TOWN SITES. MINING CLAIMS IN TOWN SITES. LAWS 1867-68, P. 487; MAR. 24, 1868. (GENERAL LAWS 1864-1871, SEC. 9457.) AN ACT to authorize and direct the municipal authorities of the several cities and incorporated towns of this State to execute certain trusts in relation to the town lands granted to the incorporated cities and towns in this State by the act of Congress entitled "An act for the relief of the inhabitants of cities and towns upon the public lands," approved March 2, 1867. The People, etc. SEC. 1. It shall be the duty of the board of trustees, or other corporate authorities of any city or incorporated town in this State, to enter at the proper land office of the United States such quantity of land as the inhabitants of any incorporated city or town may be entitled to claim, in the aggregate, according to their population, in the manner required by the laws of the United States and the regulations prescribed by the Secretary of the Interior of the United States, and by order entered upon their minutes of proceedings, at a regular meeting, to authorize the presiding officer and clerk of such board or other corporate authority, attested by the seal of such corporation, to make and sign all necessary declaratory statements, certificates, and affidavits, or other instruments requisite to carry into effect the intentions of this act and the intentions of the act of Congress of the United States entitled, "An act for the relief of the inhabitants of cities and towns upon the public lands," approved March 2, 1867, and to make proof, when required, of the facts necessary to establish the claim of such inhabitants to the lands so granted by said act of Congress. * SEC. 9. * * * And provided further, That whenever mining claims shall have been located prior to the passage of this act, and where the same shall be prior in location to the claim of any occupant for other purposes, such mining rights, according to the metes and bounds so located and claimed, shall not in any manner be affected by the provisions of this act; nor shall any sale be made, nor any title be conveyed by reason of any sale or pretended sale, of such lands so claimed for mining purposes until after the occupancy of such mining claims shall have been abandoned by the holders thereof. * * * * * LAWS 1867-68, P. 692; MAR. 30, 1868. (GENERAL LAWS 1864-1871, SEC. 9441.) AN ACT to authorize and direct the county judges of the several counties of this State to execute certain trusts in relation to the town lands granted to the unincorporated towns in this State by the act of Congress entitled "An act for the relief of the inhabitants of cities and towns upon the public lands approved March 2, 1867. SEC. 10. * * * And provided further, That whenever mining claims shall have been located and held bona fide for mining purposes, prior to the passage of this act, and where the same shall be prior in location to the claim of any occupant for other purposes, such mining rights, according to the metes and bounds so located and claimed, shall not in any manner be affected by the provisions of this act; nor shall any sale be made, nor any title be conveyed by reason of any sale or pretended sale of such lands so claimed for mining purposes, until after the occupancy of such mining claims shall have been abandoned by the holders thereof. AMENDATORY ACT. LAWS 1897, P. 93; MAR. 9, 1897. AN ACT to amend section 15 of an act entitled "An act entitled 'An act, etc."" (same as in section 1) The People, etc. SEC. 1. Section 15 of an act entitled "An act to authorize and direct the county judges of the several counties of this State to execute certain trusts in relation to the town lands granted to the unincorporated towns in this State by the act of Congress entitled 'An act for the relief of the inhabitants of cities and towns upon the publie lands,' approved March 2, 1867," approved March 30, 1868, is hereby amended so as to read as follows: SEC. 15. If within six months after the giving of the public notice that the plat of any town site has been filed in the recorder's office as provided in section 12 of this act, there shall remain any unoccupied or vacant unclaimed lands, or lands not previously surveyed into town lots under the provisions of this act, and any person who has hitherto or shall hereafter discover gold in any portion thereof in quantities which he may deem sufficient to justify the profitable working thereof (his judgment thereon to be conclusive), and has located and held the same bona fide for mining purposes, such mining possession shall constitute him a preferred purchaser thereof, from the judge of the superior court, according to the metes and bounds of his location thereof, within the meaning of this act; and he may apply to the judge of the superior court for a deed thereto, which application he shall accompany with a deposit to be held by such judge in an amount to be estimated by him sufficient to pay the expenses of a survey and the platting thereof as herein provided for. The said superior judge shall thereupon cause a survey and plats to be made of such mining possession, and shall cause such plats and a copy of the field notes of such survey to be filed in the recorder's office of the county in which such town is situated, in the manner provided in section 3 of this act, and such filing shall have the effect therein provided; but the provisions of section 4 of this act shall not apply to any survey made under the provisions of this section. After the filing of such plats and such copy of field notes, said judge shall sell the said land so embraced within such mining possession to the bona fide possessor thereof at a price equal to $1.25 per acre or fraction of an acre thereof, and the expenses of the surveying and platting thereof; and in case two or more claimants apply for the same tract, or parcel of the same tract, said judge shall determine who is entitled thereto, and shall sell the same to the party so entitled. If any person has hitherto or shall hereafter occupy any portion of such unsurveyed lands, and shall, in good faith, make improvements thereon for any purpose other than mining, he shall have to the extent of his possession thereof the same rights and privileges hereunder as such possessor for mining purposes. NOTE.-The original section 15 of the act of March 30, 1868 (Laws 1867-68, p. 692), made no reference to mining or mines. WATER RIGHTS. SERVITUDES. SEC. 801, 802, CIVIL CODE (1872). 801. The following land burdens, or servitudes upon land, may be attached to other land as incidents or appurtenances, and are then called easements: 5. The right of taking water, wood, minerals, and other things: NOTE.-Paragraph 6 of section 802 is the same as paragraph 5 of section 801. * * * LAWS 1875-76, P. 547; MAR. 29, 1876. AN ACT concerning water ditches and water privileges for irrigating, mining, and manufacturing purposes, in the counties of Fresno, Tulare, and Kern. The People, etc. SEC. 1. The board of supervisors of the counties of Fresno, Tulare, and Kern are hereby made ex officio water commissioners in and for said counties; they shall have the power and shall perform the duties hereinafter set forth. SEC. 2. They shall procure a suitable book, and their clerk shall keep therein a full record of all their official acts as such water commissioners, which shall be open to the inspection of any citizen. SEC. 3. No ditch shall hereafter be taken out of any stream in the waters of which different persons have an interest by virtue of prior appropriation, without leave of said commissioners. SEC. 4. Any person or persons desiring to construct a ditch and appropriate water for irrigation, manufacturing, or mining purposes, shall file a petition with said commissioners, setting forth the stream from which they intend to take the water, the point where the proposed ditch will commence its general course, and the proposed size thereof; whereupon the said commissioners may grant the right to construct said ditch, and to use water sufficient to fill the same, for the uses and purposes set forth in said petition; provided, that nothing herein contained shall be so construed as to affect the right and privileges of those who, by prior appropriation and by actual use, have secured the right to the use of water from the several rivers and streams of Fresno, Tulare, and Kern counties. SEC. 5. Said commissioners shall have power to grant the right of way to lay out and construct ditches through any lands in said counties, and any person damaged thereby, or by the water of any ditch, shall be entitled to such compensation as may be agreed upon between the parties interested; and in case the parties can not agree, each party shall choose an arbitrator, and the two chosen shall choose a third; and such arbitrators shall assess the damages sustained under oath, which sum shall be paid before the ditch is constructed, by the parties using the water, in proportion to their several interests therein; and the decision of said arbitrators shall have the force and effect of a judicial decision; provided, that in case any of the parties herein shall refuse to choose an arbitrator, then the parties desiring the right of way may apply to the district court of such county and have such right of way condemned under Title Seven, Part Three, of the Code of Civil Procedure; and in all cases when the right of way to construct ditches, and fill the same with water, the right to fix maximum rates to be charged by ditch owners for water per inch is expressly reserved to such board. SEC. 6. The owners of water ditches may make such rules and regulations for the government of their several companies, not repugnant to the constitution and laws of the State of California, as a majority of them may deem just and proper, and elect such officers for the transaction of their business as they may require; provided, that in all meetings of water ditch companies each owner shall be entitled to a vote in proportion to his or her interest therein. SEC. 7. All water ditches shall be kept in good repair by the owners thereof; and any member of the said board of commissioners shall have power to close or authorize any other person to close and shut off the water from any ditch not in good repair; and any person opening or turning in the water into such ditch before the same is repaired shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor. SEC. 8. When any ditch shall break so as to cause a loss or wastage of water, or shall overflow its banks, any person shall have a right to notify, either verbally or in writing, any owner in the said ditch; and if the said ditch is not repaired within 48 hours after the time when such notice is given, then any person shall have the right to repair said ditch, and shall have the right of action to recover, in any court of competent jurisdiction, from the owners of said ditch, or any of them, double the cost of suit. SEC. 9. Whenever a majority in interest of the owners in any ditch company, or their authorized agent, shall deem it necessary to repair, enlarge, or extend their ditch, they shall cause a notice, either written or verbal, to be served upon each owner therein, specifying a time to commence work therein; and any owner therein neglecting or refusing to perform his proportion of such labor, or pay his proportion of the cost thereof, shall forfeit his right to the use of any water from such ditch until such time as he pays the same to the person or persons performing his proportion of such labor, together with 10 per cent per month thereon additional. The number of hours constituting a day's labor, and the value thereof, shall be determined by the respective water ditch companies in the rules and regulations they may severally adopt. Leaving the notice contemplated in this section at the residence of any owner in a ditch company, with any member of his or her family over the age of 15 years, shall be deemed a sufficient service for the purposes of this act. Every person owning an interest in any water ditch, or owning any interest in the use of the water therein, shall be considered a member of such water ditch company. SEC. 10. The board of water commissioners of the said counties are hereby authorized to fix by order, and make a record of the same, in a book kept for that purpose, the maximum rate to be charged by ditch owners for water, per inch, for irrigation, manufacturing, or mining purposes, which rate shall apply to ditches heretofore, as well as to those hereafter, constructed, whether under and by virtue of this act or nay previous law of this State. SEC. 11. All acts and parts of acts, so far as they conflict with the provisions of this act in the counties herein named, are hereby repealed. SEC. 12. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage. SEC. 2. Within 30 days after the passage of this act, or as soon thereafter as may be practicable, the State engineer shall submit to said board a report or reports containing the result of his investigations as to drainage, having in view the control of débris from mining and other operations, the improvement and rectification of river channels, the erection of embankments or dikes necessary for the protection of lands, towns, or cities from inundation. He shall also make special examinations with reference to the division of the State into several drainage districts, each of which shall include a territory drained by one natural system of drainage, and shall report to the board of drainage commissioners the result of his examinations and shall from time to time propose boundaries for such districts and recommend their formation. SEC. 19. The owner or owners, or the managing agent of every hydraulic mine or any mine using water to wash the earth or ores for mining purposes, which mine may be embraced in whole or in part within any drainage district to be formed or organized under this act and of all mines the waters from which carrying slickens, sand, or débris therefrom runs into any such district, shall, on or before the 1st day of July, A. D. 1880, and every year thereafter, at the time required for rendering a statement to the assessor for the purpose of assessing for State and county taxes, render to the assessor of the county in which the mine is located a sworn statement showing the number of miners' inches of water (of 24 hours' run) used by the mine, of which he is in whole or in part owner or the managing agent, for the preceding year ending on the 1st day of March next preceding the rendition of such statement. The statement shall include also the name and description of the mine. Upon receipt of such statement from the owner or managing agent of such mines the assessor shall enter the same, in a separate column, in the duplicate assessment book provided for (in) this act, so that it will show the number of miners' inches of water (of each 24 hours' run) used by each of such mines within the county for which he is assessor. SEC. 20. The board of directors shall, at the same time in October of each year that they levy the tax herein before provided for, levy an assessment upon all hydraulic mines, and upon all mines washing earth or ores with water running into the district, of one-half of 1 cent for each miners' inch of water of each 24 hours' run, used during such year, and shall notify the auditor of each county embraced in whole or in part in the district of the amount so levied, and he shall compute and enter upon the duplicate assessment book the respective sums to be collected from the respective mines; and the tax collector shall collect said assessment at the same time and the same manner that they collect State and county taxes. * * * SEC. 24. There shall be levied in the year 1880, and each year thereafter, by the same officers, at the same time and in the same manner that other State taxes are levied, a tax of one-twentieth of 1 per cent on all the taxable property in the State in addition to other State taxes. Said tax must be collected by the same officers, at the same time, and paid over at the same time that other State taxes are collected and paid over. The State treasurer shall place all moneys received by him on account of such tax to the credit of a fund, to be known as the "State drainage construction fund.” * * * AN ACT to amend an act entitled "An act to provide a system of irrigation, promote rapid drainage, and improve the navigation of the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers," approved March 29. 1878. The People, etc. SEC. 1. Section 1 of "An act to provide a system of irrigation, promote rapid drainage, and improve the navigation of the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers," approved March 29, 1878, is hereby amended so as to read as follows: SEC. 1. The office of the State engineer is hereby created to remain in existence for a period of two years only from the time this act takes effect, and the State mineralogist shall be ex officio State engineer. SEC. 2. Section 2 of said act is hereby amended so as to read as follows: SEC. 2. The salary of the State engineer shall be $3,000 per year. |