News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1913-01-01
THE RYDER BROOK LAW
A Protest From C. F. Smith

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signed and is now law. 1t reads as fol.
lows: 'Section /. No person shall de
posit, or cause to be deposited, any sew.
age in Ryder brook, so called, in the tow
of Morrlstown or in any of the tributaries
OF said brook, above the dam authorized
by vote of the village of Morrisville, Sep.
TENDER II, 1912, and now being construct
ed near the mouth of said brook. Sec
ton 2. A person who violates a provision
of this act shall be fined not more thu n
fifty dollars or be imprisoned for more
than three months, or both, for each .
fense."
This bill was gotten up and put through
to help one man, DR.. Slayton of MorII~
vile, who has some summer cottages on
Lake Lamoille. The sewage from Nor
risville and towns above empties into
this lake. In order to get better water
for his summer people to battle in he got
a vote to put dam across the upper end
OF thls lake under bridge on the oppo-
SIZE side nom where the Lamoille river
I Il u.
I dam, which has now gone out, was to
| keep the water that comes in small
| brook from being mixed with the main
part of the lake.
Since the building of Lake Lamoille
, this brook, near its mouth, has been
called by some the "Ryder brook" but
| three or four miles up it has been known
for forty years or more as the "Spauld-
ing brook" or "Bedell brook" When
stocked with fish a few years ago it was
called by the state the "Bedell brook"
When this bill was introduced, and
until after it's passage, scarcely a farmer
knew that it affected him, and none of
them knew the text of the bill. 1t had
passed tie House and was in the Senate
wnen we returned from Washington
state. DR.. Slayton called us to his ,tfice
soon after our return and told US there
was such bill and claimed that he had
found out that we had plumbing at our
farm, and that he desired to help us out.
lie also stated that the bill was being
held in the Senate until he ordered it re.
leased. After some discussion, in which
we deemed it impracticable to build a
cesspool in hardpan on the fat in front
of the house, or to run the sewer into
the basement of the barn, the Doctor
said if the house closet was connected
with the barn, all the other sewage from
al ii - hnnSn inlT nj nn,Il1
tinue in the present sewer pipe to the
brook and not be breaking the law under
this bill. The Doctor offered to pay the
cost of changing the closet pipe. We
his offer but asked him to have the bill |
held until we could consult with Mr.. |
Fleetwood and see copy of the bill,
z Thenext day we learned that two of our
plumbing. The next two days we called
at the Doctors office but was told that he
was out OF town. The next Monday morn
ing, Dec. 9, on our way to the train, we
again called at his office and was told he
had gone 10 the station to go TO Burling
ton. We sat in the same seat to Cam
bridge junction and discussed the situa-
ton and l was told the bill was to 60 to
the third reading that evening. At Cam
bridge Junction we saw Senator Sherwin
| asked him to see that this bill was held
until the next week as had to be in Rut-
land all that week in attendance at the
annual state Grange meeting. He asked
the Doctor if tulJ was satisfactory to him
aud after his assent, Senator Sherwin said
be would look after it. That evening the
Senator moved to have the bill lie, but it
was voted down. We were too busy in
Rutland to watch the papers and heard
no more of the bill until the next Monday
morning when we again sought the Doc
tors office to tell him that we were going
to Montpelier the next morning and to
ask him to accompany us to see about
that bill. He very quietly informed us
that the bill was passed and signed by
the Governor. When we demonstrated
be told us that in thinking the matter
over the Monday before he decided he
better 60 from Burlington to Montpelier
aud see the bill put through as for GER
cain reasons he dare not letlt lay over I'M
til the next week. 1t later developed
that he was in Montpelier the week be-
fore, getting this bill advanced, while we
were trying to find him az his office to see
4 he was going to take care of our two
leighbors who were in the same condi-
ton as ourselves as to plumbing.
The Monday following the passage of
The bill the Doctor showed us a copy oft.
La looking up the definition of sewage we
ind The waste matter carried OFT in
sewers" Drainage water together with
he solid refuse conveyed in it,, "Sewer-
age, the conveyance of waste matter from
After seeing the bill of course
we knew, as well as he must have known
Ill the while, that his offer did not re-
ieve us from being subject to fines and
Imprisonment. The Doctor told the com
nttee that there was only one man af-
ected by this bill and he had taken care
IF him so he was satisfied with il. The
acts are there are about twenty farmers {
Effected by this bill, a large share of whom
will be practically impossible for them
- be law abiding citizens, Their build s
ngs are so situated it will be practically
impossible for them to keep pollution out
II u. h.