The Union times. [volume] (Union, S.C.) 1894-1918, 1915-03-19
Telephone" On Good Roads

rather shrink from publicity in this
matter but l have been requested by
several of my friends to write again
about bonds.
| | am sure | have stood for pro-
gress and advancement in all that |
take to be for those purposes and |
have been patriotic from my majority
over half century ago, and | stand
no less for the same today, but | do
not endorse every movement that
comes along (some of them spas
modic), claiming to be for the public
| good and more especially when it
envolvcs big appropriations of mons,
Two hundred thousand dollars is no
small amount of money to lay upon
a county these stringent times. l
have already voted one time too
many for big issue of county bonds
that of the Spartanburg and Asne
vile railroad nearly forty years ago.
and the county has been paying tax
to retire these bonds ever since, and
as | have often heard what an old
negro said "once bite, twice shy"
l am going to he shy of all big an
preparations. The law enacting the
issue of the bonds. if elected by the
I'DCODle, was CoHCtlNSu ana DOtn III
the mud and slush and rather spas
medically, but by the time election
comes off the 9th of April for their
adoption, the mud and slush will b.
gone, the roads dry and good and the
bonds will be defeated. | am re-
minded of the old fiddlers sonw
called the "Arkansaw Traveller"
which runs thus. A traveller was
passing the road in Arkansas and |
he came upon farmers house by
the road side that was not covered !
and he asked the man why ne did |
not cover his house and the reply |
was: when it is raining | can't cover |
it and when it is not raining it don't !
need it,'and it is pretty much tn, |
way with roads, where it is raining |
all the while and the roads are mud !
| dy and bad we can't work them anl !
when the rain stops and the roGd' |
get dry and in good condition thov |
don't need it, The roads are coins. !
to he muddy and bad while it rains
all the winter-thc bond issue TO the
contrary, notwithstanding. Mr.. l.. T..
| Wagnon had long communication |
| in regard to the bonds in The Times
two weeks since in support Of the
bond issue, but | can't agree with
him, GOOD fellow and friend as h.
is, he is away Off and rather mis-
leading in part Of his statement. He
makes horrible picture Of the dead
ly railroad crossing and would have
ell that danger avcrtod by viGdIcts
Oh subways and save the peop" froHi
any danger. Well that would b.
spending money with vengeance for
there are great many of these cross
ings in Union county. | don't want a
dollar spent to save me from danger
on railroad crossing for | have been
crossing the railroad ever since the
first road came through the county in
1859 and have never been hurt yet,
and don't expect to be for stop, look
and liste2e It's only the careless and
racklesSH lople that get hurt on the
kcrossinA N,nd don't want to be taxed
to pay f,r them.
Wherein, I think Mr.. Wagnon is
misleading is he says that the poor
man would soon be relieved of pay
ing personal property tax. I don't
see how one mans personal property
can be exempted from tax and anotn
er mans property not exempted, and
it would not be fair even to do so.
The personal property of the county
pays a good portion of the tax which
is right.
Referring to the deadly road cross
ings, what about the automobile and
motorcycle victims. they numeb>
about as many as the railway cross.
ings and most of them from care
lessness or recklessness. It's up to
thn rannlo tn 1onl, n,,t fnp. h., |
one and not want the county to do
it.
AS for road working, I claim to
be pretty well up on that, for I went
on road duty at 1S years of ag"
about 81 years ago, | worked as COM
mon laborer, served as warner Gnr
as overscer. l liked the oversecr
the best. have laid out new roads
for myself, for the community and
for the county, or helped to do SO.
and / never had even q surveyors
compass, but the work was a success.
! object to so much red taDe in road
building or any other building, for it
consumes too much time and money
and leaves much less for the real
purpose. Can't build q chrr"h
school house or any other building
these days without having some
noted architect, very often yankee,
to make blue print that costs any I
where from fifty to two hundred /
dollars and all the money comes out
of the pockets of the people.
say let's wait till the big war "
is over before we make any more
bonds and see how we stand and not |
| 90 off half-cocked because the roads |
are muddy and two or three people
were killed at railway crossing
which might have been averted.
Ta1onhnpa