Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1849-10-03
From l1e Hamburg Republican.

S-yFrom the Hamburg Republican.
Wewould call the attention of our rea-
ders 70 tho annexed lcler received from a
highly respectable and intelligent planter
in A,beviIIe District.
% LONG CASE, ABEEvILLE, S. {.
Ffiend Baird Your numerous readers
in this section are much pleased al The
course you have taken in relation to Plank
Roads, We look forward to this dcscrip-
.lions6f public improvement as mol only
practicable, but highly expedienl; and
FROM @hich we mag be enabled TO reap a
portion Of benefit. Heretofore we have
been,saa it were, isolated between Savan-
nah river on one side, and the con1em,
plated rail road Oh the other, TOO remote
from either to derive much benefit from
DEMONSTRATION of The one or improve
lncnfbf The other. Hence we havo taken
no patt and felt but lirIe interest in The
success Of those enterprises. Being COM
pellet, as it were, TO satisfy ourselves un-
derdfeoId system Of bad roads, 10 drag
our ,rrp1uce 10 market through quagmircs
10 lils greal destruction Of our teams and
wagons The light You and your cores
pondsois have thrown before Us, open ur
newshDpcs and we already begin 10 feel
lhatsaEe 700 may, Ivy proper efinrrs, he
cnab,'a 10 bring our farms within one hall
lhefspfescnt distance from market. We
tavchcen so long accustomed to our pres
;ent5 wSetched public road system that it
mnySrequirc some time to rouse the mass
ofoGrpeope from the lcrharsy that Ell
,chainslhem; hut for one feel perfectly
satisfied, even from the slight invesliga-
ton Iiave been able to give TO the suhjecl,
that sahe day is not far distant when Plank
Roa3swil snpercede our present system,
at.leastin all the fiat sandy sections of our
Stalesif mol generally on all our main
5mafksiroads. 1t requires but little rcllec-
,lion on the part Of our citizens To make
them5perceive The great inequality and
butthsnsomc character of our public road
system. What are the facts as regards the
exist mode of keeping up roads. ] will
my owu case, being what
misT9be termed middle class farmer,
.lal,t1ssi about Ihirly-ive bags of cotton
inn,EJIy. To get this Cotton 10 Ham.
hursAf,Angnsla requires five trips Of my
wassn. Well, to enable me 10 make
lhes fips | am compelled by law TO work
nine, ands as much as twelve days in each
ye,a & the public or marketroad. Ills true
was fset; generally work more than six or
...S:...3 .E,sa .:.3,ys. Ght tsel lake sevei ass;rl1e
average. nine times seven is sixty three,
making actually sixiy-thrce days work
am compelled TO do annually on the road.
Now | consider fifty cents per day as
moderate wages sometimes il may be
worth much more TO The larmer) making
the annual road tax on me, S3l so. Sup-
pose we had Plank Road and had to
pay TOLL to the amount of four dollars each
"trip, it would only amount to twenty dol>
lars making saving of eleven dollars and
fi(ty.cenls 10 mo annually. Bu, tho ac-
lual saving would be much beyond this,
for instead Of five trips over bad roads, |
would have to make not over three, be-
cause could carry nearly double the
quantity Of cotton at each load, and make
the trip in Iwo-lhirls Of the time now re-
qnircd, without broken wagons or gawled
mules. There is Que thing presents itself
TO my mind as unjust, and no doubt will
appear to macy others in The same light
when suggested, we farmers work the
roads, partly, it is lrue. for our own benefit,
but moro for the benefit of the heavy waS-
ons from North Carolina, Tennessee and
Kentucky, who pass over them with their
enormous loads, cutting them into perfect
bitches, without bencliltng us or our sec
ton ofcounlry one Iarliins. This would
not he The case under The Plank Road sys-
lem, as all that passed over aud reaped he
benefit, would contribute, in ,oIl, towards
keeping them in repair. notice the
Edgelield Advertiser is also advocating the
cause. trust, however. you Hamburg peo-
pie will not be coutcnt to stop your road
al your Court House. Push on, Abbeville
will meet you. We arc not all Rail Road
men, though we talk a good deal on the
subject. asts4ss.