Audubon County journal. (Exira, Iowa) 1884-1993, 1903-07-30
OF BENEFIT TO ALL.
SENATOR DANIEL ON THE VALUE OF
GOOD ROADS.

| why They Are Economical and What
They Save-ShouId Be Built to Last.
An object Lesson In a Virginia
County.
In an address at Virginia good
| roads convention United States Sena-
| tor Daniel spoke on the economy and
| benefits of good highways as follows:
"A good road is a universal public
| benefaction. There is not single men,
Der of the community who does not re-
| ceive advantage and pleasure from it.
| 1t is the most domestic of all public
| institutions \ courthouse is for liti-
| giants, an asylum is for the intirm, a
! Jail for criminals, a theater for enter
| tainment, a park for recreation. a
| school for instruction. church for
worshipers, hotel for wayfarers, but
good road is for everybody-Saint and
sinner, man, woman and child, maid
and matron. young and old, rich and
poor, healthy and sick. the lame, the
-: halt and the blind all get a share of
| benefit from good road.
"A good road is mark of the prog
reSs of the community in Which it is
located Show me a good road and |
will confidently say of the people of
the community, They are up and do
ing; they are going forward \ good
road is no transient and tickle salts
faction. 1t is a slayer. Night and day,
winter or summer, autumn or spring,
1t is the general public servant, "A
friend that sticketh closer than broth
err The antipodes of interest on a
debt which runs against you all the
time, a good road is for you and does
duty to you all the time.
"A good road is generator and a
radiator of benefit to all who live upon
1t or who move upon it. A man likes to
locate in land of good roads. They
are the lightning rods to attract intel!i-
gent settlers. A good road is faith
full friend and a cheerful companion.
1t is the best investment and the best
of advertisements. 1t is poster that
nobody wants to deface and that you
can't pull down.
This is country in which you have
got to build roads after the old Roman
fashion or after the fashion of the
good roads train-build them to stay
built. In a country of this kind there is
no economy in building what you
you might call 'tolerable road unless
you are on the top of a fair plateau
where nature has given you q good
grade. In Prince Edward county the
enterprising people of Farmville and
vicinity have built good road accord
ing to modern ideas from Farnville
out to old Hampden-Sidney college. At
any time you go there you can find the
farmers. with their four horse and six
horse teams carrying their tobacco and
other products to this road. AS soon as
they strike this good road they take
out all but two horses and go merrily
jogging ON to town, sending the rest Of
. the horses back to the plantation.
) There is an object lesson for you and
one which illustrates the economy of
J good roads.
what will a road save? First, it
will save time. That is the most i'm
portant thing in your life that you
ought to save because a little slice of
time is all that the Creator has allow
ed any of US here out of the great
eternity. Whoever can save time pro-
longs his life on earth to that extent.
In the next place, you can save ma
terial by having q good road. This is
a department of the matter which the
| Statistician has never thoroughly in
vestigated nor the historian recounted
But your experience tells you this:
a stretch OF muddy road means the
) breakage of harness. the Straining of
vehicles, ruined paint and varnish on
your buggies and many other petty
losses which amount to great deal in
the aggregate. Then there is n great
2 saving of animal life resulting from
! good roads. 1t ruins 4 good horse to
4 work him lard on q bad road. Look
l at the horses that are strained Think
+ of the increased number of horses you
! have to use on Il bad road. Then
+ think of the difference between bad
1 and good roads to man himself. If he
[ starts with his produce to town. tea
: fifteen or twenty miles away over 8
y Lad road, he cannot get there and SCI
0 it before breakfast But on u good
Y road he can bring his produce with the
e dew of the morning upon it ten Oh
even fifteen miles to town and get +
to market while it is most valuable.
Think for Il moment Of the effec
Y upon the man himself. Let him hav'
V rickety wagon and q bad horse am
u twenty miles to go to town through
i such mud as we have up in this coun
:: try, and he Will be ready by the time
he gets there to appreciate the legert
) written on dial in Spain with refer
a ence to the flying moments, Each on
: wounds, the last kills" But if he i
+! journeying upon a good road pleasan
thoughts come to him. He has oppOI
tunity to think. He has opportunit.
to take in whatever is pleasant aroun'
him He Will enjoy conversation wit
- - his companions and when he gets t
town he is u RATIONAL contented maj
ready to face the next duty in life
whatever it may De.
<1N..