The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1899-07-25
WHO SHALL" PAY, FOR GOOD
ROADS?
"A Well-Known wheelman Gives His

The great reason why we have S
few good roads in the United States /
that we have left it to the farmer
alone to build them. This is wrong, /
Is absolutely impossible for the farm
ers alone to provide a system Of goo(
roads. The cost is altogether too great
and unless substantial help If fur
nished them, upon some reasonable ba
sis, progress In road building will con
tinue to be slow and unsatisfactory,
says Otto Dorner, Chairman of the l.
A. w. Highway Improvement commit.
tee.
THE help which the farmers require
in building roads should come from the
cities. The cities are the great centers OF
wealth; they are the great markets ir
which business is done-the great dis
tributing points for manufactures and
for agricultural products. Agriculture
al America has built them up and
maintains them The union between
the cities and farming districts is close,
upon hundred different channels of
trade. Each depends upon the other.
What is more proper, therefore, than
that the city should unite with the
country in constructing and maintain
Ing suitable ana GIHCleIL luGdIlS OIL Gull
municaton and transportation?
"There need be no doubt that the
taxpayers of most American cities are
willing and ready to contribute to the
cost of building country roads. Their
necessity is as thoroughly realized in
the cities as it is by the farmers who
become stalled on a muddy road with
load of grain hauled half way to mar
ket. City people know the country bet
ter than they have ever known it be-
fore, and their business relations with
country people are growing more and
more intimate. They are quick to see
the convenience and saving which
would result from the construction of
good roads, and know that they them
selves would be, in large measure, the
gamers"
but how can tax be levied upon
city property for expenditure in coun-
try districts for road building pur-
poses? A city tax is out of the ques-
tlon, as much SO as it would be to levy
town tax upon farm property for
building sewers in a distant city. True,
county tax might be levied, large
share of which would be paid by the
cities situated in the county, and which
might be used for the building of roads
in any locality within the county But
this is not sufficient, especially in the
case of large cities like Chicago, New
York, Cincinnati. St. Louis, Mnneapo-
lis and Baltimore. Their interests ex-
tend far beyond the counties in which
they are situated; indeed, the cities
themselves constitute the greater part,
or nearly all, of the tax-paying proper
ty included in these counties. They
may properly contribute to the cost Of
building roads in all the territory from
which they draw their trade"
1.-THE best method yet devised for
levying taxes upon city property for
the purpose of building country roads
Is by the medium of state tax. This |
is levied upon city and country prop
erty alike, upon all classes Of people, SO
that every locality. every taxpayer,
contributes proportionately, according
to the amount of property owned, the
wealthy property-ow contributing
the largest amounts"
Massachusetts, New Jersey, New
York and Connecticut are probably the
states which have made the greatest
progress in country road building.
They have all levied state highway
taxes, and have built roads by a sys
tenn of state aid. While the rate of
taxation has been low, the amount col
lected has been considerable In New
York fifty thousand dollars were col
lected by a state tax of one and one
tenth cents upon every thousand dol
lars assessed valuation, and four fifths
of the whole amount was collected in
thn All y1,1,o pf tI1h tyy
in the state is situated"
THE state aid system does not inter-
fere in any way with present methods
of road building, but simply provides a
means by which an enterprisng coun-
try community, desiring to possess
first-class highways, may obtain finan-
cial assistance for the purpose from
the cities. The state does not pay for
building such roads, but simply con-
tributes to their expense, just as it
contributes to the cost Of maintaining
public schools, which are conducted by
the local school officials, but which, to
receive such state assistance, must be ;
UP to a certain standard" /
CYCLING NOTES.
Wheelmen desiring to join the League {
of American Wheelmen should make {
application to Abbott Bassett, secreta-
ny. Boston, Mass.
J. A. Mcclure, of Denver, and G. w.
Lloyd of Detroit, have been appointed
as members of the rules and regula
tions committee of the League of
American Wheelmen. t
The l.. A. w. representatives at the l. '
c.. A. race meeting in Montreal will be S
named by the racing board next week $
Those who have made the best showing /
to date and those who have won ma t
tional champion will be named. t
Arrangements have been made with t
the customs authorities whereby bicy- T
lies to be used in the championships at t
he Montreal meet will be admitted into o
Canada free Of duty. For this purpose t
he transportation department of the h
Canadian Wheelmen's association has e
provided certificates, the presentation t
# which will frank the machines a
through. The certificates can be OBJ is
aimed from the L. A. w. racing board, t.
All the details for the tours to be Il
made after the national meet of the a
T. A. w. at Boston, next month, have b
)een completed and details can be Sc e'
,red nv addressing the Touring De- | y