Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1916-02-04
sHelpUsGe
Out Of Mud
Burkes Garden Makes Plea For
More Road Money-Favors
New Bond Issue If Properly
Expended.

Editor the News:-Everybody who ut.
tended The good roads meeting last
Saturday was struck with one thing at
least-the people are for good roads
and they are going to have them some
way. Every other way to get them
except through another bond issue
seems hazy or impractical that senti-
ment has developed overwhelmingly
for another bond issue right up to the
limit. At least this is SO in the Clear
Fork district. In Burke's Garden, en-
thusiasm is running higher than ever
before. Most of us see no other So
luton than bond issue and are
ready to vote. There are some inilu-
ential citizens, however, who still
question the wisdom of the bond is
sue. Maybe some of them oppose it,
as some times strong minded men will
just because they said they would.
Change your mind, fellows and come
across. 1t is said to be mark of
greatness to change your mind when
you are wrong, and maybe that is
about all The claim to greatness most
of us will ever have. Let's drop that
old issue as to how to raise the mon
cy and spend our energy on getting
the worth of our money when it is
spent. Your correspondent believes
with the majority that it is the real
crux of the matter here in Burkc's
Garden. If our people really felt
tnat they were going to get some
roads this time they. would "fall in"
and ego marching on" to glory. But
in the light of past experience is it
any wonder that some of our folks
are opposed to voting any more tax
money until they are assured that
Burke's Garden is going to get her
part of it. That was the "nigger in
the wood-pile" Mt Tazewell last Sat-
urday when the little scrap came up
between Burke's Garden and the dele
from the other end of the district.
There are other "niggers" in other
wood-piles, but that's the one in ours
this time and if it is any satisfaction
to know it the Graham hustlers jump
ed him right out. Our people want
some roads this time and they are
mighty apt to fight Il bond issue if
they don't get some mighty clear in
dication that they are going to get
some roads this time. II may be of
interest to some of our readers to re-
view the situation in Burke's Garden
a little. In nutshell, Burke's Gar
don &c a ya1lay 6yo ,,,;Ia, oo,oe. o,l
ten miles along. Under the old bond
issue. you, (whoever you ara), helped
to get us into the Garden from Grat-
ton by coming over fairly good mod
ern road to the top of the mountain
and then jumping us down or sliding
us down or wallowing, or whatever
you want to call it, to the bottom.
And then you let us have n little
string, economically and wisely built
by the Mosses, our own people, to
the Station Spring Branch, mile,
say, inside the Garden. Beyond that
not dollar was spent of the bond is
sue money to get us to church, to
school, to the blacksmith shop, store,
mill or to each others homes. Unless
we want to go TO town, we drag thru
the mud just like we always did and
if we want to go to town, maybe we
can and maybe we can't. We can if
it is cold enough to freeze the horns off
n brass monkey and the road up the
mountain gets frozen up tight and
then it takes pair of automobile
tires every time to try it. And if the
weather is warm enough to tempt
one to go out in the winter the bottom
drops out of the road and you have to
double team and get out and push
and cuss and do all sorts of things
like they used to do in pioneer days.
Now, that's one "nigger" in our wood
pile, the south of the mountain. A
rope is only as strong as the weakest
point. We want the south of the
mountain macadamized so that we can
get The benefit of the rest of it. You
folks who love to tour over here in
SUMMER, and we like to have you do
it, just motor over one Of these drip
ping January days. Come right on
up to the top of the mountain on
"high" if you want to and then slide
down through the muck. You can't
coast, SO you'd better keep on the
gas. No; don't come till summer
comes again, for if you do you'll new
er get out. You may slide in, but
you'll never slide out. You'll feel like
rats sliding into a trap. And when
the bait is all gone you'll be starved
Do you begin to glimpse the stua-
ton? Here's Burke's Garden, beauti-
full Burke's Garden, the most isolated
community in the county, the most
populous rural area in the county, q
community of educated, cultured
thinking, business people, with only
one way out, twelve miles to the rail,
road and county seat,--fifteen and
4ak. IL