The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-01-18
ADOPT RAILROAD
 SYSTEM ID KEEP
 UP COUNTY ROADS Ramsay Offers Plan for Placing Responsibility for Each
 Mile of Highway MONEY NOW SPENT IS
 AS BAD AS SQUANDERED James 5onnyman Says Roads To MuIsa and Short Creek Are Unsafe To Go over-system In Kentucky. ,i

to be the key to the problem of ridding Jefferson county of her lamentable sys- tenn of road supervision.
 Roughly applied. MT. Ramsay's sug- geston means nothing but an application of railroad system to county roads.
 Jefferson county has $55,0O0, which can be spent on macadam roads alone There are S25 miles of macadam road. Discharge the eight overseers and their GA laborers, making a total of "A men.
 Divide the S25 miles of macadam up into sections, say 50 in number. This would make each section about six miles. Place one laborer in complete charge of each section. Pay him a salary of $50. AL low him to employ no assistance, ex- cept by a special order from the Board of Revenue. Hold him responsible for every foot of that six miles both winter and summer At the end of each year pay a bonus to the man whose section is the best maintained. Paying these 30 men $50 each would require about S9O- 900 year.
 Out of the s25,00O left use $15,O0O for the purchase of road-mending material slag, chert and limestone. Have that scattered by contract over the 325 miles of road, depositing equal or necessary portions in each section, convenient to the section man, and in safe place.
 Surplus For New Roads.
 The remaining $10000 could be used in building a few miles of road each year, and in furnishing the section hands with one mule each for a few months dur ing the heavy season. This would only be using the money which cannot be appropriated for any other purpose.
 The $So,0Oo dirt road fund would still remain. Work can be done on the dirt roads only during the dry days of the summer months. It is the opinion of sev- eral prominent engineers that this sum could best be used by working two large gangs of about 30 men, under competent supervision, and endeavoring to improve every foot5of the dirt roads in the coun- ty during the summer. Others suggest that it could be done entirely by con- tract.
 Have all this supervised by a compe- tent road supervisor, elected. if possible, by the Board of Revenue, and not by
 
 of the macadamized road at least once every two months. and If section man is not doing his work right fire him, and hire another.
 The plan might be further carried out by following MT. Nails suggestion, di- viding the county into five large sec- tions and letting one member of the board see that the roads in the section assigned to him are getting justice. While these figures are merely suggestions, 1t is believed that they could be so changed, if necessary, as to meet conditions and remedy them.
 Text of Ramsay's Statement.
 This is what MT. Ramsay, recognized as one of the best civil engineers in the south, had to say: "The county roads are certainly in bad shape. I have always had the idea that the money paid by the people for this purpose is not spent in the best way. We need more system. I was traveling in England and Scotland a few years ago, and was impressed with the beautiful roads. Over there they have stone terraces or dikes along the road, and every mile or would be de- posted a supply of everything needed in repairing the road. A laborer would at- tend entirely to one section, carrying the material in his wheelbarrow, and one could hardly ever see faulty place. "Why can't we follow the example of the railroads? They have their sections, and the boss is responsible for every inch of rail and roadbed in his section. Why wait until the damage is done? The thing to do is to fix the roads the minute they get out of repair. If roads are worth making, they are worth keeping up.
 ssLet one man be assigned to a section. Deposit material along the route at con- venient intervals, and let the road super visor hold each section man responsible. At the end of each year the Board of Rev enue should make a personal inspection of every macadam section and award bonus to the man who has done the best work
 ''Ths system is in use in many parts of the country, and is found to be the best and most effective"
 Boasts Road To Mulga.
 MT. Bonnyman, general manager of the Birmingham Coal and Iron company, is an authority on the Mulga and Short Creek roads. 'They are not roads at alli' he exclaimed. "The ruts are from three to four feet deep. They are not safe to ride over at night. They ought to be filled up with limestone and slag, and the mud holes ought to be drained.
 "Our wagons which come to Birmng- ham cannot carry back more than one- third of a load. l rode down through the country to Mulga the other day, but did not ride back. I came on the train. I cannot ina zine a worse road, and Short Creek is no better We actually went to work and built part of the road down there.
 'In Kentucky the plan suggested by MT. Ramsay is followed and never saw any better roads than those turnpikes. Give every section man so much and hold him just as much responsible for a gull ley as a railroad section man is held re- sponsble for a wreck. The public wants immediate action.''
 Engineer Discusses Situation.
 4C.fl A. Browne, partner of County En- gineer Miner, who, by the Gay. cannot possibly be connected with the condition of Jefferson's roads, that being entirely