Morgan County Democrat. (McConnelsville, Ohio) 1886-1943, 1932-10-20

| the assessments. If landowner:
really want to pay more for roads
they will come across then. ThosS
people on the less important roads
will always be ready to put up some
| money, If at all possible to draw
money, which should, in justice tc
the most people, be used on more
| important roads. Those living OF
the roads that should be built now
must pay their assessment to com
pete with the others. Here we havt
an example of the public doins
| something it doesn't want to do. +
| is all because we have chosen lead
ers who haven't led, but have per
/ mitted minority to run things
Farmers as they are cannot stol
this competition. 1t is up to tht
commissioners to make a legal as
sessment (Which isn't practicaD 81
| the only alternative is no assess
ment.
| In Homer township section o.
/ the so-called grade road was solo
/ with the understanding that two
/ persons holding most of the lane
along the road would have their as
/ sessments put or the tax duplicate
| Other abutting landowners were
1 told if they didn't make their dona
4 ton they would have to pay it a.
1 taxes, with 10 interest. AS it ha:
I turned out, no assessment wa:
/ made (either because of our com
J missioners' negligence or because o
no intention in the beginning) OF
anyone; but commissioners agreed
1 TO build the road, with a 500 do
nation from one landowner, if thu
/ Homer township trustees would lei
/ $500 of township funds already
promised on that particular road b
| entered on the records as an assess
/ ment from the landowners. Ap
! parently the scheme was to pay al
extra amount equal to the assess
ment, but to have the records show
that the landowners had paid their
$500 per mile That would have
shifted the blame of having no as
sessment on that piece of road,
from the commissioners onto the
trustees. 1t didn't work. We are
wondering why the commissioners
requested that this be kept secret, il
they built the road. Do you think
this is an example of the so-called
trustworthiness, conscientiousness
and unquestioned integrity of our
commissioners aspiring to office
again? This is only one example.
We have heard of other secret nego-
tiations. Those knowing the facts
of others in their locality might air
them here if interested in having
public affairs run openly and above
board.
We know of one person who got
the impression that the valuation
would be raised on the farms whose
owners did not pay their assess
ments. We do not vouch for the
official origin of all the impressions
people may get, but we do know
that they are being passed around
and compose part of the method
of collecting assessments. There
are many by-roads being built.
There are roads running to trus-
tees homes and stopping. There
are roads being built with the eN-
cuse that they are mail routes. Mail
routes may be easily changed by the
post office department to follow the
i 1Na
not care to go somewhere by one
route and return by another, as
rural carrier used to, and for that
reason our road system should not
be built for mail routes, but rather
make the mail route fit the roads.
Here has been the commissioners
attitude on one section Of the
"grade" road In 1890 they said it
was one of the most important dirt
roads in the county, but because
they said they couldn't nearly matca
the townships money, they couldn't
say much Indicating improvements.
They wouldn't break with the trus-
tees even though they knew and ad-
mitted the wrong roads were being
built. (That same year the county
put up $S0,4S0, the townships $42,-
653, and landowners $25,26O. They
said the state ought to take over
the grade road, and that they would
use their influence to that effect.
In 1881, they said get the trus-
tees together in the three town
ships concerned, and they would
help build the road This road lies
on the edges of these townships,
and considering the conception most
trustees have of their official duties
there was little hope Of any help
from them, especially if they were
all Nike that trustees in one Of these
townships, who said no one could be
elected trustee in his township if he
did what he admitted was the right
thing to do. He evidently had sold
his integrity for some votes. He,
and others, might well consider that
notable quotation II would rather
be right than president" Still the
held that they
build it alone, as that
wouldn't be according to their "sys-
tenn They forgot about the 2 l2
niles in Bloom township, which
they alone built, and also over seven
miles of other roads, which they
1elped build the same year (1930)
without any help from the trus-
ICES.
And now in 1892 (election year)
hey offered to build it alone if the
landowners would pay their as
Failing in this they Of
sarod To hnilt If alone if the lani;-