FIFTH ANNUAL YEAR BOOK — PART VI. 515 



AWARDING DAMAGES. 



Damages to owners of farm lands are, first, for land used in the con- 

 struction of an open ditch which is built for the common good. If this is 

 the improvement of a water course which already occupies a certain acre- 

 age of land, the owner should be paid for only the additional land taken by 

 the ditch, including its waste banks, at its actual value for productive 

 purposes. If the plan involves a cutting off of bonds in such a man- 

 ner that first-class tillable land is taken for the ditch, then a fair value, 

 considering the quality of the land, should be paid for it. Such cuts are 

 made because the interests of the district at large will be better served and 

 hence individuals injured thereby should be properly renumerated. 



Second, for inconvenience and expense in the cultivation of farm land 

 resulting from a new division of field or farm. If the divided parts of the 

 farm are to be connected by a bridge constructed at district expense, there 

 should be no complaint on that score. To ascertain the amount due by 

 reason of changing the shape of the field, determine the annual extra cost of 

 cultivating or cropping the field for a series of three to five years, which will 

 cover an ordinary rotation of erops. This determination should not be 

 made upon a fictitious or speculative basis but upon actual cath and labor 

 value. When this annual extra cost has been determined, the damages 

 allowed should be such a sum as, placed on interest at the lowest rate at 

 which long-time, well-secured loans can be made, will pay the annual cost. 

 Such damages arise from irregular or angular cutting of fields and should 

 not be considered unless it appears that the owner is put to an annual extra 

 expense or that property is destroyed by reason of the construction of the 

 ditch. 



Should the drain be constructed of drain tile, there is no damage to the 

 landowner unless growing crops or other property be destroyed by reason of 

 the prosecution of the work, in which case the actual value of the property 

 taken should be allowed the owners. 



The Iowa law requires that the cost of those parts of a drainage ditch 

 which cross public highways shall be paid from the township road fund. 

 This cost should be regarded as damages due the road from the drainage 

 district. A ditch constructed along a roadway and parallel to it will occasion 

 inconvenience to public travel during the course of construction. Most of 

 this can be obviated by providing a temporary side road, which should be 

 done at district cost and will be an expense item. The earth excavated from 

 a large ditch when deposited upon a roadway will not become a good track 

 until it is leveled and properly smoothed. The labor required for this con- 

 stitutes damages unless the district assumes the responsibility by contract of 

 putting the road in good condition for travel. If not, the road fund should 

 be allowed the cost of such work, which, including inconvenience to public 

 travel, will be approximately $200 per mile. The fact that the roadway 

 can not be put in good condition until the season following the construction 

 of the ditch, should be taken into consideration. 



The law r.5quires railroads to construct the district ditches across their 

 rights of way and specifies that the cost of such work is a proper damage 

 claim to which may bs properly added the expense of removing and replac- 

 ing any existing bridges. If the company desires to replace an old structure 



