The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1908-03-27
Roads Bill Passes.

Roads Bill Passes.
The Good Roads bill has finally pass
ed the Legislature. All it needs now
to become a law is the signature of Gov
ernor Crothers, and it will get that just
as soon as it is enrolled and presented
to him.
In the shape it has finally passed the
bill appears to satisfy every element of
the Democratic party. 1t met with
some Republican opposition of rather
feeble nature, but as it is distinctly
Democratic administration measure and
the Democratic administration will re-
eceive all the credit for whatever gooG
results, this was to be expected. 1t is
still the Benson bill, but in considera-
bly, different shape from the Benson bill
that passed the House of Delegates
form it includes the best features Of the
-Biddison bill, and the men who were in
istrumental in brin ging about the result
contend that it means that $4,000, goo
will be spent in this State within the
next few years in building good roads
and that not one cent of this amount
will be taken directly from the masses
ef the people.
The tangle which threatened the bill
last week in the Senate through the dis
covery by City Solicitor Bruce that
there was in it a provision that made
ahe rights of the electric railway com
pany on the turnpikes paramount to the
rights of Baltimore city was straighten
ed out Monday at conference between
Mr.. Bruce and Mr.. Joseph c. France,
general counsel for the United Rail
WAYS. As result of their conference
an amendment was drafted that fully
protects the rights and interests OF
the city and is yet fair aud just to the
railway company. This amendment
was presente in the Senate Monday
night and unanimously agreed upon.
The bill was unanimously passed by thu
Senate, the only opposition coming
from Senator France and one or two
other Republican Senators. who ex-
pressed the fear that the law would rs
used to build up political machine.
The Senate declined to permit Sena-
,tor France to have his remarks on the
subject printed in the Journal and TIE
hill went through a-tiying.
The amendment regarding the United
Railways franchise and the turnpikes,
by which the right of the city to collect
the park tax from the company over
these Highways is guaranteed, was offer
ed by Senator Linthicum.
Although it is framed differently
from the one offered last Friday by Mr.
Linthicum, it was said by Mr.. Bruce
that it will accomplish the same results.
The amendment empowers the city,
after the turnpikes in the Annex are
improved by the State, to acquire Or
condemn the outstanding rights of way
of the United Railways and Electric
Company This will practically cost
the CITY nothing. as the Board of Esti-
mates, after the rights of way are con
demned or acquired, will charge the
railway company the same price for the
new rights of way as the company now
charges for the old.
The only concession made by the city
to the railway company is the agree
ment by the city that the obligation to
apply the graduated scale of park tax
as provided in the act of 1906 to the
new right of the way shall be mandi-
tory one instead of discretionary one.
The same thing is true of the discre-
tionary power given to the city to make
new rights Of way perpetual, where the
old ones were perpetual. As the Board
of Estimates proposed to exercise the
discretion conferred upon it in case the
turnpikes condemned by the Annex In
proyemeDt Commission the commission
really does not alter the status of the
city.
The obligatory nature of the cOnces-
sion is applicable only to the grant by the
city to new rights of way on turnpikes
improved by the State. 1t does not ap
ply to new rights of way granted by the
CITY on turnpikes condemned by tic
Annex Improvement Commission, fol
example, York road.
As the city will not be put to the cX
pense OF improving turnpikes seicctet
by the State commission as part o.
the system of roads, it is thought thai
the attitude of the city toward tht
turnpikes might well be made the sub
ject of concession.