Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 76.djvu/289

Rh to St. Louis, 375 miles, required from eight to eighteen and one half days. Then Missouri caused 107 barrels of the Bacillus prodigiosus to be put into the drainage canal near the starting point on November 6, On December 4, one of these bacilli was found at the St. Louis Intake Tower, and a few others later. The duration of life of this bacillus in sunlight in living water, being alleged to be about the same as that of the Bacillus typhosus, it was urged that the typhus bacillus in the sewage of Chicago could reach St. Louis. But Illinois contended that typhoid bacilli could live only for three or four days, and so the representatives of Illinois suspended in the Illinois River, sacs which water could penetrate. In these sacs were bacilli of typhoid and in three or four days there were no living typhoid bacilli in the sacs. Illinois therefore claimed that they had died, to which Missouri replied that the constant change of water made conditions different, that these bacilli may have been of less than normal strength, or that they may have escaped from the sacs. On all the evidence the court held that it was not sufficiently clear that a nuisance existed and the bill was dismissed without prejudice to the right of Missouri to commence over again if it believed that it had evidence strong enough to prove its case.

If under the law, the alleged acts are a nuisance and if there is legal evidence to prove the facts, one additional question remains, that of procedure. What remedy is to be applied? The ingenuity of lawyers has been taxed to the utmost in devising remedies for nuisances. So difficult is it at times to succeed in ending a nuisance that the law provides as many remedies for nuisance, perhaps more remedies, than for any other form of injury, an entire arsenal of weapons, some public, some private, civil and criminal, judicial and non-judicial, legal and equitable, and sometimes all are required.

First there is the right of abatement. The law is jealous about permitting parties to remedy injuries with their own hands, but if the existence of a nuisance is clear, then one may himself put an end to it. The person who thus makes his own determination of right acts at his peril, and is liable if he has made a mistake. When abatement is threatened, if the case is doubtful the courts will forbid the use of this method, and unless there is pressing necessity, it should seldom be resorted to, particularly by private individuals.

The injured person may bring an action to recover compensation in money for his injuries and very frequently this remedy is selected. But as it does not put an end to the nuisance, it does not aid the cause of public health, unless the defendant voluntarily abates the nuisance through fear of further pecuniary loss.

The plaintiff may prefer to ask the court to prohibit the defendant from continuing the nuisance. Such relief is called equitable as distinguished from compensation in money, and this form of relief by