The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1910-09-22
AN OPEN LETTER
BY MURRAY KAY

To the voters of Hood River County
The Hood River Glacier is placing
this space at my disposal for an open
letter expressing my views as to the
conduct and handling of the business
which belong or may belong to the
office Of County Surveyor, for which
| am a Republican candidate at the
Primary, September "a.
First, | beg to state that my know
ledge of politics is very limited.
Conspicuous by its ABSENCE" would
perhaps be the better phrase. Such
knowledge,- however, is not necessary
to the function of an engineer, and
doubt if you require a politician for
your County Surveyor.
Land Surveys Regardless of the
many voluminous text books on the sub
ject of land surveys, there is only one
way to conduct such work, and that is
in accordance with the United States
Government instructions. expect,
therefore, to make all legal sub-divi-
sions. in strict accordance with the
government manual, which is prepared
in conformity with the law, under
the direction of the Commissioner of
the General Land Office at Washing
ton.
Charges-One of my fellow candi
dates stated in published interview
his views that charges have been too
high in the past. | quite agree with
him, as it is a matter of personal know
ledge with me that charges in many
cases have been much too high if not
exorbitant. The compensation for
county work is, of course, fixed by
law. In private work the engineer is
entitled to a reasonable fee for his
services, commensurate with his skill,
as his education has Ito be fully as
great as the lawyer, doctor or surgeon.
| am willing to guarantee as rapid
and accurate piece of work in any
given case, and at as low price as it
can be handled for by any reputable
enigneer.
In the considerable amount of work
have had thus far, charges have been
uniformly low, and satisfactory to the
men paying them, with one exception,
namely: The survey Of a portion of
the W. s. Crapper estate on the
West side. This survey was not of
regular subdivision, and the seller
and buyer had to determine the
boundaries of the tract after | had ar
rived on sthe ground which made the
work cost more than necessary on
account of this delay to me.
was employed by Mr.. Phil Carroll
to do this work and refer you to him
as to the facts in the case.
Roads, make a firm stand for good
roads, a matter second to none as re-
CARDS the future of this valley and
country. If | shall be called upon for
advice or work on roads my position
will be uneQuivOcably for permanent
construction of hard stone macadam.
favor two miles of permanent road
rather than three for four miles of
makeshift road and narrow roadway
for a longer distance rather than
wide one of less length. The design of
| the cross section should vary accord
ing to the condition of the sub-soil and
be of such nature as to permit the
greater portion Of the work being
done with men and teams, thereby
eliminating the costly handwork. This
means wide and shallow bitches where
practicable, that is to say in hard sub
soil, absence of shoulders and
little or no dressing of slopes. The
fact is that weeds or grass on slopes
are direct benefit. Crowns should be
high on steep grades, to provide
lateral drainage rather than having
water following the center of road.
favor the proper toiling and main
tenance of permanent roads to safe
guard the Investment already made in
building them, and recommend, fur
thermorc, the rapid building of ssuch
permanent roads, so far as ways and
means will permit,
AS regards the proposed water
grade road to the upper valley, | am
heartily in favor of such a road, SO
soon as ways and means will permit
its construction. | favor new roads
where needed and am prepared to
locate them on as light grades as the
country will permit. AS a railroad
engineer, am prepared to locate
electric lines, make estimates OF cost
As former orchardist, | am pre-
pared to stake and plat orchards and
make plans for water supply, irriga-
tion or drainage.
City Water Supply, Paving, etc
While already having a City Engineer.
it may be possible that some city work
will come my way in the future.
Therefore, it may not be amiss for me
to say that | favor as quick settle
ment of the city water question RS
may be practicable. 1t is no doubt
receiving the attention of much wiser
heads than mine, and | recommend an
abundant supply of pure water under
good pressure. whether furnished by