The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1907-01-12
INTELLIGENT EFFORT AT
ROAD IMPROVEMENT
Prominent Citizens or The County Confer
With The County Commissioners On This
Important Question

mPoHanf question
On Tuesday last a committee from
the Cecil Farmers Club consisting Of
|. Wayne Reynolds, A. b. McNcy, FL
wood Badcrston c. Ross Bics and
John p. Wilson, had an informal con-
ference on the road question with the
County Commissioners in the office OF
the County Treasurer Our readers
will understand this latter reference,
when we explain that the County Com
miSSioncrs can hardly be said to have
an office OF their own in the Court
House, but only the privilege of occu-
pylng certain designated sittings in
the Treasurer office, and OF conduct
ing their business and their hearings
amidst the routine and sometimes
amidst the confusion incident to the
affairs OF that office And so amidst
a good deal of confusion. and more
or less distraction, the Committee
made it known that they were present
in no spirit OF fault finding or antagon-
ism, but simply and solely to confer
with the Commissioners concerning
possible and practicable ways and
means for the Improvement OF the
cOunty'S highways. The sense of the
Committee, and OF the Club which they
represented, was that the macadam
roads are too expensive to justify their
construction and that gravel
roads, equally as Serviceable as maca-
dam. or more so. can be built at a verv
much less cost. At this point Mr.. c. A.
benjamin, President OF the Board OF
Commissioners said that they had
lately received a letter from Chief En-
ginecr Crosby of the Highway Divi-
sion oithe State Geological Survey,
inviting them to make application for
State Md in the construction or i'm
provcmcnt OF roads BY the Sand
Clay" method This letter goes on to
say that while it is impossible to state
definitely the cost OF this form of con
Struction, the estimated cost would
be about $3.50 per mile. exclusive OF
grading, bridges, culverts, etc, one
half OF which expense is OF course
borne by the state ii the work is done
under the supervision OF its Highway
Commission
The Committee was of the opinion
that the county had available sufficient
material in the form OF gravel pits.
etc. for such work and that such ma
tcrial should be acquired bv the county
under condemnation proceedings il
necessary.
The conference then launched into
the matter OF farming" out the roads
and it seemed to be the general opin-
ion OF those present that such a svs-
TEN is wholly unsatisfactory; that with
the present scarcity OF labor reliable
farmers could not be secured for the
care OF the roads and the county would
be subjected to the necessity OF leaving
them unmcnded or letting them out in
Benjamin explained that this had been
precisely the cause OF most OF the de-
lay in road work during the past wear.
and after considerable discussion it
seemed to be pretty generally agreed
that some other and better system
must be adopted the sec
ton gang" system to which reference
is elsewhere made in this article and
in our editorial columns.
The Commissioners thanked the
gentlemen OF the Committee for their
call and conference, expressing their
pleasure at receiving helpful sugges-
tions and cooperation from the cti
zcns of the county, for whose interests
they are working. The Committee re-
ported the results of its conference to
meeting of the Cecil Farmers Club,
held on Wednesday last, at the home
OF Mr.. J. T. Groves, and the Club
adopted the following resolutions in
connection with that report
That The Cecil Farmers Club re-
commend the County Commissioners
to employ competent men vested with