ROAD. 



for that purpofe on or before the 24th day of April next, 

 to order to be erefted at all the gates and bars which they 

 have erected, or fhall creft, for the receiving of tolls, or upon 

 any part of the road within their refpcftive jurifdiftions, and 

 at fuch a diltance from any turnpike, bar, or toll-gate, as 

 they (hall think requisite and expedient to order and caufe to 

 be erefted, a crane, machine, or engine, proper for the 

 weighing of carts, waggons, or carriages conveying any 

 goods or merchandize whatever ; and by a writing figncd 

 by them, or any five or more of them, to order all and every 

 fuch carriage or carriages which fhall pafs loaded through 

 any fuch gate or bar, to be weighed, together with the 

 loading thereof; and for them, or any five or more of them, 

 or for any perfon or pcrfons empowered by any five or more 

 of them, to receive and take, over aid above the tolls al- 

 ready granted, or hereafter to be granted, the fum of iexr. 

 for every hundred weight, I 1 2lbs. to the hundred, which 

 every waggon or cart hereafter defcribed, together with the 

 loading thereof, fhall weigh over and above the weights 

 hereafter allowed to them refpeftively ; that is to fay, to 

 every waggon or four-wheel carriage, having the fellies or 

 rolhrs of the wheels of the breadth of fixteen inches, eight 

 tons in fummer, and feven in winter : to every waggon or 

 wain, having the axle-trees thereof of fuch different lengths, 

 that the diltance from wheel to wheel of the nearer pair of 

 the faid wheels be not more than four feet two inches, to be 

 meafured at the ground, and that the diltance from wheel 

 to wheel of the other pair thereof be fuch, that the fore 

 and hind wheels of fuch waggons and wains fhall roll only 

 one fingle furfaee or path of fixteen inches wide at the leaf!, 

 on each fide of the faid waggons or wains, and having the 

 fellies thereof of the breadth of nine inches from fide to 

 fide at the bottom or fole thereof, fix tons ten cwt. in fum- 

 mer, and fix tons in winter : to every waggon or four- 

 wheel carriage, having the fole or bottom of the fellies of 

 the wheels of the breadth of nine inches, fix tons in fum- 

 mer, and five tons ten cwt. in winter : to every cart, 

 having the fellies of the fame dimenfions, three tons in 

 fummer, and two tons fifteen cwt. in winter : to every wag- 

 gon, having the fole or bottom of the fellies of the wheels 

 of the breadth of Ux inches, four tons five cwt. in fummer, 

 and three tons fifteen cwt. in winter : and to every fuch 

 waggon, to coullrufted as to roll, and actually rolling a 

 furfaee of eleven inches by the wheels thereof, rive tons ten 

 cwt. in fummer, and five tons in winter : to every cart having 

 the fellies of the fame dimenfions, two tons twelve cwt. in 

 fummer, and two tons feven cwt. in winter: to every wag- 

 gon, having the fole or bottom of the fellies of the wheels 

 of lefs breadth than fix inches, three tons fifteen cwt. in 

 fummer, and three tons twelve cwt. in winter : and to every 

 cart, having the fellies of the fame dimenfions, one ton 

 fifteen cwt. in fummer, and one ton to twelve cwt. in win- 

 ter. And if fuch truftees as aforefaid (hall negleft to ereft 

 Inch engine at their refpeftive gates by the faid 24th day 

 of June, then it fhall and .nay be lawful for any mortgagee 

 or mortgagees of the faid gate or gates to ereft fuch en- 

 gine or engines, and to take upon them the fame power as 

 the faid truftees were by the act inverted with, and under the 

 fame regulations, on or before the 29th day of September 

 ncxi ; and if the faid truftees and mortgagees fhall negleft 

 to ereft fuch engine or engines by the refpeftive tl 

 hereinbefi re Hi] or creeling the fame, then it (hall 



and may be lawful for all r(i ■ ■. carts, and other carriages, 

 from and after the faid 29 . '.iy of September next, to go 

 through and pafs along fuch road or mad;, without any 

 obftruftion or payment for tolls whatfoever, itntil fuch 

 Vol. XXX. 



truftees or mortgagees (hall ereft fuch weighing engine or 

 engines as aforefaid, and occafion the fame to be regularly 

 ufed ; any thing contained within the refpeftive afts for 

 turnpike roads to the contrary notwithstanding. 



And it is ufefully remarked, in refpeft to the effefts of 

 thefe regulations, that, firft, the weighing engines will fuf- 

 ficiently prevent carriages of all forts being overloaded, 

 which will be a prefervation of the road, whereas, the re- 

 ftraint upon the number of horfes does not anfwer the pur- 

 pofe ; for a fhort and overpowered team does more damage 

 to the roads, than a greater number of horfes, which dram 

 eafy, and confequently pafs along much quicker. That 

 difagreeable reftraint will be thereby made unnecefl'ary, 

 which empowers and encourages fome poor indolent wretches 

 to wander about the country with their ready printed no- 

 tices, to catch a prey, which, when got, is lavifhed away in 

 drunkennefs, debauchery, and diforder ; and if they fail in 

 their lawful attempt, which is often the cafe, and perhaps 

 diitreffed to the greateft degree, being defpifed by perfons 

 of all denominations, purfue poaching and fowl-ftealing, 

 which lead to greater afts of thievery, of which there are 

 many inflances ; for all the conviftions are grounded upon 

 the poor wretches as above defcribed, being by the law al- 

 lowed to be credible witneffes, who obtain the reward to 

 the amount of 5/. or more, when the team-owner's fervant 

 or fervants are all deemed prejudiced ; fo that, as the aft 

 now ftands, no one is fafe from thefe conviftions. 



Befides, the occupiers of farms in general, particularly 

 thofe upon the middling-fized ones, find themfelves, it is 

 faid, very much opprefl'ed and injured by the law now fub- 

 fifting for regulating the turnpike roads, by their being re - 

 ftrained from drawing more than four horfes in waggons, the 

 fellies of the wheels thereof being under fix inches broad. 

 Were farmers permitted to draw any number of horfes, it 

 would be of great public utility in lowering the price of 

 thofe animals, which is now enormoufly high ; the farmer 

 would find it his intereft, as formerly, to keep breeding 

 mares, which, with the colts they breed, may be made 

 ufeful great part of the year, provided they may be worked 

 eafy. The law, as it now ftands, afts nearly as a prohibi- 

 tion to farmers breeding horfes ; for a breeding mare, or a 

 colt under five years old, is not fit to draw one of four in a 

 waggon, with no more than fixtv bufhels of barley or wheat', 

 which is the common load of the Shropfhire or StafFordfhire 

 farmers, neither of which bring more than two tons, which 

 is confiderably under the weight the prefent aft allows to be 

 drawn on the turnpike roads in winter. Before the faid 

 turnpike laws were in force, the farmer's team, to draw his 

 fixty bufhels of wheat or barley, confided of fix in num- 

 ber, two of which at leaft were mares, either in foal or 

 fucklers, two colts, one of them two, the other three 

 years old, which were never opprefled or hurt by their 

 work ; confequently a fucceifion came on, and the owner 

 had one or two good found colts to fell of! every year to 

 the harnefa or draft, as they belt fuited. Good waggon 

 horfes were then bought at from 10/. to 15/. each, winch 

 are now, by their fcarcity, from 25/. to 35/.; and thofe for 

 the coach, that is, the light active half-blood horfes, are 

 from 40/. to 60/. 



And another evil occalioncd by this law is, that fuch 

 farmers are obliged to keep horfes of the largefl fize, which 

 confunu- the produce of much land, by eating a largi quan- 

 tity of corn, when the [mailer horfes, working eafy, fel. 

 dom eat any. It is conceived by the fame writer, that upon 

 this principle, a law for regulating roads may be enafted, 

 fo as to anfwer every good defign of the prefent, and at the 

 X x fame 



