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improvement, I would recommend the propriety of incor-
porating companies, imposing such restrictions and
extending to them such privileges as approved by the
experience of other States, where such companies have
long existed; and for the purpose of incouraging [sic] that kind
of associations the State should be authorized to subscribe for
one half or at least a third of the stocks. This plan has
been succesfully pursued in Pennsylvania for the last
fifteen years, and the extent of her improvements during that
time has been without example in the history of any
county in proportion to her population. Good
roads and the certain navigation of our rivers have
such an important bearing upon agriculture, commerce and
the growing prosperity of our State, that I cannot but
earnestly recommend to your attention, the propriety
of adopting such a system of internal improvements as we
can certainly acheive [sic] by our own resourses [sic].
The commissioners appointed at the last session to constitute
a board of internal improvements held their first
meeting at Nashville in May eighteen hundred and thirty.
Measures were then taken to employ an Engineir [sic], for
the purpose of making surveys and estimates of the expense
of constructing roads and improving the navigations of our
rivers. A gentleman was engaged for that purpose who
was expected to enter the service of Tennessee on his
having completed some work he had prevously undertaken
to perform. It was contemplated that he would be able
to commence his labors for us, early int he past sum-
-mer; but owing to ill health he was obliged to decline
all attention to business of which fact he advised us