Chap. 514.—an ACT declaring certain streams in Powhatan county to be
highways. :

Approved February 26, 1900

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia, That Deep creek,
from the Cumberland line to its mouth at James river, and Sallie’s
creck, from its junction with Mill creek and Hudsmith creek to its mouth
at Deep creek, all in the county of Powhatan, shall be considered, and
are hereby declared, to be highways for the purposes of this act, and shall
be subject to all the provisions of law in reference to public highways
now in force and applicable thereto except as hereinafter provided.

2. It shall be the duty of the owners of the land lying and bordering
on each bank of the said creeks above designated as highways to keep the
said creeks lying within or bordering on their lands and the banks
thereof properly cleared out and free from all obstructions except where
authorized by law, and where any one of the said creeks is the line
between different landowners 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 Powhatan 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 crecks, or cither 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 shall fail or refuse to 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 romoved 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 at the same
time levy a tax on the said landowner or owners sufficient to defray
all the expenses incident to the removal of the said obstructions, in-
cluding 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 landowner or owners shal]
furnish the said overseer or overseers with labor to remove the said
obstructions, they shall have proper eredit therefor. —

The board of supervisors of Powhatan county shall allow each of
the said overseers the.sum of one dollar and fifty cents for each dav
he may be necessarily employed in discharging the duties of inspection
imposed upon him by this act, to be paid out of the county treasury.

This act shall be in force from its passage.