The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1909-11-22
Location Of Lines Along High
ways Cause Of Trouble.
FIX UP A SCHEDULE.
Agree on Uniform Arrangement
to Meet All Conditions.
County Engineer Will Have Mat
ter in Charge.

The authority Of arbitrator in the
matter Of telephone companies and 9TH
er public service corporations in their
conflicts with township trustees AMI
the farmers along the highways is q
new duty Of the county engineer who
Is legally a highway commissioner in
every township.
Since the creation of the office of
Shawnee county engineer under the
statutes of the last legislature and the
appointment of v. r. Parkhurst to the
position by the county commissioners
September LIST. the office has become a
dumping ground for all matters where
the commissioners find it best not to
make final decision.
The matter Of telephone line con-
struction has long been agitating the
commissioners. When a telephone COM
pany builds a line along a road, cut
ting away trees or other distractions,
the property owners have many q
grievance and often lawsuits follow
should the commissioners openly give
the right to the companies to go ahead
with their work then the commission
ers are open to the damage suits. There
are all kinds of complications arising
IN the dealings with the public service
corporations using the county high
ways. For instance, should they have
an order to confine the poles to GER
tain distance from the sides of the
established road boundary, then wher.
a road is narrow the poles get into the
roadway, while on the wide roads they
are unobstructive. Again should tho
place their poles a certain distance
from the center Of the road then the
wider roads might find a row of poles
out In the roadway
Hence the commissioners have been
careful not to make any definite or
ders: The only possible rights given
would have to be on a sliding scale
according to the widths of the various
roads-too varied and numerous to
specify in every instance.
Recent difficulties and proposed
coDstructio MS brought w P. Hemp
hill. manager of the Independent Tele-
phone company and A. ]. Mackey,
manager of the Bell company, to the
office of the commissioners this morn
ing.
Sliding Scale Is Fixed.
The county engineer was called and
a conference resulted in a sliding scale
as follows: On roads go feet wide, the
companies may use cross arms of six
feet length. thus occupying six feet
of highway from the property line into
the highway; on so and 40 foot roads,
five foot arms and en- 30 foot roads
four foot arms. On roads as narrow
as 20 feet and where the township road
overseers have graded the road al: to
one side. there arose a difficulty. For
instance. there is a road near Pauline
of the latter sort where a line of poles
might be planted directly in the wagon
tracks.
That was where the commissioners
remembered the engineer and to evade
any binding agreement gave him the
job of arbitrator simplifying the situa-
tion. Why not let the engineer who
is supposed to know all about the roads
fight it out and escape any damage
suits?
1t was finally agreed by Managers
| Hemphill and Mackey that they would
| inform the county engineer Of any
proposed line building and that they
would get together to avoid unjust en-
| croachments either upon the highways
| or private property. The county en-
| gineer will keep a record of all roads
| and lines and be able upon a moments
notice to tell just how the road at that
! point is graded. how wide 1t is, and
what space can be allowed the tele-
| phone companies.
In this manner it is thought source
| of much inconvenience has been d.
| verted to as workable and satisfactory
/ solution pOSSih1e