Any person who shall dig or cause to be dug any cellar, cistern, well, or other excavation on any unenclosed ground or elsewhere within the city, shall first enclose the same by a substantial fence or railing, and may use when necessary for that purpose for a reasonable time, not exceeding two feet in width of any adjacent street or alley.
('83 Code, § 98.44) Penalty, see § 97.999