Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1884-04-01
FOR the SPECTATOR
COUNTY ROADS.

For the SPECTATOR
COUNTY ROADS.
To Messrs. Callison, Fhlcher, Beard, Ellis
5Gamble, and Seig, Supervisors of Au-
gusta county:
Gentlemen, people of Augusta
county, by their solemn vote at the polls,
elected you to the honorable and responsible
positions which you hold. By so doing,
they have expressed their opinion that you
are men of Intelligence and integrity, to
whose hands the general administration of
the affairs of the county can be safely en-
trusted. The very name of your office
gives general idea of the duties yeu are
called on to perform. You are Supervisors.
You are to 'look over' the county and see
what is necessary to he done to promote its
welfare But your duty does not stop
there. You are not only to see what is
necessary to be done, but to see that it is
done. The people cannot act collectively.
The people of the county at large cannot
know what particular local Improvements
are necessary. Hence, they must elect men
in whose good sense and patriotism they
have full confidence to represent them, or,
in other words, to decide and act for them.
Your judgment is the judgment of the
people. YoSr action is the action of the
people through you. You are not mere
machines to be set in motion by the people.
You are invested by law with poWer and
discretion to do what, in your Judgment, is
best for the public interests. The people,
knowing that they cannot, as an aggregate,
act wisely, have chosen you, as men of
sense and courage, to act in their behalf
IF you fail to act, where action is neces-
sa1y, you fail to do your duty. If you
timidly shrink from doing what you believe
the public interests require, through fear of
loss Of popularity, you show yourselves un-
fit for the high trust which has been re
posed in you. You are not mere puppets
to be worked by outside influences. You
are not weather-cOcks to show which way
the popular current blows! You are intel
ligent officers, bound by your oaths to dis
charge your duties, not only faithfully, but
fearlessiy.
Gen. Lee was right when he said: s'The
sublimest word in the English language is
Duty" The true guide Of every public
man is "Duty." Let him ascertain, by
careful consideration, what his ''duty" re-
quires him to do, and then let him do it re-
gardless Of consequences, leaving all fear
behind him! The man who substitutes
popularity" as his guide, instead of
'sduty," is sure to come to grief! The peo-
Pile, as a general rule, admire courage"
more than any other quality, except 'hon-
esty." Honesty OF purpose and courageous
action were the sources of the popularity
of jackson, Harrison, and Taylor in civil
life, as they were the basis of the fame of
Lee and Stonewall jackson in war!
beg you to bear these great truths in
mind in the discharge of your public du-
ties.
Can any member of your Board deny that
the public roads of our county urgently re-
quire improvement? Can any one of you
deny that this matter falls directly within
the scope of the duties of the Supervisors?
If such be true, can your Board close
your eyes to the fact that it is it's duty to
apply the proper corrective?
do not mean that they shall at once I'M
dertake general system of improvement,
which would impose an intolerable burthen
on the people; but I do mean that they
shall at once make such improvements as
are of most pressing Importance, and that,
from year to year, they shall make others,
within the limits of the ability of the people
to bear them.
The State taxes have been reduced ten
cents on the 800. The people can and
WIN lesuny uea. az in tal u .ne ioau
"a W .nao 1917 III cno Rulpoo :1 VI II
piosng snoso nnMaYs. IIoy W." III, 1nus
20 pay ns ~ ,no,J nan Sney naso n :
paiu .anu ior an onIeo' ni''on niofe i''ipoi-
'"Io w O .a1a - .4'o.e ~ ,u po,, e..
:, as 80 ~ CIV no y, o ,,od doht Nv
10y De- e. VI ID hnd ao, ~ 49, ob, ILL., az
Sn1 ' GU .i" - SUI az, P"JI 1.h VI
y .hGn " pay ~ ou', ai'nOI
~ ho + was m,d &c" ~, os 90 o"m 49,, wv"
" :no ounui.oi =. ;ne ioaIs, nc oou ~.
nrnteat, quo WILL anu was 'leieiolo i'"oio ~
r hoo.d of oa+,,o, -, h h,d cold Eoo
70 -. 10 IL LII, W." -: 10" d III. ~
I,,a ~ oorto;n ao ~ tbs oa p nf tho
rlo az ,'' ~ oJood doi;r,r ;,,,"sS;hIo No.
III r.. has En-, -, 80 ond -
,aIa NV, -" he dafootad - bic I p
Thasos .ro ;So,atad o w sas tho+ haora
,f no,,ItIoSS 49, n1,o O. IT,. 80 20
similar cbaracter which have not bearJ |
If PIT tho Sou,o th;no is l;la1,, ~ hannar
to ovorn othor far,nar W ppoA
Gsntienan snnarv;sors, T., WON, Of ,o+S
I;la thasa and n of AZ ,e othor h,rash;us anJ
,es and iosses res,,lt;nr 10 the
noor,1a .bn,,, I,o,, -o,,roso,+ Ill I7o,, no 10
thinoe To continnao
If you remain inactive, respectfully re-
commend that the farmers turn out in
mass WIN tne1r plecn,io 4l anu goao you
comfy broom. stick in hand to attend vour
next meeting and give gentle stimulus to
your proceedings!
DuI solle one may Say 1ne psople WIN
of roads! Fiddle-sticks! When
did the people fail to sustain public officer
in doing his duty? Have you ever heard
any complaint about any improvement that |
has been made?
Allow me to whisper in the ear of every
such objector this inquiry: 'sMy friend, are
you sure that you are not seeking to cloak
your own narrowness and cowardice under
the disguise of fear of what the people |
will say?''
There is no fear of what the people will
say! The people will always respect and
sus ain public servant who honestly and
Cearlessly does his duty! They are more |
apt to applaud the man who, from honest
motives, goes too far in the line of duty, |