The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1912-10-06
Interview With SuGgs,

State Highway Commissioner Sid
new Suggs was at his home in this
city when the township officers OF
the state met in convention in Okla
homa City and he has read with con-
siderable interest the reports OF that
meeting. The local papers devoted
more space to the meeting than out
side papers and the above date line
article concerning the meeting was
published in the Dallas News
Mr. Suggs, in commentinS upon
the meeting said that he had learned
upon what he considers good author
tty that only 72 township officers
of the state were present at thls
meeting. Mr. Suggs further states
that he expected such resolutions, that
a fight is on between his department
and the steel bridge and tin culvert
trust is an open secret and that ne
would like for every taxpayer In the
state to become acquainted with the
| facts in the case before the leg1sla
tire convenes. He is not saying
i'll things against the township Off
GERS but he finds fault with the LACK
of system that is followed in doing
road work in this state.
One of the commissioners who at
tended the last state meeting OF the
state organization of the county COM
missioners which was held In Ard
more stated that his county alone
had so road overseers that received
$50 each annually before the roads
received any work whatever. This
system. he continues, takes s from the
road fund of his county $4,000 with
out digging up a stump or draining
single rod Of the roads
Under the present state law there
can be appointed 21,OO0 of these men
and their salaries will aggregate more
than a million and half of the tax
PAYERS money before one penny
reaches the road bed.
Under such circumstances Mr.
Suggs feels justified in making flght
for a better system of road work The
people. he says, are paying more road
taxes than they should pay, they are
paving this money and not obtaining
but little work Some of the counties
are today building roads by private
subscription as they did in this coun-
try i'm old Indian Territory days, ana
at the same time are contributing to-
ward a fund which is more than
ample to build good dirt roads IN
every county of the state
The counties are spending money
on the roads. the townships are spend
ing money on the roads, inexperlenc-
ed men are buying material; these
officers frequently change with each
election and there is no definite sys-
tenn of making purchases. Mr.. SugSs
states that the taxpayers are pay
ing too much for material for build
ing bridges and culyerts, the smooth
salesman oversells the townships ana
these townships have material stack
| ed up in many sections Of the state
where there are no funds to put them
out on the roads.
Mr.. Suggs' plan is to have an en-
gineer in each county, a competent
man to survey the roads and to DC
construction work in a scientific man
ner. He is proceeding on the theory
| that road construction work is a
business within itself, that it needs
n man trained for that specific worR
and it also needs men who are train
ed or educated in values to do the
buying of material.
Just as long as material men nave
good profits in the old system, JUS
as long as an army Of men get salar
/ les out of the system so long VII
| there be a fight against the changing
| of the system.