporation have the prior right to purchase any such share for sale, at fifty per cent. discount; said discount to be calculated upon the sum of one hundred dollars until the Annual Meeting to be holden in January, 1838, and as soon as may be after said Annual Meeting in Januery, 1838, and thence afterwards, every fifth year, the Directors for the time being shall make a new valuation of the shares of the Corporation, and cause the same to be recorded, and after the Annual Meeting in 1838, the discount, as aforesaid shall be calculated on the last valution so made and recorded as aforesaid.

ART. 6. Each proprietor shall be furnished with a certificate of each share he holds signed by the Directors, in the form following: viz.

This certifies that — of· is proprietor of share No. in the Portsmouth Athenæum, the property in which share, subject to the right of pre-emption at fifty per cent. discount on the appraised value by the Corporation, may be transferred, by making an assignment thereof on the back of this Certificate; but such assignment shall not entitle the assignee to the privileges of a proprietor, unless the same is approved by a majority of the Directors for the time being, and recorded by the Secretary.

Dated at Portsmouth, the

day of

Directors.

ART. 7. There shall be an Annual Meeting of the Proprietors on the first Wednesday in January in every year, at the Library Room, at 3 o'clock, P. M. at which meeting there shall be chosen by a majority of the votes of the persons present, a President, five Directors, and one person to be Secretary and Treasurer.

ART. 8. At this meeting the proprietors present may by a major vote, assess each share such a sum as they may think proper, not exceeding two dollars per annum.

ART. 9. A majority of the Directors may when they think it necessary, and upon the application of five proprietors shall call special meetings of the proprietors.

ART. 10. Every vote passed by a majority at any regular meeting shall be binding on the proprietors, and each proprietor shall have as many votes as he has shares.

ART. 11. The President shall preside at all meetings of the Proprietors, and shall have a casting vote, and be ex-officio a Director.

ART. 12. The Directors in addition to the duty hereinafter provided, shall receive donations of Books and Money to the Corporation, the latter of which they shall pay over to the Treasurer; they shall enforce the payment of all assessments, fines, and penalties, and shall superintend, direct, and manage the property and general concerns of the Corporation, and shall make a report to the proprietors, at their Annual Meeting, of the state of the Athenæum.

ART. 13. The Secretary shall be ex-officio a Director, and shall fairly record in a book, all the votes of the proprietors; and shall in another book kept for the purpose, record all certificates of shares, and assignments thereof, and for recording such certificates and assignments, he shall receive from the owner of the share fifty cents. He shall notify the Annual Meetings of the Proprietors, and shall notify the proprietors to return all books belonging to the Corporation, seven days before said Annual Meeting.

ART. 14. The Treasurer shall receive all monies belonging to the Corporation, and shall pay the same to the orders of the Directors, or a majority of them; and shall make and keep fair entries from time to time of all monies by him received and paid. At every Annual Meeting he shall exhibit to the proprietors a statement of his accounts as settled by the Directors,and shall deliver the books of accounts, and monies on hand, belonging to the Corporation, to his successor in office.

ART. 15. The funds of the Corporation shall be applied under the direction and management of the Directors, or a

B*

major part of them for the time being, in the establishment and support of a reading room and library.

ART. 16. Subscribers by the approbation of the Directors, may be admitted to the privileges of the Reading Room below, on paying the sum of six dollars, and to the Library Room on paying the sum of six dollars, or to both on paying the sum of ten dollars per annum to the Treasurer in advance; provided however, that no person who is a permanent resident in town, shall be admitted as a subscriber, whose taxes, by the town books, amount to more than 20 dollars. [This article is as amended January 2, 1839.]

ART. 17. The Reading Rooms of the Athenæum shall be furnished by the Directors with tables and seats, fire and lights, and shall be kept open for the use of the proprietors and annual subscribers at all times during the day, (Sundays excepted,) and until ten o'clock in the evening. These rooms shall be provided with such Newspapers, Journals, periodical works and new publications as the Directors may think proper, and as the resources of the Corporation will permit.

ART. 18. No conversation shall be permitted in the room occupied as a Library.

ART. 19. Proprietors and Annual Subscribers may introduce strangers to the Reading Rooms by entering their names and places of abode on a blank book kept in the Reading Rooms for that purpose, or under such other regulations as the Directors may prescribe; but no inhabitant or resident in town, excepting a proprietor or annual subscriber, shall be admitted to the use of the Rooms unless by a vote of the Proprietors, or of the board of Directors. [See amendment adopted January 3, 1844.]

ART. 20. The Directors shall appropriate from time to time so much of the funds of the corporation in the purchase of such books as they shall deem expedient and proper, which with the donations of books, and those which may be deposited with the corporation, shall constitute the Library. Provided always, that the sum received by the corporation on the sale of any share, and all donations of money to the corporation not specifically appropriated by the donor, shall be invested in the purchase of books for the Library.

ART. 21. Such books belonging to the library as the Di rectors may deem proper for circulation, may be taken from the library by proprietors only, under such rules and regulations, sanctioned by such fines and penalties, as the Directors may from time to time prescribe; which rules and regulations shall be written or printed and posted up in some public place in the Library or Reading Room, and may be enlarged, amended or repealed, by the proprietors, at a regular meeting.

ART. 22. No pamphlet, periodical work or newspaper shall be removed from the Reading Rooms until the same shall have been bound and placed upon the shelves of the Library, under a penalty of ten dollars for every offence.

ART. 23. No books deposited with or loaned to the Corporation shall be removed from the Library and Reading Rooms, except by permission of the person depositing or lending the same, on penalty of a forfeiture of double the value of the book or books so taken, the value to be estimated by the Directors.

AMENDMENTS.

No meetings of other corporations or societies shall be allowed to be held in the Library Room, unless permission be first obtained from the Directors. [Adopted January 3, 1838.]

A spring lock shall be put upon the door of the Library Room, and six keys shall be obtained for it, one of which shall be placed in the lower room for the use of the Proprietors and Subscribers, and the remainder shall be kept by the Directors and Librarian.

Each proprietor and subscriber shall afford his aid to the Directors and Librarian and sustain them in their endeavors to prevent all breaches of the rules and regulations of the Institution.

No person but a proprietor shall take books from the library at any time, except in case of his sickness or absence from town, in which case the proprietor may appoint another [person] to act for him during such absence or sickness, by giving him authority in writing to be left with the Librarian;

but such substitute shall not take any book from, or visit the library room, except between the hours of 12 and 1 o'clock, and when the Librarian is present.

The Directors are authorized to pay at any time, a liberal reward for the conviction of any person who may wilfully deface or mutilate the books or other property of the Athenæum. [Adopted January 19, 1838.]

No person except he be a proprietor shall take books from the library room.

Any proprietor may introduce strangers to the rooms, by placing their names and the date to the name of the proprietor upon the book [kept for that purpose,] and any person so introduced shall have the privilege of reading in either room for thirty days after said introduction.

No boys shall be admitted to enter either of the rooms, except such as represent the shares of deeeased parents, or except they be attended by a proprietor during the time they may be in the room; or such boys as at each time may produce an order from a proprietor to the Librarian, in the lower room only between the hours of 12 and 1 o'clock, P. M. [Adopted January 3, 1844.]

The Directors by vote may extend to persons temporarily resident here, the privileges of proprietors in the Athenæum. [Adopted January 7, 1846.]

RULES AND REGULATIONS

FOR THE USE OF THE

LIBRARY OF THE PORTSMOUTH ATHENÆUM.

ART. 1. The Library shall be open for the purpose of enabling the Proprietors to take out Books every day from 12 to 1 o'clock.

ART. 2. The Librarian shall attend at this time to deliver and receive Books;-he shall enter in a book to be kept for that purpose, the number of each book, and the name of the proprietor for whose use it is taken out, and also the return,