Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1900-03-31
TO GET GOOD ROADS.
METHOD SUGGESTED FOR STATE OF
TENNESSEE.

and Free Delivery.
Hon. e. l.. Cooper, in n paper on
"Good Roads," read before the farm
ers' institute at Shclbyvillc, after show
ing that the present system of road
making in vogue in Tennessee is pro-
Iuctive of no permanent results beyond
the expenditure of large sums of mon
ey, says:
But how are we to have better roads?
In bulletin No. l issued in 1S94by Gener-
nj Stone, special agent in charge of road
inquiry in the United States, the road
laws of quite Il number of states are
given, the most of them enacted within
the last decade. y striking similarity
exists among the more radical of these.
The leading features of these laws are
the election of road commissioners and
a civil engineer for each county, au-
thOrity to issue bonds and to ,orrow
money, the collection of all roai taxes
in money and the abolition of road
overScer, while all of them are not
Incorporated in any one law unless it
initiates them only to the extent of pro-
viding for the election of county com
missioner. Were all the conditions pro-
pitious-and this includes good govern
ment, both state and national-the is
suance of bonds under the act already
alluded to for road improvement would
result in SpCcdicr accomplishment of
the desired purpose than any other
method can conceive of.
All our main thOroughfares should
be macadamZcd. But can it be done?
| believe ii can. An aroused and en-
lightcncd public sentiment is wanted.
To Illustrate: Suppose that the 440
miles of roads in Bedford county were
converted into pixies at a cost of $780,
600 and > per cent 20 year bonds were
issued and sold to pay for them. what
would be our annual interest charge?
Twenty thousand dollars. What would
we have to show for it? \ county
system of roads unsurpassed in Amcri-
ca. But what did we pay in 1889?
Twenty thousand two hundred and
ninety-four dollars and siXty-eght
cents. What did we have to show
as Il result of the expenditure? The
same old mud roads, but little i'm
proved.
Estimating the taxable property of
the county at $5,0OOO00, tax of 4
mills, or twO-tifths of l per cent on the
dollar, would pay the annual interest.
But suppose we should undertake this
by inStallments. say one-quarter, or
10 miles at a time that would reduce
the cost to One-quarter of the above
calculation. Or suppose we would I'M
dertake to pike one-half. or 22O miles
of our roads, and these the most i'm
portant and leading to our trade cen
terS, leaving the other half to be look
ed after by the official of the best gen
eral road law. we can get them and
In that event our annual interest
charge would be $4,000 a year, which
could be discharged by a road tax levy
of . mills on the dollar of our present
property, to say nothing of its in
creased value or Of the influx of cap
ital that would be sure to seek invest
ment in so desirable locality.
What is said above is applicable to
all the surrounding counties, and |
may say to the entire state, Hamilton
county in east and Shelby county in
west Tennessee being examples. This
law is simply permit to each county,
by authority of two-thirds vote of the
entire vote of the county, to issue
bonds to the extent of > per cent of
all the taxable property for the pur-
pose of improving its roads in any
manner the people may think best or
desire.
AS said above, it might be an i'm
provement in the law to amend it so
as to require a majority vote instead
Of two-thirds. This is democratic and
would certainly make the law more
available.
l have no means of knowing, neither
will the limits of this paper permit
me to more than allude to the losses
the farmers of Bedford county have
sustained for the lack of better trans
portation facilities. These are con-
stant. | am sure, however. that the
losses on timber alone in the last two
years would amount to very consid-
cradle part of the money necessary to
make q system of good roads.
A farmers products are worth to
him the market price minus the trans
portation to market. Good roads would
reduce this expense and convert the re-
ductiOn into profit. The better the
transportation facilities, the faster do
cities and trade centers increase in
wealth. The same is true of railroads.
The better the roads, the greater the
stimulus to production and the greater
the amount of freight furnished them
to handle.
So, from financial standpoint, can
conceive of no interest that would not
be benefited socially, educatiOnally and
religiously. The benefit to the country
people would be incalculable The tide
would change. The drift would be to
the country instead of to the towns
End cities Daily mails and free de-
livery would soon follow. Prosperity
would abound, and peace. contentment
and happiness, as benson, would rest
on all the people. This is a subject in
which we are all Interested 1t en-
braces both profit and pleasure
GuidebOnrds and Danger signals.
Several divisions of the League Of
American Wheelmen give special at