The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1902-03-04
Living Issues.
low coon ROADS BENEFIT THR FARHER

O., Before the State Good Roads Convention,
Raleigh, W. c., February Is, 1909.
Upon the invitation of your Chair
man, 1 come before you representing
the farmers of North Carolina, who
constitute 80 per cent Of her popula-
ton. Like those who have proceeded
me, / shall talk TO you of good roads
and their advantages, but I am TO
speak especially on their relation to
the farmers Of the State as they at
feet them socially, eduoationally, re-
Igously and financially.
GOOD ROADS AS THEY AFFECT ii
FARMER.
Az q farmer I welcome the move
ment, for the sake of good roads,
and the ultimate changes they will
bring about. Good roads r the
forerunners of other improvements,
for they make possible many things
that will add TO our comfort and
convenience.
They not only give evidence of
thrift and prosperity, but add TO the
beauties and desirability of country
life.
They bring neighbors nearer to-
geather and obliterate TO q marked
degree the isolation of the average
country home.
They make travel a pleasure,
thereby promoting neighborly visits,
church going and school attendance ;
conditions that are desirable on a
count of their social, religious and
educational advantages.
Therefore this movement means
more than simply good roads. We
all appreciate the value of social in
teroourse. It cultivates and refnes
and moulds people into broader and
more useful lives. It makes
try life attractive and oultivates an
air of refinement that can be OBJ
tanned in no other way. It dispels
many of the disagreeable features of
ordinary farm life, by bringing into
the home rays of sunshine that drive
out gloom. The lack of the social
feature drives many young men and
young women to the city, TO seek at
fractions denied them in the country,
though in the city they soon find
that all that glitters is not gold.
With good roads our Public School
system would be very materially i'm
proved, and I believe that the money
now spent on public schools would
be twice as affective as it now is.
We can no longer be content sim
ply with the making of a crop; we
must know how to sell it. There
fore we need to be posted as TO what
is going on at the other end of the
line. We need to know how 80 eoono
mize in everything connected with
MAKING AND MARKETING THE CRoP
This brings us TO transportation
over our own public roads. There
are carried over the public roads of
the State, annually, about $1,000,
tons of fertilizers, $780, 900 bales of
cotton, 6,OOO,O 900, bushels of cotton
seed, millions of pounds of tobacco,
millions of bushels of wheat, CORN
and oats, hundreds of car loads of
packages of truck of various kinds,
together with timber, lumber, -four,
and every kind of merchandise. All
this carried chiefly by farmers. 1t
has been demonstrated that it re-
quires from two TO four times the
power TO carry a ton owe a bid
road that it does over q good road.
When u people fully realize what
an expenditure of power, and waste
of time and money this means there
will be a demand for good roads all
over the State. Good roads bring in
new settlers who are attracted by the
beauty of the country, and it's adj
vantages, and in this way enhance
the value of our lands.
AN EXAMPLE OF THE VALUE OF GOOD
ROADS.
It was my pleasure to spend some
time in, and travel pretty we'll over
Mecklenburg county about a year
ago. That was my first experience
with genuine macadam roads, and I
made it a point to enquire of the
people and get their opinion of them.
I spent a night with a farmer who
lived Immediately on the macadam
road. 1 inquired of him how much
nearer Charlotte vas he, in time,
than he was before they had mao
adam roads. He replied that it de
pended entirely on the weather thss