Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1910-11-17
Plan to Appropriate 100000 Is
Generally Favored at COM
mittee Hearing.
SURE MONEY CAN BE RAISED
Member of Ways and Means Com.
mittee Thinks State Tax
Would Not Be Necessary
-Gates's Views.

Montpelier. Nov Tho committees on
highways and bridges and appropriations
gave public hearing this evening ON the
bill introduced by Mr. Rabbit Of Rock
ngham. making an appropriation of 500
zoo for highways.
Mr. Stafford of Brattlcboro chairman
Of the committee on highways. thought
.he present appropriation of $4,000 ought
IT, be increased and the additional money
could be used to good advantage. a big
appropriation would be splendid adver-
tisement for the State.
senator Bardon of Rutland county be-
liovcd that good roads were the best
set the state could have and would raise
the States grand lists. RE thought an
appropriation Of 100000 would prove
good investment and return $40 for 81.
Good roads would also raise farm values.
We hoped the committee would recon-
pend not much less than s2oo,0oo.
Nir. Hatch of STAFFORD said the roads
to-day We're the best the State had had
IL i0 Years and attributed it largely to
the fact thu we had been educating men
IN the know edge of building better roads
He rous that an appropriation of the
size osI.d for In the bin might require "A
STATE taN that would be a burden tn the
fmaler towns that were now raising all
ME money they could stand for highway
purposes.
GATES EXPLAINS HIS POLICY.
Commissioner Gates cXplained at some
length his policy in the past and told
how the money raised for highway pur-
poses was expended. The bin under con-
sideration gave the State commissioner
The power to eXpCnd the balance 4 Son.
)Ov appropriation after the towns had been
given dollar for dollar on all they would
raise mp to $1,000 on trunk line highways.
The state has got to build these trunk
line roads I'm many towns if it Is ever
going to have them. lie thought ihe pre-
sent law, drafted to Stimulate the towns
INTO raising more money for road build
Ing. was working we'll and that this bill
was "a combination of the present law with
the trunk line idea.
The bill gives tn state commission
" power to emp' v assistance That
means an engineer and no piece Of
permanent work would be undertake en-
In the future except under the drec
lion of an engineer He hoped in this
way to eliminate waste, Mr. Gates
said that he was not asking for any
specific sum TO he appropria ted. If the
Legislature was pleased with the i'm
provement in the highways and want
Cd more of 1t more money must be
voted. He would build all the roads
lhey would furnish the money for. He
did not-want an appropriation so large
hat It would require a state tax to
meet il for he considered this would
tie g backward move in the educational
campaign he had been waging.
CAN RAISE THE MONEY.
Mr. Rabbit of Rockingham. a MEM
Der of the ways and means committee,
said that he was as much of "a radical
IN this matter as Mr.. Gates was a con-
servative
He was in favor of bonding for better
roads. AS a member of the ways and
means commission, he could give assur-
ance that the money to meet a SOD 900
appropriation could be raised in ways
that would not prove hardship to the
smaller towns. The chairman Of the conf
mittee hoped the amount Of appropriation
named in the bill would not be cut
The committee on internal affairs gava
a hearing this evening on the direc,
primaries bills, which were discussed by
Mr. McClen of Vergeunes ana others.
Mr. Maup of st. Albnns will tomorrow
Introduce n bill requiring the Governor
to appoint n State license commissioner,
whose duty It shall be to appoint the
local license commissioners in towns vot-
'ng for license.