Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1871-02-10
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GFor the Yindicator.l

MR. EDITOR
Will you allow an humble farmer to give
few thoughts through the columns of your
excellent paper, which is most highly es-
tsemed among the farmers of Augusta, in
relation to our County Roads?
In great County like Augusta, abound
ins in all sorts of productions, with soil
as fertile as any in the State, streams Of wa
ter, with capacity for turaing machinery,
equal to any country in the world, and
wealth surprising any of our sister counties,
id does appear that we ought to have public
thoroughiares equal to our natural advan.
tages: But such is not the case. In re-
gard to County Roads we are far behind the
times there being but few roads in the
County that can be considered passable for
ordinary leads. And the truth is, that
there are fine valleys and fertile farms in
the County, from which there ia net a road
that four Of our best hsrses can carry ten
barrels Of flour oserto market. And this
is not only in one part, but in almost all
portions Of the County.
We hays fine Touring mills and manufac-
turing establishments, g3dotted all over our
County, and all that is wanted to make them
prosperous is good County Roads, We speak
especially Of the roads running east and
west. Running in that direction there is
but one practicable road in the whole Coun-
ty-a County that has population of near
ly 10000. The only roads that we have
that are practicable are.those running North
and South, and but few Of them. The con-
sequence is, that those fertile farms, fac
Touring mills and other manufacturing es.
Establishments, situated a little distance east
OF west from the aforesaid roads, have to
lay almost dormant for want, of access to
market 1t is high time that the farmers
and mechanics OF Augusta should be look
to their interest in tuis respect. We W ant
roads that We can get from our farms to the
blacksmith-shop, and from the blacksmith
shop to mill and back home, without endan-
gerlsg tho lives ofour selves and horses. Let
us hyae good roads and our County will be
beauti6ed and enriched, land enhanced in
value, and farmers and mechanics increase in
prosperity and wealth No country can
be prosperous without good local roads. -
They are the land marks of prosperity.
In our County, we may soon be asked to SUB
scribe $500, 900 to build railroads through
it Let us put the question to ourselves,
and ask, if the ones sixth of that amount
$3.50, Oo0) would not be Of vast deal more
value to us expended on our local roads,
than the whole amount, (s300, 000) to the
proposed railroads. Fifty Thousand dollars
thus spent would repay every citizen of the
county in proportion to the amount of bis
tax paid for that purpose. The poor pea
SAINT. who lives in the solitary recesses Of
|'ths mountain, and has bushel of corn to
carry to. mill, as well as the wealthy far.
nvr and mechanic, would all be proportion.
ally benefited The County at large every
individual and every branch Of Industry
from the centre to the most remote part,
would profit by such an expenditure :
whereas the subscription of $500, 600 for
railroads would benefit but few along the
line of theroad, and the companies that build
them, ard have the great, mass of the PEG
pie of the County in no better condition than
they we're before their money was spent =
And further, if the railroads now under
consideration were completed, large ma
jority of the people of the county would
nave no other access to them than they now
have to the Chesape AXE and Ohio Railroad
1t the road was on the east side of the Coun-
ty it would only be accessible to those on
the west side by way Of Stanton, and it on
the west side those on the east side would
be in the same fix transportation by rail
road being brought no nearer than it now
is
It is an old and true maxim, that s"Jhari-
ty begins at home," and it weuld be wise
ia US to profit by it. First improve our
County Reads, and, after this is done, if
we have money to spare, spend it in build
ing railroads !; and we will be able TO get
them