Greene County herald. (Leakesville, Miss.) 1898-current, 1920-10-29
RESOLUTION CONCERNING
THE PROPOSED AMENDMENT
To State Constitution Which Is
Intended To Take From Supervisors
Jurisdiction Over Roads Ferries and
Bridges.
RERUN. ]

NO more VICIOUS propOSltlOu MAS
ever been submitted to the people of
Mississippi than this proposal to so
amend Section ITO of The Constitu-
ton, 1890 as to take from the Board
of Supervisors their constitutional
jurisdiction over roads, ferries and
bridges.
The object OF this amendment is to
place the road and bridges, ia the
hands of the State Highway Com.
mission
The Board of Supervisors of Clay
County most emphatically endorses
the resolution adopted by the Board
lof Supervisors of Marshall County,
en- this subject.
La the last legislature desperate
effort was made to pass a law pro-
viding for the issuance of Twenty
Five Million Dollars State Bonds, to
be placed in the hands of three high
way Commissioners appointed bv
the Governor. When the friends of
this scheme found that the same
would not be tolerated bv the peo-
Pile, they resorted to the scheme con-
tanned in the present law, which pro-
vides for eight Commissioners, one
to be chosen from each congressional
district by popular election. Under
this law, each commissioner will
have Ia his district the roads and
bridges OF ten or twelve counties to
look alter, without compensation.
No fifty men could discharge the du-
ties which would thus be imposed
upon one single Commissioner and as
he is required to serve without pay,
nobody but rich man could afford
to hold AID discharge the duties OF
this position which would require all
OF his time and very much=more
The automobile tax has already
been placed in the hands of the High
way Commission and will be- used
nobody know how or where. but we
do know that the whole of the auto
mobile tax paid by anv particular
county may be expended on high
ways In other counties in which the
county paving tax has no interest
whatever.
And If the people adopt this amend
ment the general road tax paid by
the taxpayers of any county may be
used entirely on the the roads of diff
ferent counties just as the automo
bic tax will be used
The present system has been in
force in this State nearly Il hundred
years and it will be extremely dan
gerous to change or modify it.
1t is true that the present vstem
has not al all times given complete
satisfaction to every body. No hui
man system is perfect and no human |
or divine system ever satisfied every |
body all the time, but the present
system is extremely wise and is the
very best we can devise. It's effici- |
cieucv has been indicated by long
use.
Nothing in the State is more i'm.
portant Than the public roads and
bripges, and what the people need is |
not so much lntercounty or inter
state highway to be used mainly by
jovriGers, but the people need the
public roads in the interior along
which they go in visiting their neigh
bors. and they want good roads to
their churches ard schoolhouses to
their county town and to their mar
ket
If the people adopt this amend
ment and put these roads in the |
hands of the highway Commission,
these interior country highways will !
be practically neglected.
Under YOUR present system YOU
have Supervisor in each district |
who is your friend and your nelghbor
and elected by your votes and this |
Supervisor gives good and suffi-
Gent bond to guarantee that he will |
discharge all the duties Of his Office,
especially the care of public roads |
and bridges. You may easily see |
him any day of the week and call his |
attention to anv defects In your road |
or bridge that need repair. III YOU
put these roads in the hands OF the
Highway Commission. you will have |
to go to Pontotoc or Tupelo or Jack |