The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1888-02-16
A total for the last 8 years of 1865. 81


A total for the last years of S36G. 800
For the last years the average equal
lied valuation of Manitowoc county has
| been $9,G00,000, but If you go back 10
years farther you will find that the aver
| age equallzed valuation has been only
SS,o0O,oo0. LIZ you now assess the same
| tax for the 10 years previous to 1880, that
| has been raised since that year, you viii
| lind that for that period another $4,000
| have been raised, or a total OF ss77I 800
since the year 1870. 1t is an established
| fact that mile OF good substantial road
can be built for from $4,000 to $500
And if we even state the latter amount
we lind that for the amount raised for
| the last lS years, we could have built in
Manitowoc county 80 miles OF GOOD and
substantial gravel roads.
And what, let me ask you, have we to
show or to offer for this enormous out
lay of money? Hardly anything, and our
| roads are in such condition to-day, about
40 years since the county has been set
tied, that if any OF us should go upon
any extended trip into the country Tor
about or months during the year, it
would be matter of prudence to take
out a life or accident insurance policy
III uLlO WCitdIt Vi Ills
With these remarks, 1 believe to have
sufficiently shown the deficiency OF our
present laws, and we now arrive at the
more difficult question. How can they
be bettered?
In my opinion it can be done by raising
a county road tax OF not less than mills
on a hundred and by the election of a
county road master, whose duty it is, un-
der the supervision Of the county board,
to make contracts with several parties to
build stated number OF miles of good
and substantial gravel road during the
year, the road master having the super
intendency thereof.
Such tax of mills would enable the
county to build about miles OF gravel
road every year and keep the same in
good repair. To substantiate this state
ment let us first see, how much iG would
cost to build one mile of such road
1t has been demonstrated that mile OF
gravel road where it runs on line that
has not been worked. requires an outlay
Of from $4,000 to 1880. But where
these roads are established on old lines
that have been worked for number of
years and where the grade is almost per-
feet, it can be done much cheaper. And
there is not the least doubt that our main
highways IN the county can be thorough
ly graveled and be made good gravel
roads at an expense Of about S1,500
mile.
The equalized valuation, excepting the
cities, is about S9,00O000; tax of mills
would bring fund OF $4,000 per year.
The expense of building miles of gravel
road would amount to S13.5G0. The sal
airy of road master very likely would be
$500, making total of 1900, leaving
balance OF S3,700 for the repair OF already
established gravel roads. At this rate
we would have within years total of
72 miles of gravel roads, sufficient almost
to reach every town in the county and
give them good outlet to market. Let
me prove this to you. the way our
county is situated we have 4 main roads
leading into Manitowoc city:
l. The so-called Calumet Road running
in south-westerly direction and striking
the towns of Rapids, Liberty and Eaton,
(near Newton) a distance of about Is
miles.
2. The road directly west of Manitowoc
called the Appleton Plank Road, running
through or along the lines of the towns