Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1903-11-20
Hamilton County Supervisors
Will Soon Give Decision OH
Drainage Question
FARMERS BITTERLY OPPOSE IT
Residents of the Proposed Drainage
District of Mud Lake Deem as lniqui
tous the Proceedings of the Lake
Owners to Extort Money From Them
to Aid in Draining Lake Bed.

4
Special to Times Republican.
| Webster City, Nov. 20.-The board OF
supervisors of Hamilton county spent
| two days this week in hearing both
sides of the proposed drainage of the
old Mud lake bed. The drain as es-
timated by the county surveyor will
cost about $50, 1000. In the remonstrance
fled against the proceeding. however,
it is stated that the work would cost
fully 100000. The hearing has been
concluded and the board will announce
their decision within a few days.
| There are about 1,400 acres In this
| 1t is proposed to create for the purpose
of draining 1t. there are $4,000 acres.
Professor d. A. Kent. formerly of the
Ames college faculty. and the other
owners of the lake are asking that the
drainage district be created, while the
other farm residents of the proposed
district are bitterly opposed to 1t. In
the hearing before the board the own
ers of the lake bed were represented by
two attorneys, while the remonstrants
has three. The feeling between the
two parties is so intense that the farm
owners in the proposed district deem
as inequitous the proceedings of the
lake owners to extort money from them
to aid in the drainage of this big lake
bed. At a mass meeting OF farmers
haI3 n chr ri mo 90 In, Il q n do
eide on line of action, In remonstrat-
ing with the board of supervisors,
against the creation of a drainage dis
7trict of Mud lake. feeling ran so high
that Professor Kent, and several other
speakers who are DESTROYS of getting
the lake drained. We're Kissed from the
floor and not allowed to speak. The
farmers fear that creation of drain
age district OF the lake and the sur
rounding watershed will be of such an
enormous cost to them that they will
have to mortgage their farms in ORC
er TO pay for the big drain which it is
proposed to build. The owners of the
lake bed on the other hand assert that
they cannot drain the lake bed other
wise as they cannot purchase an out
let FOR ditch should they attempt to
make a private drain.
When Hamilton county was surveyed
some fifty years ago, Mud lake was
meandered as a lake, and generally
covered with water until the advent of
Mr. Kent in 1894. The lake was the
receptacle for the surface water OF the
Mdu lake basin as Boone river Is the
outlet for the surface water Of the
Boone river valley. In September, 1894.
Mr.. Kent appeared before the board of
supervisors and proposed to give the
county $4,000 for a. quit claim deed to
the lake bed. and as further consid-
GRAFTON agreed to properly drain the
lake. dedicate and grade for travel,
highways ACCESS the lake bed and erect
bridges where necessary, all to be COM
pleted within two years. Falling to
do this he was to forfeit all his rights
under his deed. This proposition was
accepted and deed executed in Octo-
Der, 1894, for the bed of the lake em
soon ascertained that his deed from the
county conveyed no title. as no sur
vey of the lake bed had ever been
made. He thereupon proceeded to
secure survey, and the necessary
documents sto vest the title in Hamil-
ton county. In January. 1896, he again
appeared before the board OF super
visors, asking for another deed in lieu
Of the former one and also asking that
the forfeiture clause be left out of the
deed and that In place thereof bond
be accepted conditioned to secure the
performance of the agreements to
properly drain the lake. Some time
the board, upon representation that the
lake had been properly, released the
bond. Last summer In the In
terest OF the present claimants Of the
bed of the lake. Mr.. Kent circulated a
petition asking the board OF superyis
ors to take action to secure the drain
age Of Mud lake. under the law to re-
claim land by ditching. Mr.. Fox was
appointed as engineer to report upon
the matter and has reported in favor
of the proposed drainage of the lake
at an estimated cost OF 356,700, and has
reported a drainage to be assessed tor
the drainage proposed, extending dis
lance of more than ten miles north OF
the lake. 1t Is this latter that has
aroused the farmers all over the pro-
posed drainage district. They feel that
they will be made to pay for drain
which Mr.. Kent was obligated to pay
for when he secured the lake bed from
the county. They look with Indignation
upon what seems to them to be most
inequitous scheme to extort from them
money for the benefit of the lake bed
owners, who desire to change 1t from
lake to fertile fields, largely at the
expense OF the people. The owners. on
the other hand claim that no one will
be charged for more than the benefit
he himself derives from the proposed
NEW WEATHER STATIONS.