The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1904-12-29
important Subject VIII be Dis
cussed by Board Today
CONVICT LEASE SYSTEM
Representative Men Of the County Fa-
Vor the Employment of the Con-
victs on the Roads-North
Cardinals Experiment.

| The boards action will determine In
no small measure whether or not I'M
provement work on the roads of this
county shall be done promptly and salts
fsctorily. For that reason the action to
be taken by the board is awaited with
a great deal of interest
The good roads movement has attract
ed such widespread attention throughout
the country that the people of Alabama
feel they must now fall in line, and prose-
cute the work of improving the public
highways as speedily and as successfully
as possible. The subject is one that APP
peals especially to the farmers. 1t affects
their welfare more vitality than that OF
any other class of people in the state.
1t Is everywhere admitted that good
reads make farmers prosperous and that
poor roads retard their progress. When
reads are good, the value OF farm lands
is high. Where they are poor. the value
of farm lands is low.
Rural Communities.
Good roads promote also the social
welfare of all rural communities The
establishment of rural free delivery routes
| depends a great deal upon the accessible
! ity of the country through which the
routes pass. Good roads strengthen the
| church and the school and by so doing
they improve the religious and education
al life of all the people. In word good
roads are great civili7ing influences in
| community.
The advantages that come from good
reads can be had. 1t is thought, by en-
| pioying convicts in working the county
reads This is proven by experiments in
many states, and especially in the state
&C North Carolina.
Around Charlotte.
The town Of Charlotte, the seat of
Mecklenburg county, in North Carolina,
owes it's constantly increasing importance
as a trade center to the improved con-
dition of the county roads This work has
been done by convict labor The Meek
lenburg county ROAD law provides as
follows:
"All persons confined in the county jail
either under sentence of the court for
crime or imprisonment for the non-pay-
ment of fines or costs, shall be available
to the county commissioners for the pur-
or public roads of the county. And upon
the application of any supervisor of high
ways or public roads having an order
from the county commissioners it shall
be the duty Of the sheriff or jailer having
such prisoners In his custody to deliver
them to the supervisor, who shall be re-
sponsible for their safe-keeping and re-
turn and in case of the escape Of any of
the said prisoners, the sheriff of the said
county or jailer shall be exonerated from
liability thereof"
The county prisoners in North Carolina
cannot be employed except on the public
roads, and the great progress Of North
Carolina in road making is due to the
use of conyicts, and to the states wide
| tire law. which rebates to those who use
wide tires one-half of their road tax.
Famous Roads.
! The road measures in North Carolina,
dating back to 1885, have resulted in MAX
ing the Tar Heel state famous for its
good roads, and this reputation has con-
fessedly aided in the upbuilding of the
state The states good roads and the
energy of its mill owners have made 1t
one of the most prosperous states in the
Union. North Carolinians attribute no
little of this prosperity to their good
roads built by county convicts.
Mr. HiIton's Letter.
In response to an inquiry made by The
| Age-Heraid, S. IL. Hilton of Charlotte
has written an interesting letter regard
ing the work done in Mecklenburg county
by convicts in improving the highways
] there. In the course Of his letter, he
| says:
| II had been advocating good roads for
| years before we got the work well under
| way. Our people elected me a member
| of the board of county commissioners. We
started with three convicts, wheel bar
| rows, picks and shovels. l directed the
work for three years and gave 1t up,
| only when business affairs engaged my
attention. When L quit l turned over to
my successor sixteen head of mules, as
| many wagons and sets of harness, road
| scraper, one big steam roller engine a
| crusher and other less important WORK.
ing apparatus.
| 1--WE pay from 40 to 80 cents cubic
| HdTu lOE TUCK uellNefeu anu COTueu up on
the ground. If you have to pay sl4
| head for convicts and feed and clothe
them it would be cheaper to use free
labor at a cost of from so to rs cents a
| day. If l had the convicts free l would
use them. I would not hire them out
even for SIG month.
1T viii be wise to pay a man a good
salary to manage the work as superinten-
dent. We have here a man who has
charge of out roads in this (Charlotte)
township We have been paying him $50
4 month. l told him last week thai he
should have 800 a month next wear.
A Good Man Needed.
IF you do not get good man who
understands the work you will find II an
expensive experiment. My advice is This.
Pay your superintendent a good salary
| and buy the best machinery on the
market Cut down the hills, construct
good bridges, have all the work Gone
thoroughly and you will make a success
! of it.
| Twenty years ago land on my farm
only three miles from town, was worth
$40 an acre. Last week l refused 800 an
acre for the land situated on macadam
road. This is what good roads have done
for our people here"
Gen. r. d. johnson of Birmingham, a
native of North Carolina, is an ardent
advocate Of working thu cA"--v rn~~-