Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1883-08-09
A@istellaueulls &eading.
OUR PUBLIC HIGHWAYS.
THE COST OF THE PRESENT SYSTEM OF
ROADS IN SOUTH CAROLINA.

OIlc lllllllOll, VI Ntto Ny llc NCilouo VI looo
In the ratio of five to one this would give
100000 voters. Now the question is, arc
there as many persons liable to road duty
as there are voters: The road age is from
1G to 90 Thevoting age is from 81 upwards
Will the class from 1G to so equal the class
from q upwards: l should answer in the
affirmative or very nearly so, and If SO the
number of voters and road-Workers must
be very nearly equal. But we must deduct
all persons exempt from road duty under
the law. They will perhaps number one
hundred in each county, or $500. We will
put the number of ''exempts" at 1000. We
must next deduct all persons, in cities and
towns. These we can get with reasonable
accuracy from the Census Of 1880, and
amount then to about 10000, and shall
base my estimates on the status of that year.
In the same ratio of five to one, this would
give us $4,000 voters in the cities and towns,
and if my comparison is correct the same
number of road workers with the 1000 Eek
empts" we shall have 10000 to deduct from
100000, leaving 10000 liable to road duty.
Let us put it at 100000. These 100000 men
are required by law to work on the public
roads mot less than three nor more than
twelve days' in each year. If they work
the maximum number Of days and their
services should be valued at one dollar per
day-and that is the price fixed by the law
makers-we shall have 100000 multiplied
by twelve, amounting to 81, 600 for one
year. Suppose they average six days an
nually, the cost would be 100000. If dol
lar day is too much, then the law is wrong.
Estimate it at fifty cents a day. and for the
twelve days the value of the labor would be
5000, 900 and for six days $500
But it may be said doubtless will be said,
this is not a sound argument or fair calcula-
ton as to the annual cost Of public roads
that the people do this work when they
can, perhaps, do nothing else, and is a con-
tribution in kind to the public service and,
therefore, does not cost the amounts speci-
fed. / only adopt the measure OF value
established by the people themselves
through their representatives. The labor
is worth that much, and in contemplation
of law is expended upon the highways,
and, if so expended, is taken out of the
productive power of the people Of the State,
and is therefore lost to other channels. l
have seen the time when road hands sum-
moned out of the fields were worth dollar
a day to the crops, and / insist it is legit-
innate estimate in calculating the cost OF
maintaining the highways. lfnot beStOW-
ed upon the roads this labor would or should
be utilized elsewhere SO us to be worth a
dollar day to the industries of the State.
One million eight hundred thousand dollars
is a large sum of money, and if collected an
nually and judciOusly expended on the
public highways would work wonderful
change for the better. But the collection of
no such sum or the half or the quarter OF 1T
will be necessary, as | think | can demon
strate further on.
This, however is not the only item of cost.
Section LOST of the General Statutes pro-
provides that "Any person who shall re-
ceive bodily injury or damage in his per-
son or property through defect in the re-
pair of a highway, ctauseway or bridge, may
recover in an action against the county the
amount of damages fixed by the finding OF
Il jury. If such defect in any road, bridge
or callseway existed before such injury oc-
cured, such damages shall not be recovered
by the person injured, if his load exceeded
the ordinary weight"
The next section Q,0SS) provides, that,
eft before the commencement OF an action
provided for in the foregoing section the
county commissioners tender to the plain
tiff the amount which he might be entitled
to recover, together with I'LL costs, and the
plaintiff refuse to accept the same, and does
not recover upon subsequent trial sum
larger than the amount rendered, the de-
PENDANTS shall recover costs and the plaintiff
be entitled to the results Of no verdict"
That is to say, if the county will pay for the
repairs of every vehicle broken or injured
by reason of "defect in Il highway, cause
way or BRIDGE" or for every personal ln]u-
ry or damage suffered from the same cause,
the party in jured shall not be entitled to re-
cover, otherwise he will have that right.
Suppose that provision should be put into
execution, (and what is toprevent it except
the fOrbearance of the public) what would
be the annual cost to the people of this State ?
The fact that the public have rarely availed
themselves of it is no proof that it will not
in the future.
1t it said corporations have no souls, and
juries appear to act on this principle when
ever they get an opportunity. \ county is
a corporation. 1t collects taxes for its sup
port from the citizens, and in return guar
antces protection to person and property.
The citizen is entitled to this protection,
and if he fails to get it the State gives him
his remedy. \ man commits an assault
and battery upon another; the party as
saulted has his remedy in a civil action for
damages, and besides this the State redress
es the wrong by Il criminal prosecution.
One man commits a derastdrH upon the
property of another by doing, or omlttlng
to do, something required by law, and the
party injured RECEIVERS damages tor the
wrong? Why omission or commission
whereby one of its citizens suffers: Ihe
Legislature evidently thought it should be,
or # never would have enacted such a law
as the foregoing.
There is still another matter Of cost, in the
form of an indirect tax, it is true, but never
theless a tax and burden resulting from our
wretchcdly bad roads which might be miti-
gated and greatly reduced by good roads,
VIZ: the wear and tear Of vehicles and the
enormous expenditure of horse power.
1t is next to impossible to ascertain the
number of vehicles of all kinds and descrip-
tons used on the public highways in South
Carolina, but haveadopted the best meth
od can think of to approximate the num-
Der, and have submitted this question to a
number of practical men. What is the pro
portion of vehicles to population in South
Carolina? Some have answered one to
every hundred, some one to fifty and Others
one to seventy-five. l should have answer,
ed one to every hundred, but a majority
think this too large and decide that one to
tiftv would be nearer the mark. However,
| will adopt one to hundred. This would
give us ten thousand vehicles. The aver
age life of vehicle, carriage, buggy, cart
wagon, &C., is about five years in the pre-
sent state of the roads. In localities where
the roads are re,y bad they will not last
longer than three years. Let us suppose
the average cost of the repairs on these We,
hicles is s. EACH Is that too much or toe
little? If correct, they cost annually $50, ,OO0
Now, it is safe to assume that If the roads
were made good the average life of We.
hicle would be increased to ten years and
the annual repairs not more than 500. /
think this would be within bounds, if the
former premise is correct. Here alone
would be a saving of 900 in cash annu-
ally in the matter of repairs, besides an