The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-06-21


 ganization of drainage districts, to
 confer the right of eminent domain to
 the extent necessary to carry out the
 purposes of this act, and to provide
 for raising the revenue by bond issues
 or otherwise, to pay the costs and eX-
 penses of installing and maintaining
 drainage systems so as to promote
 the public health and general welfare. Be 1t enacted by the legislature of Ala
 bama:
 Section 1. That the court of prooese of any county of the state of Alabama shall have jurisdiction, power and au- thority to establish levee or drainage district or districts In its county and to locate and establish levees, drains, or canals, and cause to be constructed strengthened, widened, or deepened, any ditch, drain, or watercourse, and to build levees or embanlSments and erect tide gates, flood gates, and pumping plants for the purpose of draining and re- claiming wet, swamp, or overiioWed lands and it is hereby declared that the drainage of surface water from agricul :. tural lands and the reclamation of wet lands, swamp lands, overflowed lands, and tidal marshes shall be considered a public benefit and conducive to the public health, convenience utility, and welfare.
 Sec. 2. Whenever a petition praying for the organization of a drainage district, signed by majority of the landowners in a proposed district, or by the owners of more than half the land in acreage which will be affected by or assessed for the expense of the proposed inn provements, shall be filed with the court of probate of any county in which a part of said lands are located, setting forth that any specific body or district of land in the county, or counties and adjoining counties, described in such a way as to convey an intelligent idea as to location of such land, is subject to overflow or too wet for cultivation. and the public benefit or utility. or the public health, convenience or wei fare will be promoted by drainage, ditching or 1eveeing the same, or by changing or improving the natural Wa tercourses, or by the installation of file systems, and there is filed with said pe- tition, or at any time subsequent there to and prior to the time of hearing on said petition, a bond with security ap- proved by the court, sufficient to ray all expenses connected with the proceed ings in case the court refuses to or ganize the district said petition is accompanied by articles of association signed by all the petitioners, said ar ticles stating that the parties whose names are subscribed thereto are ow n. CTS of or control and represent real es- tate within said proposed district and that they are willing to and do hereby obligate themselves to pay such assessments within thirty days as may be made by the court of probate against their respective lands in payment of all expenses Incurred as the work progresses before a permanent organization is effected, or in payment of all preliminary expenses in case the court does not grant the prayer oi said petitioners it shall be the duty of the court of probate to Issue sum mons to be served upon all the de- fendant landowners who have not joined in the petition and whose lands are in cluded in. the proposed district. As sessments made by the court to pre- vide funds for the payment of prelini- mary expenses shall be made in such proportion as the lands of each signer bear to the total acreage of all the signers of the articles of association and such assessments shall constitute a lien, to which only the lien of the state for general state, county, city, village school and road taxes shall be para mount upon all lands and other prop erty against which such assessmer ts shall be made. In case a permanent organization Is effected, all moneys ad. vanced in payment Of preliminary ex. penses shall become a charge against the. permanent organization and shal be refunded out of the funds raised by the first assessment as subsequently, provided for herein. Upon the return day said court of probate shall appoin disinterested and experienced cIvi and drainage engineer to examine the lands described in the petition anC make preliminary report thereon. Tn, rate of compensation for the service. of such engineer and his necessary as sistants shall be determined by tn, court and be paid from the funds raised by assessment of the signers of ths articles of association or from the bond
 Sec. 8 If at the time of the filing oi the petition, or at any time subsequen thereto. 1t shall be made to appear tt the court by affidavit or otherwise tha the owner or owners of the whole or any share of any tract or tracts of lant whose names are unknown, and canno after due diligence be ascertained by tn, petitioners, the court shall order a no tice in the nature of summons to b, given to all such persons by a publica ton of the petition, or of the substance thereof. and describing generally the trac or tracts of land as to which the owne or owners are unknown, with the orde Of the court thereon. in some newspape published in the county wherein the lant Is located or in some other county if m newspaper shall be published in the first named county, which newspaper or news papers shall be designated in the orde of the court, and copy of such publica ton shall also be posted in at least fiv conspicuous places within the boundarie Of the proposed district and at the court house door of the county Such publica tion in a newspaper and by posting shal be made for a period of three weeks. Afte the time of publication shall have expired If no person claiming and asserting til to the tract or tracts of land and entitle to notice shall appear, tho court in it discretion may appoint some disintereste Derson to represent the unknown owne or owners of said lands. and thereupo the court shall assume Jurisdiction of tn said tract or tracts of land and sha adjudicate as to the said lands to tn came extent as If the true owners wer present and represented. and shall procee against the land itself. If at any tim during the pendency of the drainage pro ceeding the true owner or owners of tn lands shall appear in person. they ma be made parties defendant of their ow motion and without the necessity of per scnal service and shalf thereafter be con sidered as parties to the proceeding. bu they shall have no right to except to O appeal from any order or Judgment there tofore rendered. as to which the tim for filing exceptions on notice shall hay expired.
 Sec 4 In case of district lying i more than one county the probate Judg of each of the counties having land in tn district shall sit as a court in the court house where the original petition was file to make the findings required by the coui of probate under this act. A majority c said judges shall be necessary to render
 decision. In case of a tie said matter nhan A fo~ 3od n