Wood River times. [volume] (Hailey, Idaho) 1882-1915, 1893-04-22
PUBLIC HIGHWAYS.
4 Step Toward Their Improvement In
New York.

New York.
Bsai stfeet's.l
Legislation in the direction OF road
improvement has at last been enacted
by tho Legislature of New York
State. A bill has been passed which
amends the highway laws BY author.
ixing the boards of supervisors of the
several counties to adopt the county
road systems; to provide for the sp.
pointment of county engineers 10
supervise the construction of roads,
and to isaue bonds to meet the ex>
penses OF road improvement. Tho
law gives the supervisors very COM
plete power over the question Of road
improvement insofar as it falls within
their jurisdiction 10 point OF locality.
It begins by giving the board Of
supervisors in any county power, by q
ooncurriog vote of at least a majority
Of tho whole number, by resolution, to
adopt the county road system, and, as
soon as practicable after the adoption
Of such. resolution, to cause to be
designated as county roads such por-
tions OF the public highways 10 such
county not within an incorporated
village or city as they shall deem
advisable, and to cause such desicna-
ton and q map Of such county roads
to be filed in the clerks Office OF such
county, the roads so designated to be,
80 far Is practicable, leading market
roads in such county. 1t further pro.
vides for the appointment Of county
engineer in every such county by the
board Of supervisors thereof, such en-
gineer to be removable at the pleas
use Of the board, and to hold office for
three years unless sooner removed.
The salary OF the engineer is to be
fixed by the board, and is to be a
county charge.
In the next place, tho law makes
the expense of maintaining the county
roads Of each county a county charge.
1t provides that the amount necessary
to repair ana maintain the county
roads in each year shall be approprl>
ated annually by the board Of super.
visofs; that the board may designate
the roads upon which the money
appropriated each year for the repair.
sng and maintenance of county roads
shall be expended for the ensuing
year; that the county engineer shall
have tho supervision of such expendi,
ture; that the board may designate
the portion of the annual appropriation
which shall DO expended upon any
portion Of the county roads, and shall
from year to year make such appor-
tionment, SO far as practicable, in
each town shall be proportionate to
the equalized valuation of the prop.
erty Of such town. Again, it is pro.
vided that the board Of supervisors of
such county from time to time for the
construction, maintenance and repair
OF the county roads in such county,
and may issue bonds or other evil
dences of indebtedness of the county
therefor; but that such bonds or
other evidences Of Indebtedness shall
not bear rate of Interest exceeding
8 per cent. per annum, and shall not
be for . longer term than twenty
years, and shall not be sold for less
than par. Finally the law provides
that the county roads in any county
shall be exclusively under tho iuris-
diction OF the board of supervisors
and the coucty engineer OF tho
county, and exempt from the jurisdic-
ton Of the highway officers of the
town, and that the system of taxation
for working and repairing the
highways other than the county roads
in town in county in which the
county road system is adopted shall
be the money system Of taxation.
This measure follows in the main
the idea advocated by Governor
Flower in his last annual message,
which was that the county road
system constituted the golden mean
between the two extremes OF extra.
vsgance in state expenditure and
psrsimony in local expenditure for
local improvements. 1t establishes a
system of local option, as it were,
under which it is fair to assume that
some progress will be made. 1t will,
however, in all probability, no. be to
any great extent uniform progress,
for it is only fair to suppose that until
the importance of good roads is better
understood some county boards will