Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-08-23
township. and defining their duties. February,
THE GENERAL LAWS.

THE GENERAL LAWS
The laws relating to the roads in the State
at large are classed BY the Secretary OF the
Road Commission under the heads of open
ing of public roads, State roads, private
roads, vacating and altering roads, duties OF
supervisors, bridges, proceedings In road hti-
CATION. penal provisions, general provisions,
implements and material, roads to driving
parks, fairs, etc., boroughs and munlcipal
corporations.
These general laws date all the way from
1911 up to 1889. The majority OF them were
enacted in 1886 and along in the BUS. Inc
farther back they extend the more prohhc
are they of those principles which
make the present system OF road re-
pairing worthless. The Later they are
the more good features you VIII
find in them. For instance in 1857 law
was passed authorizing the road commits
sioners and other officers having in charge
the opening, constructing and repairing OF
public road, in any township, at their op'
tion, to purchase for the use of their dis
tricts, road machines and such other impls-
ments and materials as may, from time to
time be found necessary in the repairing OF
roads. If necessary for the payment OF the
machinery and implements the supervisors or
road commissioners are authorized to collect,
annually, in cash, not exceeding % per
centum of the rates or assessments by them
respectively laid in each year for road pur-
poses.
Since the passage of that law road-build-
ing machines have become popular all over
the State and townships are still adopting
the system as the best obtainable.
SOME CURIOUS FEATURES.
The special laws relating to counties and
townships date back to 1910. Most OF them,
however, are about 40 years old. They con-
tain all sorts of curious provisions. Hero is
one relating to Beaver couney:
Allowing each Road Viewer in the county S2
and each artist 81 for each day they shau pc
employed in discharging their duties.-March.
1865
One relating to Susquehanna County
reads as follows:
Fixing the compensation OF pathmasIers IN
the township of Great Bend at VI per DAY lor
each day necessarily employed, and nxlng a
penalty Tor failure of such pathmaste[ 70 per
form any duty required of him.-March. 1851
In the 700 special laws the pay of town
ship supervisors is fixed at every numeral
between 25 cents and 81 per day. 1t might
be inferred that some may serve for nothing.
A really humane law was passed in 1876.
Here it is:
On any public road where running water can
not be supplied for such trough, any person or
persons who may provide water by pump,
and keep the same in proper repair, to be
worked by the person desiring water for their
horses or cattle, may erect such pump ana
| trough, and to be approved Of by the super
| VISOR or road commissioner of such borough OF
township, shall be entitled to the same annual
pay from the road fund thereof as provided for
in the first section of this act.-April, 1876.
In 1886 an act was passed to prevent
farmers and supervisors working on the
roads from getting rich. 1t reads thus:
If any person working upon any road ol
| highway, or If any one in company with sucr
| person, shall ask money or reward, or by any
means whatever shall extort or endeayor e
| extort any money, drink or other thing, OF OF
| from any person travelling npon or near sucf
road or highway, the person SO offending shall
for every such offense, forfeit and pay sun
| not exceeding b.
ONE APPLICABLE TO PITTSBURG.
Here is the general act of 1S45 undel
which it might be possible to rid Liberty
street, in Pittsburg, of its freight trair
nuisance:
1t shall not be lawful for any railroad com
pany to block up the passage of any crossing
| of public streets or roads, or obstruct the salt
crossings with their locomotives or cars; and /
any engineer or other agent of any such rail
road company shall obstruct or block up suci
crossings, he or they shall be subject to pen
atty of S25. to be recovered with costs, In tn
| name of the commonwealth of Pennsylvania
| before justice of the peace; one-half of sucl
| penalty shall be paid to the informer or in
| formers. and the remaining half shall be paid
| into the treasury Of the conEmop wealth, Pro
| yided. That in the event OF the said engineer ol
agent being unable to pay the penalty, ther
| and in that case the said railroad compan.
employing the said engineer or agent shall pa.
the penalty aforesaid.
There is only one possible thing that wa
omitted from these S57 road laws. That wa
a provision to prohibit farmers from swap
ping stories while working out their roa'
taxes. STOF1EL.