79 Minn. 436 | Minn. | 1900
This action was brought to restrain the defendants from obstructing a road ditch which runs along the north side of a town line highway between the towns of Andover and Hammond, in the county of Polk, at a point near the southeast corner of section 33 in the former town. The plaintiff’s land abuts the highway on its south side, and that of the defendants on its north side. The plaintiff’s land lies east of the point of obstruction, and that of the defendants to the west thereof. The plaintiff had judgment in the district court, from which the defendants appealed. The record in this court contains no settled “case” or bill of exceptions, and the question for this court to decide is whether the findings of fact of the trial court are sufficient to sustain its conclusions of law.
For about two years prior to April, 1899, at a point near the southeast corner of section 32 in the .town of Andover, near the northwest corner of plaintiff’s land, the ditch on the north side of the highway had been filled up by defendants without any authority so to do, making a dam therein, which caused the water coming through the ditch to back up. The placing and maintenance of a dam in the north-side ditch has the effect of improving the highway to the west of it, but the benefit to that is less than the injury to that part of the highway which is east of such dam. None of the defendants have received any authority from the board of supervisors of the towns of Hammond or Andover to obstruct the flow of water in the ditch.
The defendant Andrew Anderson was during the whole of the month of April, 1899, an overseer of highways of the town of Andover, duly elected and qualified, and the locus in quo was within his road district. Some time during that month, but prior to the
As conclusions of law the trial court found that the plaintiff was entitled to judgment for $50 damages, and, further, that each of the defendants be enjoined from obstructing the ditch in question, and from interfering with the rémoval of the dam placed therein by them until they are authorized by the board of supervisors of the proper town so to do. ■
Do the facts found justify this conclusion of law? The defendants claim that they do not for the following reasons:
1. The diversion of the surface water by the towns by means of
2. That the act of the defendants in placing the dam in the ditch some two years before it was removed by the plaintiff was lawful. This proposition necessarily rests upon the claim that the continuous ditch was unlawful as to them. It being a lawful public structure, it follows that the act of the 'defendants in obstructing it was unlawful, as found by the trial court.
3. That, the public authorities having permitted the dam to remain in the ditch for some two years after the defendants placed it therein, the defendant Anderson, was authorized, as overseer of highways, to replace it when the plaintiff removed it as an obstruction from the ‘ditch. It is unnecessary to discuss the general powers and duties of such officers, for it is clear from the findings that the act of the defendants in restoring the obstruction was unlawful, although the defendant Anderson happened at the timedo be such overseer, because, as we have stated, the dam, when orig
4. That the findings as to the amount of the plaintiff’s damages and the continuing character of the injury to his land are not sufficiently specific to justify the judgment. We hold that they are.
Judgment affirmed.