Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1875-04-08
-AuSTlN. MIMI
1RURsDAY MORNING, APRIL s, 1875.
AN ACT to prevent the running at
largo Of Cattle or other Domestic
Animals in the Comfy Of Mower.
State Of Minnesota.
Be It s"acs ed 1y The Legislature Of The Ssote
Of 1ixsssosa:

SECTION ONE.
That Il shall be unlawful for any person or
psrsoas to allow any Cattle, Horses, Sheep.
swine, or other Domestic Animals larger than
sheep, owned by such person or Per sons have
ssatsol, or may DO in possession. to run Ut
large upon any public highway, or upon the
lands Of any other person or persons, in ths
cssnty Of Mower, State Of Minnesota, dur
Ing any season Of tho year; unless they are
carefully hsrdsd.
SECTION TWO.
Any person or persons who shall violate or
ssgleet the provisions Of the hrst section Of
this act, shall be liable for oil damages that
nay ensas IN consequence Of tho trespass Of
svch sslnsl o. animals; Provided, nothing
h.rsin contained shall apply to the Township
Of Lansing, in said County Of Mover,
SECTION THREE.
This act ehall take effect and b in force
from and after its passage
Approved March 18th, A. D., 1875.
We publish the foregoing, and at the re-
quest Of many readers of the TRANSCRIPT
append our views upon the same.
After careful examination, we unhcsi-
tatingly pronounce it dead letter, for
the following reasons.
First The law Of 1874 provides that
any town may, by majority vote, at any
town or special town meeting called for
the purpose, determine BY bylaw, that
horses, cattle, mules and asses, shall be
permitted to run at large and that no dam
age shall be recovered by the owner of
any lands, for damages committed there
on by any such beasts, during the day
time, unless it shall be proved that said
lands were enclosed by a lawful fence.
The law Of last winter does not repeal
that of 1874 and hence the latter is still in
force.
Second. The law prescribcs no other or
greater penalty, than that existing under
the old law-damagcs for the trcspass be-
ing recoverable by the terms of each.
Third. The last phrase dissection one
sunless they are carefully hcrdcd," is too
vague to be ofvalue For instance sup
pose aman whose business it is to herd
cattle, finding the feed on the commons
short, takes his drove down 10 DR.. Thorn
hills Dexter Farm and "herds it careful.
ly'' until the wheat and oats arc no long.
or valuable even for pasturagc. Suppose
another case A man owns a section of
tine meadow land. He thinks it more
valuable for the hay which it will produce
than for tillagc. The herder sees there
splendid bite for his cattle, and he herds
them carefully on that tract, as long as
the feed is good.
OF course any theory which admits of
such a pervcrsion of justice is monstrous,
but by the strict letter Of this law, that
very thing may be done. We say again
the law is dead letter
Those Towns which have already voted
to let cattle run at large, may let them
run, and such as choose to do so may yet
vote upon the same question, if they call
Especial Town Meeting for that purpose.
Sheep and swine not being included in
the law of 1874 may perhaps be restrain.
ed by this, from running at large.
If the law is operative at all it applies
equally to all the towns in the county.
The effort to exempt the town Of Lansing
was failure. The proviso should have
occurred in section one. In section two
fixing liabilities, it is provided that moth
ing therein shall apply to the town OF
Lansing, that is to say-the Town of Ian
sing, as corporation, shall not be affect
ed by any Of the provisions Of that sec
ton. The proviso is without any lcgal
meaning and wholly void.