The record-union., 1894-05-09
ROCKS AND SHOALS OF THE ROAD
CONVENTION.

The State Road Convention has been
called by the Executive Committee to re-
convene in San Francisco, May 24th 1t
is to be hoped that it will not be hampered
and clogged this time as it was in Sep
tember last by the silly fears and fanciful
dogmas of so-called political reformers
and economists, who have such fear OF
incurring a road debt that it haunts them
by night and is their'terror by day.
The State Road Convention will do
nothing, can do nothing but talk, unless
it agrees upon a plan whereby good road
systems can be put into operation under
engineering supervision. and whereby
the construction of the roads can be had
in large groups by counties. and not by
yearly piecemeal.
The opponents of the bonding system
propose as a substitute direct taxation.
That is to say, if q county needs given
number of miles of trunk roads to be
constructed at general cost, and the out
put for the same is to be $780, 900, that sum
should be taken by special tax direct
from the pockets of the taxpayers of the
present generation, forgetting that the in
terest value of that sum OF money is even
greater to the taxpayers, than would be
the interest cost if the money were rented
and the repayment distributed among
the benefciaries of good roads. for say,
forty years.
But if this plan of direct taxation will
not be accepted, then the bond opponents
propose that so much of good-road gen.
eral trunk lines be built each year as can
be done with a small sum added annually
to the tax for the general fund in each
county. Such scheme proceeds upon
the theory that it is just to tax all the peo-
pie for benefits that can be enjoyed by
but very few each year; that the larger
number must wait from ten to twenty
years before they can reap any reward o.
the taxation levied upon them, and thai
piecemeal work can be done as cheaply
as system work. which is untrue.
If the road convention does any good
whatever it viii be through the adoption
of the same scheme that private enter.
prise accepts as the leader to success
namely, capitalization. Let the conven.
ton advise the counties to capitalize theil
road systems, realize the whole expendi
ture at once In one sum, construct sys
tenn as whole, and at once enter upor
the enjoyment Of the benefits that flow
from good-road construction.
These are in brief. immediate enhance
ment of realty values and consequent de
crease of the tax rates; the lessening o
distance of travel and consequent saving
of time ito producers; the narrowing o
the capital invested in teams and vehi
cles, and the current expense of thei
maintenance; the betterment of rura
conditions. and therefore the strengthen
ing of the invitation to rural home living
the improvement of facilities of trans
portation, mail delivery, ETC.; tie lower
ing of the cost of annual road repaireng
the,aboiition of the expensive system O
district repairing upon main lines.
These are but few Of the direct bene
fits which must follow good road con
struction, and exclude the potential SO
cial benefits. The simple question is. i
it wise to build system at once on Dor
rowed money, to be paid back by all th
benefciaries, or to do without the GOO
road benefits? or, to build by piece meal
or. to cast the whole burden of construc
ton upon the taxpayers of one. two o
three years?
A thing the convention should avoid i
the turning of itself into a road buiidin
kindergarten. Good economic road build
ing is now science. It has been settles
inst what a good road is, what should b
its grade, crown. sub-structure and root
If the convention delegates are to com
up as they did last year, and expect t
be taught in one lesson how TO build
GOOD road, the time of the convention
viii be wasted. II its hours are to
snuandered in listening to A, B, G an
DIS antiauated ideas how 8 good roa
should be made of gravel or dirt or slaE
or how high it should be crowned. {
how fst it should be made. and whethe