The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-11-28
ROADS VERSUS DRAINAGE.
The Commissioners Have a Warm Dis
CuSSiOR, But Reach No Conclusion.


Only -Four Commissioners At the Meet
ing and the Vote on Commissioner
Carson's Resolution Would Have
Been Tie-Monday Afternoon Fixed
as the Time for a Discussion Of the
Question-The Savannah Bar Assoeia-
ton Given the County Engineers
Room for It's Library.
The county commissioners held a spec
ial meeting yesterday afternoon for the
purpose Of discussing the matter of let
ting the bar association have the room at
present occupied by the county engineer.
as a library.
Incidentally, however, the matter of
roads VS.. drainage was brought up, and
this proved, perhaps, the most interest
ing part OF the meeting. All the commits
sioners. with the exception Of DR.. Charl-
ton. who is sick. were present There be-
ing only four present and being evenly
divided on the foregoing question, no
| conclusion could be reached and another
meeting was called for next Monday af-
ternoon at4 O'Clock.
The commissioners decided to give the
Savannah Bar Association the use Of the
room on the top floor of the court house,
now occupied by the county engineer, as
a library and meeting room, and the
county engineer will be given the Office
now occupied by the county surveyor
on the floor below for a drawing room.
The court house committee was also au-
thorized to partition Off a portion of the
/ upper hall on the south side of the build
/ ing for a private Office for the county
engineer.
The report of the court house commit
tee favored giving the bar association the
room on the top floor, originally designed
for law library for such an association.
/ Commissioners Carson and Charlton were
. originally opposed to granting the re-
quest, as they thought it would interfere
with the work of the county engineer,
/ but Commissioner Carson stated that, af-
. ter a thorough Investigation of the mat
| ter, both he and DR.. Charlton had de-
cided to withdraw all objections to the
report, which was unanimously adopted
and the following order was passed:
Ordered that the room on the third
| floor of the court house, now used by the
! county engineer, r. A. Blandford, be and
the same is assigned to the Savannah Bar
| Association to be used a library room
! and place of meeting of said aSsOcia-
ton Provided, however That, if at any
time it becomes necessary to use the room
for the drawing Of maps or other plans,
which cannot be conveniently drawn in
the room occupied by the county sur
veyor, the county engineer shall have
free access to and use of said room for
such purposes; Provided further That
said bar asso ciation shall furnish and
formally occupy said room within three
months from this date; and Provided
further, That the occupancy of this room
.#~a61
county.
The Vernon shell road matter was taken
up, and the question of issuing an exc
cution against the road for S542 the
amount of the county claims for repair
ing the road'S drainage was discussed.
Mr.. d. b. Testers letter, claiming $5,-
900 damages from the county, on the
ground that the county hands had de-
creased the width of the road, destroyed
many of the trees by cutting and dig
ging around the roots and otherwise
damaged the property, was read. The
matter of issuing execution against the
property was deferred and after a state
ment from the county attorney that Mr..
Testers claim was not properly drawn,
as it did not specify just what damages
had been suffered it was decided to re-
turn it to Mr.. Lester, with a statement
that the commissioners could not re-
ceive it in that shape. There is no doubt,
however, that the suit will be prosecuted,
as the owners of the property are con-
WINGED that it has been damaged to a
greater extent than there is any need
for.
a letter was read from Messrs. O'Con-
nor & O'Byrne, attorneys for Mrs.
James NJ. Read, stating that the at
tenuon Of the commissioners had been
called some time ago to the fact that
the county had violated it's contract with
/ Mrs. Read in the matter of completing
the Dundee canal through her property
| between the Augusta road and the Sa-
vannah river. The matter had been re-
ferred to a committee the letter stated,
but no further action had been taken.
The work had never been completed, and,
owing to the bad work and the faulty
trunks, it said, the property was in a
bad condition and unfit for use. The
county was put on notice that the owner
of the property, Mrs. Read, intended to
20 ahead with the work, have il prop
erty attended to and hold the county re-
sponsible for the damages and expenses
attached to the work
This brought on warm discussion OF
the road and drainage question in which
Messrs. Carson and Kehoe We're arrayed
against Messrs. Dale and Chaplin. 1t was
a question of whether the county CON
victs, with their greatly reduced forces
2 shall be kept on their work of the drain
age of the county, or whether a part OF
i the forces shall be detached and put Ia
] Work on the county IOdOS ana bridges
Messrs. Carson and Kehoe were opposed
5 to taking any Of the hands away from the
drainage; Messrs- Dale and Chaplin
. wanted to go to work on the roads al
once.
1t was urged on one side that the COM
missioners were not required, nor was
. 1t their duty to make provisions
for working the roads, that the drainage
had been very much delayed from one
t cause and another. that it was the duty
! Of the commissioners to provide proper
system of drainage. and that il would be
p ! practically impossible to keep up the work
e. with any effect If twenty-five convicts
v We're taken out Of the seventy now work
ing on the drainage. This was brought
up by a resolution declaring It TO be tn,
, I policy of the board to consolidate al
; the forces on the drainage work
y On the other hand, Messrs. Dale and
: Chaplin We're decidedly in favor OF work.
n ing the roads. They urged that II was
~ within the province Of the commissioner
- to work the roads that they were i'm a
y bad condition, and I'm many places prac.
u tically impossible. that they were getting