The record-union., 1898-01-21
AUDITING BOARD MEETING.
MAJOR HEUER APPOINTED
CONSULTING ENGINEER.
The Board Asks the Attorney-Gen
era1 If It Is Compelled to
Build a Dredger.

The Auditing Board to the Commls-
sioner of Public Works met at the cap
itol yesterday, all the members belng
present.
The question of the adoption OF COM
missioner Leake's recommendations that
Major Heuer be chosen as Consulting
Engineer of the board, was unanl-
mously adopted.
Major Heuer spoke in relation to the
ruling of the War Department ON army
officers accepting civil offices and pre-
sented a ruling showing that this was
not an office, but a position, which the
department ruled an officer could ac-
cept.
A. C. Bingham, for the citizens of
Sutter County, presented memorial
asking for a weir to be built across the
mouth of Butte Slough, if there We're
any funds available for it. He spoke
of the Importance of the matter and
said that if the weir was built, it would
lead to the erosion of the river bot
tom below, which would scour it out
and relieve the banks above that point.
After some consultation on the mat
ter, it was taken under advisement.
Letters We're read from several firms
in relation to building dredgers. The
Bowers dredger with a capacity of 10,-
900 cubic yards a day through 500 feet
of pipe and as good as the United States
dredger on the Mississippi, was offered
built for $150,000.
Major Heuer said, in relation to the
plan for improving San Joaquin Riv-
er. brought up by President Corcoran,
that he thought they would come back
from the Secretary of War along with
that of Newtown Shoals and that it
would be here within ten days. He
explained the recommendations he had
sent to the Department in relation TO
the plan of work on the shoals and the
alteration of the dykes
Secretary Markley read the opinion
of the Acknowledgement as to the fol-
lowing resolution, passed by the board:
Resolved, That the Attorney General
be requested to advise this board
whether the State would be liable for
damages if an overflow weir is con-
structed by the Commission of Public
Works, by and with the consent of this
board, on the right or west bank of the
Sacramento River, which weir or ease
ment would carry the surplus water of
said river above the twenty-four and
one-half feet stage at Sacramento into
the adjacent county,
Says the Attorney-General: Under
the title The Remedy on page 2S of
the report of the Commissioner of Pub
lie Works, issued November 16 1896
is provided a scheme for the deepening
of the channel of the Sacramento River
with the purpose in view of eventually
preventing overflow Of the flood waters
into the adjacent territory, by means of
constructing easements so as to confine
a greater volume of water in the or
iginal stream after the extreme flood
has passed. / am of the oponion that
this work should be constructed under
the Act providing for the appointment
of the Auditing Board to the Commits
siontrS of Public Works, approved
March II, 1897, and in particular under
Section ) of said Act
1T is a recognized law of this State
that it is within the police power of
State to authorize the Improvement of
the channel of a river in order to pro-
tect from threatened inundation the
populous portion of a State, and that
such work is of a public character
Cooler VS.. Swift, 47 Cal, $3.50. In such
case, where a State or it's agents in
the performance of such work exercise
their judgment honestly and do the
work with proper care and caution, and
not maliciously, oppreSsively or arbi
trarly, to the injury of the rights Of
other persons, but keep within the
scope of their power, the State or its
agents are not to be held for mere er-
rors Of judgment nor for injuries to
others resulting from the work itself
if properly performed and with due
care. (Green VS.. Swift, etc., am
therefore of the opinion that, if your
board performs the duties authorized
by law under said Act SO as to promote
drainage and to protect cities and towns
of the State from inundation as out
lined and described in said report of the
Commissioner of Public Works (without
passing upon the merits Of said report),
the State would not be liable for dam
ages resulting therefrom. Respectfully,
wv. F. FITZGERALD,
Attorney General"
J. O. Coleman for the Sacramento
Chamber of Commerce stated that the
matter of raising the levees on the Yolo
side in order that waste weirs might
be constructed having been called to the
attention Of the chamber a committee
had been appointed to secure the sig
natures Of all the property owners,
agreeing to build their levees to the re-
quired hight. The committee had re-
ceived the signatures of all but three or
four who are absent and he felt that
enough had been done to warrant the
board in going ahead with the prelimi-
nary work in the matter, such as the
making of surveys and specifications
Mr.. Corcoran said that when the con-
tracts for building the levees We're let,
the board, he thought, would feel free to
go ahead with the preliminaries. He
suggested that the owners form an or
ganization and agree to see that the
levees are built, in case any one fails.
90 motion of T. r. Hall the Commits
sioner of Public Works was requested
to have his engineers make surveys and
locate the position of the weirs and re-
port TO the board.
The board then adjourned to the Su-
preme Court room. where citizens We're
waiting TO address them. Chairman
Corcoran recited the action taken by the
board in accordance with its offer TO the
up-river ranchers. 1t had also made
contracts that would involve the ex-