172 The Farmer's Business Handbook 



divert the water from the stream as to interfere 

 with that right. 



It is impracticable here to go into the matter 

 of the rights of mill -owners. For our purpose 

 it is sufficient to say that, beginning at the 

 source of the stream, each riparian owner, in his 

 turn, has the right to the use of the water for 

 domestic purposes. He must not divert it or pol- 

 lute it or interfere with it in any way except to 

 take what is necessary for his reasonable needs, 

 nor may he materially interfere with the natural 

 flow. No person has a right to divert any water 

 by sluice, ditch or otherwise from its natural 

 channel to the damage of another; and, if he 

 does, he is liable for all damage caused by such 

 diversion, except that one may change the chan- 

 nel of a stream upon his own land if he returns 

 it again to its channel so as not to affect the 

 flow on another's land; and one may withhold a 

 reasonable amount of water from a stream per- 

 manently, but must not withhold so much as to 

 materially reduce the flow below, though it has 

 been held, and rightly so, that one may use all 

 the water of a stream or spring necessary for his 

 ordinary wants, such as drinking, washing, cook- 

 ing, and for stock, even though it leave none 

 for the lower proprietor. 



Most of these rules apply equally well with 

 sluices and ditches upon the highways. A com- 



