Millheim Journal. [volume] (Millheim, Pa.) 1876-1984, 1877-09-20
f4F 80 #-hs For TIC JourEAi.
FROM AARDHSBTGE TO C0SyRE,
YIASHARTE'S SAW MILL.

Mr.. EditOr:-We have had mueh
angry discussion and bitterness OF
feeling on the mo0ted question or
new road : and bridges made neces-
sary. or supposed To be necessary,
by.rfasnn.of the construction OF the
l.C. & Sc. rail road, through the
east ern part of PennS Valley. Is 1t
not deplorable that men, rs a gener-
nj Thing, Will not consider these
uuestionssdt hberately and form their
opinions upcn the merits or each
particular case ? Instead OF dong
this the baser rassiDns of our. ma
lures are often permitted TO get the
letter OF our judgements and We
form our conclusions from the very
narrow premises Of self-intereSt,
when the public good should ne our
controlling motive. -.
liz any one particular road. is alb
soluiely and 1ndispensably necessary,
NJ IL the one leading from Mlllhelm
TO the Depot. 1t aught TO he freely
admitted on all hands that the best
and shortest road that can be made
over the route, is public necessity,
and vet there has been and still is
much opposition to it, as now pro-
iected and surveyed. Those who
oppose the road say, and with much
truth it must lie admitted, that 1t is
very unfair that one township
should be compelled alone to build a
road for the Joint use of three town
ships. Let rs see how the matter
J stands, relatively and financially.
The assessed valuation or Penn
township is S4T9 200, Haines-S6O4,
O24. Miles $50 $50. Total $685.
2S3. The estimated costs of the new
road, il the location remains as now
fixed. is a matter on which opinions
differ very widely. have heard es-
Inmates tgressing) from $4,000 TO
$40 O,CO0, exclusive OF county bridges,
but consider such figures az ex-
tremes. and will assume say $4,000,
as the safe medium. These $4,000
must be paid by Penn Twp. alone
while she has certainly not more
than d half interest OF actual use, IN
the road. She would thus pay $1,000
for the benefit OF Miles, and the same
amount for HaiReS. Penn town.
shin. the smallest ard poorest of the
three. with an assessed valuation
of only $479 200, bears the burden
alone, which in equity, ii not IN law,
should be distributed over Penn,
Miles and Haines, whose total as
sessed valuation is 81 ,603. .283. And
vet Penn Twp. does not complain
at least the friends TO the road do
not-feeling, as they do, the utter
necessity of good and level road to
fha Depot. There is no legal RENE
DIV against what seems to be a great
wrong. and they are willing to ac-
cent the inevitable. Withoat grUmb-
ling. LIN addition to this Penn Twp.
Ia now building road for Haine5 at
Pine Creek, at a cost OF at least
$500. Even this is done without a
word of complaint, although the
roadlis almost solely for the beneft OF
Haines. III was considered but tar
that the Pine Creek region should
have better access to the Depot than
their present roads afford, and Penn
township very generously conceded
their. claim without remonstrance of
any kind.
would end here, Penn Twp. would
hear the burden for herself and 9TH
ors. heavy as 1t is, patiently.rB But
Wnat she has done and is doing is
not yet en- ough, she is still asked to
do more-much more not for Del
own benefit, or even the benefit of
single one of her burdened citizens
but for the sole and exclusive con-
penience OF a neighboring township.
or part oe a township. A new road
= a.Ivod from thn tOll-Oate at Aaron ..
burg, to point near Swartz's saw
mill. i'm Penn TWP. Let us inquire
who asks for this road and who pro-
tests against it. For whose conyen-
ienc6 it is intended and who is to