Evening Republican, Volume 15, Number 206, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 31 August 1911 — MARBLE DITCH CASE IS ALMOST CONCLUDED. [ARTICLE]

MARBLE DITCH CASE IS ALMOST CONCLUDED.

Only a Few Minor Matters to Be Taken Up Next Week and Argument to Begin Monday, Sept. 11th. Court adjourned again this Thursday morning and will reconvene next Monday. Practically all the remonstrance hearings have been finished, but there are a few minor matters to come up next week and it is expected that all will be In readiness for the arguments to begin the following Monday, Sept 11th. That will be tbe opening' day 'of the— regular September term of the Jasper circuit court and the special ditch court will probably move over to the east court room.

Last week the W. E. Pinney case was heard, and this week the William and John Brown and Dinwiddle and Lawrence cases were heard. The Brown cases were concluded Wednesday and It is believed that their fight will avail but little in the altering of assessments. The Browns have very much benefltted their lands by the building of the dyke on the north side of the river and they seek to claim that this dyke is a remedy for all high water evils so far as their lands are concerned. They also seek to show that they are able to secure effective drainage from ditches emptying into creeks that have their outlet into the Kankakee near Momence. The ditch petitioners, on the other hand, sought to show, and think they have succeeded quite well, that there is a great amount of the Brown land that is not producing anything, that the effect of the dyke i& a constant damage to all land south of the river and that the c Brown lands could be drained at a much less expense into the Kankakee river if It was Improved as proposed. John Bowie, of the Kankakee Valley Review, was called as a wlthess and he soon proved to all that he knew a good deal about the Kankakee section. He told of the needs of drainage on both sides of the river.. On cross examination by Attorney Bruce, who represents the Browns, he was asked when he became a convert to the extension of the river drainage and he said it was at a drainage meeting when John Brown had made a speech advocating drainage and had said that the people to the east had dumped the water down on them and that he thought it was our duty to carry on the movement and dump it on the fellows down stream.

The Lake county people will probably make a good deal of the fact that there are no petitioners from that side of the river and that about all who are assessed are opposed to the scheme. It will be shown on the other hand that they have always wanted drainage and that their objection is largely based on the fact that the movement was started in Jasper county. While, Judge Marvin has not ruled in any of the cases beard, the petitioners are feeling confident that the ditch is now an assured thing and that the assessments could not be changed enough to result in defeating the ditch.

The funeral of Dr. Merrill was held Wednesday afternoon at the late residence, being conducted by the Masonic order. The body was taken to Chicago for burial in Oakwood cemetery, and the members of the order and a number of friends of the doctor followed the remains to the depot. Drs. F. H. Hemphill, B. N. Loy, I. M. Washburn, B. C. English, M. D. Gwln and A. R. Kresler were the pallbearers. Mrs. Merrill will return to Rensselaer and look after business affairs and plan for her removal to Chicago, where she will make her home.