Edwards v. Allouez Mining Company

38 Mich. 46 (1878)

Facts

D at a cost of some sixty thousand dollars erected a stamp mill on the banks of Hill Creek in the year 1874, and has since been operating it for copper mining purposes. Large quantities of sand are carried down by the waters of the stream and deposited on the bottom lands below. In 1875, P purchased a piece of land through which the creek runs a short distance below the mill, and upon which the mill as operated was depositing sand. P bought the land for speculation. P wanted D to buy it, and immediately after the purchase, P offered it to D from three to five times what it cost him. D declined to purchase, and P sued. P sought an injunction from D from running or depositing its stamp sand on P's land, and from polluting the waters of the stream by its operations. The judge refused the injunction but ordered a reference to a jury for an assessment of damages. P appealed.