Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1912-04-03
GOOD ROADS.
Hon. William 4. Haines at Munjoy
Club, Portland.

the banquet Of the Munioy club, OF Port |
land, at the Falmouth hotel March ii, |
was Hon. William t. Haines, who
seems to be the leading republican candi-
date for the nomination for Governor OF |
Maine.
Mr.. aanes is always an interesting |
speaker, and what he said about good |
roads on this occasion is well worth |
reading He said, in substance:
1--WE hear q good deal of reforms. OF pro- |
posed reforms. Our statesmen to-day are es-
pecially interested in advocating good roads.
In 1892 heard the first discussion upon this |
subject by Prof. George II. Hamln at OronO.
then at the head of the civil engineering de-
Partnent at the U. of NJ, before the State
board Of trade at Augusta. Al that time a
committee was appointed, upon which was
member, to present the matter to the ineom-
ing Legislature. In 1895, when 3 member Of
the House of Representatives from Water
vile, introduced bill to provide for a State
highway commissioner This bin was voted
down by large majority. Ten years later,
in 1905, the same bin was again introduced
and passed, and for the past six years we
have made some progress. in the matter of
better highways.
"a system Of State aid has been worked out
by which the State last year appropriated
$4,000 from its general treasury, and this
money Is distributed among the town. a
g-eater per cent. as heir valuation is small,
then to the larger and richer towns. upon the
principal that the sparsely-settled commuu-
ties with little valuation cannot bear the
burden OF building the high ways within their
territory, which are TO be used by the entire
people of the State.
"The system, so ia as IL goes, seems to work
well. A provision is also made by which any
part OF this money which is not called for by
the town, as 1t cannot be unless they them
selves appropriate certain sums to go with IL,
may be expended upon what Is termed State
roads. or those roads which are especially
designated by the county commissioners upon
which 1t shall be expended. may be expended
under the direction of the commissioner of
highways, on what Is known as trunk lines.
BY trunk lines is generally understood the
road from Kittery to Portland, thence diverg-
ing to Poland Springs and to Brunswick,
thence to Rockland and TO wsterviile. thence
TO Bangor and TO skowhegan and the upper
Kennebec region, from Bangor to Washington
and Aroostook counties.
WHAT SHALL We DOT
snow. the question comes up: What to do
and how to do IT, and frst OF all is 10 do it.
We are weddcd.to the principle OF local self
government. Town officials are sensitive and
Jealous to outside influences. of county or
State authority. For great many yeas the
common school system Of this State was kept
back by our natural preiudices in favor OF
the old-time 'deestrick'. That system gave
eight weeks schooling to one child in one
ard hArtv n ah3t q,
town. II was finally broken up and the sys-
TEN of free school books introduced, and the
carrying Of scholars at public expense at long
distances. and to made the school year as
nearly uniform as possible TO all scholars in
the state.
The principal qualification to-day, in many
of our towns, for highway commissioner, is
the ability to drive four horses; and the local
politics Ia many towns, centres around the
question Of who will be highway commits
siobcr. II Is said that the towns are spend
ius annually over si,5o0O0O, upon their roads,
aud that the average term OF highway COM
missioncrs is two years and eight months and
that good maa with modern ideas never
gets q second term. Political controversy,
party jealousy, neighborhood quarrels and
Z personal differences enter into this question:
and TO my mind the arst and most important
thing In the improvement OF oar public high
ways is 20 uproot this system and get 1t out
OF politics, to put in its place either town,
county or state supervisoF-and perhaps all
three, where some special skin or training in
the matter of the building and repair of high
ways shall be the one qualification.
''lf should say an engineer, | suppose l
( should create a widespread prejudice; but
( the arst person that railroad employs is an
engineer, and this is the person that they
constantly keep on hand, and the last to dis
charge. There is no why the United
States government should not assist the State,
through It's treasury, in the building of its
Highways 1t improves harbors AID rivers
and builds postoffices. IL is now using the
highways of Maine with its rural free de-
livery system and the general conveyance OF
its mail as much or more than any other use
Our streets are used by people from all the
other states in the Union. and II we had a
proper system for the proper expenditures of
money, 1t seems that we might make an et-
feetual appeal to the general government for
assistance.
MANY states have made very successful and
effectual use of convict labor in the matter of
care and building OF highways, with great
benefit to the convicts and great economy to
tue puOiiC- 10 iuinus we Will nave no
trouble about money, whether raised from
taxation or by the issue OF bonds, provided
our people feel that when this money is ex-
pended we get value received therefor, but IL
the old methods are to continue, our progress
win be slow. 1 had rather have one good
man, with one horse and a dump cart,
shovel and a garden rake, than all the work
which is done in many of the towns to-day
upon their roads,
~ would get better and more comfortable
road to ride upon both with a carriage or an
automobile by raking out the rocks and I'LL
ing up the holes at the foot o; the hills,
around the eulverts, than Is accomplished to-
day with the road machine, dragging the
same old mud out OF the gutter back into the
road to be again washed into the gutter. max
ing it little worse, year by year. as = proper
material to make road Of. Nature has