Morgan County Democrat. (McConnelsville, Ohio) 1886-1943, 1939-06-15
w, p. A. DISTRICT DIRECTOR
ANSWERS HERALD EDITORIAL

w. II. A. DISTRICT DlRECIOR
ANSWERS HERALD EDITORIAL
! In the issue of June /, there ap
peared in the McConnelsville Her
aid an editorial under the caption
''The New Deal Boulevard in Bris
tol Township The editorial alst
appeared later in the GAINESVILLE
Times Recorder. L. C. Gibson, WPA
director of this district has sent Mr.
Matson, editor Of the Herald, let
ter, in which he corrects certain
statements that appeared in that ed
itorial. His letter to the Herald ed
itor follows:
Dear Mr.. Matson:-My attention
has been called to an editorial in the
issue of the Herald Of June 1st en-
titled "The New Deal Boulevard in
Bristol -Meigsville." It would appear
that you have absorbed some curb
stone opinions and used them as an
excuse for an attack upon the pres
ent national administration. l can
ignore that, but I feel that correc-
tions are due in your paper concern
ing certain statements and implica-
tions in this editorial
It is not within my province to
defend the selection of this mile of
road for improvement by WPA
workers. I believe that your county
commissioners and engineer did the
selecting after receiving and filing
resolutions from the Meigsville and
Bristol township trustees asking for
the work. However, usually l find
that our level-headed trustees have
reasons for such actions.
Your statement that the work
has been going on "for months is
correct. It's three months, to be ex-
act. Work began March 9Th and is
expected to end in completion June
18th.
Your guesses of from $4,000 to
$4,000 per the mile are far off, and
just to disprove your opening state
ment that "no one knows how
many (thousand Of dollars it will
Cost)," can tell you right now
that the total cost, including labor,
all materials and equipment, fur
nished by both federal government
and sponsor will be approximately
$1O,868 This total is divided rough
ly into the following sums: Federal
labor, $S,420; federal non-labor,
which in this instance was spent for
culvert pipe, limestone and truck
hire, $1,148; Morgan county, in
some labor, equipment rent,
and miscellaneous materials, ST.
300.
OF course I disagree with you
that the WPA goes in for the ''in-
defensible, the horrid, hideous,
frightful waste of borrowed public
which you mention. This
stretch of road cost more than
a similar distance in, say,
level Franklin county, and it is true
that in building good road it was
necessary to do considerable excava-
tion. But this extra cost is figured
into the total above, which also
covers small concrete bridge built
as part of the work.
Comparisons often are invidious,
and we of the WPA certainly can't
with the heavy equipment
If state highway department con-
tractors in the speed with which we
move dirt, largely by hand, al
though on some types of cOnstruc-
lion our men do very we'll from a
standpoint in efficiency
and quality of workmanship.
But you brought this matter up.
Mr.. Matson, by mentioning that
1000 families are served by roads
lust as good, CONSTRUCTED by the
state and county at cost of $4,000
,r less per mile" Did you happen
% notice, Mr. Matson, that on page
,ne of your June 1st issue you had
/ little item telling about the award |
If a state highway contract for i'm
proving sections Of the Rim Of the
World road? The successful bid,
voull notice, was $54,259. Did you
know that these sections total just
"A miles? Not knowing just what |
s to be done, l am in no position to
criticize this cost If you are in a |
similar position as relates to how
NPA operates, you can obtain cop
es Of the original act creating the
NPA in 1893, with subsequent
changes, by writing to the U. s.
printing office.
In your INJURY into WPA, you
night try to decide for yourself and !
your readers just what Morgan
county work, other than the one in
licated by your finger of scorn in
he editorial, is not useful and
worth while. Would you include
he McConnelsville and Malta streets |
,uilt by WPA workers? We are
'ather proud of that work, since it
s some of the best of its kind in
Ohio Would you in
:lude the two schools built by WPA
n your county? Or perhaps you
would like to look over the Zanes-
,ille pike on the east bank Of the
and to ask some of the
'olks living along it whether 1t is a |
lecided Improvement. I'm sure
County Engineer Smith or the WPA
'oad project supervisor, Dwight
Robinson, would be glad to take
vou on tour of the jobs completed |
ind under way. Perhaps some close
contact with WPA works and work
srs, as a relief from reading hand
,uts from partisan sources, might
nave salutary effect.-Sincerely,
L. C. Gibson. Director. District No.
B.
GENERALS RULINGS
Money paid into the state treas