The Maryville times. (Maryville, Tenn.) 1884-1944, 1893-05-10
Our Roads.

L
In China, they have the old road,
sufficient only for the passage of the
jinrickasha as 1t is drawn or push
ed by man. That was the custom
Of centuries ago, and notwithstand-
ing the advance made by other
nations, as in Europe and America,
even to the railway, the Chinese
will n t take any step in the mat
TT of roads; and have very few
cirriage ways. 1t has been said
that many years ago the English
forced their way into the borders
of China, and built few miles of
railway, hoping thus to call atten-
tion of the natives to the ad.
vantages ofrapid and easy transit.
Finally, the English moved away,
leaving the railroad behind them.
Instead of the Chinese making the
best Of it, rs soon as the English
were safely out of sight, they went
t. tearing up the railway, and went
back to their jinrickasha and
burdensome chairs born by men
on foot. AS people, we are much
in advance of that kind of work;
and yet, are very slow to take hold
of some of the Improvements that
lie at the door of each Of us, and
instead, hold on to some of the
first settlement of tile country.
Road Improvement is one of these.
In the first settlement of the
country, there was almost no
money in circulation, every body
lived by manual labor, and the
local government was controlled
according to the militia companies
or battalions, and public duties
were assessed according to mil tary
age and ability. In this way the
roads were opened, and such i'm
provements as were made, were
done in the same way. We have
let the old militia muster" go. 1t
Is of no further use to us. But we
hold on to the old militia features
of keeping up the roads. And it
makes us mad as hornets to suggest
any other system. Some ten years
ago the legislature moved about a
half inch from the old system, and
fixed a wee bit of a tax for the
road working, and required that
the roads should be thrown up in
the center, with drains at either
side to carry off the water.
Well, some of us wanted to take
up our guns and go out fighting
and really kill some body, rather
than pay that tax; and then we
wanted, like the Chinese, tC
literally tear away that dirt
thrown up in the centre, and fill W
the bitches, because we had never
seen any thing like it, and oul
daddies never kept them up in that
Nay.
We hadn't been as mad about
any thing since the dog law was
passed, as we were about that way
of keeping up the roads. In fact
we are little mad yet over it, but
have moved another half inch, ,,and
are stuck right there in the mud
and we don't mean to move any
more, unless coal is placed on our
backs, and then we get our backs
up and be mad again. Now, there
is nothing that will add more to
the wealth and prosperity
of the county than good roads
Why is it that a farm of that rich
fertile soil in Cades Cove is not
worth as much as a farm of equal
size of the river bottoms at Rock
ford? 1t is simply because of the
difficulty of hauling the products
out to market. With a railroad
going into Cades Cove the value OF
lands would quadruple, and with a
turnpike properly graded running
in there, the value would more
than double. And so with Other
parts of the county. AS it is, how
ever, great improvements can be
made, and steps ought at once tC
begin in that direction. The peO
pie of Ellejoy have made one gran
step in a forward movement, ir
securing the right of way for {
survey from Ellejoy to the gap o
Bays mountain towards Knoxville
so that the public road may b.
located in such manner as to con
vert it into turnpike in tn
future. The grading is very i'm
portant thing. Take the Sewer
vile road, as an instance. On
mile from the Court House il
Maryville there is a hill, long ant
steep, over which our fathers hav
been Furnishing their horses, de
priving themselves of hauling
good loads, and worrying up thei