The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1895-01-09
THE EVENING SESSION
Gen. Roy STOne Gives an Outline of
the Movement Elsewhere

Gen. Roy Stone Gives an Outline of
the Movement Elsewhere.
Tne first business to come before the
meeting of the Highway Improvement AS
ISOLATION at it's session last evening was
the report of the committee on nonlina-
tons, which reported officers for the en-
suing year follows: President. J. A.
Mount, Shannondale; treasurer, Geo. W.
Dowell. Quercus Gro~e; secretary, L. B.
Ewbank, indianapolis! vice presidents G.
V. Menzies, Mt. Vernon; M. T. Niblack,
Vincennes; j. Fl. Stotsenburg, New AL
bany; o. j. Glessner, Shelbyville; David
f. BEEN, Spencer; Lewis S. Alter, Rem
ington; L. e. Bentley, Greenfield Evans
Woollen, Indianapolis; p. S. Kennedy,
Charlottesville; w. C. Latta Lafayette:
w. A Osmar, Logansport 1. B. McDon-
aid, Columbia City and c.. Holler South
Bend
Judge p. s. Kennedy, of Crawfordsville
was the first speaker of the evening his
subject being: What, if any, Highway
Legislation Is Desirable in Indiana?" He
held that legislation is needed. Roads
should never be allowed to get in such
condition as to need repairing. This, he
thought, could be brought about by legis-
lation formed on some theory tina. would
cause the roads to be constantly worked.
A system is needed by which new ma
teral would be supplied as rapidly the
old is exhausted, in place of the present
shiftless method. He favored the letting
of the road work by the county commits
sioners to responsible persons. who would
performance of the work, compelling them
to turn over the roads to their successors
on the roadbed. His address was well re-
ceived by the audience, which was con-
siderably larger than that at the previous
sessions.
Following Judge Kennedy, Gen. Roy
Stone, of Washington, special agent and
engineer of the United States road inquiry,
was introduced. General Stone began by
| saying that what Indiana people did not
know about bad roads was not worth
knowing, and then proceeded to explain
| the nature of the work of the road bureau
| at Washington, which intended to be
The work in favor of good roads has had
| some backsets lring the past year. In
Missouri the constitutional amendment to
| has been defeated; in Michigan the option
| in New. York the county boards have. re-
| jected Governor Flowers county road law,
| and in Massachusetts there is serious OPP
| State road building. These failures sug-
gested that other means must be found to
| There are three States in the Union in
| which good roads are doing their own
talking-,New Jersey, North Carolina and
| neighborhood assesses itself for part of
| the cost the State and the county. do the
|
| used with success. and in Kentucky. in the
early days of the movement, State aid
| was given, but now the counties aid those
| localities that will assess themselves.
Other States are moving rapidly in the di-
| rection of good roads. Ohio is seriously
| contemplating a system of electric roads
| for country traffic, and in Pennsylvania
| many townships have issued bonds for
| building stone roads. The hard times have
| developed remarkable economies, in the
| construction of roads, improved imple-
ments are constantly being developed, the
| railroads are showing a deep concern in
| the Improvement of the highways, the
| movement for wide tires is steadily
progressing, and. taking the country as
| q whole. there is more TO hope from the
| pra ctical results of what little improve
| ment rs going on than there is TO fear from
| the widespread resistance to general i'm
| provement. The best agency by which the
| things aimed at by the good roads advo-
| Gates could be accomplished was, the
| speaker thought, that a permanent
| State highway commission be ultimately
clothed with such authority as the Legis-
| lature may choose TO give il, and that
| meanwhile a temporary joint legislative
commission, composed of members of both
houses and representatives of the State
Road Association and other organizations
concerned in the subject, be instituted tC
devise and report the necessary bills fol-
the establishment of the permanent com
mission and the employment of convic
labor and to consider the plan of State aid
| The discussion following General Stone:
| address was led by Judge h. =. Martin