The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1890-01-31
THE ROAD QUESTION.

| sNsN"J s'|. - spSS' f''tSh ~. 49, 1880
jcct was part OF the order OF the day.
There never was time in recent years
when the question Of better roads occu.
pied so much attention as now. This is
owing to the character Of the weather
during the last two winters. 1t has been
such as to make the country roads sim.
ply horrible. AS noticed more than
once in the recent reports of Dun and
Bradstreet, trade between city and coun-
try has been actually embargoed by the
mud. The late slight freezing spell dur
ing which the roads greatly improved
(became hardy resulted in on addition Of
tens OF millions to tho exchanges Of the
country in that ono week. At the re-
cent session Of the Western Cut Nail
Association here the opinion was freely
expressed that the settingin Of the spring
demand for nails would depend wholly
on the condition OF the country roads,
which at that time were simply impassa-
bic.
The pike question discussed up at
steubenvi!Ie on Wednesday is not a new
one in that vicinity. They have debated
the plan submitted at that meeting for
years past. AS reported by our CORE
spondent, this plan is outlined in the
following extract from his letter:
III tho morning there whs Il mass meeting
which met pursuant TO m adjournment from
previous lines meeting held January 10 To the
| morning meeting WIS s1bmitted u plan or SIS.
ten OF pixies fll6}l miles In extent, 10 distribu.
ted throughout the county that no farm in 1t
would be farther than four mics from cithern
| pike or nnilrond. This. It WAS thought, could
lions o! taxable property In JelTer.on county.
and pnid for In eighteen years. Bnt farmers
from the outlying townships were present In
such large numbers and seemed SO determined
was practically broken up by them, aud forced
to IN adjournment on Il tcchnicality without
practically accomplishing anything Cohso-
buently u new organization was effected in tho
afternoon, leaving out those townships thnt up.
faseatly dIda't want pixies and Including only
those which did favor pixies.
It must be at ;least ten years since
the Steubenville press and many OF the
intelligent farmers Of that region put
forth. in effect, this very same plan, and
although Jefferson county is IN old and
rich county the people are still divided
upon the question Of its adoption. The
tax involved is Of course the bug.a-boo
that stands in the way Of undertaking
some ouch programme. When VIC re.
fleet that here on our own side Of the
river, right here in Ohio county, our
main road eastward out of the city has
been left, rs it was left by tho cloud
burst in the summer Of 1883, all torn to
pieces, We can understand the apparent
apathy and want OF public spirit among
our Ohio neighbors. And il this is the
feeling here OH tho Ohio river border
what must it be among the less advanced
and less prosperous farmers OF the in.
terror Of West Virginia.
Several years ago when the question
was up in our Legislature as 10 what
disposition We should make OF our con-
vict labor SO Us 10 protect honest labor
from its blighting competition, the
1NrHLL,aEScEE advocated the utilization
OF it by tho several counties OF the Com
monwealth in this very way Of roai-
making. There arc n number Of coun-
tics i'll West Virginia that could we'll
afford to keep fifty conyic,s each at
work the year round on their roads.
There are still! larger number that
could we'll afford to employ twenty-five
convicts all the year round. The ex.
pense would simply DO the expense OF
subsistence and guard service, the same
expense that contractors who work
to fifty convict laborers in
stone quarries undergo. There are
many such contractors in the coal mines
and limestone quarries OF Alabama and
other States. In addition to snbsisting
aud guarding the convicts they pay the
HH# ID. 20 = l
State u bonus for their uso. This latter
expense would not be encountered here
IN West Virginia, inasmach as our
Penitentiary is not self.supporting and
therefore 1t would be relief to the tax.
payers OF the State 10 let them out 10
such counties rs would employ them on
heir roads at the mere cost OF subsis-
:ence. .s.
This is tho only. plan by which the
present generation will ever see much
'eal road improvement in West Virginia.
This county could employ fifty men on
he National road for year and then
lot have the road up to what it used to
'e. Fifty more men could be adyan-
agcously employed on tho roads that :
this county and Marshall for a c
ear, and the investment would richly {
epay both counties. @
No citizen Of Wheeling will say that =
he imposition Of the special tax Of 10 n
ents on the 500 for the improvement Of q
ur streets has not been a good invest. !
lent, and no body will to-day advocate G
he taking of Of that tax as measure OF il