The Hartford republican. (Hartford, Ky.) 18??-1926, 1908-02-07
WORK STARTS
FOR BETTER ROADS.
Kentucky is only Common.
wealth That is Bound
Hand and Foot Against Help
ing TO Build
Roads.

The good roads movement in Ken
lucky has been stimulated by the
introduction in the General Assembl
of two measures providing amend
ments to the Constitution which, II
adopted will be submitted 10 the vo-
tiers next fall, and, meeting with their
approval, will eventually result in the
construction of hundreds of miles of
modern macadamized roads through
out the State.
Senator Joseph Bosworth, of Bell
county and G. T. Wyatt, of Logan
county are fathering bills. Each has
made an exhaustive study of the exist
ing conditions in Kentucky which bear
directly on the matter of road con-
struction.
Senator Bosworth has several times
been a delegate to national road con-
ventions, and has carefully digested
hundreds of recommendations looking
to the extension of the good roads
movement in his State.
1t is a singular fact that while other
States in the Union may go ahead with
work of this kind unhampered by law
and Constitution many of them If they
SO elect, being empowered to assist
their counties in the construction and
maintenance of roads, Kentucky Is
bound hand and foot by its Constitu-
ton, which absolutely prohibits the
State from engaging in road construc-
ton, assisting the counties in their
construction and the counties from in
curing Indebtedness for this pur-
pose.
1t is to relieve this condition that
Senators Bosworth and Wyatt have in
troduced the bills looking TO a con-
stitutional amendment.
In casting about for methods and
plans by which Kentucky might con-
struct annually several hundred miles
of good roads, a glance at the Con-
stitution was sufficient to discourage
their efforts, and they came to the
conclusion that constitutional amend
ments was the only way out of the
woods.
One of the bills seeks to amend
Section III of the Constitution, which
reads: The credit of the Common
wealth shall not be pledged or loan
ed TO any individual company, corpora
ton or association, municipality or po-
litical subdivision of the State, nor
shall the Commonwealth become an
owner or stakeholder in, nor make
donation to any company, association
or corporation; nor shall the Common
wealth construct a railroad or other
highway"
The other measure provides an a
mendment to Seciion15S of the Con-
stitution. which in substance prohibits
cities, towns and counties from in
curing Indebtedness for any purpose
10 an amount exceeding the follow
the value of their taxable property:
Cities of the first and second class,
10 per cent; third and fourth class, b
per cent; fifth and sixth, 3 per cent;
counties 2 per cent.
BY the addition Of the words Tex
cept for road purposes" the bride is
taken entirely off these two sections
of the Constitution in the matter OF
road construction. If the amend
ments are adopted at the November
election, Senator Bosworth proposes
to introduce a bill in the Legislature
two years hence which will provide TO
the establishment of a State good
roads fund by an annual levy on all
taxable property in the State.
The bill will contain a clause which
privides for the State to loan TO
counties from this fund any amount
desired for the construction of roads