Chap. 496.—An ACT to amend an act approved March 25, 1872, &c., declaring
certain streams in Charlotte county to be highways.

Approved February 27, 1896.

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia, That an act
approved March twenty-fifth, eighteen hundred and seventy-two,
declaring certain streams in Charlotte county to be highways, as
amended by an act approved March twentieth, eighteen hundred
and seventy-five, as amended by an act approved March fourteenth,
eighteen hundred and seventy-eight, and as amended by an act
approved March third, eighteen hundred and seventy-nine, declaring
certain streams in Charlotte county to be highways, be amended and
re-enacted so as to read as follows:

§ 1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia, That
Wardsforth creek from Franklin’s mill-dam to its mouth, Cub creek
from Harvey’s bridge to its mouth, Roanoke creek from Roanoke
bridge to its mouth, all in the county of Charlotte, shall be con-
sidered and are hereby declared to be highways, and shall be subject
to all the provisions of law in reference to public roads now in force
and applicable thereto except as hereinafter provided.

§ 2. It shall be the duty of the owners of the land lying and bor-
dering on each bank of the said creeks above designated as high-
ways to keep the said creeks lying within or bordering on their lands
and the banks thereof properly cleared out and free from all obstruc-
tions except where authorized by law, and where any one of the said
creeks is the line between different land owners, the owners on each
side shall keep their banks and the bordering creek to the middle of
the stream properly cleared and free from such obstructions.

§ 3. The county court of Charlotte shall from time to time appoint
one or more overseers of the said creeks, who shall hold office for
two years from the date of their qualification, unless sooner removed
for cause by said court. The said overseer or overseers shall be
charged with the duty of inspecting the said creeks above designated
as highways during the months of April and October of each year,
and at such other times as obstructions in the said creeks or on the
banks thereof may be reported to him or them. The said overseer
or overseers, if upon inspecting the said creeks find that the owner
or owners of the lands lying and bordering on the banks of the said
creeks has or have failed to keep the said creeks or either of them
and the banks thereof clear of obstructions as required by this act,
shall notify in writing the said owner or owners, if resident in the
county, or his or their tenant or agent, if any such reside in the said
county, of any and all such obstructions in the said creeks, or either
of them, or on the banks thereof, and require him or them to remove
and clear out such obstructions in twenty days from the time such
notice is served on him or them. If the said owner or owners shal]
fail or refuse to remove or clear out such obstructions in the said
creeks, or either of them, or on the banks thereof, within twenty
days after he or they has or have been so notified by said overseer or
overseers of such obstructions,'the said overseer or overseers shall
at once proceed to cause the said obstructions to be removed and
report the cost to the board of supervisors of the county, who, if they
approve of the amount of the bill rendered for the removal of said
obstructions, shall order the treasurer of the county to pay the same,
and shall at the same time levy a tax on the said land owner or
owners sufficient to defray all the expenses incident to the removal
of the said obstructions, including the cost of collecting the same,
and the said tax shall have the same lien and be collected by the
treasurer of the county as other taxes assessed by the said board.
But if the said land owner or owners shall furnish the said overseer
or overseers with labor to remove the said obstructions they shall
have proper credit therefor.

§ 4. All of the acts mentioned in the preamble of this act, and
all acts and parts of acts inconsistent with this act, are hereby re-
pealed.
§ 5. The board of supervisors of Charlotte county shall allow each
of the said overseers the sum of two dollars for each day he may be
necessarily employed in discharging the duties imposed upon him
by this act, to be paid out of the county treasury.

2. This act shall be in force from its passage.