In force, Feb. [February] 27, 1841.
An ACT to remove obstructions to the navigation of the little Wabash river, and for other purposes.
1Fund Comm’r[Commissioner] to lease water power on Little Wabash.
Proviso.
Sec.[Section] 1. Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly,2 That the Fund Commissioner be, and he is hereby authorized and required, within three
months, from the passage of this act, to rent or lease, at public auction, to the highest bidder, for a term not less than
one nor more than two years3, the water power or mills belonging to the State, situated at New Haven and Carmi, on the Little Wabash river4, together with all the lands, privileges and appurtenances thereunto belonging: Provided, Notice of the time and place of such lettings shall be first given in the papers
published by the Public Printer, in Springfield, and in any other papers, not exceeding three in number, published near the places
of lettings, for four weeks, successively, next previous to the days of letting.
Lessee to execute bond to Governor.
Proviso.
Rents, to whom paid.
Sec. 2. The lessee or lessees of the water power, mills, and other property, named in
the above, shall, within one week from the day of letting, execute a bond to the Governor and his successors in office, with good and sufficient
security, to be approved of by the commissioner, in the penal sum of five thousand
dollars, conditioned for the prompt and faithful payment of the sums stipulated in
the lease, as the same shall become due, and for making the alterations and improvements
in the dam or dams, and performance of other conditions hereafter provided: Provided, That in no case shall either of said dams and water power be leased for a less sum
than three hundred dollars per annum, in addition to the improvements herein provided to be made in the said dams; which said rent shall be paid to the Fund Commissioner.5
Proviso.
Further proviso.
Sec. 3. The lessee or lessees of said water power, mills, and other property, shall be
required to keep the same in good repair, and the said mills in a suitable condition
for grinding and sawing, when there is sufficient water: Provided, A reasonable time shall be allowed for repairing any injury that may take place,
by reason of any unavoidable accident: And provided further, That no reduction of rent shall be allowed for the time so lost.
Lessees to alter dams for convenience of all boats.
Sluice, depth of.
Sec. 4. The lessee or lessees shall, before the first day of January next, cause the dams appertaining to the mills aforesaid, to be so altered or constructed,
as to permit the safe and speedy passage of all boats adapted to the navigation of
said river, by the construction of a sluice or cut in each dam; such sluice or cut in the Carmi dam to be three feet deep, and in the New Haven dam to be two feet deep; each to be forty feet wide, with a down stream slope of
not less than one hundred feel in length.
Sec. 5. It shall be the duty of the lessee or lessees of said mills to run them on as
equitable terms and under the same regulations and restrictions that are applicable
to other mills, of similar construction, in this State.
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Moneys received, expended in improvm’t[improvement] of said river.
Sec. 6. All moneys arising to the State from the rents of the water power and property, as herein provided, shall be paid over by the officer receiving the same to the State Treasurer, within
thirty days thereafter; and the same shall be applied, under the direction of the
said commissioner, for the improvement of the navigation of the said river.
Dams may be demolished.
Compensat’n[Compensation] to sheriff.
Sec. 7. If the alteration and improvement shall not be made in either or both of said
dams, on or before the said first day of January next, the sheriff of White and Wayne counties, or either of them, shall then be authorized and required to take to themselves
sufficient aid, and cut down said dam or dams to the extent required in this act; and said sheriffs shall receive such compensation for said services as the county commissioners' court of White county shall deem reasonable and just; one-third of which to be paid out of the county treasury
of Clay county, and two-thirds to be paid out of the county treasury of Wayne county.
Fund comm’r may appoint an agent.
Sec. 8. Should it be inconvenient for the Fund Commissioner to attend to the duties herein
required of him, he is hereby authorized to appoint an agent to act in his stead.
Moneys may be reimbursed
Sec. 9. If the lessee or lessees of said dams, or either of them, should fail to make
the alteration in said dams, as herein provided, any sums that may be paid by the counties of Clay or Wayne, in accordance with the seventh section of this act, shall be reimbursed to them
out of any moneys collected on said lease or leases.
Acts repealed
Sec. 10. All acts and parts of acts, in any wise contravening the provisions of this act, are hereby repealed; and this act shall be in force from and after its passage.
1Rigdon B. Slocumb introduced SB 134 in the Senate on January 25, 1841. The Senate referred the bill tot he Committee on Internal Navigation.
The Committee on Internal Navigation reported back the bill on February 13 with an
amendment, in which the Senate concurred. The Senate passed the bill as amended on
February 18. On February 20, the House of Representatives referred the bill to the Committee on Internal Improvements. The Committee on Internal
Improvements reported back the bill on February 24, and the House adopted a substitute
by a vote of 38 yeas to 32 nays, with Abraham Lincoln voting yea. The House passed the bill as substituted. On February 26, the Senate
referred the bill to the Committee on Internal Navigation. The Committee on Internal
Navigation reported back the bill on February 27, recommending rejection of the House
substitute. The Senate amended the House substitute by striking out in the first
section the words “three years,” and inserting the words “two years,” and by adding
a proviso to the second section. The Senate adopted the House substitute as amended.
The House concurred with the Senate amendments on the same day. On February 27, the
Council of Revision approved the bill and the act became law.
Illinois House Journal. 1840. 12th G. A., 442, 455, 494, 495, 547, 551; Illinois Senate Journal. 1840. 12th G. A., 207, 311, 337, 398, 420, 432, 434, 443, 454.
2On February 24, 1841, the House of Representatives amended the bill by striking out all after the enacting clause and inserting a substitute.
Illinois House Journal. 1840. 12th G. A.,, 495.
3On February 27, 1841, the Senate struck out “three years” and inserted “two years.”
Illinois Senate Journal. 1840. 12th G. A., 434.
4The State of Illinois purchased these mills sites for $40,000 for the purpose of constructing locks to
improve the navigation of the Little Wabash River.
Illinois State Register (Springfield, IL), 5 February 1841, 2:2.
5On February 27, 1841, the Senate added the proviso.
Illinois Senate Journal. 1840. 12th G. A., 434.
6Earlier in the session, the House of Representatives had considered and tabled HB 132, which had similar provisions to SB 134.
Printed Document, 2 page(s), Laws of the State of Illinois, Passed by the Twelfth General Assembly (Springfield, IL: William Walters, 1841), 219-20, GA Session 12-2,