Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1882-12-05

Annual Meeting of the Board-Interest-
ing Proceedings.

ing Proceedings.
The regular annual meeting of the
Board of Public Road Commissioners Of
Chatham county was held at the court
house Yesterday morning. The following
gentlemen were reelected officers of the
board for the year 1888: General Geo. P.
Harrison. Chairman; Colonel Geo. ,.
Owens. Vice Chairman, and DIR. l.. A.
Falligant, Secretary.
Under the head ofreports of committees,
the Secretary handed in the following
communication:
s'CLERK's OFFICE,
COMMISSIONERS OF CHATHAM Co..
AND EX-OFFICIO JUDGES,
SAVANNAH, July %, 1882.
$40 the Board Of Road Commissioners OF
Chatham County:
s9GENTIEMEN-In accordance with IN
structiOns 1 hereby forward you copy oi
action taken by the Commissioners OF
Chatham county and eX-oti1clo Judges
with reference to survey or resurVey Vi
line extension Waters ROAD AT thelr meet
ing held July IA, 1852:
SIN replv to the communication ana
resolution of the Board of Road Commits
siOners.
ssRes0lced. That the County Surveyor
will be ordered to make q survey OF an eX-
tension of the Waters road as soon as the
Road Commissioners secure the right OF
wav. and file it in this office, the right OF
wav not TO cost the county anything.
1.-THE Secretary of this board is hereby
instructed to communicate this action 10
the Board of Road Commissioners.
PASSED July IA, 1882.
s.W. w. PAINE, Chairman.
every respectfully.
s'PHILIP NJ. RUSSELL,
CLERK c. c. c."
DIR. Falligant then took the floor ana
| expressed the view that the above was a
most remarkable communication cQnsld-
| ed in several aspects, which he alluded to
more fully; and that the great Importance
| of this question of open public highways
and free access to the city had so i'm
pressed itself upon him as absolutely
| necessary to the development OF the coun-
| tv and the market interests of the city,
| that he had gone a little higher and fur
| Their back than his friend, the former at
| tOrney of the County Commissioners, had
| advised him to 90, and had learned that
| the distinguished attorney and the Board
| of County Commissioners had neither of
| them gone far enough to learn what they
| ought to have discovered,
The Doctor here presented copy of a
map from the Surveyor Generals office of
| the State Of Georgia, by which it appears
! that the Waters road is not only one of
| the roads granted by the State of Georgia
in the original subdivision of the lands IN
| and around the city Of Savannah, but that
| it extends on the same llne northAard to
| the Savannah river through all the lands
| living between the ThunderbOlt tOll-gate
/ and the river, and the map further shows
| that around every one of the districts
kbOut a mile square around the city and
fOr miles outside public roads exist which
! are now chiefly under fence and the high
way claimed as the private property of its
| occupants,
The exhibition OF this unknown or
| rather previously unheard-Of map created
! intense excitement, the Commissioners
! gathering around the table and viewing it
| with eager curiosity. So greatly were
| they impressed with the value and i'm
| portance of this discovery that at later
! stage of the proceedings the following
resolution was unanimously adopted:
'ReSOIred, That the Secretary of the
| Board of Public Road Commissioners of
! Chatham county be instructed to present
| before the County Commissioners of said
/ county the map exhibited before this
| board to-day, and to say TO the County
| Commissioners that in the opinion of this
Board that not only the Waters road, but
| all other roads shown by this map to have
| been originally laid out by the State, or
| provided for in the grants of lands to pri-
| waite parties as therein indicated, and to
which no prescription or possession could
| ever give title, should be opened to public
| use as speedily as possible, whether under
| fence or claim by private parties or not"
After the usual reports of district com
missiOners had been handed in, Commits
| sioner Drayton rendered his resignation,
giving as his reason therefor that the ac-
| ton of the County Commissioners in fail
| ing to support him in his efforts to execute
! his duty by opening the Waters road rem
! dered if impossible for him to hold an Of
! fee and be subject to a penalty for not
| doing that which the County Commission
ers had not permitted him to do in the line
| of his work-that is, to remove the OBJ
| structiOns placed by Dillon and Sack
across the line Of the Waters road. The
| board took the view that DR.. Falligant's
discovery of the fact of the Waters road
| being a public highway, granted by the
State. would be accepted by the County
Commissioners as sufficient evidence of
right and title ia the roadway and on
| motion, it was unanimously resolved that
| Mr.. DraytOn be requested to withdraw his
resignation for the present.
| Several appointments were made to fill
/ vacancies in the districts, after which
Commissioner j. b. West called the at
/ tentiOn of the board to the encrOachment
| of the City and Suburban Railroad on the
| bed of the Montgomery road a short dis
lance beyond Bethesda station, and sug-
! gested that all trouble would be Obviated
| if the railroad company would construct
| a new road bed on the west of the railroad
| track. Messrs. Harrison, West and Fall
ligant were appointed as committee to
| confer with the officers Of the railroad and
| County Commissioners with view of
! ptfpcfin0 this desirable result.
| The Secretary submitted form of
! blanks to be filled in with the names of
/ the District Commissioners. giving them
notice of the appointments, with days of
meetings of the board, etc, of which 800
| copies were ordered TO be printed.
After dispOsing of a number of minor
matters the board adjourned.