Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1869-02-18
rHENArIoNAL Roam.

The Legislature OF the state IS the
trustee in whose keeping the National
Road has been placed. Its obligations
to the general government as well as its
duty to the people, requires it to see
that the Road does not go to ruin for
want of requisite attention. We ask the
present Legislature to make little in
quiry, and ascertain how far its duty
has been neglected, and what condition
this road is in at present. We have no
desire to magnify the bad condition of
this road, or make it appear worse than
it is, but the constant complaints of
those who use it and pay the tolls coli
lected on it in this county,-and this
county pays about one-third of all the
tolls collected on it-require of us can
did statement of its present condition.
From st. Clairsville to the river there is
scarcely rod Of this road that does not
want immediate attention. In many
places the road-bed is entirely cut
through and Ioaded wagons are COM
PEELED to leave the centre of the road in
order to avoid ruts aud breaks that it
would be annoying, if not dangerous to
go through. Coal teams that used to
haul forty bushels Of coal, can now haul
only thirty, because of the bad condi-
ton of the road, and yet they are COM
PEELED to pay an increase of twenty per
cent. ON the tolls charged when the road
was in good condition. They would
not complain at the increased toll if the
money raised was to be expended in, re-
pairing the road, for they want a good
road and are willing to pay for it, but
they do complain that this road is al
lowed to 60 down.
1t is clearly the duty of the Legisla-
ture to see that this does not occur. If
under its present system it cannot be
kept up by the tolls received, then some
other plan should be adopted. We think
if the tolls collected were not diverted
to other purposes than the repair of the
road they would be sufficient, judicious-
ly expended, to Keep it in good repair.
But it much be put in good repair noso
by some other means than the proceeds
of tolls, as they are barely sufficient to
provide for the ordinary wear of the
road. The road requires at present an
appropriation of meney from some
ether source than that of the tolls re-
ceived, and the Legislature should eth
er provide the means from the general
funds of the State, or cede the road to
the counties through which it passes,
with authority to the county Commits
sioners Of the several counties to appro-
pirate the funds necessary to place the
road in good condition; after which the
tolls collected would be amply sufficient
to keep it in repair.
The cessien of the road to the counties
would in the end be the, most economi-
cal and judicious. The present pike
laws of the State will ultimately Mac
adamize all the leading roads, and then
county engineers will become necessi-
ty; in fact they would be found of vast
use under our present read system to
direct the multitude of inexperienced
not to say ignorant-road supervisors,
in the PROPER repair of roads. For it is
fact that in Ohio more money and
time are wasted upon raads, than would
Improperly expended Macadamize all the
leading roads in the State within ten
years. But on this subject we will say
more hereafter, at present we desire
only to call attention to the fact that
SOMETHING must be done without much
delay to save the Nationoi Road from
ruin, and we hope our Representatives
In the Legislature will call the atten-
iion of that body to the subject.