Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 25.djvu/799

 754 FIFTIETH CONGRESS. Sess. II. Ch. 314. 1889. Mamh L 1889 CHAP. 314.-—-An act to authorize the construction of a bridge across the Tensas ""i°"_"" River, at or near Daniel’s Ferry, Louisiana. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the New orims, im- United States of America in Congress assembled, That the New Or- §§,‘§fw§,‘}d §§’;f,,§§§$ leans, Natchez and Fort Scott Railway Company, a corporation created my bridge ‘1`<=¤¤¤¤ and existing under the laws of the State of Louisiana, be, and is here- Rmm m' by, authorized to construct and maintain a bridge, and approaches thereto, over the Tensas River, at or near Dan1el’s Ferry, on a direct line from Vidalia, in Concordia Parish, to Winnsborough, in Franklin Parish, in the State of Louisiana. Said bridge shall be constructed to provide for the lpassage of railway trains, and, at the option of the corporation by w ich it is built, may be used for the passage of muqsy,wag¤¤,s¤d wagons and vehicles of all kinds, for the transit of anima s, and for f°§,ffS'i‘dg°‘ foot-passengers, for reasonable rates of tolls, to be fixed by said com- - pany and approved by the Secretary of War. _ _ _ l·e-*f¤¤ ¤t¤¤¢¤¤m Sec. 2. That any bridge built under this act and subject to its limrd p°°t'mm°° itations shall be a lawful structure, and shall be recognized and known as a post—route, and shall enjoy the rights and privileges of other post-roads in the United States. 'I`hat no higher charge shall be made for the transmission over the same of the mail, troops, and munitions of war of the United States, or for through railway passengcrs or freight passing over said bridge, than the rate per mile for their transmission over the railroad leading to said bridge; and equal privileges in the use of said bridge shall be granted to all telegraph com anies, and the United States shall have the right of way across Postal telegraph saidlbridge for postal-telegraph purposes; that the said bridge shall be uucbstmcmi uavi- constructed either by draw, s an, or otherwise, so that a free and ung*“‘°“· obstructed passage-way may be secured to ·all water-craft navigating 1j··<»vis<¤· said riverat the point aforesaid: Provided, That if said bridge authorized to be constructed under this act shall be constructed as a Drew- draw—bridge, the draw shall be opened prom tly upon reasonable sig-- nals for the passage of boats or vessels; and) said corporation shal mgm, em. maintain, at its own ex ense, from sunset to sunrise, such lights or other signals on said bridge as the Light-House Board shall prescribe. by 0***** ¢°*¤· Sec. 3. That all railroad companies desiring the use of said bridge Inshall have and be entitled to equal rights and rivile es relative to the passage of railway trains over the same, and) over tghe approaches C<¤¤P€¤=*¤¤<>¤- thereto, upon the payment of a reasonable compensation for such use; and in case the owner or owners of said bridge, and the several railroad companies, or any one of them, desiring such use, shall fail to agree upon the sum or sums to be paid, and u on rules and conditions to which each shall conform in using said bridge, all matters d Sggmwv of War w to issue between them shall be decided by the Secretary of War upon °°” °‘ the hearing of the allegations and proofs of the parties. ¤S¤§$;¤K1<;;*;~’b:¤¤¤ Sec. 4. That any bridge authorized to be constructed under this pp p ’act shall be built and located under and subject to such regulations for the security of navigation of said river as the Secretary of War shall prescribe; and to secure that object the said company or corporation shall submit to the Secretary of War, for his examination and approval, a design and drawings of the bridge, and a map of the location, giving, for the space of one mile below and one mile above the proposed location, the topography of the banks of the river, the shore- ines at high and low water, the direction and strength of the current at all stages, and the soundings, accurately showing the bed of the stream, the location of any other bridge or bridges, and shall furnish such other information as may be re uired for a full satisfactory understanding of the subject; and until the said man and location of the bridge are approved by the Secretary of Tar the construction of said bridge shall not be commenced; and 0h¤¤s¤¤· should any change be made in the plan of said bridge during the progress of construction, so as to prevent or remove all substantial