Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1896-04-29
FOR BETTER ROADS.

FOR BETTER ROADS.
Although good deal has been said
on the subject of macadamizing roads
on the cooperative plan, there is a
widespread misunderstanding as to just
how the thing works, and from numer-
GUS remarks that we have heard from
different sources, this misunderstanding
is calculated to do considerable harm.
For one thing, we hear a great deal
about the liberality of the people of
Rock Hill in subscribing to fix up the
roads leading into the town, and of
course the natural sentiment of people
who are impressed with the idea is
that people of other towns should do
likewise. They seem to think that the
people of Rock Hill have fixed up the
roads for the purpose of facilitating
trade at that point, and they reason
that if Rock Hill can afford to spend
money in this way, other towns can do
the same thing.
There is no doubt about the fact that
Rock Hill is progressive enough on the
road question. She gives subscriptions
and encourages others to do the same, but
she is not doing anything like what peo-
pie who do not know are giving her
credit for. The fact is that by far the
greater part of the good roadwork is
being done by the country people-the
farmers themselves. They have begun
to realize the advantage of having an easy
haul to town, and they are contributing
literally to the improvement OF the
roads. And this is right.
In his recent talk before the county
board Of commissioners, DR.. T. A. Craw-
ford, related this incident: "When
first undertook to raise subscription for
the purpose ofimproving the road l struck
one farmer who, though he was we'll able
to subscribe a much larger amount, was
reluctant to give even $50. After the road
was finished and that farmer saw the tre-
mendous benefits, he told me that he
would not be willing to take for his inter-
est in the improvement, the sum ofsl ,OOO."
This illustrates the benefit of road i'm
provement to individual farmers. 1t also
shows the interest that individual farmers
should have in fixing up the roads.
Each township in the county could bet
er afford to issue bonds to the amount Of
S10O, 900 for the purpose of improving the
roads, than it could afford to spend the
same amount for the building of railroads.
Though we believe this, we are not exact
ly in favor of the contract system or too
much taxation. For some time 10 come,
the private subscription and general CO.
operation plan is likely to prove more ef-
fective, and we would rather see the work
developed along this line.
There is no doubt in our mind that the
improvement of any road in the direction
of town or other point 10 which that road
is most extensively used, improves and
enhances the value of property along that
road anywhere from 10 to 200 per cent. ac-
cording to the nature of the Improvements,
and, therefore, it is to the interest of the
landowners to do all they can to promote
work in this direction. The towns should
help, of course, as much as they are able /;
but the landowners should not expect
everything of the towns. They should
do as much as possible themselves, and
get out of the mistaken idea that the town
of Rock Hill has done everything on her
side and, therefore, other towns should do
the same thing.