Chapter 678. authorizing the Mississippi and Louisiana Bridge and railroad Company of Natchez
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CHAP. 678.— An Act authorizing the Mississippi and Louisiana Bridge and railroad Company of Natchez. Mississippi, to construct a bridge over the Mississippi River at or near Natchez, Mississippi.July 19, 1888. *Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled*,Mississippi and Louisiana Bridge and Railroad Company may bridge Mississippi River at Natehez, Miss. That the Mississippi and Louisiana Bridge and Railroad Company of Natchez, Mississippi, a corporation duly incorporated under the Railroad bridge.laws of the State of Mississippi, be, and they are hereby, authorized to construct, maintain. and use a railroad bridge over the Mississippi River at or near Natchez at such point selected by them as the most suitable.
Sec. 2. That said bridge may be constructed of continuous, unbroken spans, or as a cantileverConstruction. or suspension bridge, or a combination of these systems, together with such improvements as science and practical experience may suggest and as shall be deemed best, and to cross said river at right angles to the current thereof, and to be supported on iron cylinders filled with concrete or other material, with a superstructure of masonry or iron piling, or a combination of masonry and iron piling, or such other approved modes of support for the superstructure as may be deemed best.
Sec. 3. That the main channel-span shall not be less than sevenSpans. hundred feet wide in the clear, to be placed at right angles to the direction of the current, and that the spans on either side of and next to the main span shall not be less than six hundred feet in clear width, and that the height in the clear of the spans and the location of the piers shall be approved by the Secretary of War before the bridge is *Proviso.*Height.constructed: *Provided*, That the height of said span shall not be less than seventy-five feet.
Sec. 4. That the piers of the spans shall be built parallel with thePiers. current at that stage of the river, and that no ripraps will be permitted in the channel-way of the openings. Sec. 5. That said Mississippi and Louisiana Bridge and RailroadNotice. Company shall give due notice by publication for one week in one or more of the newspapers in the cities of Pittsburgh. Cincinnati, Louisville. Saint Louis, Memphis. Natchez, and New Orleans, and shall submit to the Secretary of War. for his examination and approval, a Plans, map, etc.design and drawings of the bridge and piers, and a map of the location, 335 giving, for the space of three thousand feet both above and below the site of the proposed bridge. the topography of the banks of the river, and the shorelines at high and low water, There shall also accompany the maps or drawings a profile of the bottom of the river for one thousand feet above and below the site of the proposed bridge, from the soundings as made by the United States Engineers of the Mississippi River Commission, or by its own engineers, and also to show accurately at the crossing point and location of the piers an exact profile, and also to show over the whole space of one thousand feet above and below the location of the proposed bridge the force and direction of the currents at low water, at high water, and at one intermediate stage, and the highest and lowest watermark for the years eighteen hundred and eighty-two, eighteen hundred and eighty-three, eighteen hundred and eighty-four, and eighteen hundred and eighty-five, at Natchez, Mississippi.
Sec. 6. That said maps and drawings shall be submitted to theSubmitted to Secretary of War. Secretary of War, with such other information as he may desire, subject to such modifications, changes, or improvements as may be suggested by him. Sec. 7. That the maps and drawings shall be open to public inspectionPublic inspection of plans. at the office of the Secretary of War, and a duplicate thereof at the office of the Mississippi and Louisiana Bridge and Railroad Company, at Natchez.
Mississippi, of which due notice shall be given by publication in one or more of the newspapers in the cities of New York. Washington. Philadelphia. Baltimore, Pittsburgh. Cincinnati. Louisville, Saint Louis, Memphis, Natchez, and New Orleans. Sec. 8. That all parties owning or operating said bridge shall maintain.Lights. at their own expense, from sunset to sunrise, such lights on said bridge as maybe required by the Light-House Board for security of navigation, and shall in any event maintain all lights necessary for the security of navigation.
Sec. 9. That the bridge constructed under this act shall be a lawfulLawful structure and post-route. structure, and shall be known and recognized as a post-route for the transmission of mails, military, and munitions of war of the United States, as well as all merchandise and property; and in case of any unlawful obstruction of said river created by the construction of said bridge, the cause or question arising may be tried before the circuit court of the United States for Mississippi or Louisiana in whose jurisdiction any portion of said obstruction or bridge is located: and equal privileges in the use of said bridge shall be granted to all telegraph companies: and the United States shall have the right of way across said bridge and its approaches for postal telegraph purposes.Postal telegraph.Wagon and foot bridge.
Sec. 10. That the bridge hereby authorized may be constructed for the passage of wagons and other vehicles, and of foot-passengers, or animals of any description, but the rates of toll therefor shall be approved by the Secretary of War, and may be fixed by him from time to time at such reasonable amounts as he may determine: and all railroadUse by other companies. companies wishing to use said bridge for the passage of their trains shall have the right, on such terms as may be agreed upon between the owners of said bridge and the companies or persons applying to use the same; and if any disagreement shall arise between the parties as to the terms, the same shall be finally determined byTerms. the Secretary of War.
Sec. 11. That the right to alter, amend, or repeal this act is herebyAmendment. expressly reserved: and if the Secretary of War shall at any time deem it necessary in the public interest to cause said bridge, or any part thereof, to be altered in any respect, the same shall be done at the cost of the parties owning or controlling said bridge; and any litigation in regard to said bridge may be had in the circuit court ofLitigation. the Unit ed States for Mississippi or Louisiana within whose jurisdiction the bridge, or any part thereof, is located. 336FIFTIETH CONGRESS.
Sess. I. Chs. 678– 689. 1888. Sec. 12. That if the construction of said bridge is not commencedCommencement and completion. in two years from the passage of this act, and completed in five years thereafter, all rights hereby conferred shall cease and determine. Approved, July 19, 1888.