For those who wonder why gasoline taxes are so high or why it costs so much to keep the highways in repair, here is an antique document that shows what it used to cost to maintain the nation's transportation system. The document is a bill of expenses owed to one Elijah Paddock for "Repairs of Highways" from May to September 1826. It contains such items as $2.25 for two men and a team of horses for one day's work, $2.00 for two men and a boy for one day (the horses were clearly worth more than the boy!), and 31 cents for one man for part of a day. The total bill comes to $18.23. It was taxpayer utopia. The document itself is 7 and one half inches by 9 inches. It has been custom framed, and its overall dimensions are 12 inches by 15 inches. The condition is very good with no tears or chips. There is an ink smear in the lower left quadrant, which does not obscure any of the writing

Antique Paper Items
Ephemera