HOW TO REMEDY DEFECTS. 59 



You will perceive from these extracts, that men who are 

 called upon to work out their tax on the road evidently con- 

 sider such labor unconstitutional. 



And yet, notwithstanding the evils of this bungling system, 

 if system it may be called, which could not have been better 

 devised to accomplish nothing, about one hundred towns in this 

 State still cling to it. Is it any wonder that there is a uni- 

 versal complaint of its utter inefficiency ? Is it any wonder 

 that we have to wade through mud and mire in the spring and 

 through dust in the summer, stumbling over rocks, with the 

 endless wear of carriages, tear of horses and teams, and that we 

 suffer the discomforts and annoyances which travelling over 

 sucli roads implies ? 



These are only a few of the present defects of the system re- 

 cognized by the statutes of this Commonwealth. There are 

 many others which I have not time to enumerate in this con- 

 nection. Now, how shall they be remedied or removed ? It 

 would seem that the change ought to be radical, that the medi- 

 cine could hardly be too strong to meet so serious a case of 

 disease ; but lest the general sentiment of the community 

 should not be found educated up to such a treatment, I will 

 allude to one or two milder, half-way measures at first, which 

 would clearly be an improvement upon the present state of 

 things, and then say what seems to me to be required to effect 

 a complete change in the present system. 



And first, the law might require that the whole supervision 

 of roads should be vested in the board of selectmen, who should 

 be obliged to appoint a thoroughly competent superintendent, 

 who should hold his office for a term of years, not less than 

 three, and perhaps not more than five, subject to removal only 

 for good cause shown, to whom should be committed the entire 

 responsibility of the repairs of roads, and who should have a 

 sufficient force of workmen constantly employed to make 

 permanent improvements and to keep up the roads. Nothing 

 is better or more clearly proved by the experience of the past, 

 than that the plan of annual or semi-annual repairs is totally 

 inadequate to keep up the roads, though it is undoubtedly the 

 most expensive and wasteful of the public money. 



It might be well also, to require by law that at least one-half 

 of the money raised should be devoted to making permanent 



