130 LAWS RELATING TO AGRICULTURE. 



place appointed, and shall then and there state and make known to 

 the petitioners the amount asked by the owner or owners of such mill- 

 dam or mill dams of all their right, title and interest to and in the same 

 and the franchises pertaining thereto, and for the right to remove the 

 same, so that the waters of such stream shall pass through without hin- 

 drance, and the necessary cost of removing said mill-dam or mill-dams, 

 as estimated by said engineer or surveyor, together with all other tax- 

 able costs of the proceedings. 



[Record.] And if upon such statement no objections be made 

 thereto by said petitioners, or either of them, said commissioners shall 

 make a record thereof. 



[Apportionment of costs.] Said commissioners shall apportion 

 to each of said petitioners and all other land owners benefited by the 

 improvement, in a fair and equitable manner, according to the benefits 

 to be derived therefrom, as nearly as can be done, all the costs of the 

 proceedings, as in county ditch cases, the amount asked by the owner or 

 owners of said mill-dam or mill-dams and agreed upon as above, and 

 the amount of cost necessary to the removal of said mill-dam or mill- 

 dams, as reported by the surveyor or engineer. 



[Proceedings on failure to agree or on objection; lands in two or 

 more counties.] Upon failure to agree with the owner or owners of 

 such mill-dam or mill-dams, or on having agreed, if upon such statement 

 objections be made thereto by the petitioners, or either of them, then the 

 proceedings as to appeals, applications for damages, and in all other re- 

 spects shall be taken to determine the amount of damages to be awarded 

 to land owners affected, as is provided in the statutes as to the location 

 and establishment of county ditches, and if the lands affected are situ- 

 ated in two or more counties, the proceedings shall be governed by the 

 provisions of the said ditch statutes. 



[Abandoned mill-dam and water-rights; removal of such mill- 

 dam; cleaning out of water-course.] (But in any case where a mill 

 has become useless or has been destroyed, and has so remained* for more 

 than five years without any attempt to repair or rebuild the same, the 

 mill-dam and water-rights and privileges belonging to the same shall be 

 deemed abandoned, and the rights thereto as against the public health, 

 convenience and welfare, under this act shall cease and be barred; and 

 the commissioners may, under this act, without bargain or compensation, 

 cause such mill-dam to be removed and the watercourse upon which 

 it is located cleaned out and improved when an apportionment has been 

 made as hereinbefore stated.) 



[Assessment of costs.] The commissioners shall then order the 

 said amounts to be placed upon the tax duplicates, against the real estate 

 of said petitioners, and all other land owners benefited by the removal of 

 such dam, and to be collected within the time, and to meet the payments 

 as far as practicable in conformity with the provisions of the 'county 

 ditch law, whether agreed upon between said commissioners and said 

 mill-dam owner or owners, or fixed by the Commissioners or otherwise 

 in pursuance to the provisions of the laws relating to county ditches, 

 adding to the first year's assessment the taxable costs of the proceedings 

 and the estimated costs of removing said mill-dam or mill-dams. 



[Collection and disbursement of assessments.] Said assessment 

 shall be collected the same as other assessments against real estate and 



