Marietta daily leader. (Marietta, Ohio) 1895-1906, 1896-06-02
STREET PAVING.

Mr.. Hathaway is very indignant
about an imaginary wrong done to the
Council; theremarks about committees
rushing to Columbus applied to the
whole state, and everybody knows that
for the last ten years the larger part Of
the legislation done at Columbus was
local bills, and this practice the Su-
preme Court in accordance with Sec
tion 1, Article 13; Section 6, Article 13,
and Section 36, Article 2 of the consti-
tuition, has swept away. l would re-
fer Mr.. Hathaway to an article of the
Columbus Press, May 21st, referring to
the unanimous decision of the Court in
the case of Hixon VS., Burson and de-
1ivered by Judge Burkett The article
of the "Press" will be left at the
Leader for the inspection of Mr.. Hath
away. There is no cause for indigna-
tion where no insult was intended. By
profting of this occasion the public
would probably be pleased to know
what has become Of the $4,000 allowed
for the proposed market house?
Now, we all understand very we'll
the methods practiced here as we'll as
elsewhere about street paving. Mari
eta as city of third grade and second
or third class has followed the usage
of another city of the same description
proba bly,, and as all general laws
should apply to the whole Stete, and
also as matter of course to all cities
alike and not to one city in particular,
the Supreme Court has declared such
laws unconstitutional. All laws should
be based on common sense and common
justice; a law compelling a property
holder to pay for paving property not
his own, and the poorer classes to pay
for the wealthier ones is unjust, and
the usage of persons trafficking on said
improved streets and not paying for
the use thereof, is unjust. Mr.. Hatha-
way holds that by paving the abutting
property will increase in value. This
is his individual opinion and
has no bearing on the justice or injus-
tice thereof Other persons hold that
the improvement, payable in half
yearly rates for twenty years, is a
mortgage against the property. and
naturally an incumbrance. Let each
have his own opinion and time will
show who is right. Let the oil busi-
ness go down and we will say Good
by boom"
About the vote on those $4,000, we
know we'll how that is done. The man
holding no property votes for all OK
penses and the man haying team of
any description or trafficking on said
streets votes yes" because other peo-
pie paying for his accommodation suits
him we'll. If you want an honest opin-
ion hold an election and specify that
only free holders on said street shall
vote on the issue of bonds and on the
improvement and see what the result
may be. There is no justice to be had
by persons paying no taxes voting the
money out of other peoples pockets,
and there is no justice by the poor man
paying ten or twenty times as much as
the wealthy man. Mr.. Hathaway may
be very sincere by proposing to have
those affairs discussed before the Coun-
ell, but the press is the proper place to
discuss those affairs, as it becomes
more generally known and Council
may be in the habit of treating com
plainants coming there rather cavalier
ly by some one making motion to lay
it on the table or referring it to com
mittee, and that is the end of it.
CITIZEN