The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1893-08-23
SARGE pLUNKETT.
A Chapter on the Progress Of Road Max.
Ing.
atlanta Constitution.

A Chapter on the Progress OF Road Maxi
Ing.
atlanta Constitution.
The progress Of road building would
make some Interesting reading if it
was done up with care.
One could also go back to the trails
of Indian days and follow their prog
ress to it's present state, together with
the modes of travel all along the line.
The heavy sawed wheels before the
days of spokes that superseded the
saplings that drug behind the Indian
ponies along the trails were the first
things to demand a widening of the
way. These cumbrous old carts gave
the oxen of Georgia an Importance
they had never had before and never
will have again. From these heavy
sawed wheels we progressed to spokes
with iron tires. The first of these
spoked wheels were great for lightness
and height, and two wheels only were
used instead Of four. They were mon
strous easy to turn over and this put
the people to being more careful in
opening the ways on level ridges,
avoiding the slants. From the old OK
carts we moved to wagons, buggiesand
carriages, all the time improving the
roads with the progress Of vehicles.
ga hard road to travel" was avoided,
and the words were often applied to
distressful situations in life. A few
ye. we who can remember the trail
period; many yet live who can remem-
ber the old OK cart and they look in
wonder at the changes with US now
and know not where it is to stop. /
know not whether the improvement
in vehicles brought better roadways or
better roads made lighter and faster
vehicles, but anyhow they have pro-
gressed along together till after awhile
l guess we can 60 where we please
without pony, OK or wagon. The bicy-
Gle seems to be the coming thing and
the roads will progress along with them
to suit [ reckon.
I took to thinking about this road
business from hearing the Egyptian
commissioners who are down in Georgia
on visit from the Worlds Fair, talk
ing of the paved ways they sSe about
Atlanta. I had small chat with one
of them who talks United States and
[ am sure from the cut Of his eye that
when they get back to Egypt they will
no longer waste their time on the cot
ton problem Of that country, but will
at once proceed to corner on al! the
pyramids and blast them and scatter
them to thunder. Farewell, pyramids,
they are gone. and you who have never
been to Egypt had better go mighty
quick or you will miss seeing these
great wonders Of the world.
When the pyramids are all gone in
Egypt to making roadways aud paving
streets then Stone Mountain will have
its opportunity Of being the greatest
wonder Of it's kind. This should be
suggestive to the preservation of the
mountain. Even these Commission
ers who hail from the land of pyramids
look in wonder upon this great rock Of
ours. The next legislature should
take steps to preserve the highest
part of it at least. Not an inch should
this mountain height be redur ID. 1t
is a wonder natural wonder, and if
progress must use it they should at
least leave standing q towering shaft
in all it's naturalness. All Of Georgia
should take pride in preserving this
wonder, but especially should it's own
ers and the town of Stone Mountain
work to save it. Some day people
may come from Egypt to see this
mountain as people have went from
here to see the pyramids. But folks
are more apt to call me crank than
they are to do as I say about any
thing.
These Egyptian visitors make an
other thing plain to my mind-we
must make cotton very cheap. Com
petition is what will come and force
lower prices still if we do not make
it Improbable for these Egyptians to
experiment. Plenty of people living
can remember when it was thought
cotton could not be raised north of
the Chattahoochee River. We need
not shut our eyes and think that cot
ton cannot be raised in Egypt. The
thing to do is to make it SO cheap here
that the Egyptians will have no stim-
ulant to force them on in its culture.
The way to grow cotton cheap is what
should engage the attention of the
Southern planter, not how they can
get higher price for the product, for
with high cotton comes Egyp-
tian competition, maybe. Africa will
take hand, too. 1t would be some
thing if the negroes were colonized in
Africa and put to raising cotton there.
I look for it, but let 'em go. A free
use Of improved farm implements is
the thing to arrive at cheap cotton
with. Southern farmers must arrive
at the point where they can have two
or three mems work performed with
one good hand. This can be done by
improved machinery and farm imple-
ments.
I have digressed from the roads,
but never mind, if I can save old
Stone Mountain from the ruthless
touch of progress I have done well.
And if I can stimulate a line of
thought which will save us from the
competition that we are sure to have
in the culture of cotton [ have done
better. But with it all we want more
roads and better roads. [ was plum
carried away with the notion Of work
ing the roads with the chaingangs, but
I see there is much dissatisfaction
about that. [ don't know who is right,
but I would like for some one to show
me what better way to work roads and
what better way to dispose Of the
changing system. Till then [ shall
say work the roads with the criminals.
SARGE PLUNKETT.