Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 31.djvu/329

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FIFTY-SIXTH CONGRESS. Sess. I. CHS. 783, 7 84. 1900. 277 day and by night; and if said bridge be constructed as a drawbridge, Dm" the draw shall be opened promptly upon reasonable signal for the gassage of boats; and upon whatever kind of bridge is built there s all L*€’“"· be displayed from sunset to sunrise, at the expense of said company, such lights and signals as the Light-House Board shall prescribe. _ Sec. 3. That if said bridge, erected and maintained under the au- °h"*“g°°· thority of this Act, shall at any time substantially or materially obstruct the free navigation of said river, or shall, in the opinion of the Secretary of War, obstruct such navigation, he is hereby authorized to cause such change or alteration of said bridge to be made as will eifectually obviate such obstruction; and such alteration shall be made and all such obstructions be removed at the ex ense of the owners or _ operators of said bridge; and in case of any litigation arising from L‘“g““°“· the obstruction or alleged obstruction to the free navigation of said river, the case may be brought in the district court of the United _ States for the western district of Louisiana: Provided, That nothing §Q}§{§,‘Q,, hw u,,,_,_ in this Act shall be so construed as to repeal or modify any of the pro- femdvisions of law now existing in 1’€f€1'€I1C€ to the protection of the navigation of rivers, or to exempt said bridge from the operation of same. Sec. 4. That the bridge authorized to be constructed under this Swremmgg WM ¤> Act shall be built and located under and subject to such regulations appmvep ` for the security of navigation of said river as the Secretary of War shall prescribe; and to secure that object the said company or corpora- _ tion shall submit to the Secretary of Wa1·, for his examination and approval, a design and drawing of said bridge, and a map of the location, prepared with reference to known datum plane upon prescribed scales furnished by the engineer officer having supervision of said river, and giving, for the space of two miles above and two miles below the proposed location of the bridge, the topogra hy of the banks of the river, with shore lines at high and low water, tge direction and strength of the currents at all stages, and the soundings accurately showing the bed of the stream, the location of any other bridge or bridges, and shall furnish such other information as may be required for a full and satisfactory understanding of the subject. And until said plans and location of the bridge are approved by the Secretary of War the bridge shall not be built; and should any change be made in the plan of the said bridge during the process of construction, or after completion, such change shall be subject to the approval of the Secretary of War. . _ I .. Sec. 5. That this Act shall be null and void if actual construction ,fd°§g§,‘p$§,§,$,f“°“‘ of the bridge herein authorized be not commenced within one year and completed within three years from the date of the approval hereof. Sec. 6. That the rightcto alter, amend. or repeal this Act is hereby A¤¤¤¤d¤¤¢¤¤· expressly reserved. _ Approved, June 6, 1900. CHAP. 784.-An Act To incorporate the American National Red Cross, and for June 6. 1900. Ol3h€I` p\1I`pOS€S. Whereas on the twenty-second of August, eighteen hundred and A¤¤¤¤¢¤¤ N¤¤°¤¤* sixty-four, at Geneva, Switzerland, plenipotentiaries respectively rep- Eaiehcrzss iuwm resenting Italy, Baden, Belgium, Denmark, Spain, Portugal, France; *P'°?m° ‘i‘ Prussia, Saxony, and Wurtemburg, and the Federal Council of Switzerland agreed upon ten articles of a treaty or convention for the purpose of mitigating the evils inseparable from war; of suppressing the needless severity and amelioratin the condition of soldiers wounded on the field of battle; and particularir providing, among other things, in effect, that persons employed in hospitals, and in affording relief to the sick and wounded, and supplies for this purpose, shall be deemed neutral