The Turnpike System 83 



fitness to discharge the duties of commissioners, but from 

 the sole qualification of residence within a short distance from 

 the road to be made or repaired." 



That the best interests of the community could be served 

 under- these conditions was an impossibility. The " Edin- 

 burgh Review " declares, in fact, that the whole time of 

 the meetings of turnpike trusts was " occupied in tumultuous 

 and unprofitable discussions, and in resolving on things at 

 one meeting which run a good chance of being reversed at the 

 next ; that the well informed and civilized commissioners 

 become very soon disgusted with the disorderly uproar, or 

 the want of sense, temper or honesty of some of their com- 

 panions ; and that the management finally falls into the hands 

 of a few busy, bustling, interested persons of low condition, 

 who attend the meetings with no idea of performing a public 

 duty, but for the purpose of turning their powers, by some 

 device br other, to the profit of themselves or of their friends 

 or relations." 



The writer of the article on " Roads " in " Rees' Cyclo- 

 paedia " is no less condemnatory of the whole system, speaking 

 of the " violent disputations and bickerings " at the meetings 

 of the trustees, where, he says, " a proposed new line of road 

 or, perhaps, the repair of an old one, will sometimes be con- 

 tested with as great keenness and vehemence as if the parties 

 were contending whether Great Britain shall be a monarchy 

 or a republic." 



Each trust, again, had its own organisation, with attorney, 

 treasurer, clerk and surveyor ; and one may assume that each 

 of these individuals, in turn, was inspired by no greater sense 

 of public duty than were many of the trustees themselves, 

 and was much more concerned in what he could make out of 

 the business for himself than in helping to provide through 

 routes of communication in the interests of the community. 

 The surveyors were, generally speaking, hopelessly incom- 

 petent. The short length of road in charge of a trust and 

 the consequent limitation of the amount received for tolls 

 did not, as a rule, warrant the payment of an adequate salary 

 to a really qualified man, and the individual upon whom 

 the courtesy title of " surveyor " was conferred was often 

 either the pensioned servant of aTTocal landowner or some other 

 person equally unfit to be entrusted with those functions of 



