Lawyers and Class 6 roads

To the Editor:
Last weeks article written to inform the taxpayers of Henniker that they would be spending $ for a lawyer to seek a class six road closure caught my eye. Shortly there after I yelled, the heart raced and the pressure rose. New Hampshire’s original roads were waterways. That is why all the cities/towns are on rivers. Later in time came the rails. They followed the rivers because water had already chosen the easiest route with the least grade change. What followed later were dirt roads. These were for wheels as the horses only needed trails. These typically followed animal paths as they too were smart. The roads are plentiful and to be enjoyed by all. Your $ and forefathers built them.
Now we speed forward to current times and people with large parcels of land want to close a road so they will have it to themselves. Two of the three abutting land owners are lawyers. The town wants to hire a legal counsel to help give the road away. They bounced stories of the dreaded ATV’s off the walls. The Selectmen joined in the stereotyping/categorizing/belittling/prejudicing rant. They stopped just short of a lynch mob before voting to add lawyers to the mix. Disgusting! Has our society returned to a past filled with hatred, prejudges, and quick verdict? Least we hope not.
Class six roads are still roads, protected by numerous RSA’s. The maintenance is abandoned as is their liability. They are one of New Hampshire’s greatest treasures. A regular citizen with limited resources can enjoy nature without a sterilized setting such as a park. The roads are one hundred and fifty to two hundred years old. They have stood the test of time and wheeled vehicles. Independent test have shown that horses do more damage than wheels. Their massive weight, standing on small hoofs, pack soil, squish soil to the side, and rip soil quicker. This sets the stage for a long duration of erosion, once the rain comes.
NH ATV owners number in the six digits. You have insulted all of them. They disserve an earnest apology. I do not own an ATV but love class six roads. Leave them alone and stop spending taxpayer’s hard earned money.
In closing I quote a famous passage “The first thing we do, lets to kill all the lawyers”.
Dennis McAfee
Henniker