connection with
highway work in the United States, although these duties vary greatly
in the several states and change periodically with the action of
legislatures.

=Township Administration.=--Township or "Town" authority is a survival
of the old New England town government and the town board consists of
three or more trustees who hold office for fixed terms. The usual term
is three years, but is less in some states. The incumbent is generally
a man who has other responsibilities of a public or private nature and
who gives but little of his time to highway matters. In some states
the pay is a fixed annual salary and in others a per diem with some
limitation on the amount that may be drawn in any one year, which
limitation may be statutory or may be by common consent.

The township highway commissioners or trustees have jurisdiction over
certain of the roads in the township, usually best described as all
roads not by law placed under the jurisdiction of some other
authority. In certain instances, the township authorities have charge
of all of the roads in the township, which would mean that no "county"
or "state" roads happened to be laid out in that township. It is a
matter of general observation that the trend of legislation is toward
removing from the jurisdiction of the township officials all roads
except those upon which the traffic is principally local in character.
The actual mileage of roads in the United States that is at present
administered by township officials is large, probably constituting not
less than seventy per cent of the total mileage.

In most states the township officials are responsible for the
maintenance of the roads under their jurisdiction and also supervise
such new construction as is undertaken. This includes the construction
of culverts and bridges as a rule, but in some states the county board
of supervisors is responsible for all of the bridge and culvert work
on the township roads. In other states, the township board is
responsible only for bridges or culverts that cost less than a certain
amount specified by law (usually about $1000) and the county board
provides for the construction and upkeep of the more expensive bridges
and culverts.

Funds for the work carried out by the township road officials are
obtained by general taxation, the amount that may be levied being
limited by statute and the actual levy being any amount up to the
maximum that the township board deems necessary