Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1905-07-06
FILE PETITION TO ANNuL AN,
GENT FRANCHISE.
PLINY NORCROSS' POWER
GAINESVILLE Assemblyman Owns OBJ.
struction to Rock River Which
Property Owners Dislike-Attor-
ney General Renders Opinions on
Civil Service.


oonsin which, it is said, has never in
all that time conformei with the
terms and conditions of the statute
under which a franchise for the dam
was granted by the legislature. Lee
sal process is now being resorted to
by citizens whose property is being
destroyed to cause the alleged fran
chise to be annulled and to bring
about the removal of the obstruction
to the flow of water.
A petition was filed in the office of
Attorney General Sturdeyant yester.
day, signed by Adolph Altpeter and a
large number of other citizens of
Jefferson county to annul the fran
chise and cause the removal of the
dam at Indian Ford, owned now by
Captain Pl;ny Norcross of GAINESVILLE,
the original franchise for which was
contained in a statute enacted by the
legislature in 1913. The petitioners
ask that the attorney general bring a
suit in the name of the state to bring
the relief for which they pray. He
has notified Captain Norcross of the
filing of the petition and has set July
IS as the date for hearing on the
matter.
In 1S43 the legislature granted to
Clauden and Luke Stoughton the right
to build and maintain a dam in the
southern part of Jefferson county,
across Rock river. The site OF the
dam is few miles below Lake Kosh-
konong, described in the petition as
meandering body of water seven
miles long and four miles wide. The
grant named several conditions upon
which the dam might be built, among
them that it should raise the water of
the river not more than six feet,
that it should be provided with lock
for the convenient and safe passage
of boats and vessels, to be "a to 100
feet in dimensions and to be operate
free of charge by the owners of the
dam: that it should contain a chute
or slide for the passage Of RATS and
for the passage of fish up and down
the stream. None of these condi.
tons and others, the petitioners de-
clare, have ever been complied with,
They also recite that the presence
of the dam causes the overflow of
some 5000 or 5000 acres of land and
the great damage to such crops as are
planted on land near the river. The
damage to the property of the petit
TONERS in the year 1905 alone Is a.
legel to be $4,000 and since 1900
$4,000. The dam was allowed to
be built on the condition that it would
not raise the water level of Lake
Koshkonong, but it does this and also
floods streets and cellars in the city
of Fort Atkinson, which is situated
above the lake.
The petitioners declare that the
dam is of slight value. 1t Is used II
operate an electric lighting plant for
the city of Edgerton, but this city has
already made arrangements to get
power otherwise. The dam is also
used to operate small and lnsignifi-
cant feed mill.
The Indian Ford dam has been the
subject of endless litigation and the
petitioners are determined at this time
TO bring an end TO its existence.
No Tags for Auto-cycIes.
Attorney General sturdeyant has
rendered an opinion, in response 10 a
request by Secretary of State Houser
according to which auto-cycles DO
not come under the law passed by the
last legislature, requiring registra
ton and the wearing OF rear mum
Der plate. The reasons the attorney
general gives TOR holding that auto.
cycles do not come under the terms
OF the law are that these machines
are not mentioned in the law, that
they do not come within the mis-.
chief" to eliminate which the law was
enacted, and that 1t is absurd to hang
A large number plate on the rear OF
an auto-cycle.
The apointees in the department OF
the adiutant general do not come un.
der the provisions Of the state civil
service law, enacted at the last SEES
sion of the legislature. This decis-
ion was rendered in an opinion by At
torney General Sturdeyant, in re-
Spouse to an inquiry male by 4diu-
tant General Boardman. The attor-
ney general refers to the provision OF
the law exempting the appointees OF
the executive from the terms Of the
law and then referring to the statute
which makes the officials Of the mill
tary department appointive by the
governor and adjutant general and
concludes that the Law BY It's express
terms was not intended to abridge In
whole or in part the appointiye power
Of the executive. AMI therefore the
appointees Of the adjutant generals
department are not In the classified