Fort Worth weekly gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-04-03
THE QUESTION OF THE HOUR.
Build roads, build good roads, but pay

Build roads, build GOOD roads, Out Day
for them as you go.-TBelton Journal.
The public road question is one of the
most important matters with which the next
legislature will have to grapple, but not less i'm
pOrtant than railroad regulstion.-t Pittsburg
Gazette.
The discussion of the road question by
our newspaper brethren throughout the state re-
minds very much of the convention of rats
which is said to have been held once, to decide
what should be done with the cats. After much
talk 1t was unanimously agreed that cats were
dangerous animals, and that they ought to be
beIled; but the question of greater Importance
to them was, Who was to bell them and how 1t
was to be done. Our quill drivers and every
body else have unanimously agreed that roads
in Texas are bad and that our present road sys-
tenn is a farce, but the question of most import
Rnce is, What is the remedy and how shall it be
applied?-L Pamela Waterman.
Everyone has had something TO say IN
regard to roads. and we have held our
peace, as we supposed the people had as
good roads as they wanted. The law gives them
control, and if they IN bad condition the
fault lies with the commissioners, overseers and
the people. We do not deem the present load
law a good one, for we have always favored tax
alton so as to reach corporations, non-residents
should be allowed to work out their tax, and
they should be made to give an honest
days work. The commissioners in gem
road supervisors, but we fear they do not fail to
draw their per diem for such services. The law
ought TO specify the character OF roads, graded
from the center to each SIDE, so to secure
drainage. Every gully and ravine should have
an ample cuIvert for the escape of accumulated
water, and soft. spongy land sipes covered
with brush and then weighted with top soil and
not with clay. These specifications nominated
in the bond would give supervisors standard
by which to report their roads. As the law now
stands everyone has his own ideal to be gov
erned by and not legal standard.-L Wills Point
Chronicle.
The people want roads and good ones,
but are not ready for and will not sanction the
methods proposed to raise money for this
purpose. The daily press of the state are in
dulging in the sheerest nonsense when they ad
Vocate the policy of issuing county bonds to
get money to macadamiZe the public roads OF
| county. 1t ia all very we'll and easy for these
! doctrinaire gentlemen to sit in their sanctums
| and write out great long editorials in advocacy
of a bonded debt sch enc for getting revenue for
| such objects, but when you get down to the
question and take a boss sense view Of their
! plan it is visionary and impractlcable. There
! is provision of the present constitution that
| had subserved a wiser and better end than the
| one inhibitinG counties from issuing bonds
! TCrocketk Courier.
| And why visionary and impracticable?''
| The Courier admits that the people want good
roads, it will probably also admit that good
| roads cost money. Then, it is simply question
! of the best way to raise the money. There
| are but two ways-direCt taxati on and bond
| issue. The former means that the work shall be
done by the wasteful dribet plan the latter that
| it shall be done at once; that the people shall
| enter without delay into the enjoyment Of good
| thoroughfares and pay for them gradually. The
| adoption of an amendment that will leave 1t OPP
! tiOnal with every county how the money shall be
raised whether 1t be raised at all not, thats
will leave the people free to build roads or con-
| tinue to pull through the mud, is what the
| 'sdoctriuaries'' Of the daily press are urging.
| The Courier assumes that the taxpayer cannot
| be trusted to manage his own Gnalrs-that IN
-koE ha llrTIg
headlong to ruin; the daily press insists that he
| is rational being. who should be left free to
| manage his own affairs in his own way.-LH ous
| ton Post.
AS public roads are being generally
discussed by the candidates for governor and
others, and as I am plain farmer, 1 will give
| you my views, which you can publish if you
| think any of my suggestions are worthy of con-
| sideration. They are follows:
| l. Repeal all road laws.
| 2. Divide each county into four or more road
3. Let the grand juries do this at the first term
/ in each year.
| 4. Let them appoint one road supervisor for
! each road precinct at salary of $50 for every
| month he is at work on the roads, counting
| twenty-six days month.
5. Let him hire able bodied men to go and
| work on the roads in his precinct twice in each
| year and keep all bridges and roads in good re-
| the grand jurors of their respective counties at
| each session. In case of death or resignation
let the county judge appoint his successor:
Now for the way to do this and how to get at it;
6. Repeal the saloon tax now in force.
2. Then levy a tax of 5000 on each saloon
| in each and every county. and let
| this be a road and bridge fund, and be used for
no other purpose.
s. Then levy poll tax on every voter of 50,
| and allow man to vote until it is paid
| nually, and let this go to roads and schools,
9. The men that are selected to sit on grand
juries of each county, on an average, are better
men than generally selected to fill the county
| offices, and they should be the men TO select
| road supervisors and to report the condition OF
| the roads in their road precincts to the next
Throckmorton' views about reducing the num-
| Der of offences for felOnies may be good one,
| but when you come down in the dark counties
and fill our jails with negroes for petty larceny
| and require the honest farmers and taxpayers to
pay SIS month to feed these thieves and keep
| them in idleness it will not do. Put them ON
| the road, IA Farmer in Texas Western.
The question of good public roads is
still being discussed by our farmers, and in fac
they seem to be getting just fairly interested in
the matter. We have given considerable atten-
ton to this subject, and have arrived at some
conclusions which we give our readers for their
In the first place we have poor road law, and
in the second place the poor law we have is still
! more poorly enforced, and taking the two poor
| things together, we have very poor thing
| deed.
If the terms of even the poor law we have
| much better roads would be the result.
1t is fact too well known to need manner
of proof that the average overseer and his hands
| go on the road merely to kill time and make a
| pretense toward complying with the law, and
the careless manner in which the grand jury and
| commissioners court have passed over the re-
! ports of overseers and road matters in general
| virtually warrants this pretense. little study
| will show any that there is something
| wrong all along the line, and instead of every
| one interested trying to make the best of a poor
thing, every one on the other hand seems to
| lend their aid to make it merely a cipher.s
| If every hand and every overseer wonfdS
! put in five days work as faithfully as theYsput
| in time on their farms at their other bust
! ness our roads would be in at least 500 per
! cent. better condition than they are, andY
we believe really that sho uld hear bat liLkAe
| complaint on account of bad roads. We Are
| anxious to see those entrusted with the en-
! forcement of our laws taking the necessary
steps to see that the provisions of what little
road law we have are complied with, and we be-
| lieve when this is done our people generally
will decide that we have better road law than
they thought. Our columns are open, and if
any of our farmers feel disposed. we would be
pleased to have them hand usStheir views for
publication.-[Alvor Budget
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