The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1904-04-05
ROCKS FOR
GOOD ROADS
Professor Gould of the Nor
man University Writes.
LOCATES THE MATERIAL
importance of Good Roads
Must Be Impressed.
LOCATES THE MATERIAL

Norman, o. T.. April 4-Professor Goula
o. the University of Oklahoma was at
Guthrie last Friday attending a meeting
of the Oklahoma and Indian Territory
Good Roads association. He gave an ad-
dress before that body on the subject.
Relation Of the Rocks Of Oklahoma
to Good Roads" The lecture was Illus
the two territories, showing the location
Of tltfferent kinds OF rock. when asked
concerning the good roads movement Pro-
fessor Gould said:
THE subject of good reads is one that
is going to attract much attention during
the next five years. In large measure
it will take The place of the river and
harbor agitation that has been so coii-
stantly before the country for twenty
years
I'm my opinion the three subjects that
will be prominent before the American n
people for the next few years are irriga-
ton, forestry and good roads.
Good roads should interest every one,
the farmer, who has to haul his products
TO market; the merchant, who purchases
them; the railroad man who finally trans
ports them to the distant consumer
But queer as it may seem, people have
TO be stirred up to understand the Inn
portance of good roads. One would natu-
ally think that farmers and merchants
the country over would fall in with the
movement. In fact, however, the general
observation is that the reverse is true.
Most people seem to think that because
roads always have been muddy in winter
and dusty in summer therefore they
must be; and it follows that the people
who should give this matter their atter-
tion and help to push it along are in fact
the ones who seem most indifferent.
Such people however, sometimes wake
up when they learn what has been done
on their behalf by the general govern
ment. You know there is a bill now be-
fore congress known as the Brownlow
bill that provides for an appropriation of
s25, 900 900 to be spent in the various states
| on the construction of good roads. If
| this bill passes and there is good reason
to believe thai it will do SO, Oklahoma
will have her share of the money to be
expended on the construction Of good
roads
Now the general government does only
| half. The state or community must pay
the other half. The plan proposed is for
| the community benefited to pay one
| fourth of the cost, the state government
one-fourth and the general government
the rest. OF course there are certain tech
nicalities and requirements to be met be-
fore the money will be available even II
the bill passes congress. but Oklahoma
should be ready to use the money as soor
as the government is ready to give it t.
US.
| In 4 dozen or more states of the
| Union where the experiment has beer
tried it has been found profitable TO US,
short term prisoners on the construction
| Of public roads. Whether or not this
polity would be a success in Oklahoma
remains TO be seen. Such movement
was endorsed by the convention Friday
THE greater part of Oklahoma has
! fairly good roads. Most of the soil is e
sandy shale that packs hard and firm SC
that the road is neither worry muddy ol
very dusty. The poorest roads are in the
sand hill region and it is in these regions
that good roads are most needed. Jus'
how TO make good roads in sand is 9
problem not yet satisfactorily solved anc
for that very reason question in which
the people of Oklahoma should interest
themselves.
In the Indian Territory the problem Il
different. There the rocks consist chiefly
of clays and shales of carboniferous ag'
which become muddy in winter and dusty
in summer, and it will require consider
able work to get good roads Throughout
the territory.
Il am very sanguine as to the out
come of this movement With the energ,
and push so characteristic of the peopl'
Of the two territories they are going {
take hold of the matter of good roads
and make it go. It is money in thei
pockets for them to do so.''