Petition for amending laws relating to roads and bridges

Pet No 1. a Petition of Leevi Houts and others of Richeaud County for an amendment to Chapter 502 of the laws of 1887 cull led "an act to amend Section 1258 R. S. relating to highways and bridges 1/17 By Wer. DeLeof. Roads & Bridges

Orion Town Clerks Office Richland County Wisconsin Jan 14th 1889

Hon R. H. Delapp. Member of Assembly Madison Wis Defin.

find Enclosed two petitions,

I the Petition to repeal Chaper 426. of Session Lawas of Ad 1887.

II the Petition to amend Chapter 502 of Session Laws of 1887.

Comments. Said Chapter 502. in the payment of Road Overseers fees is unjust and not for the Public good. for the reasons

I In most Road Dists in said County no money is paid to overseers on Road Taxes. for the reason a taxpayer Can hire a man to work out his fare at $1 per day,

II Where money is paid to Overseers generally put in much time and Consume the greater part of such oney in fees. Thereby such money is diverted from a Public benefit.

III The legislature (to my knowledge for 35 year town Clerk in said County) has different times changed the Law upon the Road overseers fees, and in the way they should be paid

the difficulty seems to be to harmonize the two modes upon which road taxes are collected in money then the overseers or commissioners have in their hands money to retain their fees therefrom for services, and expend as much time as they see proper, while under the other mode the road to fare list is placed in hands of overseers to collect & expend the fare in labor on roads. The labor is furnished seldom any money so that the overseer expends the most valuable time in the year with the only hope of receiving a certificate against subsequent road taxes in his dist. upon which no business man will accept the office of overseer, and to rely upon un-businessmen to set as overseer as is the case nine out of ten, then and in that case the road taxes are squandered, by deficiency in judgment of how roads should be repaired, and negligence to see that persons work faithfully-

I would respectfully suggest that the legislature fix a per cent on the dollar for all road taxes collected & expended on the roads as fees of overseers, to be paid out of the town funds and have all the road taxes expended on the highways, and not consumed in fees or long run certificates to take up future road taxes then overseers would work under the same princials as town treasurers now work on fees. It costs in said town from 8 to 15 per cent to collect & expend on roads the roads tax according to the records in my office.

Your off servt. Levi Houts Town Clerk

NB Please bring the matter in petitions before the assembly at your earliest convenience we hope chapt 426 will be repealed & chapter 502 amended on overseers fees.

To the honorable the Senate and Assembly of the State of Wisconsin

We the undersigned petitioners being residents and legal voters in the county of Richland in said state, respectfully petition you to amend chapter N502 of the session laws of said state for the year 1887 which chapt provides, the fees of overseers of highways. There is probably no other law upon the statute books of the great state of Wisconsin, so wrong and unjust, in this county each town therein is subdivided into road districts, and each district elect its overseer of highways, in the month of May the road tax list for each district is placed in the hands of the overseer for collection and expending the same on the highways through the months of May, June, July & August, all the taxes are paid in labor on the highway by those assessed with highway taxes, so that overseers are compelled to spend his time in the months of May, June, July & August the most valuable time in the year to have such tax expended in repairing the highways, with an allowance of only a certificate for his services against future highway taxes the injustice to said officer is a disgrace to the state. We therefore respectfully pray that you amend said chapter so that overseers of highways shall be paid for their services as other town officers out of the town treasury.

Dated November the 6th AD 1888

Names of petitioners

Levi Hout WA Hitchcock Wm M. Brimer Frank A. Wulfing

WH Dooley GW Collins Stephen Smith Richard Burney JD Berger AL Crosby CJ Crosby Abraham Miller John M Logue Samuel Janey A.E. Houts Horace Langdon Jasper Print William J. Howell John Heart JJSS AM Crandall HC Mathews Edward Owens Thomas Owens C.W. Rue Wm. Owens DS [illegible] Wm. Farge JH Jones I Jones Chris Ford Edward C Adney David Timmons Charles Robb C.W. Rue Isak Fry H.S. Milner Oliver R Adney AN Thomas Ino Shaffe SA Manchester J.S. Elliott Samuel Booker Fred James Samuel McClaren