miffioners fhall be impowered to turn about highways, as alfo to widen the fame, not exceeding thirty feet, free of ditches. But the commiffioners fhall have no power to carry a road through any house, garden, orchard, or pleasure-ground. 13. The commiflioners fhall have power to take from the adjacent lands, ftones, fand, gravel, or other materials for making the highways, paying always for the damage done. 14. With respect to high-roads which bound the properties of neighbouring heritors, and which it may be found necessary to alter or widen, the commiffioners fhall be empowered to adjudge to one heritor any fmall bits of ground cut off from the other by the road fo altered; and if land cannot be given for land, to make a compenfation in money, valuing the land at the current price of the country. 15. In order to prevent water stagnating on the highways, the commiffioners fhall be impowered to make ditches or drains through neighbouring grounds; and fuch ditches or drains fhall be preferved entire by the proprietors of the land, or at their charges. 16. As the forefaid affeffment, after repairing the highways, may not be fufficient for building bridges, or making ferries, where rivers are large; any five of the commiffioners may, for building bridges, or making ferries, establish a pontage or toll; fo much for horfes, fo much for horned cattle, and fo much for fheep, and the double for each beast in a wheel-carriage. Upon the credit of the toll, the faid commiffioners may borrow money, to be employed wholly upon the bridge or ferry where the toll is gathered. But before borrowing the money, an estimate must be made of the expence of the work. After the work is finished, the fum beftowed on it must be afcertained: an accurate account muft be kept of the gradual payment of this fum by the toll; and when it it is completely paid, the commiffioners must declare the bridge or ferry to be free. 17. The determinations of the commiffioners fhall be final, unlefs complained of in manner following. 18. If any heritor apprehend that undue preference is given to a certain highway, or conceive himself aggrieved by any order or fentence of the commiffioners, it fhall be lawful for him, within forty days of the act complained of, to enter a complaint in the court of feffion; and the judgement upon fuch complaint fhall be final. But fuch complaint fhall only be effectual for damages, and fhall not stay execution of the work. At the fame time, no complaint fhall be admitted till fecurity be given to pay full costs, in cafe the plaintiff be found in the wrong. 19. Former laws concerning highways, bridges, or ferries, to continue in force, unlefs as far as altered by this act. 20. An annual state of what is done by virtue of this act, made up by the commiffioners, or their clerk, fhall, before the last Tuefday of March, be laid before the trustees for fisheries and manufactures, in order to be made a part of their annual report to the King; and these trustees fhall direct proper perfons to inspect what work is done upon the high-roads, and in what manner. Upon any mifapplication or embezzlement of the money levied, any neglect in levying, or any wrong done to the public, contrary to the intention of this act, the trustees are required to fet on foot and profecute what redress is competent in law or equity, provided the profecution be commenced within a year after the offence. Query, Ought not broad wheels to be required? CON CONSIDERATIONS on the preceding PLAN. THE HE laws in Scotland relating to this branch of public police, are numerous; some enacted while Scotland was a separate kingdom, fome after its union with England. It is not the purpofe of this paper to enter into a detail of the various regulations established by these laws: they are generally known; and in the late abridgement of our statute-law, they are all recapitulated with brevity and precifion. It fhall fuffice curforily to observe, that the acts made during the reign of Charles II. form the groundwork of our regulations concerning highways: the later acts are little more than explanatory of the former. It seems to have been the plan of the legislature, that highways fhould be repaired by those who are employed in husbandry; and accordingly, the fix days annual labour is, in the statutes of Charles II. impofed upon them only. and This was a measure not ill fuited to the ftate of Scotland at that period. During the laft century, we had little inland commerce to require good roads, except that of corn carried to market; for that reason, it was natural to impofe upon husbandmen the burden of repairing highways. Thefe perfons, at the fame time, paffing the whole fummer in idlenefs, unless when called to perform perfonal fervices to capricious and unfeeling landlords, could not think it a hardship to have fome part of their time employed in ferving themselves inftead of their landlords. That annual labour upon highways, limited to a few days, fhould be required from men in that condition, appears not unjust. And why may we not fuppofe the legislature at that time capable capable of fuch enlarged views, as to prefer this method for repairing highways, in order to bring on gradually a habit of labour and industry? But the condition of Scotland at prefent differs widely from what it was in the reign of Charles II.; and the regulations for repairing highways which were then proper, have, by alteration of circumftances, become both unjust and inexpedient. Inland com Unjuft they have become in a high degree. merce, which begins to flourish in Scotland, is greatly promoted by good roads; and every dealer, and indeed every traveller, profits by them. But no men are lefs interested in good roads than day-labourers, or thofe who are commonly called cottars; and yet these chiefly are burdened with the reparation. Such men, at the fame time having commonly many children, find it difficult to fupport their families, even with their utmost industry. Nothing can be more unjust, than to impose upon fuch men an annual tax of fix days labour for repairing roads, the goodness of which contributes little or nothing to their convenience. Our prefent laws are inexpedient, as well as unjuft. In the first place, a tax of this nature difcourages the propagation of children, in which the ftrength of a ftate confifts: the poor labourer ought to be encouraged with a reward, instead of being difcouraged with a tax. In the next place, cottars called out to perform the statute-work, obey with reluctance, and trifle away time without doing any thing effectual. To enforce the law, and to compel fuch men to labour, is grievous to the gentlemen who are empowered to execute the law: they cannot punish with rigour or firmnefs, men who have fo good reafon to decline the fervice: they are foon difgufted with being taskmafters, and the generality defift altogether. Laws concerning private property are always kept in obfervance, and they execute themfelves, as is commonly expreffed, because VOL. II. 3 S 1 because there are always a multitude of individuals strongly interested to have them executed. But in making public laws, the great difficulty has ever been, to lay down effectual measures for putting them in execution; and by what means to make fuch laws execute themselves, is one of the most intricate problems in politics. Our laws concerning highways, are eminently defective in that respect and accordingly, tho' most of them have existed near a century, they never have at any period been executed to any extent. Take the following fpecimen, among many that may be urged, of this defect. Overfeers are forc'd into the fervice under a penalty, in order to compel the peasants to perform faithfully their fix-days labour. To hope any good from a reluctant overfeer set over a fet of reluctant labourers, is a fond conceit: it is much if his refentment tempt him not to encourage their idlenefs. In vain would we expect, that any overfeer, without a fuitable reward, will exert himself in promoting the work. To remedy the hardship of laying the burden of reparation upon those who are leaft able and leaft benefited, and at the fame time to make this remedy effectual, is the purpose of the foregoing plan. And upon confidering the matter in its different views, the only method that promifes fuccefs, appears to be a countytax laid upon land according to the valuation, and a capitationtax on the inhabitants of boroughs. These taxes relieve the labouring poor, and lay the burden where it ought to be laid: and the law will execute itfelf, if that effect can be hoped from any public law. Effectual measures are laid down for levying the tax and, if once levied, there is no danger of its being allowed to lie unemploy'd in the hands of the collector; for every heritor will be anxious to have fome part employ'd for his benefit. The danger will rather be of factious difputes about the dif tribution. This danger alfo is attempted to be prevented; and, it is hoped, with fuccefs. Some |