River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1902-04-17
BETTER ROADS NEEDED.
Government, Thinks This Writer
should Have supreme Control
over Highway Building.

The season again approaches when,
superior to all questions of education,
politics or religion, "How shall we get
where we want to go through this
mud?" engrosses the attention of
large portion of the population of the
United States. Even in the longest set
tied portions of our country, one would
suppose time, population and wealth
has given opportunity to establish
proper foundation for comfortable To-
comotion for the wet as well as the
dry season, we find the condition near
ly as deplorable as in more recently set
tied areas.
Why is it that with fine farms, with
substantial buildings for man and
beast, with railroad lines cutting the
country in every direction, and with
billions added each year to the perma-
nent wealth of the country, there is so
little in the permanent Improvement
of our roads? We vote in this county
as high as five mills for road purposes,
and at the end of decade after spend
ing $50 out of every $1,000 there is lit
tie permanent improvement.
After failure from the time of set
Element of this country till now it
would seem rs if we should be ready
for some change, especially when we
reflect that nearly every civilized por-
ton of the old world has successfully
established proper highways. Under
the system prevalent here the citizens
of many districts spend their time and
occasionally some misdirected energy
on the roads, when they run out of Il
job at home, regardless of the voice
of the ''road" to "come and mend me
and i will be your benefactor." The
ordinary individual would much rath-
or make two dollars to jingle in his
pocket or add to the value of his pri-
yate wealth than to make ten dollars in
public improvements, even for his own
benefit, so he seeks every advantage
to make dollars for himself and rare
ly hunts work for the public, and his
neighbor, the supervisor in the circum-
scribed road district, often disregard
ing his official duty, fails to call out
his men at the proper time, and when
callOd out fails to work them in the
proper manner, and we call this road
system and howl because we have poor
roads.
With any system that depends upon
the material through which the road
passes we cannot have good roads all
the time, but they can be vastly inn
proved. IN my judgment, after large
experience, ] am convinced that the
township is about the proper unit for
road district-th is, for the build
ing and mending of our common dirt
roads. The size and amount of labor
to be performed in this area gives a
man a permanent position and takes
him away from local influences, and
much more competent men can he Sc
cured to fill the position of supervisor
than if the district is small.
But this country is much too enlight-
ened and wealthy forever to be subject
to halt Of its traffic during prolonged
humid conditions, and we must soon
make a start for permanent roads.
How? BY the Inauguration Of u road
system by the government of the
United States and the yearly appro-
priation of not less than $50,000,0 900,
this money to go to localities which
would supplement it with an equal
amount, the whole to be spent under
the direction OF government engineers.
Thomas Gay, in Chicago Record-Hcr-
aid