The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1893-06-08

Our Bad Roads Prohibit Competition
With Foreign Producers.

with Foreign Producers.
People must fully understand the
necessity for good roads before they
will become interested in engineer
ing problems, The question Of the
comm rcial advantage of good roads
the relation of good roads to the
price Of wheat, must BE- fully under
stood before people can be inter-
ested in n4caiam, Railways have
within the last seven years reduced
all transportation charges bv more
than one-aalf. County roads have
done noting along this line. Rail
roads have been in the march of
civilization, county roads in the
decline. The price of wheat in the
west has been relatively increased
by the improvements IN transpor-
tation facilities by rail and water.
Transportation facilities Oyer coun-
try roads have not been improved.
The farmer has been the sufferer.
The price of farming property in
many sections has declined. Ger
tainly farming property has not
kept apaceen its earning capacity
with other productive properties.
Ills is because transportation facil-
tiles from the farms to the markets,
together with other marketing facil-
tiles and farm methods generally,
have not progressed along with the
rest Of the world. Furthermore,
manv sections of the world are sur
rounded with and helped by good
roads.
Ia England we hear it said "'that
through improvements of our roads
every branch of agricultural, COM
mercial and manufacturing indus.
tries has been materially benefited.
h cry article brought to market
Ia diminished in price, and the
number OF horses has been so re-
d,ced that by these and other re-
trenehments e5,000,000 or about
&25, 200, 900 rs saved annually to
the public, The expense Of re-
pairing roads and the wear and
tear of carriages and horses are ma
terially diminished. Thousands of
acres the produce of Which was
formerly wasted IN feedingunneces.
sary horses are devoted to produc.
ing food for man. In short, the
pubic and private advantages which
result from eifecting this great OBJ
lect OF the improvements of our
highways and turnpike roads are
incalcalable."
England and Wales are spending
upward of $50, 900, 900 annually in
the maintenance of roads, France
probably has the best system o,
roads in Europe today, There are
more than 1870, 900 miles of smooth,
dastless, hard, clean roads, kept
up by system which never allows
the slightest defect te remain with
out attention. The sum of &c.
900, 900 is thus annually spent by
the French republic, The result
is increased productiveness of all
farm lands--a wealthy land owning
peasantry throughout the French
republic. The farm hand of this
section has been on the increase
along with the development of good
roads. These Illustrations could
be paralleled wherever road inn
provement has been practically con-
sidered.
With us the greatest attention
and skill have been addressed to
railroads until it is found that a
barrel of apples or a sack of wheat
can be carried from the far west to
the market M the east at cost not
exceeding the delivery OF the same
articles from many of our farms to
the nearest market. The result OF
this has been thai those who have
depended largely on the railroads
have been benefited and have be-
come wealthy, aud that the far
amers, so much Of whose energy has
been wasted through the struggle
over bad roads, certainly have not
gained in wealth in proportion to
other branches of Industry.
The price of wheat IS not made
by the cost OF marketing it in
America. 1t is safe to say that the
price Of wheat is made in Liverpool,
The price Of our surplus is fixed in
that market. The farmers have to
compete with the world in wheat
raising, The price of the serplus
which we send to Liverpool and
other foreign markets fixes the
price with us, so that in the end
we of America have to compete
with all the conditions and ele-
meGts of the cost of production
which exist in other sections. Ii
che coantnes which are furnishing
the English markets with wheat
have better roads than we, they can
nnaerhid ms in selling wheat. We