The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1903-08-28

! condemn waterways across private prop
erty, to procure sufficient outlets for the
water on the roads. They fear the chronic
cry that they are squandering public
money in paying it for damages to the
owners and in making drains, yet the
people who do the crying spend ten fold
keep passable road across wet tracts
as it would cost to pay for and construct
a suitable outlet for the water, but they
do it in blissful ignorance, and do not
feel harmed. Before complete system
of draining highways in any town will
be established, the town board must use
this statutory right with more vigor and
fearlessness.
The foregoing, in my Judgment, are
some of the obstacles that will have to
be removed. Then follow it up by
adopting systems of drainage covering
many miles in extent if need be, and then
by the condemning and construction of
suitable outlets across private property
to creeks, rivers, and large natural res
ervoirs and the whole will be one SYM
metrical whole, doing it's work thorough
ly. 1t seems to be the purpose of the
gully along the highway to take
water out of one troublesome place, only
to carry it to another on or near some
other part of the highway where it is as
apt to do more harm than less, with
out any thought of eventually taking it
entirely away. But he can do little else
under the district system. This drain
age question must be handled by au-
thorities having jurisdiction over more
territory than few sections. The work
usually done, mostly by the uncouth
grader, results in leaving series of
inartistic holes and gulches along the
all of which retain more or
less water, from where it saturates the
roadbed, thus rendering the average road
work of little value. In this there is no
system, save from one mudhole to an
other, leaving the water to get away
across private property in any happy-go-
lucky manner, or to evaporate under
a kindly sun.
To properly drain the highways in a
fiat country the plan adopted must con-
template covering large tracts of coun-
try in one system of drains, not eXpen-
sive, but on the whole useful and effec-
tive. 1t must not only contemplate a
vast system in extent on the highways,
but must include the ultimate carrying
OF the water across private property in
many instances, and to long distances,
through outlets acquired by the authori-
ties by the right of eminent domain and
at considerable expense. If this feature
of using the power to condemn property
is not part of each system, then it had
better be left alone, for money spent in
draining highways without providing
final escape for the water in this way,
will be money wasted. Town boards
must pick up courage in this matter,
and use this wholesome power to carry
water to where it will be taken away
for good, and not be left to soak away or
evaporate. To drain large areas so as
to keep the water off highways the water
must be gathered, and grouped, and
taken off through one of these final out
lets. No other system will result in
but failure. When this is done,
all this talk about building roads at an
expense that will confiscate farms. and
drain the pockets of liberal business men,
will disappear, because the cause of
complaint will be largely removed.
Would it not be better, then, to let all
energy and expense be applied to the
accomplishment of this fundamental
step, which will not cost from $500 to
81, 800 per mile, yet give most of the
relief sought? Man has not discovered
any better weapon with which to make
drains than Paddy's spade, the old-fash-
Toned pillow and the hand grader
w. r. GEDDES.