Mexico weekly ledger., 1892-08-11
WHERE THE TROUBLE is.
We Cannot Have Coed Roads Until
All Property Is Assessed Mt its
Actual Value, rs the Law
Demands.

evident that a great deal of childish
Impotence is now being manifested
over the condition, manner of work.
ing and general management of the
roads in u county, when in reality
no one has a right to expect good
roads after such a winter and spring
as we have had of continuous and
prolonged washout rains from jan
uary to July. The wonder is that
the roads are passable on horseback
or that there is a %culvert or bridge
left over half the gullies and creeks.
If every road district in the county
had been only two miles square and
each had $500 to its credit the road
overseers could not have the roads
IN order to-day, for when tho mud is
axle deep (Which it was for months)
all over the country no overseer could
work his roads. After it rained till
seed time was past and anxiety was
felt as to. planting sufficient for home,
we could not expect the farmer to
leave his belated crops to work the
roads when corn oats hay and wheat
all called for his attention at nearly
the same time. We have norightt to ex-
pect passable roads except in coun-
ties of solid rock and no soil after
such a season.. AS to the constitu-
tional levy of 40 cents on the 800
for county purposes in counties of
less than ten million it is in our judg-
ment, liberal and wise. The trouble
does not lie in the limited levy, but
in the illegal valuation of the assess
ed property of our county and all
other counties. AS long as horses
worth 500 are assessed at $40 and
COWS worth $50 are assessed at $40
and land worth $25 or $50 is assess
ed at 81 and So per acre and mer-
chants stocks of goods worth ten
thousand are assessed at three to
four thousand and money, notes and
bonds at IS cents on the dollar, in
the face of the fact that section 1927
of the statutes of our state plainly
say that. all property must be as
sessed at its actual cash value, we
will have a limited road fund.
The trouble is not with the state
constitution or the levy it limits.
1t needs no revision. The State Board
of Equalization can afford us ample
relief by making a higher and uni
form scale of valuation. Raise all
together all over the State. Then if
it brings more road or other revenue
than we need the County Court can
reduce the levy. The county can
not be run on. less than 80 cents levy
on present valuation, which leaves
only 10 cents on the constitutional
40 cents for road revenue, which is
not enough. AS to the size of road
districts we all remember the oft re-
peated complaint hat the overseer
in large districts would only work
roads around home, which was true
in many ~instances.s 1t follows then,
that the smaller the road district the
more home roads there will be or in
other words, where a road district is
| the size of one school district only.
Then every man in it, as well as the
overseer, feels a deeper interest and
knows the condition of each road
and culvert. There are go road dis
tricts in Audrain county and "a of
them have only one school district in
them, and at every spring term the
people petition the court to reduce
| the size of their road district, and it
is fair to presume that the people
know what they want. They have
never, in single instance, asked the
court to increase the size oftheir dis
tricts. The overseer does not always
like it, for a small district means few
er days work andless salary. But the
honest overseer (of which we have a
big majority is not overseer for reve-
nue. only. As to the manner of
choosing the overseer the present law
can not well be improved upon, for it
would hardly be safe to say that the
County Court or any other power
knows more about who should be
overseer than the people, the source
of all authority. So We had better
let them attend totheir own business.
As to the ability of each of these
school districts Cor road districts of
that size) to buy and own their own
tools, graders, plows, &C., We find
that the average wealth of each
school district (even at the present
illegal valuation Of from one-half to
two-thrids cash value) is ample for
them each TO own a two hundred
dollar grader (and other tools, if
needed) of their own and yet tax no
one to be burdensome. AS to rock
or macadam reads, we see at a
glance that they cannot be afforded
in this county Of deep soil and little
Of no rock. We cannot make q mile
tof rnaca1unn ~na1 .~ax-~1 49,.