Catlett v. Bennett

BURNETT, J.

The action was for damages to crops caused by the flooding of plaintiff’s land in January, 1914. The gist of the complaint is shown by these allegations :

“That defendants did, during the early part of the year 1913 excavate and cut a canal and build a levee [describing it] ; that said canal and said levee cut through a high ridge running in an easterly and westerly "direction; that said high ridge had always heretofore protected the lands and crops of

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plaintiff from the overflow waters of Pleasant Grove Creek and from the flow of waters on the Southeasterly side of said high ridge; that plaintiff is informed and believes and upon such information and belief, states that said canal and levee was a part of a scheme of the defendants to build a system of levees and canals for the purpose of constructing a by-pass between Reclamation District 1000 and Reclamation District 1001 for carrying off the drainage and overflow waters of the adjacent country and the overflow from Pleasant Grove Creek. ” (It may be stated here that defendants were and are the trustees of said Reclamation District No. 1000.)

“That when defendants had excavated said canal and built said levee between the points aforesaid they ceased and abandoned their work on their said scheme to construct the bypass and did not complete their plan and failed to complete the canal and levee in question or to build other canals or levees to take care of the overflow waters of Pleasant Grove Creek and the country lying on the southeast side of said high ridge; that the canal so constructed by defendants was constructed with a pitch that caused the waters from the overflow of Pleasant Grove Creek and the waters from the country on the southeast side of said high ridge to flow directly towards and against the lands and levees of plaintiff in addition to the waters that usually flowed against said levees; and that the levee so built by defendants helped to divert and cause to flow into said canal as aforesaid the overflow waters from Pleasant Grove Creek and the waters from country on the southeast side of said high ridge; that defendants left said canal and levee incomplete, and said canal open and unobstructed ; that by reason of the foregoing acts of defendants the overflow waters from Pleasant Grove Creek and the waters from the vicinity lying Southeast of said high ridge did, on or about the 1st day of January, 1914, flow through the said canal and against the levee surrounding the land of plaintiff and augmented the water ordinarily flowing against said levees to such an extent that said levees were broken down and destroyed; that if said canal had never been excavated, or said levee never been built, or if said scheme of defendants had been completed said overflow waters from Pleasant Grove Creek and from the vicinity lying northeast of said high ridge would never have been added to the waters ordinarily flowing