Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1892-03-25
FARMERS NEED GOOD ROADS.
They Are the Class Most Interested in
the Highway reform Movement.

They Are the Class Most Interested in
the Highway Reform Movement.
The Buffalo Express, after commend
ing the good work done by the bicyclists
in starting the road reform agitation
says:
But this matter of good roads should
not be left to bicycle riders, who of
course are somewhat interested. 1t
should be farmers movement, for
they are the class most interested. If
they produce crops, those crops must be
sent to market from the farms. Manu-
facturers, merchants and mechanics
can and do congregate about the rail
road stations or points of water trans
portation, and to them the matter of
roads is a secondary consideration.
Only Il very small proportion of farm
ers are or can he located close to ship
ping points, and nearly all have to haul
their crops to greater OF less distances
in order to reach their markets. The
cost of hauling is great as rule, and
principally so because at the seasons of
the year when marketable crops are
ready for sale the roads are seldom in
good condition A French or English
farmer will haul load of two tons or
more with IA single span of horses six to
twelve miles to the nearest market town
and think nothing of it.
A western New York farmer thinks
his team is IL remarkably good one if he
can haul thirty bushels of potatoes at
one load to market four miles away
and get back in half day A year ago
| l.,4 A /. A
bushels at load, or less than one-third
the load which a French or English
farmer would take. Bicycles cannot be
ridden over roads when the mud is deep
but there are fifty farmers interested i'll
the roads of the state to one bicycle
rider
The great difficulty i'll dealing with
this question is how to make better roads
at a reasonable cost to all interested.
Under our present tax laws the farmers
now pay altogether too great a proper
ton of the taxes. An additional tax
large enough to amount to anything in
making better roads woul fall most
heavily upon land owners, and although
the benefit would be greatest to them
the extra burden would be beyond pres
ent resources. Farmers naturally OBJ
ject under the circumstances to any
thing of which the entire cost or nearly
so will fall on their shoulders. They
feel that the merchants. tradesmen and
forwarders are as much benefited by
good roads rs the farmers themselves,
because the handling, moving and mar
keting of the farmers crops furnishes
them the means of subsistence.
But if the roads are to be improved by
the state, rs Governor Hill suggested, or
by the national government, as is planned
by the westerners. who are circulating
petitions for ii law appropriating $780,
0O0 900 to be divided among the states pro
rata with the road mileage in the states,
nearly all the money must come ont of
the farmers pockets, and hence they OBJ
ject to government roa.is.
The question of good roads is not alone
matter of good grades or proper COW
ering or surface material, or good
foundation. These details are essential.
but so is skilled supervision. The path
master" provision of our present law is
prime cause of poor roads, and until
: skilled supervision is provided for, there
is no use in making good piece Of road.
The new pathmaster the next year would
tear it up to make it over according to
his notion, not his knowledge, for he
has none, or he would let it go because
it is now good. and devote his work to
some other part of the district, letting
the rains and wheels make sad inroad>
; into what might be kept a good road
,, with small but timely repairs. The gisl
, of the matter is that both the tax laws
and the road laws need great amend
ment before we may expect to see good
, roads, even though the wheelmen dc
:, their level best.