July.15,1910    Present: Wood Renton J.

COWELL v. CASIE CHITTY.

3-C. R. Colombo, 11,854.

Servitude-Interfering with the natural drainage of the upper tenement- Building a cement drain-De minimis non curat lex.

Defendant owned a land to the north of the plaintiff's land. Just outside the northern boundary of the defendant's land stood a " bathing-well " for forty-seven years, from which the waste water flowed into the defendant's premises and on into the plaintiff's premises. The plaintiff raised the level of his land to prevent the flow of water into his premises. The defendant thereupon cemented his drain after raising its level.

Held, that as the building of the cement drain had not sensibly increased the flow of water into the plaintiff's premises, he was not entitled to any damages.

Wood Renton J.-Where the servient owner himself acts in a way which affects the exercise of the dominant owner's rights, and the dominant owner takes steps with a view to protecting himself against that conduct on the part of the servient owner and to secure the enjoyment of his servitude, and where no substantial damage has been caused from the protective