has been given previously to each shareholder, stating in said notice the purpose of the meeting. The board of directors are empowered to subscribe for shares and invest its reserve or surplus fund in an amount not exceeding ten per cent of its paid up capital in the capital stock of any such other co-operative association [;] provided, the amounts thus invested by the stockholders or directors shall not in either case, exceed ten per centum of the amount of the capital stock of such other co-operative association.

§ 11. Whenever an association created under this Act shall purchase the business of another association, person or persons, it may pay for the same in whole or in part by issuing shares of its capital stock to an amount, which at par value, would equal the fair market value of the business so purchased, and in such case the transfer to the association of such business at such valuation shall be equivalent to payment in cash for the shares of stock so issued.

§ 12. In case the cash value of such purchased business exceeds five hundred dollars, the directors of the association are authorized to hold the shares in excess of five hundred dollars in trust for the vendor or his assignee and dispose of the same to such persons, and within. such times as may be mutually satisfactory to the parties in interest, and to pay the proceeds thereof as currently received to the former owner of said shares. Certificates of stock shall not be issued to any subscriber until fully paid, but the by-laws of the association may allow subscribers to vote as shareholders: Provided, part of the stock subscribed has been paid in cash.

§ 13. Corporations organized under this Act may borrow money at legal rates of interest and pledge their property, both real and personal, to secure payment thereof, and may have and exercise all power necessary and requisite to carry into effect the objects for which they may be formed.

§ 14. At any regularly called general or special meeting of the shareholders a written vote received by mail from any absent shareholder and signed by him may be read in such meeting, and shall be equivalent to a vote of each of the shareholders so signing; provided, he has been previously notified in writing of the exact motion or resolution upon which such vote is taken, and a copy of same is forwarded with and attached to the vote so mailed by him.

§ 15. So much of the profits or earnings of such association, as may seem best to the directors, shall be distributed to those entitled thereto by its by-laws, and in the proportions and at the times therein prescribed, which shall be as often as once in twelve months.

§ 16. Every association organized under the terms of this Act shall annually, on or before the first day of March of each year, make a report of the condition and business of the association as of December 31 of the preceding year, to the Secretary of State; such report shall contain the name of the company, its principal place of business in this State and generally a statement as to its business, showing total amount of business transacted, amount of capital stock subscribed for and paid in, number of shareholders, total expense of operation, amount of indebtedness or liabilities, and its profits and losses.

§ 17. All co-operative corporations, companies, associations, voluntary unincorporated associations or partnerships heretofore organized under prior statutes or who shall be doing business as co-operative institutions with the objects enumerated in this Act shall have the benefit of the provisions of this Act and be bound thereby on filing with the Secretary of State a written declaration, signed and sworn to by the president and secretary to the effect that it or they have, by a two-thirds vote of its shareholders or its members decided to accept the benefits of this Act and be bound by same.

§ 18. All stock subscribed for shall be paid for within one year and in default thereof shall be forfeited with the payments made thereon to the society.

§ 19. The by-laws shall provide that the profits shall be distributed, first-upon stock and to purchasers or sellers (customers) based upon the percentage of purchases, or sales; or, second-to purchasers or sellers exclusively, based upon the percentage of purchases or sales; and no vested interest shall attach to any of the above methods which shall prevent changing from and substituting another provision provided herein.

§ 20. Societies incorporated under this Act may purchase and own stock in other societies incorporated under this Act, or similar Cooperative Acts of other States, or in corporations of this or other States organized to promote and inculcate the principles of co-operation, with the same voice and voting power as provided for individual shareholders, as limited in section 10 of this Act.

§ 21. Shareholders may vote in person or by written proxy.

22. No corporation or association hereafter organized or doing business for profit in this State shall be entitled to use the term "Co-operative" as a part of its corporate or other business name or title. unless it has complied with the provisions of this Act; and any corporation or association violating the provision of this section may be. enjoined from doing business under such name at the instance of any shareholder of any association or corporation organized under this Act.

§ 23. Every assignment or transfer of stock shall be recorded in the books of the association, and each shareholder shall be liable jointly with the association as well as severally, for the debts of the association. only to the extent of the amount that may be unpaid upon the share or. shares held by him. No assigner of a share or shares shall be released from any such indebtedness by reason of the assignment of his share or shares, but shall remain liable jointly with the assignee and the association, or severally until the stock is fully paid up.

No assignment shall be made to any person who already holds shares of stock to the limit provided for in this Act and any assignment of stock shall be made only with the approval of a majority of the directors, and no transfer of stock shall be made except by the consent of the directors as shown on the records of the association: Provided, that any person demanding the assignment or transfer of any share or shares in such association to himself shall have the right to appeal from the action of the board of directors, to the members of the association at its first regular or special meeting thereafter, and ask that he be admitted to the association as a shareholder, and the

action of the shareholders at such meeting shall be final; and also provided that such shareholders shall not have the power to direct the transfer of stock to any person in excess of the amount which such individual shareholder may hold under the terms of this Act.

§ 24. Shareholders at any regular meeting or any special meeting called for that purpose may adopt by-laws not inconsistent with the provisions of this Act.

§ 25. The invalidity of any portion of this Act shall in no way affect the validity of any other portion thereof which can be given effect without such invalid párt.

§ 26. This Act may be cited as the "Co-operative Act."

§ 27. The Secretary of State shall provide uniform blanks for the use of associations incorporated under this Act.

The Governor having failed to return this bill to the General Assembly during its session, and having filed it in my office, without objections, within ten days after the adjournment of the General Assembly, it has thereby become a law.

Witness my hand this 8th day of July, A. D. 1915.

LEWIS G. STEVENSON, Secretary of State.

REAL ESTATE AGENCY.

§ 1. Under what Act corporations may be formed.

§ 2. Of what business shall consist-may not own real estate.

(HOUSE BILL No. 639. APPROVED JUNE 23, 1915.)

AN ACT concerning real estate agency corporations.

SECTION 1. Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly: That corporations may be formed in the manner provided by the general incorporation laws of this State, being an Act entitled, "An Act concerning corporations," approved April 18, 1872, and in force July 1, 1872, and all Acts amendatory thereof, for the purpose of carrying on the real estate agency business, and when so formed shall be subject to all provisions of law now or hereafter in force applying to corporations organized under said general incorporation laws.

2. Real estate agency business within the meaning of this Act shall consist of acting as agent for others in the purchase, sale, renting and management of real estate and leasehold interests, and acting as agent for others in the negotiation of loans on real estate and leasehold estates, and no real estate agency corporation shall acquire or own real estate or any interest therein except that it may lease an office or offices in which to conduct its agency business.

APPROVED June 23d, 1915.

REAL ESTATE AND BUILDING.

§ 1. Amends section 1, Act of 1872.

§ 1. As amended, provides corporations may be formed to own and operate one building and site, a description of the site being given at the time charter is applied for-if site is not improved the same must be improved with building within five years or sold-two or more of such corporations can not consolidate.

(HOUSE BILL No. 268. APPROVED June 29, 1915.)

AN ACT to amend an Act entitled, "An Act concerning corporations," approved April 18, 1872, in force July 1, 1872, as amended by subsequent Acts, by amending section one (1) thereof.

SECTION 1. Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly: That an Act entitled, "An Act concerning corporations," approved April 18, 1872, in force July 1, 1872, as amended by subsequent Acts, be and the same is hereby amended, by amending section one (1) thereof, so that said section when amended shall read as follows:

§ 1. That corporations may be formed in the manner provided by this Act for any lawful purpose except banking, insurance, real estate brokerage, the operation of railroads, and the business of loaning money: Provided, that horse and dummy railroads, and organizations for the purchase and sale of real estate for burial purposes only, and corporations for acquiring ow[n]ing, erecting, leasing or operating only one building and the site therefor of not more than 80,000 square feet of land, hereinafter called building corporations may be organized and operated under the provisions of this Act: And be it further provided, where such building corporation is organized for such purpose, that specific and definite description of the site for such building shall be given at the time the charter for such corporation is applied for: And provided, further, that unless said site at the time said charter is granted. is improved with a building worth not less than one-half the actual cash value of said site at such time, such corporation shall within the five (5) years next thereafter erect upon such site a building which shall not cost less than one-half of the full cash value of said site at the time said charter is granted, and in the event of its failure to build such building within the said five (5) years, the said corporation shall forfeit its right to erect a building and shall be required to dispose of said site within six (6) months after the expiration of said five (5) years and cease its corporate existence[:] And provided further that it shall be unlawful for two or more building corporations organized hereunder to consolidate or for the stock of any building corporation organized hereunder to be owned, taken or held, directly or indirectly, by any foreign or domestic corporation or by any holding corporation, foreign or domestic.

And, provided, further, that corporations formed for the purpose of constructing railroad bridges shall not be held to be railroad corporations. APPROVED June 29th, 1915.

SURETY COMPANIES-ACT OF 1899 AMENDED.

§ 1. Amends section 6, Act of 1899.

§ 6. As amended, adds provision for deposits covered by mortgages on real estate lying in counties which have adopted the land titles Act.

(HOUSE BILL No. 539. APPROVED JUNE 25, 1915.)

AN ACT to amend section 6 of the Act entitled, "An Act to provide for the organization, management and regulation of surety companies," approved and in force April 17, 1899.

SECTION 1. Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly: That section 6 of an Act entitled, "An Act to provide for the organization, management and regulation of surety companies," approved and in force April 17, 1899, be and the same is hereby amended so as to read as follows, to-wit:

§ 6. Every such corporation before commencing business shall, in addition to other requirements of law, deposit with the Insurance Superintendent, in trust, for the special and sole benefit and security of all its creditors and holders of its obligations and contracts of suretyship, guaranty an indemnity, not less than one hundred thousand dollars of its paid-up capital in bonds of the United States, or State or municipal bonds, or in mortgages on improved or productive real estate in this State, being first liens thereon, and the real estate being worth at least twice the amount loaned thereon. The bonds and securities so deposited may be exchanged from time to time for other securities of any of the classes above mentioned. All said securities shall be subject to sale and to the disposal of the proceeds by the Insurance Superintendent only in pursuance of the order or decree of a court of competent jurisdiction, in a suit or proceeding to which the corporation shall be a party, and on due notice to it. So long as the corporations so depositing shall continue solvent, such corporation shall be entitled to receive from the Insurance Superintendent the interest or dividends on the deposit. When any part of such deposit is made in notes or bonds secured by mortgages, they shall be accompanied by full abstracts of title and searches, which shall be examined and approved by or under the direction. of the Insurance Superintendent; or in case the real estate so mortgaged shall lie in any county which has adopted the provisions of the land titles Act, and shall have been registered under the provisions of said. land titles Act, then any certificate of title or duplicate certificate of title, or certified copy of certificate of title, provided for by the terms of said land titles Act as evidence of the title, and showing the existence. and priority of such mortgage lien, or lien by way of trust deed, shall be accepted as evidence of title and as evidence of the existence and priority of such mortgage or trust deed lien, in place of an abstract of title and search as aforesaid. The fee for an examination of such abstract of title and search by counsel, to be paid by the corporation making the deposit, shall not exceed twenty dollars for each mortgage, and the fee for each appraiser, not exceeding two, besides expenses, shall be five dollars for each mortgage.

APPROVED June 25th, 1915.