Mexico weekly ledger., 1899-04-13
ROAD MAKING.
PRACTICAL SUGGESTIONS FROM
ONE OF AUDRAIN's BEST
Road oVERsEERs.
Henry Weber, Chairman Of the County
Democratic COMMITTEES, Talks In
diligently Along the Line Of
Road Making Refers to
Mr.. Hubert.


Correspondents OF the Ledger.
EUREKA, Mo-, April 4.-Some time
ago saw an article In your paper CON.
tanning some practical Suggestions
about good roads, sent In BY Mr.. L,
Hubert, Among other things he pro-
poses that roads be worked in April
and the road overseer to hire enough
teams to do the work. Furthermore,
he recommends rock cuiverts laid in
cement, bat he does not say where all
the money is going to come from to
do this work.
Had Mr.. Hubert gone to tbs trouble
Of going to the County Clerks office
to see how much money was there for
every road district he would have
found there was not enough money in
one-half Of the road districts to pay
for the cement and rock for one oul-
vert.
Take my road district, where have
been overseer for nine years, which is
8 BY 9 miles and contains 80 miles Of
road, 105 cuIverts and county
bridges. The money on hand to-day
IL es44s, and this diatrict stands
financially as well as any. Out Of this
money the overseer is compelled to
buy all necessary lumber, all tools
that are needed, such as q grader,
scrapers, shovsls, ETC., malls and all
necessary repairs ON tools all through
the whole season. Furthermore, the
Law requires the road overseer to do
all repairing on bridges and culverts
not exceeding $50. Besides this
there are about IS poll taxes In the
district, which are furnished TO the
road overseer In work, and generally
we receive donation from the Ooun-
BY Court of from e0o TO $50 for every
school district. The amount 10 very
uncertain and is never set apart until
August By the court.
Now, everybody can see at glance
that the means are very limited to do
any work In the spring. For the part
OF the work done In April would say
that no man as road overseer could
afford TO furnish team for the ooun-
ty for two or three weeks work In the
spring Of the year, when he ought to
put In his crop, without great saori-
foe, and At the same time he couldn't
kiro teau1 for lows nor money and
neither could we expect farmer to
leave his work and go work out his
poll tax In the spring Of the year.
The poll taxes are paid by young
men just started 10 farm, renters and
hired hands. I want to state here
that the greatest curse to our roads
to-day is the poll tax system. It
exempts every man over 50 years OF
age from working the road and two
thirds Of the properly OF this country
Is held by those men, which makes 1t
class legislation and hard for the road
overseer to enforce. Judging by Mr..
Hubert,s suggestion. he is one Of those
men who are over the age Of so years.
Ibelieye a great deal Of good could
be achieved by being more careful In
selecting road oyerseers. No one
should be appointed unless he knows
how to manage a road grader, knows
how to maze GOOD. substantlal culyerts
and understands the road law. and be
aware Of the fact that he il the SER
want Of the people and not their boss,
I further recommend that the County
Oourt send the Road Commissioner
(tba Countv aurvavorl ovar the oountv
and lat him iusnact the road work