The Colville examiner. [volume] (Colville, Wash.) 1907-1948, 1914-09-05
COUNTY FINANCES
ARTICLE NO. 6.
County Engineer.
The Colville Examiner Series. Sept. s. 1914

The Colville Examiner Series. Sept b, lSi4-l
The work of the county engi-
neer is largely created by order
of the county commissioners, and
the orders of the commissioners
are regulated by the demands of
the people. Hence the work, and
consequent expense, of the coun-
ty engineers Office is directly up
to the people themselves, and
the office may cost much or little
according to the number of de-
mands made for new roads,
changes, regrades, extensions,
etc.
In this growing county, where
demands have been so great for
the opening of new roads, and
changing grades on old ones, it
is marvellous that the engineers
office has cost so little in past
years. And now that the state
road and permanent highways
are demanding much time of the
county engineers office. costs
are likely to increase if the coun-
ty continues to answer the de-
mands of ranchers to provide
reasonable highway accommoda-
tions for their traffic.
When a road petition is pre-
sented to the commissioners, the
feasibility of the request is con-
sidered, and in most cases the
engineer is ordered to make a re-
port on the proposal. If the pc
tition is then granted by the
commissioners, the engineers
office is ordered to make the def
mite road survey and report of
costs. These operations require
both field and office work run
ming the lines, making plats and
maps, figuring grades and angles,
and estimating costs. For years
the work of the office has been
divided into field and Office, the
engineer most often taking the
field, and hiring an office man to
do the map and office work. A
capable office man can keep the
work of the office speeded up to
the top notch, but if the office man
is slow or incapable, the work of
field men is just so far retarded.
The county engineer must
possess both theoretical and
practical knowledge of civil en-
gineering, construction.work both
bridge and road, and accurate
knowledge of timber and struct-
ural iron, and must know costs
of all kinds of materials, and
time required to build roads or
bridges. He must know the
strength of various materials,
their durability, suitability. etc.
The county engineer is by law
the virtual custodian of bridges,
and he must make examinations
and report to the commissioners.
On county roads. his work
ends when the full data is turned
in to the commissioners, but on
state roads he must take the
part of contractor, and build the
roads like a railway engineer
overseeing the entire construc-
ton, following the states plans.
From IL to 20 roads are con-
stantly on hand in the office,
either awaiting survey, or right
of way, or held up by failure of pc
titioners to definitely agree on
location, or held up by commits
sioners on account of trouble
with land owners or neighbor-
hood quarrels.
To give an idea of the amount
of work passing through the
office: At the beginning of 1913
there were 18 roads left from the
former administration. Since
that time. 155 roads have been
handled, and 10 are now in the
office awaiting survey. This is
all exclusive of the state roads.
During this time, II miles of the
Springdale-Hunters hig h way
have been surveyed and esti-
mated, and A miles built and
rock-surfaced; 3. As miles of the
Addy. Clifford road built; and work