Chapter 32.
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/statutes-at-large/vol-20/chapter-32-103114·A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
CHAP. 32.— AN ACT to authorize the construction of a bridge across the Missouri River at or near Glasgow, Missouri.March 13, 1878. *Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled*,Railroad and wagon bridge may be built, at Glasgow, Mo. That any corporation existing, or which may be organized, under the laws of the State of Missouri, be, and is hereby, authorized to construct and maintain a bridge, and approaches thereto, over the Missouri River, at or near Glasgow, in the county of Howard, in said State.
Said bridge shall be constructed to provide for the passage of railway-trains, and, at the option of the corporation by which it may be built, may be used for the passage of wagons and vehicles of all kinds, for the transit of animals, and for foot-passengers. Sec. 2. That any bridge built under this act, and subject to its limitations,Post-route: rate payable by United States. shall be a lawful structure, and shall be recognized and known as a post-route, upon which also no higher charge shall be made for the transmission over the same of the mails, the troops, and the munitions of war of the United States than the rate per mile paid for the transportation over the railroad or public highways leading to the said bridge; and it shall enjoy the rights and privileges of other post-roads in the United States.
Sec. 3. That if said bridge shall be made with unbroken and continuousHow to be constructed. spans, the spans thereof shall not be less than three hundred feet in length in the clear, and the main span shall be over the main channel of the river. The lowest part of the superstructure of said bridge shall be at least fifty feet above extreme high-water mark as understood at the point of location, and the bridge shall be at right angles to, and its piers parallel with, the current of the river: *Provided*, That if the same shall be constructed as a drawbridge, the draw or pivot shall be over the main channel of the river at an accessible navigable point, and the spans shall not be less than one hundred and sixty feet in length in the clear, and the piers of said. bridge shall be parallel with, and the bridge itself at right angles to, the current of the river, and the spans shall not be less than ten feet above extreme high-water mark, as understood at the point of location, to the lowest part of the superstructure of said bridge: *Provided also*, That said draw shall be opened promptly,Opening of draw; signals. upon reasonable signal, for the-passing of boats; and said company or corporation shall maintain at its own expense, from sunset till sunrise, such lights or other signals on said bridge as the Light-House Board shall prescribe.
NoObstruction o f navigation. bridge shall be erected or maintained under the authority of this act which shall at any time substantially or materially obstruct the free navigation of said river; and if any bridge erected under such authority shall, in the opinion of the Secretary of War, obstruct such navigation,Alterations. he is hereby authorized to cause such change or alteration of said bridge to be made as will effectually obviate such obstruction; and all such alterations shall be made and all such obstruc- 30 FORTY-FIFTH CONGRESS.
SesS. II. Ch. 32, 34,37. 1878. tions be removed at the expense of the owner or owners of said bridge. Jurisdiction of courts.And in case of any litigation arising from any obstruction or alleged obstruction to the free navigation of said river, caused or alleged to be caused 'by said bridge, the case may be brought in the district court of the United States of the State of Missouri, in which any portion of said Existing laws.obstruction or bridge may be located: *Provided further*, That nothing in this act shall be so construed as to repeal or modify any of the provisions of law now existing in reference to the protection of the navigation of rivers, or to exempt this bridge from the operation of the same.
Sec. 4. That all railroad companies desiring the use of said bridgeUse of bridge. shall have and be entitled to equal rights and privileges relative to the passage of railway-trains over the same, and over the approaches thereto, upon 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 upon rules and conditions to which each shall conform in using said bridge, all matters at issue between them shall be decided by the Secretary of War, upon a hearing of the allegations and proofs of the parties.
Sec. 5. That any bridge authorized to be constructed under this act shallRegulations by Secretary of War. 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 explanation and approval, a Map and drawings.design and drawings of the bridge, and a map of the location, giving, for the space of one mile above and one mile below the proposed location, the topography of the banks of the river, the shorelines at high and low water, the direction and strength of the currents at alt 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 Approval.may be required for a full and satisfactory understanding of the subject; and until the said plan and location of the bridge are approved by the Secretary of War, the bridge shall not be built; and should any change be made in the plan of said bridge during the progress of construction, such change shall be subject to the approval of the Secretary of War.
Sec. 6. That the right to alter, amend, or repeal this act is herebyAmendment and repeal. expressly reserved. Approved, March 13, 1878.