Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1913-02-18
CANCELLATION OH
ROADCONTRACT'
Critics of Board Action Ap-
pear to Misunderstood the
Underlying Motive.
ACTION FULLY JUSTIFIED
No Objection Will Be Made
to Road When It Is Def
initely Located.

In letter to the Aberdeen World
Mr.. A. p. Stockwell takes exception
TO an article in the Herald of Feb. TO-
relating to the c. d. Hanson road, a
reading of which entails a doubt OF
Mr.. Stockwell having read the article
he complains of For instance, he
uotes the Herald as having said, by
inference, that this road would be
of little or no use except to the Pol
son Logging Co.. whereas there is
such inference can be reasonably con.
Strued. Again, he charges this pa
per with saying, that not a wheeled
vehicle would use this road if it We're
constructed" while the words used
were, that there was not a wheeled
vehicle on the route to use the road
Mr.. Stockwell either did not have
the Herald article before him when
he penned that letter. or he is not the
disinterested writer he is credited
with being in this road matter. The
Herald simply justified the cancella
tion of the contract under the cir
cumstances as shown by the record,
and this paper believes Mr.. Stockwell
will concur in the action of the COM
missioners when he looks that record
~ hA
details that led up to the awarding
of the contract and of it's cancellation,
an. ignorance he should have correct
ed before criticizing the Herald ar
ticle, which gave a brief summary
of those details.
This paper is not opposed to the
building of this road. From the best
information it can obtain, we believe
it is needed; that the offer of the old
railroad grade and free right of way
is a good one, and is willing to leave
those matters to the county engineer
and commissioners. What the Herald
condemns, and did condemn the day
after the contract was let, is the man
ner of it's letting, and the fact thai
the road, clear through to Humptulips
is not regularity and legally estab
lished before any public money is ex
pended upon it.
For the information of the public
the Herald will again tell of the man
ner of awarding this contract-and
we very much doubt if the method will
appeal to Mr. tSockwell, or any other
taxpayer, as a wise precedent to es
tablish. On January 6, the board o1
commissioners met, two of the thre,
members for their last session. This
road matter was to be disposed OF
and some objections were made tC
the awarding of the contract, in fact
an attorney was known to the board
to be then in the superior court asking
for an order to restrain them from
letting it. To forestall this court or
der, the board, with indecent haste
opened and examined five bids and
let the contract for $4,830, all within
twenty minutes.
When the new board met, this wa:
the record before it. There was alst
a contract for right of way from tht
Poison Logging Co., that was very in
definite as to location, and which lack
ed the signature of the chairman o.
the board. The board decided the mat
ter was too loose for any public bust
ness and cancelled the contract until
the road is legally established it's en-
tire length and its exact location de
cided upon. This done the Herald
doubts if any objection to the roat
will be raised.
The route lies through some goo(
lands that have been logged-off which
il placed on the market, might in
duce settlement along the road, but
so far as it being of use to loggers
the chances are that the timber il
that vicinity will be nearly cut of
before the road can be built.
The Hoquiam Washingtonian ant
Aberdeen World have both criticized
the action of the commissioners il
this matter, just as Mr.. Stockwell did
the Herald believes, without full
knowledge of all the circumstances