FARMERS' INSTITUTES. 167 



The drain commissioner thereupon proceeds to let contracts for dig- 

 ging to the lowest responsible bidders. The parties assessed for ben- 

 efits shall be preferred as bidders, if other things are equal. You 

 should watch the construction of the drain, because if you think it 

 improperly constructed and the entire cost exceeds flOO any two per- 

 sons assessed for benefits may have the suflBciency of the work deter- 

 mined by the county surveyor. 



The assessment when made and fixed by the commissioner is sub- 

 ject to appeal. You are grieved at your assessment as fixed by the 

 commissioner. In ten days apply to the judge of probate for a board 

 of review. He will notify the commissioner and a board of three 

 disinterested freeholders, not residents of the township affected, 

 are drawn. This board reviews the assessments, determines whether 

 they are just or not, alters them as it deems proper and may add lands 

 to the district, if upon personal inspection of the district they deter- 

 mine that they ought to be so added but to do this the day of review 

 must be adjourned and a proper notice given to the owner whose land 

 is to be added. The determination of this board of review when com- 

 pleted is final. 



The foregoing assessment is merely the determination of the per cent 

 of the costs of the drain each particular piece of land shall bear. 

 Therefore it is that the land owner is often lulled to security by the 

 small innocent looking 5, 7 or 10 per cent, that appears against his 

 land* This per cent becomes fixed and settled before anything appears 

 in the shape of dollars and cents. The contract being let and the 

 assessment of per cent having become final the commissioner then pro- 

 ceeds at once to compute the cost of the drain and apportion this cost 

 to the several parcels of land, according to the per cent before de- 

 termined and then the taxpayer often arises to a realization of the 

 fact that he really did not want the drain any way. Then he is apt 

 to say hard things about the land, still harder things about the county 

 drain commissioner and perhaps he consults his attorney. In most 

 such cases, the expense of this consultation is added to the cost of 

 the drain to the particular taxpayer consulting. Because as a rule 

 the tax is regular and must be met and curses whether loud or deep do 

 not alter the matter. 



Note one matter of importance that is not generally understood. 

 If you have any idea of selling your land you understand that your 

 general taxes become a lien against the land December 1st. and if 

 you sell by warranty deed before that date the purchaser pays the tax, 

 if after that date you pay the tax. Not so with, drain taxes. As soon 

 as the commissioner makes his computation he makes a special assess- 

 ment roll where each different description of your parcels taxed with 

 all others appears and the amount of your tax is extended thereon. 

 As soon as this is done that drain tax becomes a lien on your land and 

 if you sell by warranty deed you must pay that tax. 



Remedies have been partly touched upon in the progress of this paper 

 but a few others may be noted. If the first petition is defective the 

 whole proceeding will fall at the touch of litigation. If the proceed- 

 ings establishing the drain are defective in any essential particular 

 the said proceedings may be reviewed upon certiorari. This is a simple 

 and comparatively inexpensive remedy, but fortunately (for the legal 

 profession) it will take a lawyer to manage it for you so all I need to 



