The daily Butte record., 1858-03-12
The Wagon Road Law.

WSfstst Heo eSSa PoooS4 tHto tH " Uy tut
Legislature, by q two.thirds vote, notwith
standing the just and reasonable objections
urged by the Governor. 1t is ever thus
with special or local acts, in our Legisla-
ture. Had it been bill affecting alike the
interests Of every. portion Of our State, there
is scarcely doubt but that the veto would
have been sustained. The work could have
been accomplished uuder the provisions Of
the general law, and the State saved the
expense Of special legislation.
The act submits to the people OF El Dorado
and Sacramento counties proposition to
appropriate money for the construction Of o
wagon road from Sacramento, through Ell
Dorado county, to Carson Valley. OF itself
thisproposition to the people Of those counties
is harmless. II they desire to tax themselves
for the construction Of the road, let them dc
so; it is none Of our business. But when
they make this act mere stepping stone by
which to induce the State to undertake the
construction of road over almost interim
nable SHOWS aud impossible mountains, and
through impracticable canons. for the bene.
fit Of those localities, it is quite o different
thing; it then becomes the business of every
citizen and taxpayer in the State.
Having oferridden the objections Of the
Governor, the advocates Of the measure are
now contemplating the chances of making
the State accomplish the job. They see that
the counties upon which this extra tax must
fall are deeply involved in debt, and that the
sum to be thus raised, falls immessurably
below the amount necessary to perform the
work upon that route, and overcome the
barriers which nature has imposed upon it.
Seeing this, the State Journal modestly
desires the State to take the 900 which
those two counties are going to appropriate
and build the road In support Of this
proposition the Journal with Lecompton as
tuteness, says that the entire State would be
benefited by such road The benefit to
to the State at large, will be the same if the
road should be constructed over q less ex.
pensive route If the State is to build q
road for the benefit of the State at large,
and not for the benefit Of any particular To-.
cality, common business prudence demands
the selection of the shortest and least ex-
pensvc route. On the contrary, If the State
/. to be taxed for the benefit of Ell Dorado
and Sacramento counties, tho Legislature
will act upon the suggestions of the Journal
and despatch the tax collectors. to San Die
go and Siskyou to collect the tribute.
The Journal thinks the road could be built
for $l5O,000 We have a proposition to
make much more favorable to the State, and
that is this-lf the counties Of Sacramento
and Ell Dorado are really desiroas of bene-
fitting the State at large, let them give this
ffty thousand dcllars Of depreciated scrip
that they propose to issue. to prominent
citizens Of the county Of Butte, who shall
execute bond with good and sufficient
sureties, IN the penal sum of $l50,000. to
construct good wagon road from Sacra-
mento, via. Oroville to Honey Lake, for the
$4,000 scrip of those counties. If they
think this proposition is vain boast. let
them mako the offer, and if it be not accep-
ted, we will ever afterwords devote our
selves to the advocacy of the Ell Dorado
route.
We had hoped that the day of propositions
to plundcr the State for the benefit of iuhu-
entail localities, had passed by in California;
but 1t appears that the close of the present
session is to be signalized by an attempt to
appropriate one or two hundred thousand
dollars for the benefit of Ell Dorado and Sac
ramento. We call upon members from 9TH
er portions Of the State to oppose the swim
die. II it must pass--if the members cannot
resist the pressure brought to bear in its
favor--submit the proposition to the people
Of the State. and let them say whether they
will be taxed for such purpose.