The Iuka vidette. (Iuka, Miss.) 1894-1912, 1909-05-20
by Il. e. BLAKEsLEE, JACKSON.
Road Building in Mississippi.
- Q -

NOdu building IN mississippi
Mississippi pays annually to bad pub
lie roads a tax OF over three million
dollars. This can be estimated when 1t
is known that there are in the State
approximately 100000 farms and that
these farms average in distance from the
railroads or market towns nine and one
half miles. If it is necessary for the
farmer to 90 TO town eight times dur
ing the year to carry his products and
buy supplies he uses eight whole days
for himself. team and vehicle. Under
present conditions, and making an aver
age for the twelve months of the year,
he can draw two bales of cotton or its
equivalent of 1000 pounds with two
mules or horses. OF course, there are
times when an empty wagon would prove
a heavy load, but at others 1000 pounds
could be carried. If with improved
roads, not good roads," mind you, but
improved roads, he could draw four bales
of cotton or its equivalent of 1000
pounds, only four trips would be required
to accomplish his purpose. Estimating
the time of the man, mules, vehicle and
harness to be $3.50 per day, We have a
saving of $1,000 per farm, or total OF
$2,500,000.
And the farmer is not the only man
who pays this tax. Every person who
has occasion to use the road adds his
quota. The merchant, lawyer, preacher,
doctor and others put up something to
help swell the fund.
Those living in a section where good
roads have been constructed will wonder
why this condition prevails and the
people stand for it. The answer is very
simple. They do not appreciate the
value of good roads and know absolutely
nothing of the benefits to be derived
therefrom. This is so because they have
not had occasion to use good roads. Bad
roads have existed all along and the av-
erage man has accepted them as con-
dition of existence as he does crab grass
when he raises cotton or corn. His
father before him dragged through the
Hluu anu slusH anu ne has uoilc tHc odHie
thing. 1t is matter of education more
than anything else. The man who has
seen good roads, driven over them and
had occasion to use them for time at
once becomes good roads" booster.
Mississippi is close akin to other
Southern States and still holds largely
to the traditions of olden times. Since
time immemorial the roads have been
seer system" By the laws governing
this, each male person between the ages
of eighteen and sixty years is subject
to road duty with few exceptions.
Each man is supposed to work annually
ten days upon the road or buy a subst-
tute. The roads are in links of approx
mately three miles each and in charge
of an overseer appointed by the boards
of supervisors. This system has been in
vogue so long that it cannot be said that
it has not had a fair trial.
In great majority of cases it has
proven failure In the first place the
supervisor is a pretty good sort of fell
low or he would not have been elected
Then the overseer is also a good fellow
and gives his neighbors as little trouble
as possible and works the road when he
is compelled to, generally just before the
grand jury meets. By this system, every
man is just as much responsible for the
condition of the road as is the other
man, and there is little or no complaint.
This has been going on for years and
everybody is satisfied or accepts it as
condition.
But we are doing better in Mississippi
There are more dissatisfied people with
road condition than there were few
years ago. More of them have had oc-
casion to see what other people have
done and learned what they thought
of improved roads. And this army is
being greatly augmented from year to
year. Nearly four years ago, when the
writer first began gathering information
concerning our public highways, only 26
per cent. of the counties had broken
away from the old overseer system and
were working by contract, with COM
missioner or otherwise. Blanks recently
sent out and returned to the Department
of Agriculture go to show that now &c
per cent. of the counties have discarded
the system and are building better
roads. In common parlance, this is go
ing some. And it will show better for
the next four years than for the past
four.
Under the contract, commissioner or
similar systems, the people pay their
Communication and ad valorem tax for
road construction and maintenance.
When you make Mississppian pay
money for something he is closely akin
| to his brother from Missouri, and must
be shown where it goes. And the gen
eral result is that he gets full value for
the amount paid. There are, of course,
exceptions to this rule, but such row
| is raised if results are not Forthcoming
that corrections are made of anything