The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1915-04-09


safely correct in general.
1t seems somewhat strange in this
country, where pursuit Of the dollar
is supposed to be so general, that tn
financial extravaganza OF the neglect
of proper maintenance mas not attract
ed more attention. 1t is a we'll known
fact, or it should be, because it has
been proved perfectly time and time
again in otGer countries, t. at the neg
lect of maintenance increases the
amount of deterioration out of all
proportion to the time involved, and
hence the cost of repair is correspond
ingly increased relatively, i. e., if a
newly constructed road unmaintained
will require 500 worth of repairs at
the end of the first. year it will require
not twice that amount at the end o!
the second year, but more than twice
t. at amount, and not three times that
amount at the end of the third yea:
or $500, but more likely $1,000, or
even more, and at the end Of five years
the bill for putting it back in good
condition would not be $500, but far
more likely $4,000. On the other, if
$100 woud likely nave put it back IN
good condition at the end of the first
year, and this 500 were properly eX-
pended on tae road to put it in first
class condition, Zen only another $500
would have been required at the end
of the second year, so that at the end
of five years $500 would have been
spent instead of the $1,000 or more
required by the other method Of neg
lect.
There is no question in the worll
but wat the same system OF con-
slant, watchful care over the roadbed
as adopted by the railroads, is the most
economical and most satisfactory for
adoption in the case Of highways.
Where maintenance of highways
has been attempted to some degree
two schemes lave been quite gener-
ally adopted, and probably the bulk
of the maintenance so far accorded
highways in this country has been
done under one or the other of these
schemes. One was, and is, to assign
for maintenance more or less DELI
mite section of a public road to some
individual. The individual is credited
Wit. a limited fund for his work, and,
except possibly for some exceptions,
when orders are issued in some spe-
cifc cases from the central road au-
thority, is life to his own devices for
performing the work for selecting the
time for its performances, and espe-
cially for the quality of it. The result
has, in tie majority OF cases, proved
a failure.
The ot- er system referred to Of So
called maintenance is the appoint
ment of an individual for a consider
able section of the highways in
portion of the territory covered by
the central authorities, and the placing
to the credit of this individual Of
limited, but often fairly large, sum
"a portion of tie general road funds)
for tie purpose of carrying on re-
pairs to the roads in his section.
Sometimes this individual himself re-
ceives no salary, or at least only
nominal one, for his services. In this
case, the objections above stated under
the other system as to the selection
of the individual apply with equal
force. In otter cases the district or
sectional authority is paid sufi-
cient salary for the time and services
required of it. Even in the event of
the selection of the proper man for
the work and tie payment to him of
proper salary for his work, the con-
duct of the work is in most cases un-
economical, inefficient and unsatisfac-
tory, because the usual procedure is
to get together a gang of men and
teams and to start out over the roads
Of the section either before the time
for farm work began in the spring OF
after the harvest in the fall, and talk
ing the roads consecutively, to attempt
to do all the work for the year at one
time. The rest of tie year the roads
get no attention at all. The repairs
are intermittent and irregular, instead
of constant, regular and careful.
Now, l am going to attempt to 81.
the answer l have promised to g.
question I put before you earlier.
which in effect was why has the
maintenance of our roads been neg
lected and inferior to that Of other
countries. even in t@ose cases where