St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1909-04-14
ROAD COMMISSIONERS MEETING.

The State Highway COmmiSS -0ner En-
thuSeS His Hearers In the Good Roads
MOvement.-He Meets the Automobile
Owners in the Evening.
Hon. Charles W. Gates, the state high
way commissioner, met the road COM
missioners of Caledonia county Thurs
day and held most profitable session.
All the commissioners in the county were
present and half dozen from towns in
the adjacent counties. A number of the
selectmen were also present and the total
attendance of 81 was the largest gather
ing of this kind ever held in St. Johns
bury.
The meetings were held in Pythian
Hall and at the morning session every
body got acquainted and spent the hour
in asking questions and getting informa-
ton. In the afternoon Mr.. Gates spoke
for two hours upon the general theme OF
road building.
"We cannot hope" said the speaker,
ito equal what has been done in Massa-
chusetts, Connecticut, New York and
many of the states where the population
is more congested, but by judicious ex-
penditure of the public money, we can
correct the alignment of our roads, and
also their graduation until, as the years
pass on, we shall have the right to ad-
vertise Vermont as state where atten-
tion is paid to the trunk line highways,
Next to education there is no factor that
so improves a commonwealth as its
roads" Continuing, the speaker said,
"Now | would suggest that an engineer
be employed by each township to correct
the graduation of its selected roads. The
wisdom of this will be seen when one con-
siders that it requires an expert in all en-
terprises, to direct the primary work
1t is far better to have an established
alignment and a correct graduation tc
start with than to 60 ahead without this
precaution.
Of course Mr.. Gates touched upon the
new automobile law and gave the
farmers present some straight talk upor
being friendly to the owners of machines
He said the automobile had some right
on the highway as we'll as the horse an(
wagon and that both the AUTOMOBILE
fellows and the farmers must work to
gether in the good roads movement
He said the towns would not get tn
benefit of the new law unless the re
spective road commissioners made goot
roads and kept them up to standard. |
was therefore up to the road commits
sioner to see that he made good ant
later got the money from the licensing O
the automobile.
In the evening Mr.. Gates met the auto
mobile men at the St. Johnsbury Hous
parlors. This proved to be most profit
able meeting, and while some present dit
not favor the new law they were al
tremendously interested in having goot
| roads. Mr.. Gates said the new law wa
not proposed by farmers and passed b,
a farmer legislature. but originated il
the brain of an automobile owner. H
said it was not as drastic as the New
Jersey law and that the automobile clul
in Massachusetts wanted the law in tina
state drawn up on similar lines. He be
lieved it was good law and said if i
did not prove to be good law he woul'
be the first man to haveit repealed. TIL
meeting was entirely informal and man,
OF the men present contributed an idei
or asked Mr. Gates questions concerning
| the provisions of the law,