The record-union., 1899-04-20
As to Good Roads.

As to Good Roads.
Eds. Record Union: Our roads af-
ter our public schools comes next In IN
terest to tha rural districts of our State
and are one of the first economic meas
ures toward prosperity. Being essen
tally necessary for the transportation
of our surplus products to centers OF
expectation and exchange and for So
cial concourse with each other, there
fore, it becomes one of our chief COM
mon interests as agriculturists to pro-
mote all matters pertaining to the ad-
yancement and construction OF good
roads, as they will cheaper the cost
of transportation and therefore enhance
the profits ON our produce, letting alone
the pleasure, comfort and beauty there
is in good road.
The statesman who said, "Show me
the laws of country and l will tell
you of its people, could have added
further, Show me the roads of coun-
try and I will tell you of their 1ntelll-
gence." Where the first is the express
sion of their civilization the latter ind1-
Gates the results of their advancement
Our first move for good roads should
be for legislation; that is, for laws that
are consistent with the honest disburse-
ment of our road funds and the encour-
agement of progression in the manage.
ment and construction by the latest
modern methods.
l believe in local control of roads
and funds to a limited extent with
power granted to the people to form
and tax their own districts as major
ity of taxpayers should choose, with
the right of review vested in the Board
of Supervisors. That the power of local
control be vested in a Board of Road
Trustees elected by the people of the
district similar to Boards of School
Trustees, to serve for small compen-
sation for services and actual expenses.
l believe also in a State Department
of Highways as a bureau of information
and skill for Boards of Supervisors and
OF local control, whereby specifications
and plans of modern bridge building
should be prepared and furnished to
Boards of Supervisors on application
with probable cost of construction and
plans for contracts for macadamizing,
grading and draining country roads;
also to furnish rules for repairs and
construction of culverts for boards of
local control. So as to make our road
system general throughout our State by
the latest modern methods, according
to the condition oe soil and location.
In view of the fact that the best eco
nomfc measure for the disbursement Of
public funds is by contract, whereby the
subject as well as the principle is made
amenable to the people. Therefore, we
should make it one of our principles of
advocacy for reform.
For making good cheap roads and for
keeping them good, nature has given US
in this locality a climate and soil unsur-
passed anywhere from the Sierras to
the Atlantic; then why we have not
good roads lies with ourselves. 1t is
true we pay enough taxes for revenue,
but the fault IS we have too much poli-'
tics in the dispensation of our road
funds and not enough of good, practical
experience.
1t has now become an eSta bliShed fact
from present observations that to get
good management out of politicians is
a luxury too burdenseme upon the tax
payers without any very beneficial re-
suits. Therefore, 1t becomes our duty
as farmers to take action to develop a
better system of management and econ
our roads, which can only be done, ac-
cording to my opinion, by local control.
The first principle in road building is
drainage; that is, to draw all water
from off the road bed TO good natural
runs. The center of the road bed should
be slightly elevated in an oval shape
and kept firm and smooth so as to shed
the water from off the crown to the
conduits. The cost of making a good
road of our red soil is not expensive,
owing to the nature of it to pack and
cement SO as to throw off the moisture.
We do not see any great wisdom N
using coarse rock as base for macad-
amizing roads Of ordinary traffic as. the
soil of itself will pack sufficiently to
form a good base and hold it's shape
Therefore, by using fine crushed rock
or gravel after the road is firmly pack
ed and in shape to receive it to give it
good facing for wear we could make
a road as good as the best macadamized
road and at less cost and expense to
keep it in repair. F. MCMILLAN.