Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1885-10-12
GIVE Us BETTER ROADS.
sim the Cry Goes Up-Thc Air Fun OF Rcvo
luton.

Still the Cry Goes Up-The Air Fun OF RcVo
luton.
To the Editor Of the Gazette.
GRAND VIEW, TEN, Oct. 10.
The present road law Is the most UNI
Just upon our statute books. ] wonder,
when think how long we were in find
ing it out The more think about II the
more wonder and the more unjust IL APP
pears, though IL needs only Il glance TO
show its "glaring inequalities of pres
sure'---its partlalitles. Not only is II un-
just because il demands five days labor
from the man who owns no interest in
the country and has nothing but his daily
labor TO support him, while In many cases
II cXcmpts the man who owns vast in
teTosts, but because of the unequal de-
mands made for land for road purposes.
TO illustrate A neighbor owns tract
OF lO2 acres, eighty-tlye of which are in
cultivation. Along this tract for 1900
and some yards he is made to give n road,
piece of prairie of seventeen acres, be-
tween his field and residence, and part of
said lO2 acre tract Is cut diagonally by
another rond, which depriye> him of the
use OF said seventeen acres, because he
can't move the road TO his line. Now,
my friend furnishes TO the good county OF
johnson between four and i've acres OF
land for road purposes, Is deprived of the
use of seventeen acres more because of
said roads, and yet he pays taxes ON the
land occupied by the roads, and
is, besides, compelled to contribute
live days labor to keep the
roads IN repair, while another
neighbor, who owns 500 acres of land,
does not have To give foot for road pur-
poses and Is exempt from road service,
and yet he has more need of roads; has
more property TO be made valuable by
good roads than tine first who Is more in
tcrcstod and derives Il greater benefit than
his hired hand who with no property in
terests In the country, with no means OF
support save his labor, is compelled to
contribute as many days as his employer.
And yet we are told that laws are based
ON common sense and aim at Justice.
This seems to he d case where the aim
was bad.
The present road law, ii not failure,
1 does not meet the demands Of the conn
| try. We need better roads and more OF
| them We need stIaighter roads and bet
ter ground for most OF the roads to run
ON. But we must have n decent and re-
| spectacle road law before we can have n
decent system of public roads.
As the property of the country derives
the greatest benefit from good roads, levy
an adyalorem tax, and as every CitiZcn IL
[ benefited by what benefits the country,
levy poll-taN for road and bridge pur-
poses, We believe that as many roads as
arc necessary should he laid off
rs straight rs the nature of
things viii permit and that the
county should own them, Have road
; supervisors, say one In every iustice's
precinct, whose duty IL shall be to see
that the roads and bridges are kept In
good condition. Work the county con.
VETS on the roads permit any taxpayer
who wishes towork out his road tax al
an established price and compel dclm
queuts to work out thoir road tax all I'M
/ der supervision of the supervisor.
There Is no subject of moro Importance
: TO tho country than the subject OF good
II roads. But the man who believes that
they can be had under the present roat
law must have faith larger thpn Oh,
scriptural grain Of mustard seed Their,
% Is no law SO unjust, nor one which Sc
: utterly fails 90 accomplish the object fol
which II was Intended, and Wc believe
/ the timc Is not far distant when tn,
o people viii demand SO radical u chang,
: as VIII give US q decent road law on law,
i which win enable the country To have
4 decent system OF public roads pcrma
ucntly established, for under our preSen
( law the roads, Ike the proyerhial Arkan
sas immigrants, are here to-day an,
yondcr tomorrow, with no ilNCd home %
abiding place, but cycrOn the 20.
u Now, wc d0 not claim 10 be Wiser thai
: other people, nor 90 we claim 20 have NJ
rived at q solution of this truly imporiau
subject but, rs IN q "mulHtude OF coun
4 sci there Is WISDOM" so continued aglta
/, ton may develop hint here and o hin
a there that viii perhaps enable some on
to formulate perfect law that viii xiv
II rs a perfect road system, Keep up "a
fight. II Is good cause. The comu
Endorses you Ia your course, and vine
the time comes viii speak with no uucel
tain sound, Let good roads be on
d shibholeth IN the next canvass, that n
J Ephriamites enter into the next leglsl,
y turc. A. b. b.