The record-union., 1897-02-03

BY request of Chairman Anderson.
Mr. Woodson addressed the c0mmittea.
giving the results of his study of the
subject and observation of road legisl2-
ton for many years. He gave stats
ties of good road benefits. reduced tax
atiOn and increased values and com
forts. as evidenced in New Jersey. He
pointed out the need of desirab BILE popu
lation for California. and that one cf
the best ways to secure it is TO make
rural life more desirable by improving
the means of road communication be
tween town and country. He gave sta
tistics of cost of haul on good and bad
roads, and of the economies of a liber-
al and broad system, to which both city
and country contribute, as both are
mutual in interest in the matter
AssembIyman Price then addressed
the committee. He opposed the State
system bitterly, He had come up in
structed to do 50. At a public meeting
in Sonoma County he had been SO in
structed. His people felt competent to
attend to their own roads and systems
of roads. What guarantee, he asked,
can be given that this State system
Will be What is claimed for ii? 1t is a
nickel in the slot business. We want the
Bureau of Highways blotted out. ana
ended. 1t has done very well, made
examinations and gathered data, ANA
| its usefulness is at an end.
Assemblyman Clarke What do you
propose instead of the system under
consideration?
Mir Price-Wel these gentlemen
have done good work. Now the counties
can take their plans and data and SO
to work. What guarantee have we that
this can be carried out in twenty years?
Who knows that the SS,000.OU0 called
,, for in the twenty years will produce the
results claimed?
Mr.. Manson-Under the present sys-
tenn, on the basis of the past twenty
years, the people Will have expended
SAC, 100000 and have no more to show
for it than at present.
Mr.. Price-But what guarantee have
we that all this can be accomplished?
Replying to a statement in one of his
county papers Mr. Price referred
to editors building roads on paper. He
was a farmer and farmers knew best.
Once he tried it as an editor and could
send out a fifteen-year-old reporter,
who would get up a surprisingly good
road article. It's all humbug. exclaim-
ed Mr.. Price.
Mr.. Price was asked if. once the peo-
pie of his county did not object TO u
railroad in the county that has bene-
fitted them so much, and which they
would not now part with. Mr. Price
did not know as to that. He was as
sured that it was true that long ago
strong objection was made to construct
ing railroad through the county. but
the people thought twice and have been
benefited immensely
Mr.. Price objected to a system that
| would make Sonoma contribute to pay
for costly roads in the mountain coun-
ties
Mr.. Caminetti replied that expert
encc has clearly demonstrated that val
| ley roads cost more than mountain
roads The former are harder to dram.
and material for building them has =
be hauled a longer distance In the
mountains materials, such as rock.
! timber, etc, are at hand and generally
good foundations for roads have been
placed by nature in the hills At
| length he pointed out the wisdom Of all
the State contributing to d-building,
as all the State is benefited thereby
Mr.. Melick seconded the words Of
Mr.. Caminetti. In Los Angeles County
| the city pays by far the larger part %
the taxes. Yet the city stands ready to
be taxed to help build roads We musc
| lift our eyes in this matter to a broader
horizon than mere locality. He spoke
! with emphasis of the values received by
community by the building OF good
| roads. He recited object lessons in
highway construction and related Wnat
! one man did for an Illinois community
| by building three miles of good roads on
his own account where it had been I'M
! possible before to get n move on th@
| people. The result of that example
was magical, and to-day the section mas
the best road system in that State, and
it was all due to the effort of one man
| having faith. San Francisco is the
| largest taX-paying community IN the
State. We cannot expect that she viii
consent to be taxed for counties to ex-
| pend the money under local systems. 1t
is absurd to expect that Of either San
/ Francisco, Los Angeles or Sacramento.
! 1t is not business and it is not good
sense.
| Assembly Anderson said he was
welded to no system. He came up
| satisfied that the present so-calied
system is not right OF. beneficial. He
wanted the whole State to contribute.
but he wanted the integrity of county
and district authority preserved. What
his people want is to have tangible and
visible results for their money. 1t is not
| the sum of the money SO much, as the
expenditure that concerns them What
they want systematic work, method
and the best results of human expert
ence in road building.
Mr.. Price-But who can tell that such
will be the result with this nickel in
| the slot proposition? You can't tel
what is coming on.
! Mr. Manson-No, nor can we in any
thing man undertakes. We have no
guarantee on life, you know.
! Mr.. Irvine-Here is the official report