Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1884-10-31

MIR. EDITOR. i noticed Senator
Hobson's letter in relation to the
road tax in Ferdinand and Lewis in
your last issue, and as he calls for
expressions of opinion from citizens
of the county, will venture to
give my views upon the subject. l
think the Senator is entirely in the
right. viii not some of the land
owners of Ferdinand and Lewis
and other unor ganized towns come
forward and explain aohy they should
be relieved from the burden of max
ing and repairing roads for the pub
lie benefit any more than the organ
lied towns? Citizens Of organized
towns are compelled by law to main
tain highways wherever the public
good or private necessities re-
quire. 1t makes no difference whether
the citizens of an unorganized town
are accustomed to make much use
of any particular road or not. II
the public good requires the road to
be kept in repair, they must keep it
80, regardless of the cost.
The highway tax in many towns is
quite burden. In one Of the towns
not far from Ferdinand, this tax, for
the past ten years, will average near
ly, if not quite, 40 per cent. per an
mum Of the grand list. Now just
compare this with the amount er-
pended by these unorganized towns
during the same period. Then, in
addition to the highways, organized
towns have to support schools, pay
poor bills, and defray all the other
expenses of the corporation. There
is no lodging it. Individuals may
evade their just proportion of the
public burdens, even as the land
owners of these unorganized towns
would be glad to do, but the body
polite ne'sSt meet and pay them. The
owners of these townships having no
other taxes to pay seem to think
somebody ought to help them pay
this one. They either have made,
are making, or hope to make, for
tunes from the harvests Of lumber
they are cutting from these wilder
ness townships, or from the advance
in price of lands in them. And their
actions but prove the adage, "The
more a man has, the more he wants. >
Perhaps these parties are trying to
follow the scriptural injunction, etc
cast their burdens upon the Lord
but being in utter ignorance of who
the Lord is, they would substitute
their ncighbors.
There is another thing. We have
IN this county an unorganized towr
containing some 400 to 500 inhabi
tants, probably from 10 to 100 fami
lies without the benefits of regula,
schools, or any other privileges of al
organized town. And sehy is it no
organized ? The residents of tn,
town say "the reason is that tn,
owner does not want it organized OIL
account of the taxes he would hav
TO pay" The principal land owne
of the town is not resident Of GU
State. lie is a man of great wealth
and in eager search for more. l
doesn't matter to him whether tn,
citizens of his town have any of tn
benefits of civilized community
nor even if they are subjected to tn
legal penalty for not having the tow
organized SO long as it costs hin
nothing.
/ would suggest to Senator Hobsol
and the Representatives from Esse
county the propriety of setting t
work the legislative carving knit
and carve these towns up anon
those that are organized. Such &C
ton will bring them in out of tn
woods, and enable the land owners t
pay road taxes with smile.
VIDEx.
p. S. ! would refer anyone VIII
doubts the need Of repairs upon tn
/ Ferdinand road to DR.. A. @. Pottl
of Island Pond, who, | believe, wa
the last man that passed over til
road and survived the attempt.
y Y.