stitution, where the right to bring such suit or proceeding is conferred by law, upon the president, secretary or any member of the governing body thereof;

8. Notices, writs, or other process in judicial proceedings may be served upon any common council, board, commission, or other public body organized or existing under any law of this State, when by statute no other method of service is specially provided, by delivering the same or a certified or verified copy thereof to the president or chairman of such council, board, commission or body, or to the clerk or secretary thereof, and it shall be the duty of the officer upon whom such service shall be made, at its next meeting, to inform such common council, board, commission, or other public body of such service, and it shall not be necessary to serve notices, writs, or other process upon the individual members of such common council, board, commission, or other public body. and such council, board, commission, or other public body may appear and answer or plead in such proceedings in such manner as it may direct.

corporations

SEC. 36. When it may be necessary to institute suits against Service upon any corporation, which may have ceased to do business, or to not doing keep up its organization by the appointment of officers or business, etc. otherwise, or the term of whose existence may have expired by limitation, it shall be competent to serve any writ, declaration or other process in such suit, on either of the persons who may have been the last presiding officer, president, cashier, secretary or treasurer thereof; and such service shall be as effectual to all intents and purposes as if made on such corporation.

inmates of

insane, etc.

SEC. 37. Any citation, order or process required by law to Service upon be served on an inmate of the hospitals or homes for the in- hospitals for sane or feeble minded, or epileptic, or any other State hospital or asylum, shall be served only by the medical superintendent in charge thereof or by some one designated by him. Return Return. thereof to the court from which the same issued shall be made by the person making such service, and such service and return shall have the same force and effect as if it had been made by the sheriff of the county.

SEC. 38. When any process or order, issued by any court of Return of record, or any declaration or other paper, shall be delivered process, etc. to any sheriff, under-sheriff or deputy to serve, it shall be the duty of such officer to serve the same with all convenient speed, and to return the same with his certificate endorsed thereon, of the time and manner of such service, either to the office of the clerk of the court in which such suit or proceeding may be pending, or to the attorney whose name shall be endorsed on such process, order, declaration or paper; and in Service upon any action where an under-sheriff or deputy sheriff is a party, deputy any process may be served on such under-sheriff or deputy sheriff. sheriff, by the sheriff in person, or by any under-sheriff or deputy sheriff who is not a party to such action. When the service upon sheriff shall be a party or interested in any suit, any coroner

under or

sheriff.

Service at expiration of term of office

Exemption from arrest.

Service upon prisoner.

Exemption of female.

Exemption from arrest

in civil suit.

Arrest void; contempt.

within his county, may serve and execute any process, order or decree, or any other paper in said cause, and shall have the same powers, and be subject to the same liabilities as sheriffs in similar cases.

SEC. 39. Sheriffs, undersheriffs and deputy-sheriffs, may execute all such original or final process as shall be in their hands at the expiration of the term for which such sheriffs were elected, the execution of which shall have been begun by him, and shall made [make] due returns thereof in their own name; and in case of a vacancy in the office of sheriff, every deputy in office under him, may execute any writ or process in his hands, or in the hands of such sheriff, at the time such vacancy happened, and shall have the same authority, and be under the same obligation to serve and execute and return the same, as if such sheriff had continued in office.

SEC. 40. No officer of the senate or house of representatives, while in actual attendance upon the duties of his office, shall be liable to arrest on civil process.

SEC. 41. Process may be served upon any person confined in any jail or prison in this State, whether such confinement be under civil or criminal process, by delivering a true copy of such process to the sheriff, warden or other officer in charge of such jail or prison, who shall forthwith deliver the same to such prisoner.

SEC. 42. No female shall be imprisoned on any process in any civil action.

Exemptions from Arrest.

SEC. 43. Any person duly and in good faith subpoenaed as a witness in any suit, or proceeding, and any party thereto. and any attorney engaged therein, shall be exonerated from arrest in any civil suit, while going to the place where he shall be required to attend, while in attendance and while returning therefrom; and in all cases where such attendance is without the county of the residence of such witness, party or attorney, he shall be exempt from the service of any civil process, in any suit commenced in the county where he is so in attendance. All other officers of the several courts of record shall be liable to arrest, and may be held to bail in the same manner as other persons, except while in attendance upon an actual sitting of the court of which they are officers, or while going to, or returning from such sitting. The court or officer before whom any person shall have been subpoenaed in good faith to attend as a witness, and every justice of the supreme court, circuit judge and circuit court commissioner, shall have authority to discharge any person ar rested contrary to the provisions of this section.

Every arrest made contrary to the foregoing provisions, shall be absolutely void, and shall be deemed a contempt of the court issuing the subpoena; and every person making or procuring such arrest, shall be responsible to the

of person

person arrested in double the amount of damages which shall Liability be found by the jury, and shall also be liable to an action at causing. the suit of any injured party for the loss, hindrance and damage sustained by him in consequence of such arrest.

of person

SEC. 45. But no sheriff, or other officer or person shall be Affidavit so liable, unless the person claiming an exemption from arrest arrested. shall, if required by such sheriff or officer, make an affidavit stating:

That he has been legally subpoenaed as a witness to attend before some court, officer, auditors, referees, commissioners or notary public, specifying such court, officer, auditors, referees, commissioners, or notary public, the place of attendance and the cause in which he shall have been subpoenaed, and that he has not been subpoenaed by his own procurement with intent to avoid the service of any process; or

2. That he is an attorney in, or party to a suit, the trial of which is then pending, and that he is going to, or in actual attendance upon, or returning from the court in which said trial is then pending, and that his attendance upon said court is necessary to the trial of said cause; or

3. That he is an officer of a court of record, actually and in good faith, going to, attending upon or returning from an actual sitting of the court in which he is such officer.

Of Substituted Service.

appearance.

SEC. 46. Upon, or at any time after, the filing of a bill, the Order for circuit judge, or a circuit court commissioner, shall make an order for the appearance of the defendant, within three months from the date of the order, upon proof by affidavit of Affidavit any of the following facts:

1.

That the defendant resides out of the State;

2. That the defendant is a resident of this State, and that process for his appearance has been duly issued, and that the same could not be served by reason of his absence from, or concealment within this State, or by reason of his continued absence from his place of residence; or

3. That it cannot be ascertained in what state or country the defendant resides.

of facts.

of order.

SEC. 47. Such order shall be published within twenty days Publication after it shall have been made, in some newspaper printed in the county, or in such other paper as the court may direct, once in each week for six weeks in succession; but such publication shall not be necessary in any case in which copy of such order shall have been served on such absent, concealed or non-resident defendant, personally, at least twenty days before the time prescribed for the appearance of such defendant, and due proof of such publication or service shall be made.

appearance.

SEC. 48. The court may, if necessary, by further order, ex- Extension tend the time for the appearance of such defendant; and in of time for that case, shall direct the publication of such further order for so long a time as it shall think proper.

Copy of order to be mailed.

SEC. 49. In all cases a copy of such order shall be mailed to said defendant at his last known postoffice address by regis tered mail, and a return receipt demanded, and proof by affi davit shall be required of such mailing, and whether or not a return receipt was received, and if one was received, it shall be attached to said affidavit.

Where to be filed.

Forms of declarations.

Sufficiency.

Entitling.

Venue.

Demurrers and certain pleas abolished.

Questions, how raised.

Amendment

of pleadings.

Service of copies of pleadings, etc.

Waiver of answer on oath.

Averment of incorporation.

CHAPTER XIV.

Of Pleadings at Law and in Equity.

SECTION 1. All pleadings and proceedings in actions at law or in chancery, shall be filed in the office of the clerk of the court in which the cause is pending, unless otherwise directed by rule or order of the court, and within such time, and under such regulation as shall be by statute or general rule directed. SEC. 2. In the actions which are in this act retained, the forms of declaration now in common use may be employed; but no declaration shall be deemed insufficient which shall contain such information as shall reasonably inform the defendant of the nature of the case he is called upon to defend. SEC. 3. It shall not be necessary to entitle any declaration or other pleading, of any term of the court, or of any day in term or vacation, nor shall it be necessary to mention the name of the state, in the statement of the venue in any case.

Demurrers, Etc., Abolished.

SEC. 4. Demurrers, pleas in abatement, and pleas to the jurisdiction, are abolished. All questions heretofore raised by such plea or demurrer, shall hereafter be raised by motion to dismiss, or in the answer or notice attached to the plea; and in case such questions are raised by answer, or by notice attached to the plea, the same may be brought up for determination by the court, in advance of the trial of said cause, upon four days' notice by either party. The plaintiff shall at any time, either before or after the hearing of the questions so raised, be entitled to amend his pleadings, so as to meet the objections raised thereto, upon such terms as the court may deem proper.

SEC. 5. When the defendant shall have appeared, and notice thereof shall have been given, as provided in this act, it shall be the duty of the plaintiff or defendant to serve upon the opposite party, or his attorney, copies of the pleadings and proceedings at any time thereafter filed in the cause.

SEC. 6. When a bill shall be filed in chancery, other than for discovery only, the plaintiff may waive the answer being made on the oath of the defendant, and in such cases the answer may be made without oath, and shall have no other or greater force as evidence than the bill.

SEC. 7. In actions by or against any corporation, foreign or domestic, it shall not be necessary to recite the act or acts

of incorporation, or the proceedings by which such corpora tion was created, or to set forth the substance thereof; but it shall be sufficient to aver that such plaintiff or defendant is a corporation organized and existing, under, and by virtue of the laws of the state, or country, naming it, where such plaintiff or defendant was incorporated.

SEC. 8. In suits brought by or against any corporation, Existence of foreign or domestic, it shall not be necessary to prove on the corporation. trial of the cause, the existence of such corporation, unless the defendant shall have denied the same under oath in his plea

or answer.

SEC. 9. The plaintiff in all actions on bills of exchange or Money counts. promissory notes, may declare upon the money counts alone, and any such bill or note may be given in evidence under the money counts, in all cases where a copy of the bill or note shall have been served with the declaration; and the return or proof of service of such copy upon the defendant or defendants, shall be prima facie evidence of such service.

abolished.

SEC. 10. No special plea in bar shall be pleaded in any special civil action hereafter to be commenced; but all matters of pleas in bar defense to any such action, may be given in evidence under the general issue.

of defense.

SEC. 11. In all civil actions hereafter to be commenced, the General issue. general issue shall consist of a demand by the defendant, of a trial of the matters set forth in the plaintiff's declaration. SEC. 12. To entitle a defendant to avail himself of any Notice of matter of defense, which, according to the practice as it has special matter heretofore existed, was required to be pleaded specially, or of which a special notice was required to be given under the general issue or other general plea, such defendant shall annex to his plea of the general issue a notice to the plaintiff, briefly stating the precise nature of such matter of defense. SEC. 13. In any action based upon the provisions of any Pleading statute, or city or village ordinance, it shall be sufficient for ordinances. the plaintiff without setting forth the special matter, to aver that said action arose by virtue of the provisions of such statute or ordinance, by reference to the same.

Replications Abolished.

statutes or

abolished.

SEC. 14. Replications in equity causes are abolished, and Replications such causes shall be deemed to be at issue, upon the filing of the answer to the bill of complaint, or upon the filing of the answer of the plaintiff to the cross-bill of the defendant.

SEC. 15. Supplemental pleadings, showing matters arising Supplemental since the original pleadings were filed, may be filed by either pleadings. party by leave of court,

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