trailer spring mounting

Working on my trailer to get it ready for use, bought last summer, putting new lights on, turned it over to run new wires, and I found a that the spring shackle bolts are loose and the springs are bolted to the axle. Not with u-bolts but with holes drilled in the spring to a flat plate.

Anyone ever see this before?

I cant see nothing. No picture to look at. Kind of har to vision what your saying. But if the spring has a flat plate and the axle does also, yea I can see it being bolted direct.