The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1882-03-09
The Road Policy or Ihls County

It is probably useless at this time to in.
terpose any objection to the policy pursued
by the Commissioners Of this county in the
matter Of road appropriations. After tho
vigorous but unavailing protest entered by
Mr.. speidel, President Of the Board, and
concurred in by another member (N1r.
Carnahan) at the meeting on Monday,
whenthe appropriations were pending, it
Is not likely that further objection will
amount TO anything. The Board simply
repeated the old chronic folly OF parceHing
out 50 much money to all the roads OF the
county, and parcelling it SO thin as to
amount to nothing more nor less than
waste of the public revenue.
Year after year this policy has been pur.
sued Of appropriating so much money to
eachroad. Andw1at have we got to show
iorit? Referring to Mondays meeting wo
quote Mr.. speidel's answer to this question,
asfollows:
Hereierred very pointedly to the fact
7tlNt !aSt year al luCIeASe III tue IeVy WIS
found necessary; that between 80, 900 and
$500 was spent by appropriation and an
additional 81 1000 by reasen OF the flood,
and that to-day, with the exception Of
small patches on one or two roads, not
cent OF it was 10 be seen. If the appro.
priation asked for the present year was
granted, he predicted another increase OF
the levy and q corresponding howl from
the taxpayers. In his opinion new sys.
tenn should be employed. First make the
leading roads arst-class in every particular,
my three this year, three the next and SO
on. Let the roads leading 10 individual
barns on the hills wait, or let the few per.
sons using them keep them in repair. Put
the money where II will do some good and
not spread It'll dribbles all over the county.
This is not the first time TINT this foolish
way Of expanding money for road pur.
poses in this county has been criticised.
Twas severely criticised last year after tho
ireshets had washed away all tho work
done along the streams OF the county. The
Board however shut their eyes to all the
experiences OF the past, and either from
want Of time or disposition went on in
thesame old way. And this is the way
they will probably 60 on rs long as us pub.
lie continent will tolerate the policy.
MI. speidel expressed the correct idea
when he said that some permanent result
should be arrived at by road appropria.
TONS Certainly it should not DO the
policy OF tho Board, nor of any individual
member Of it, to tickle the people OF each
district by q yearly appropriation, when
theycculd see that such policy gave them
nothing at last but the merest apology for a
road. Everybody can sec that $4,000
spread out each year over all the roads Of
the county amounts to nothing per.
inanent 1t hardly spflces to Gil
upthe, washes Of the year. The true policy
isto pick out one or two roads each year
and spend the whole appropriation on
them, leaving the other roads to depend on
the district leyies until their time comes.
BY thus concentrating the whole appro.
\ priaticnwe would in series OF years get a
Nair system Of roads We could mako the
Improvement on each one measunbly
permanent, and in the end the whole ap.
preparation would suffice to keep them all
IN good repair. This desirable result can
never be accomplished ely the present
Hhortsishtsd policy. We may 90 on spend
q