The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1912-10-09
BEDDING MAKES SWEEPING CHANGE
 IN ROADS SYSTEM
Special Committee Authorized to Hire Competent Supervisor
 Lively Town Meeting

termittenly waged for ten years or more. the Progressives won out at Mondays town meeting on the issue of a complete change in the system of road maintenance The new departure is one of the most radical ever voted by this very conservative community and the Progressives are rather sur prised at the completeness of their vic- tory which was only made possible by a slow but steady drift of public sem timent in their direction. Not alone is the work of highway repairs taken out of the hands of the selectmen, but the appointment of the new executive to whom their former duties are
 transferred is lodged with a special
 committee, an act which would seem
 to indicate that the meeting lacked confidence in the ability disposition of the selectmen to properly, get the re- preceded the final disposition of the question began shortly after o'clock and occupied most of the time until nestness chara acterized the discussion it was mainly conducted in good temper.
 sEx-Seleetman B. B. Banks started the ball rolling with a retrosrade pro- position in the form of a motion that road repairs for the coming year be contracted out to the lowest biduer ana argued that this method would give better results at a lower cost than the existing method. L. O. Peck who led the discussion on the
 
 contract system had serious defects, one of them being that it was virtu- tions suited to attaining the objects de- sired, one of these defects being the varying requirements of different sec tions of road based on the obvious principle that. the roads most travelled should receive the most attention In | his opinion the best remedy for a com | dition. of things admittedly bad and place the business of caring for and improving the highways in the hands | of man competent for the job and who should be made free of any ham pering influences and not feel under obligation to give jobs to persons l who needed them and would do the | work whenever it suited their conven- fence. The matter would thus be plac- l ed on strictly business basis and in no other way could real efficiency be for the. money expended.
 Former SeIectman Seth Sanford also 1 favored the supervisor plan and said he had been earlier advocate of it than MT Peck although he thought that two men would be better than one on account of the large extent of terri tory to be looked after. His former official experience had convinced him that the contract system was a very | poor one for the town. The contrae. tors did just as little they could and if ordered by the selectnen to make good the deficiencies promised to do so and failed to fulfill the promise.
  system would be to take the road question out of politics.
 The contract system with cap- able, reliable contractor for the whole job had a strong advocate in ex-Se- Iectman J. L. Blackman. He believed that ed osborn Aaron s sanford @ or any one of perhaps forty others whom he could name would give us better roads present expenditure Secretary Plump of the Protective League declared him self in favor of the supervisor plan as did also s. c. Shaw, Phi1o Lyon and D S. Sanford The latter said he could hardly conceive of a greater ca lamity to the town than a return to tried and abandoned. Good road mak- ing was an art and called for expert A change in local condi- tions was sadly needed. but if one were to be made it should be a step and not backward.
 Ex-SeIectman Stephen Sanford spoke tractors should be held strictly to their obligations. He had been so held one year with consequent loss the discussion MT. Blackman inquired if Highway Com. Macdonald did not have all the State roads built by con tract .sYes" rejoined MT. Peck, "tand MT Macdonald is disgrace to the State Of Connecticut. He hires mem State jobs at $3 a day" Whereat the broke into loud applause.
 There was much further talk along the lines described and then Mir Banks contract motion was decisiveIys voted down. MT. Peck then offered a resolution that a supervisor be em- ployed to have charge of all road re- pairs and that he should have author ity to hire men and teams. Stephen Sanford moved an amendment that the compensation of such supervisor should not exceed S2, 800, but withdrew it on the appeal Of D. S. Sanford. Two or three other amendments designed to hamstring the Peck resolution were also offered, but all suffered defeat and the original motion was then adopted
 Next MT Peck offered a resolution providing that the task of hiring the supervisor be delegated to committee of three chosen by the meeting This was adopted. As the members of that committee, MT. Peck suggested George