24 
RUSSIAN THISTLE LAW. 
AN ACT to provide for the destruction of noxious weeds, and to provide penalties for the violation 
thereof. 
Be it enacted by the legistature of the State of Kansas: 
SECTION 1. Every person and every corporation shall destroy, on all lands which 
he or it may own or occupy, all weeds of the kind known as Russian thistle and 
Canada thistle, at such time as the board of county commissioners may direct, and 
notice shall be published in one or more county papers for a time not less than three 
weeks before the time fixed upon for the destruction of said noxious weeds. 
Src. 2. It shall be the duty of the county commissioners to fix the time for the 
destruction of all such noxious weeds, and to provide for the destruction in sucha 
manner as to prevent their bearing seed. 
Src. 3. Every overseer of highway of every township or county shall also, at the 
same time in like manner, destroy all such noxious weeds, either on the highways of 
his road district, railroad right-of-way, or on any other unoccupied land therein, 
upon which the owner or lessee thereof shall neglect or refuse to do so; and for such 
service overseers of highways, or persons employed by him, shall receive as compen- 
sation the sum of $1.50 per day, or $3 per day forman and team, to be paid out of the 
general county fund: Provided, The limitation of time, as provided in paragraph 
5306 of section 33, Laws of i889, in relation to road overseers, shall not apply to the 
provisions of this act. 
Sec. 4. It shall be the duty of overseers of highways to present to the board of 
county commissioners an itemized account, verified under oath, showing description 
of each piece of land upon which noxious weeds have been destroyed, in accordance 
with the provisions of this act and the amounts of the charge for such service, by 
separate items; and said amounts shall become a lien against the lands so described, 
except in case of the destruction of such noxious weeds on the public highways. 
The amount of cost of the destruction of such noxious weeds as so certified, shall be 
placed upon the next tax list in a separate column, headed, ‘‘ For the destruction of 
noxious weeds,” as a tax against the land upon which such weeds were destroyed, 
subject to all the penalties thereof, and to be collected as other taxes, and the entry 
of such tax upon the tax list shall be conclusive evidence of the liability of such 
land to such tax. 
Sec. 5. It shall be the duty of all overseers of highways to certify to the county 
elerk in an itemized account, verified by oath, the amount of labor performed in 
destroying such noxious weeds on all lands not public highway, on or before the 
fifteenth day of September in each year. 
SEc. 6. Any railroad company which shall be notified by any road overseer or 
township trustee, in writing, through its agent, section foreman or road master, that 
the noxious weeds, referred to in this act, are growing upon the said company’s 
right-of-way or other lands, which writing shall designate the location of said grow- 
ing weeds, then the said company shall forthwith destroy the same, and failure so 
to do, shall subject said company to the penalties imposed by section 8 of this act. 
And in case of such notice having been served upon any railroad company, and 10 
days having elapsed without the destruction of said noxious weeds, then it shall be 
the duty of the road overseer within whose district said right-of-way or other lands 
may be upon which said noxious weeds are growing, to proceed to enter upon said 
right-of-way, or land, as the case may be, and destroy the noxious weeds there 
growing. And for such service he shall be allowed $1.50 per day and the same shall 
be paid out of the county fund, and taxed against such offending corporation -or 
corporations. The amount of such tax shall be added by the county clerk to the 
railroad company or corporation on the tax roll against such company or corpora- 
tion, and collected as other taxes are collected against such company. 
Sec. 7. It shall be the duty of the county clerk to enter upon the tax list, in a 
separate column for that purpose, headed, ‘‘ For the destruction of noxious weeds,” 
