St. Tammany farmer., 1908-06-27
st Tanpmang farmer
June %, 1908.
ROOM FOR REFORMATION,

The reduced condition of the parish funds has
placed the present Police Jury in position
where it will be difficult to accomplish much in
the way of public improvements, but as a lesson
in finance it may result in benefit to the parish.
In its search for opportunities for retrenchmeut
1t will discover where mistakes have been made
and will find means for rectifying them.
No one will deny that there is but one way to
do business the right way-and that the affairs
OF the parish should be conducted in accordance
With sound business principles It is the only
method that makes it possible to remedy defects
OF judgment and to trace out the leaks and the
ill-advised expenditure of money Books kept
under properly enforced rules and regulations,
with systematic precision as to every detail in
the use of public funds, with every item of cost
distinct and apart and accurately stated would
enable those interested to easily discover the
defects IN any particular system of working the
roads or other public improvement
Instead of allowing an account to be pre-
sented for work on the Military Road, or any
other road, with Brown, Jones or Smith so many
days at so much a day, there should also be a
description of the work, the number feet worked
each day, and, if any is used, the amount kind
and cost OF material and the work should be
inspected.
For best results, labor on the roads should
receive fair compensation and should be made
to perform fair service Cheap labor is dear in
the long run, and nine times out of ten shirks
work. With full pay for labor we'll performed,
and with an accurate description of the kind of
work performed and the cost, it will be an easy
matter to go over the work of any one year and
discover where mistakes have been made either
in the manner of work or in the outlay of money.
We are approaching a period when the old
time lax methods must be superseded by up-to-
date system. We are emerging from years of
the conversion Of our forests into lumber the
building up of our towns and our constantly in
creasing population, all point to the burial of
slipshod methods of the past. 1t becomes ques-
ton of whether new methods shall be adopted
or shall be forced by the demands of the people.
There is no doubt, even with the most eco
nomlcal handling OF the money, that our road
fund is far from sufficient to give to the parish
good and serviceable roads, but there is reason
to believe that if properly handled much more
can be accomplished than has been. We think
this will be generally admitted. 1t therefore
becomes imperative to find the leaks and to stop
them We believe no better start can be made
than on the line we have suggested.
Our choice, as an ultimate solution of the
problem of good roads, is the issuing of bonds
and the building of an entire system of roads
throughout the parish. Either one of two meth.
DDS must be adopted: heavy road tax or the
issue of bonds; and heavy annual road tax
term bonds that would mature at time WheT
future generations could easily redeem them
having first enjoyed their use, with all the ac
companying advantages of increased wealth.
population and education.
To large extent we are indebted to New Or
leans for our rapid recent growth. It will be
noticed that New Orleans awakening is but re-
cent. To-day she promises to become the great
est city in the world She is improving heI
docks and shipping facilities; over five millior
dollars are being exspended in the erection O
new hotels; the city is being drained out unit
it is possible to put in Easements, and the sky
scrapers that were also thought impossible ant
were objects of curiosity, admiration AMI
wonder will soon attract little notice. While
this recent growth has been rapid, the growth
of the future will be even more so, and St. Tam
NANNY parish and her towns must be prepared
to take advantage of the opportunities that viii
occur by reason of this growth