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Justices at presentment sessions to choose a chairman, and select by lot the cess payers to be associated with them.
Powers of the cess payers so associated.
In case cess payers do not attend the justices may act alone.
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9. At every meeting of such presentment sessions the majority of the justices then present shall choose one of their number to preside thereat, and when only two justices shall be present the senior of them shall preside, and when only one justice be present such justice shall preside; and such chairman shall have in addition to his vote a casting voice in case of an equality of voices; and immediately after the appointment of such chairman, and before entering upon any other business, the name of every person included in the list of cess payers made out by the grand jury in manner before appointed for each county of a city, county of a town, or barony in which such sessions shall be held, written upon separate pieces of parchment or card as nearly as may be of equal size, with his respective additions and abode, shall be put into a box, to be, as well as the said pieces of card or parchment, for that purpose provided by the secretary of the grand jury; and the chairman appointed to preside at each such sessions shall in open court draw out, one after another, such number of the said cards or pieces of parchment as the said grand jury may have fixed and determined to be the proper number of cess payers to be associated with the said justice or justices at each such sessions respectively; and if any of the men whose names shall be so drawn shall not appear, then such and so many more of such cards or pieces shall be drawn as may be necessary until the number of cess payers appointed as aforesaid to be associated with the said justice or justices shall be completed, or until the whole of such names shall be drawn; and such number of the said cess payers so first drawn and appearing, or such lesser number of them as shall appear when drawn, shall be associated with the said justice or justices, and have and exercise jointly with such justice or justices all power and authority in the business of such sessions: Provided always, that in the case of any county at large the cess payers associated in manner aforesaid with the justice or justices at the presentment sessions holden in the county court house shall, save and excepting the cess payer selected as herein-after mentioned, have no voice, power, or authority in respect of any applications the expense whereof it may be proposed to levy off the county at large, but only in respect of those applications the expense whereof it may be proposed to levy off the barony or half barony or portion thereof wherein such court house may be situate; and provided also, that in the case of any county at large, such one of the associated cess payers as shall be for that purpose selected by the justices and associated cess payers at the presentment sessions holden in the county court house, and such one of the associated cess payers as shall be for that purpose selected by the justices and associated cess payers at each of the baronial presentment sessions to be holden in and for each barony or half barony in such county, shall be associated with the justices at the presentment sessions holden in the county court house, and have and exercise jointly with such justices all such power and authority as by this Act conferred upon the justices and cess payers at such sessions, in respect of so much of the business of such sessions as shall relate to the county at large: Provided always, that if none of the cess payers named in the list herein-before directed to be made out by the grand jury shall attend any presentment sessions to be held under this Act, it shall be lawful for such justice or justices alone to do all matters and things authorized by this Act to be done thereat by the justices and cess payers associated in the business thereof.
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