The daily journal. (Salem, Or.) 1899-1903, 1901-08-22


work because they have nothing. IL
+ getting something they make the stat'
rich. People who have means live of
the industry Of others nine times ou'
Of ten, and Oregon has more of those
than any state 10 the west in proportion
TO population. The state could swaT
some Of its hundred thousand dollar
citizens, one for thousand with 500
TO great advantage.
aA
Two things assert themselves among
all races and under all conditions Of
civilization and have TO be reekoned
with-wealth and intelligence.
Q q q
The people up Walla Walla and PEN
dleton way have had great success in
improving the roads by strawing them.
A straw road is free from dust in sum-
mer and dry in winter. II has many of
the qualities Of sawdust, which makes
about the cleanest, most nolseless and
easiest riding highway we have seen in
this country. Sawdust is more durable
than straw and does not blow away 80
easily. On straw day ia the country
above referred to the farmers all turn
out and straw the roads for miles. The
merchants in town offer a number Of
prizes for the biggest load Of straw, for
the man who can put the most road
down in day, ETC., and the commission.
ers up that way believe they have taken
a great step towards solving the road
problem. Straw or sawdust lets the
rain through and keeps a perfectly dry
surface. Either OF these materials 10
cheaper than dirt or gravel road, and
can be put on any ordinary roadway
without any special preparation. A
straw or sawdust roadway requires no
brains or ability to build road, except
to put IL on. 1t is equally good for
city streets, and city street
commissioners are generally fully
AZ deficient in gray matter as their
country cousins. Straw and sawdust are
far more plentiful in the average COM
munity than brains OF money. II would
not take more than five loads of sawdust
to lay ell the dust along one side Of
block aud ii is cheaper than apfinkling.
II your neighbors on the other three
sides Of the block prefer to have the
aerated street-manure blowing over
their posybeds and'up their noses, you
don't have 10 II you want 10 try the
sawdust or straw remedy. Great stacks
OF straw and sawdust are burned or
rotted each year, enough to cover all the
roads in Marion county but IL is not ex-
pected that we shall be as enterprising
as the people OF Walla Walla and PEN
deton. Still somo may read this with
life enough in their Uranium to place
sawdust or straw in front Of their own
premises. The amount OF time people
and cursing the roadmasters would
straw or sawdust quarter section of
road on which a buggy or wood wagon
would run as smoothly as on carpet.
The saving in horse-ilesh, noise, vehicles
clothing, health, time and morals
would more than pay for sawdust
or straw road, and II they were not good
the busy, bright, ,bustling people OF Walls
Walla would not adopt straw roads as a
county system. We have wallow-wal-
lowed around in dirt roads so long W,
don't know anything else, As a matter
OF fact anything makes better roads thar
spend philandering around in tho muc
dirt. We don't know hut soitsoap would
Like cannibal savages that prefer to ca
human flesh, they are kreopagists be
cause they don't know that other flesh
10 better, or are too lazy 10 get Il. Sc
we have wallow-wallowed in dirt iol
forty years until We don't know any
thing else. II is time We got some strav
or sawdust on the brain and did a littl
Walla Walla-ing Of our roads. Tn
JouRNAL iancies II hears some rancher o
city man who has been sinking in IN
mire for the last forty winters say
"sink me II don't try sawdust or stray
fer change"