Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1899-01-05
CONGRESSIONAL AID.
wAy the National Government ShSllu
Take q Money Interest I'm Road
Improvement.

Another expression in favor of hav
ing congress take action on the subject
of road improvement appears in the
Greenville (Aiich.) Democrat, in an in
terview with DR.. A. w. Nichols. The
doctor speaks OF the necessity of hav-
ing better roads, and then continues:
81 believe that this country viii
never have good roads until the gov
eminent has adopted the policy of SUI
pervision and construction of the same.
Most of the civilized governments of
the old world have built their roads by
government appropriations. u
Government appropriations for good
roads would not be felt, but would be a
benefit by way of clearing farms Of
stone and giving employment to labor.
. The importance of roads for
military purposes. leading into the in
terror territories and to the frontier
was early appreciated, and some inn
Portant routes were opened by the gen.
eral government: as the national road
from Baltimore through Wheeling and
Cincinnati to st. Louis, and that from
Bangor to Houlton, in Maine
SIT has been estimated that $50 ,O00,-
Oc0 appropriated by the government
among the several states in proportion
TO their agricultural population. and
that sub-divided and distributed among
the counties Of each state in proportion
TO the agricultural population of each
county. would give the average ag-
ricultural counties of this state from
$4,000 to SIS, 600 each, and in IL or Is
years time the counties would be pro-
vided with good macadamized roads,
provided stone were reasonably Access
sible. ! believe in liberal ap-
preparations for all the departments Of
our government, but cannot see why
the great agricultural interests should
be neglected. If our billioE-dollar con-
crosses would appropriate the small
amount of SIC, 100000 year for good
roads, it could not, in my judgment, be
better applied in developing our coun-
try and, at the same time, meet the
wants of our people, especially in the
agricultural districts.
1.-THE importance of good roads is be-
coming so well recognized that they are
{. probability of The near future, and
their cause should be championed in
congress as soon as possible. Thus far,
of late years, all moneys used in the
CONSTRUCTION of good roads have been
secured by direct tax upon the people
living along the lines of such roads, or
those living in the counties or states
where such roads are located, and has
proven heavy burden upon those peo-
pie. Il The government can
conduct this matter much better than
states, and the revenue required to
meet the expenditure would be so small
that it would not be even felt by the
people. The Golfers of the
government are now being filled to
overlooking under the present system
of revenue and the war taxes could be
reduced many times and yet have suf-
fcient funds to meet this appropria
ton of $40, 900 annually for good
roads, and, at the same time, leave all
other departments of the government
we'll provided for.
"I believe that if member of con-
gress would champion government APP
preparations for good roads, that he
would find no difficulty in securing
petitions signed by large majority OF
the people, urging the enactment OF
such a law. Let the people
wake up on the subject of good roads
and national appropriations for the
same, for it will benefit the farmer more
than any other improvement that |
know of, and give employment to labor,
and would likewise prove advantage
Gus to all interests of the country es-
pecially to interior cities and villages.