Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1885-09-20

'"e iuteiVslS oi fott worth IN their hands
and hearts. Complaints are coming up
daily from all points of the compass and
from people who are regular patrons al
Fort Worth, that bad roads are driving
them
TO OTHER MARKETS..
Unless the evil is speedily remediod the
loss to Fort Worth trade threatens "a bo
/ serious in the extreme, and 10 ohviatn
such an unfortunate result, PROMPT no.
ton should be taken by the business mon.
ana demanded at the hands of the author
tiles
Few appreciate the steady drain upon
ooth planter and merchant occasioncd by
detective roads. Avery good Illustration i
Afforded by the road from Fort Worth
10 Mansfield. As 1t runs at present this
Is ~ miles IN length. Under the new
route, surveyed last year, the distance is
! but ~ miles, a saving OF miles, II is
reasonable estimate that the travel from
the Mansfield community to Fort Worth
will average 20 wagons per day. Thus
the daily DOSAGE ON account of this one
road alone, reaches
TIM SURPRISING FIGURE
of so miles, not taking into account the
return trip, which would double this
amount giving total of $50 miles,
which must be Travelled every day. in
order that a few people living on the
road between Mansfield and Fort Worth
may not be Inconvenience even
at the public expense The saving
IN distance on the eight principal roads In |
the county, IL Strengthened, viii aggre-
gate fifty miles. The same calculation |
made with reference to the Mansfield |
road applies to each of these In n greater
or less degree, and it is safe TO estimate
that 1000 miles of unnecessary travel are |
caused every day of the year
in Tarrant county by crooked |
ROADS, giving yearly total |
which reaches the enormous sum of
nearly three-quarters of million. TO |
travel 100000 miles would REQUIRE, at
an average wagon rate, $4,000 days. The /
value OF driver, wagon and team, Mt the |
lowest estimate, is So per day, which /
runs up the annual loss from this source
SEVENTEENTH THOUSAND DOLLARS
practically taken out of the pockets of the |
planter, and yet yielding no benefits to
any one. These figures, large as they
are, convey no adequate idea of the en-
tire damage suffered in this respect over
a good road an ordinary team Gun easily |
haul four bales of cotton. As the /
roads are at present 1t Is with ex-
IRENE difficulty that a good team can
bring two bales to market. Add To this |
wear and tear OF wagons and harness aud |
the harrassing strain ON draft animals, |
leaving out OF the calculation entirely the |
loss OF patience and other virtues incl !
dental TO passage over bad roadways, and |
one can have some conception, however
slight, of the loss and misery which they
entail This is
THE PLANTERS SIDE or TlTE STORY.
Another estimate places the loss of
trade which will accrue TO Fort Worth ON
account of her inacceSsibilty by present |
means of travel at one million dollars. |
Any merchant may run out this cal |
culation at his leisure; there |
suit cannot be otherwise than appalling.
1t is no hobgoblin Of statistical ncnd, |
but Il real, actual, existing fact, which Is |
being demonstrated daily, and which is
growing in enormity us the evil is per-
petuated.
THE REMEDY
IS very simple, and viewed IN the light Of
its vast results, very cheap.
TO straighten the public roads leading
out of Fort Worth will cost fifteen or
twenty thousand dollars to gravel them,
put in culyerts and build the necessary
bridges would perhaps cost 100000
more. All improvements would
not involve an outlay of over 1925, 900.
This would be saved in the additional
revenues of one years trade property
values IN the county would be increased
twenty-five per cent, and Tnrrant county
made in wealth, prosperity and progress
the banner county of the state. That this Is
NO uTortAN CONCEPTION
Is evidenced by the suggestion of one of
the wealthiest and most prominent citi-
zens OF Fort Wo rthI that the county
should issue bonds to the amount OF
100000, and invest the proceeds |
in her roads. The arid pralries |
OF California, IN their natural
state as barren as the sand-hills of /
Sahara, gain fertility aud value by arti- !
fciu irrigation. In this method land IL |
advanced from S5 to $50 per acre. and
under the improvements for which this /
article appeals, Tarrant county land now
quoted at IS 10 $40 per acre
would be advanced to S25 and S3f per
acre. Good roads are one Of the highest
necessities OF progressive civilization;
without them any countryis
LITTLE LESS THAN A WILDERNESS.
Something less than year ago the
commissioners conrt provided for an
AIRLINE survey of the main highways pass
ing through the county 10 the following
directions: North, to Dentoni north
east, to Grapevine: east, 10 Dallas
! southeast, 10 Mansfield; south, TO
! Cleburne; southwest, 70 Granbury; west,
| TO weatherfori; northwest, to Dido and
sprlngtown. These surveys were made at
cost of about $1,000. The commission
! ers have postponed action upon them from
/ time 10 time until another fall Is here,
and nothing has been done.
Thenext meeting OF the court Is az us
regular October term, when an irreslsti-
/ BE pressure should De brought 10 bear
upon them, forcing action.
/ DELAYS ARK DANGKBorhi
"IIe who dallies Is bastard and nc
who doubts i damned"
Mr.. j. ID. Baker, leading merchant %
Granbury, was here last week and stated
that the Granbury road bad becr fenced
up aud changed about ten miles from fort
Worth, so as to render II almost I'M
passable. and as a consequence the pfln-
lcipal part OF that towns shipments were
now going 70 cleburne. This 1ni
lfrrI1 ias.8ncl0i ne l0sS ~ tpEt oSfsl
,r.,iq morn or evii which naehee ont ana
,8.,t. y Il contiguous teffilfA
r.8is.' teb3le goat button shoes JAS
III "