The Adair County news., 1913-04-09


lodged about IS yards below, in the
river
We have repaired the damage to the
bridges at Milltown and Disappoint-
ment creek, supplying new founda-
tions timbers at both, and can truth
fully state that these two bridges are
now in better condition than they
were before the washout. The cost of
this repair has all been paid except
SIS. 80, and the total cost for both
bridges will not exceed 800
In the Green river bridge case at
Watson, Granville RUSSELL Assistant
Engineer, with the assistance of the
people living near by has been enabled
to save a great deal of the wood ma
terial of said bridge, consisting of
flooring, Sleepers and baniSters, which
were in drifts along the river, he hav-
ing had it hauled out and stored in a
safe place.
In regard to the main span of the
bridge, the Hon. County Judge and l
have contracted with the Champion
Bridge Company to take it out of the
river, asserting the damaged and un-
damaged as they take iU out at cost
to the county of the actual cost to
the said bridge company plus 25 per
cent, for their profit; and at this time
the work is about completed.
We deemed this to be the best course
for US to pursue, as we had no one in
this county that was prepared to do
the work, and besides, when this COM
pany, who were the builders of this
. bridge, get it all QUO of the water and
Strengthened out, they will be able to
give US and estimate Of what we will
have to procure in the way Of new
material in order to reconstruct said
bridge, and also give us an estimate of
the probable cost thereof.
In this connection we would recon-
mend that your honorable body au-
thorize the raising of the bridge or
feet when it is reconstructed, so as
to place it above high water mark. as
it has been demonstrated by this ca
tastrophe to be entirely too low.
We would also recommend that the
approach on both sides of this bridge
be placed upon cement abutments,
dispensing with wooden underproping,
and that Iron runners be substituted
for the wood. We believe this will be
economy in the long run.
The new road law stipulates that
the Coanty Road Engineer gather tc-
gether all the. road machinery belong
ing to the county and house the same
when not in use.
As the county had no house that
could be used for that purpose l have
ordered the Assistant Engineers in
each road district to gather up all the
machinery within their Jurisdiction
! belonging to the county and take
charge Of the same returning to me an
| itimized statement or list Of the same
for the preparation Of my report to
your honorable body at the October
term Of the fiscal court this year.
l find from the reports verbally
rendered so far, that there are enough
picks, shOyelS and scrapes to answer
our purpose if we are able to set in
motion and carry out our plans Of syS'
temizing the construction and main
| tenance Of the roads.
The subject of taxation, voting bonds
etc, for road purposes has been engag-
ing the attention of our citizens con-
siderrbly Of late, especially that speci-
men of the Genus Homo, the candi-
date, who always loves the dear people
add is very conSiderate of their well
! fares just before election. All this
yerbOsity and printers ink will no
doubt answer a good purpose in the
! long run, but | regard the most that
! has been said as premature and not
pertinent to the subject. We have d
I new dlu do 9CU ulllIl0O 1Odu ldN dll0 L
would recommend that we give this
! law as it now stands, a test, expand
! ing our energies along the line map
ped out in its provisions before we go
of at a tangeut voting bonds or in
curing any other great expense.
As I see it, what we need is a radi-
cal change in the system Of working
the roads To expect the people Of
this county to improve and maintain
six or seven hundred miles of dirt
roads, rocky branches and creekbeds in
passable condition with picks and
shoyels by hand labor supplemented
occasionally with a little plOwing
with borrowed plowe and a road
scraper, would be as near an impossi.
bility, in my judgement, as the dig,
ging Of the Panama canal with a grub
bing-hOe.
a levy Of 2Oc tax on the hundred
dollars will produce approximately