FIFTY-FIFTH CONGRESS. Sess. II. Ch. 183. 1898. 359 CHAP. 183.—An Act To authorize the construction of a bridge over the Black April 21, 1898. River, at or near Pocahontas, Arkansas. t·"*_‘—·‘·* Bc it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That it shall be lawful for the Pocahontas Bridge Pocahontas Bridge Company, a corporation duly andlcgally incorporated §?££“‘}€}v‘§§’§’§]¥L$,? under the laws of the State of Arkansas, its successors or assigns, to M- construct and maintain a. bridge over the Black River at or near Pocahontas, in Randolph County, Arkansas. Said bridge shall be con- Passage of trains. structed to provide for the passage of railway trains, and, at the option "°h‘°1°“’°°“‘ of the persons by whom 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, for such reasonable rates of toll as may be approved from ron time to time by the Secretary of War. - Sec. 2. That any bridge built under the provisions of this Act and Lswful structure subject to its limitations shall be a lawful structure, and shall be rec- “"d ’°" ’°“°‘“ ognized and known as a post route, upon which also no higher charge shall be made ior_the transmission over the same of the mails and troops and the munitions of war of the United States, or passengers or - freight passing over the said bridge, 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; and the United States shall have the right of bT¤1¤zr¤¤h ¤;¤i meway across said bridge and its approaches for posta1—telegraph purposes, Y 9“° °°”"”"°°‘ and all telegraph and telephone companies shall have equal rights and privileges in constructing and maintaining their lines across said bridge. Sec. 3. That said bridge shall be constructed as a drawbridge of such Dmwlvidze- ` character of construction, and having. such width of draw openings and such elevation above high water, as the Secretary of War may prescribe; and the draw openings of said bridge shall be so protected and arranged that water craft can be worked through them at any and all times; and the piers of said bridge shall be parallel with, and the bridge itself at right angles to, the current of the river: Provided, That said draw shall 5~·¤€·<>·¤-of d W be opened promptly upon reasonable signals for the passage of boats; pwing m and said company or corporation shall maintain at its own expense, Lightsfrom sunset until sunrise, such lights or other signals on said bridge as the Light-House Board shall prescribe. No bridge shall be erected or ¢>b¤tr·¤cti¤n w rm maintained under authority of this Act which at any time substantially “‘""""°“‘ or materially obstructs 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, he is hereby authorized to cause —»mm¤·»¤•. such change or alteration of said bridge to be made as will etfectually obviate such obstruction; and all such alterations shall be made and all such obstructions be removed at the expense of the owner or owners of said bridge, or the corporation controlling the same, and in ease of —li¤g¤ti¤¤. 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 cause may be brought in the circuit court of the United States for the State of Arkansas, in whose jurisdiction any portion of ~ said obstruction or bridge may be located: Provided further, That bF¤i~£¤s hr ¤¤— nothing in this Act shall be so construed as to repeal or modify any of ° wg ` the provisions of law now existing in reference to the protection of the navigation of rivers, or exempt this bridge from the operation of the same. Sec. 4. That all railroad companies desiring the use of said bridge Rlgms °""*“'°*"’*· shall have and be entitled to equal rights and privileges relative to the passage of railway trains over the same, and over approaches thereto, upon payment of a reasonable compensation for such use; and in case Di=+¤.··¤z¤¤·¤2¤¤¢ with the owner or owners of said bridge and the several railroad companies, °w°" M b"dg°' or any 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 u pon a hearing of the allegations and proofs of the parties.
