Wabash Eastern Railway Co. v. Commissioners of East Lake Fork Special Drainage District

Citations

• 134 Ill. 384
• 10 L.R.A. 285

Syllabus

<p>1. Drainage law—organization of district—how questioned. On bill to foreclose the lien of special assessments by the commissioners of a drainage district, the defendants can not call in question the regularity of the organization of the district. That can not be questioned collaterally.</p> <p>2. Same—admission of organization—what so regarded. An unqualified admission, by answer, and by stipulation, of the due organization of a drainage district under a certain act named, is an admission that all the steps necessary to a legal organization of the district were taken in manner and form as prescribed by the act, including the presentation of the petition, giving .the name and post-office address of each of the several land owners, so far as known, and the giving of the requisite actual or constructive notice to all persons having any legal interest in the proceedings.</p> <p>3. Same—notice—as to classification of lands, cmd levy of assessments —of the mode. Section 60 of the Drainage act of 1885, which prescribes the mode of giving notice of the time and place for hearing objections to the action of the commissioners in classifying lands and levying assessments, only requires notice by publication, and it is immaterial whether copies of such notice are sent to parties interested or not.</p> <p>i. Same—admission—that proper notice was given. The admission that a notice of the time and place for hearing objections to the classification of the lands, and the levy of special assessments for benefits, was duly published, addressed “to whom it may concern,” in a weekly newspaper, for two successive weeks, and that a copy thereof was duly mailed, postpaid, to each land owner, will be sufficient to show notice to all persons required by law to be notified.</p> <p>■5. Same—;jurisdiction—by notice. The jurisdiction of the commissioners to make an assessment is derived by the publication of the notice required by section 60 of the act, and is not dependent upon the voluntary