Crossville chronicle. [volume] (Crossville, Tenn.) 1894-current, 1922-02-08
COURT REFUSED TO
CONSIDER BOND ISSUE
Did Not Even Take a Vote on the
Proposition Presented by State
Highway Commission.

The county court convened in extr;
session Monday Immediately follow
ing the charging Of the grand jur.
by Judge c. E. Snodgrass of th'
circuit court
w. T. TeSterman, secretary of thu
State Highway Commission was ther,
and presented a tentative agreemen
to the court which meant simply this
If Cumberland county would vote
$25oooo in bonds to meet alike amour
furnished by the state and Fedora
government each, the state woulC
take that amount and expend it il
building the Memphis o-Bristol High
way through our county. That is al
there is to the proposition when di-
vested of all verbage
| Mr.. Testerman stated i'll his talk to
the court that he felt that it woulc
require around 100000 to complete
the Memphis-to Bristol highway
though the county, but if the county
should put up the $25o,ooo asked, the
state highway commission would COM
plete the road and not ask the county
for any further aid. He further stated
that since the Memphis tol
highway is to become a state road
the state would maintain it after
built.
There was much discussion of the
question by those favorable and
against bond issue. 1t was clear
ly evident to most persons that the
court did not come there to vote
bonds and that it did not intend to
do SO regardless OF what any preson
nigh say.
Esq. U. S. Rose made a motion to
pass the bond matter over until the
April term of court and that COM
mittee be appointed by the court to
endeavor to obtain from the State
Highway Commission more favora bic
terms than had beer offered When
the vote was taken the motion lost
seven to six.
ly useless to put to a vote the propo-
sition presented by Mr. Testerman
and no vote was taken on it and the
court adjourned without formal action.
The question was discussed for
some three or four hours and it
would take volumes to tell all that
was said, but the gist of it might be
briefly stated in this: The question
of interest and taxes was stressed
to the utmost by those opposed to a
bond issue, while those favorable to
the bond issue stressed the benefits
to be derived from good roads and
how impossible it is for our country
to grow and develop without good
roads and further that our schools
could never amount to much until we
had more good roads so as to make
,onsoida ted schools possible.
AS means toward better roads |
here is now some talk of six mill
evy for roads, which it is claimed
will provide about 100000. That with
he automobile fund and the regular
Dad fund, it is claimed will provide
lbout 100000 to $4,000 for roads each |
ear. 1t is proposed to use this |
mount in putting Stag from Rock
wood on the roads alike diverging /
r0H the county seat. When the .
unds thus provided is exhausted each !
ear work viii cease. By chat means
t is claimed we will be paying for
ur roads as we build them.
- difficulty OF doing anything
eally effective in that way is this
he surfacing Of main street of Cross
lille for approximately half mile
ost we are inormed, $4,000 or more.
It that rate it would cost $4,000 mile
first and as the haul became longer
1e cost would increase. At that
ate $4,000 would build ten miles the
rst year. Couting the six roads
aiding from the county seat the ten
lilies would make less than two miles t
II each road the first year. With the
creased expense because of in /
cased distance and upkeep, the mile t
&c would decrease each year SO that
short time less than a mile a
,ar would be built. That would re- c
iire fully twenty years or longer
get twenty miles of road That r
oud be all exceedingly slow method T
building roads and one that would
,ep the county practically station
V so far as road progress goes or
neral development is concerned.
There is every probability that re- r
Its would show even worse condi-
ms than here outlined.