The road was conveniently divided by the several states into departments. East of the Ohio River, the Monongahela River was a division line, the road being divided by it into two divisions.[27] West of the Ohio the eighty-seventh mile post from Wheeling was, at one time, a division line between two departments in Ohio.[28] Later, the road in Ohio was cut up into as many divisions as counties through which it passed.[29] The work of repairing was let by contract, for which bids had been previously advertised. Contracts were usually let in one-mile sections, sometimes for a longer space, notice of the length being given in the advertisement for bids. Contractors were compelled to give testimonials of good character and reliability; though one contract, previously quoted, professed to be satisfied with "competent or responsible individuals only." A time limit was usually named in the contract, with penalties for failure to complete the work in time assigned. The building of the road was hailed with delight by hundreds of contractors and thousands of laborers, who now had employment offered them worthy of their best labor, and the work, when well done, stood as a lasting monument to their skill. Old papers and letters speak frequently of the enthusiasm awakened among the laboring classes by the building of the great road, and of the lively scenes witnessed in those busy years. Contractors who early earned a reputation followed the road westward, taking up contract after contract as opportunity offered. Farmers who lived on the route of the road engaged in the work when not busy in their fields, and for their labor and the use of the teams received good pay. Thus not only in its heyday did the road prove a benefit to the country through which it passed, but at the very beginning it became such, and not a little of the money spent upon it by the Government went into the very pockets from which it came by the sale of land.