The suburban citizen., 1901-03-02
God Roads R5iss
l9cgsss.s2c
Good Roads Law . suecess.

Highway Commissioner Jas.
H. Macdonald for the calen-
q dar year 1900 was presented
recently. 1t is a voluminous and inn
portant document, reviewing the va.
rious aspects of highway improve
ments in Connecticut under the State
Aid act.
In speaking Of the present State
highway law the Commissioner says:
The policy Of the State has been al
most universally accepted as a wise
one by the towns The present law
has been accepted by thirty-nine towns
which have never before participated
in State aid, making a total of 1913
towns which have applied for State
assistance under this law. The fact
demonstrates that the law of 1899 is
the most popular under which we
have worked. This is principally due
to the liberal assistance by the State
and the wise provision in the law al
lowing the Commissioner TO meet the
conditions by which the town is sur
rounded. Almost all of the objections
offered by the towns in regard to for.
mer laws are removed under the pres
ent law 1t will be impossible, how
ever, to draft any law that will be en-
tirely free from objection, for it is inn
possible to build any law that cannot
be improved in some respects.
THE present law, governing as it
does the whole of the action of the
State and town on a liberal plan Of
financial assistance, and broadening
the policy of the State in the method
of construction, and also keeping well
within control of the State the whole
movement, has enlarged the field of
work for the Commissioner and has
reduced somewhat the Jurisdiction Of
the towns accepting State aid but
so far every change from the laws of
1895 and 1897 has been very much
more beneficial to the towns ana
around the whole movement safe
guards that have already demonstrate
ed its worth.
1T has never been the policy Of the
State to be unpleasantly arbitrary in
her dealings with the towns, although
at the outset of the movement it was
difficult to have all towns understand
this AS the work has progressed
the towns have been brought into a
full knowledge of the attitude of the
State
1T was at first thought by many
people of our State that when the
roads throughout the villages were i'm
proved the interest would die out, and
that a vote for the Improvement of
others would not be had. On the con-
trary, the desire for a general improve
ment of the roads in all towns in
which we have constructed roads is
increasing rather than diminishing,
which fact speaks well for the future
of the good roads movement.
81 have many times improved four,
five and six sections on main high
way with an appropriation Of $1,000,
and while each section would not ex-
tend over many lineal feet Of road the
sections selected are places that had
been for years a weak spot on the
road, and would have been improved
long ago had the town been tinan-
cially able to so do. 1t stands to rea-
son that if a road having five OF six
bad places at different points on
road six miles long, and these bad sec
tions can be removed for $1,000, there
by reclaiming and making a good road
of the five OF six miles, it is money
we'll invested. AS matter Of fact, the
largest return for the money invested
is the improvement of these sectional
pieces of road throughout the State"
Commissioner Macdonald makes this
protest against the old drag scraper:
II have seen thousands Of dollars
wasted with this old-time practice OF
putting the washings from the road
back on the road. The road scraper
properly used is a great assistance to
our country roads and saving of
large amount of money and time If it
is intelligently used. The old drag scra-
per system is a back number, and
should remain so. 1t is the lack of
knowledge of how to use a road scra-
per and not the road scraper that is
to be condemned. 1t would be better
in the use of the road scraper when
the sand washings are found in the
gutter to lift up the blade and let the
washings lie where the rain left them,
and go on and drop the blade only into
good material, and thus leave the road
in a passable condition, instead of
eight inches deep, as have often seen
it with worn-out road scrapers."
The Commissioner does not think it
wise to attempt to build a macadam
system throughout the State. The pol
icy of the State has been not TO extend
the building Of macadam beyond its
natural growth. Under the present
system the towns have latitude in Sc
lecting such kinds of roads as they
desire.
In addition to the work that has
been done during the last two years
under this appropriation there were
remaining thirty-three towns to be
finished the first year of the appro'
prlation, which represented twenty
miles.
The amount Of money that will be