662 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE Off. Doo 



provisions oi this act, or wbich have already been made or may 

 hereafter be made, at the expense of sucli townships or counties, 

 and which are of the standard ])rescribed by the State Highway De- 

 partment for improved roads. 



Section 16 of said act, which I will read, gives the method to 

 be observed in making application for a share of the maintenance 

 fund : 



^'Section 10. Whenever the supervisors or commissioners of any 

 township or county shall desire State aid for the purpose of main- 

 tenance of improved highways, whether State highways improved 

 under the provisions of this act or otherwise, it shall be the duty of 

 said supervisors or commissioners to file with the State Highway 

 Department, on or before the first day of April in each year, a sworn 

 petition requesting such State aid, and setting forth the number 

 of miles of highways improved according to the standards of the 

 State Highway Department in said tow^nship, and the cost of the 

 same to said township, together with the condition of said improved 

 highways and the average annual cost of maintaining the same. 

 The State Comm.issioner of Highways, if in his judgment the con- 

 ditions warrant the co-operation of the ^tat'e in maintaining said 

 highways, shall apportion to said township its proportion of the 

 total amount available for the maintenance of improved highways, 

 as hereinbefore provided, and the said amount shall be paid to the 

 supervisors or commissioners of said township hy warrant of the 

 State Highway Department; but in no case shall the amount thus 

 given by the State for maintenance, be more than one-half the 

 amount which, in the judgment and experience of the State High- 

 way Commissioner, the annual cost of maintaining improved high- 

 ways of the standard of construction prevailing in such township 

 should be, nor more than one-half the sworn, average annual cost 

 of maintenance, as set forth in the petition of the supervisors or 

 commissioners of the said tow^iships." 



Section 22 provides that "'County commissioners or county en- 

 gineers of the several counties of this State, and the officers of all 

 cities, boroughs and townsliips in the State, who now have, or may 

 hereafter have by law% authority over the public highways, and 

 bridges, shall, upon the written request of the State Highway De- 

 partment, furnish said Department with' any information relative 

 to the mileage, cost of building, and maintenance, condition and 

 character of the highways under their jurisdiction, and with any 

 other needful information relating to the said highways." 



Some of the township and county authorities have been very dila- 

 tory and indiflerent about furnishing information asked for; while 

 others have been commendably zealous in obtaining and furnishing 

 to the Department needed information. 



