Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1866-12-25
Hon. W. W. Field on Highways, Bridg-
es, Taxes and Railroads.
Mr.. COVER

for enterprises in which there is q
public or community profit and prop.
erty, has been read with interest on
account of its novelty and justice.
Feeling deeply interested in all
public improvements, but especially
in the anticipated railroads through
Grant County, venture brief com
municatlon upon the same subject,
using the HERALD as medium for
reaching the public thought.
In civilized countries roads of some
KIND, however imperfect, are of the
hrst Importance as means for trans
porting the products Of labor to mar
ket, and for the general business and
intercourse of the people. Good
roads have a civilizing tendency and
( certainly beget contcntment among
the people and these are most essen.
tial to the worth and stability of
all things.
To a large extent the public CON
tentment and stability contrib
ute to the value Of all fixed prop
. erty, as real estate and the like. On
the contrary for want of these the
landed property must be Of uncer-
tain value at best and unsaleable.
There is nothing indeed like public
discomfort and instability for run
ming property down, and the surest
author of these is bad roads.
Then it is unnecessary to argue
that good roads should be made, that
the better the roads the more valua-
bic is all property, that the roads
hhonld be made good by a pro-rata
tax on the property benefited by
them, and that the quicker these
works are seen to the quicker will
the outlay be returned and the
profits begin to pile mountain high
What kind Of roads we should tax
ourselves for building may be a ques-
ton but the business of taxation
and the certainty that it pays very
largely to make first rate roads by
means of taxation are points upon
which there can be no disagreement,
because no sound argument can OPP
pose.
In sparsely settled parts the COM
mon highways are of the first neces-
sity and the people are willing to
tax themselves for opening and sup
porting them. For neighborhood
road there seems hnt small expense.
but if the cost of making all the
roads of a state were summed up the
footing would show enormous outlay
probably more than for all the
railroads. In ancient times the pub
lie roads were all built by the state
or nation at vast expense. Some of
the ancient Roman roads yet endure
in good preservation, with arched
bridges and stone bottoms. The
great increase of wealth and ability
to support large populations, the de-
velopment of agricultural, mineral,
manufacturing and commercial re-
sources of such countries, were proofs
of the wisdom in making these ex-
pensive works.
We have many common highways
in Grant County, and owing to the
peculiar composition and lightness
of the soil, its liability to dissolve
and wash, it is quite expensive to
keep them up, especially the much
travelled market thoroughfares.
The valleys are deep and numerous,
rendering it difficult to make the
roads level. On these accounts the
producers of the interior towns and
tarms have to travel long distances
to market, over billy and sideling
roads, with light loads, which makes
farming too expensive for them and
the result is their lands are cheaper
by 4 half or more than the same
quality of lands near the railroads,
causing many to wish they had set
tied nearer to market and others to
want to sell out and settle near some
railroad
Now, Mr. Cover, you have the
reasons why it is that three-tourths
of Grant County, being the great in
terior, are working to great disad-
vantage for want of railroad facili-
ties, and that such disadvantage is
very expensive, being equal to an an
nual tax of at least one per cent
upon them and keeping down the
value of their lands to half Of
what it ought to be.
Aud year after year the masses
plod alon6 Aeir even way, to ali APP"
pearance thoughtless as to whether
anything can be done to equalize
their farms and business with those
living near the railroads. 1t is
misfortune too that some of us far
mers are too often prejudiccd against
equalization enterprises, as building
railroads and other market helpers
on account Of the expenses or taxes
And many Of us prefer to buy more
land than to invest our surplus IL
such means rs would make what We
have greatly more available for prof
and so utilize our time as TO make i
vastly more profitable.
1t is we'll known that the trade in
terests do not like to tax themselve
for railroad making same of The
mechanics, hotel keepers, livery anC
stage men and others dread
the competition which railroads kin
die up in all the villages Howevel
much such injurious effects may b,
antipipated. the reverse is AWAY