Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1904-12-14

til now, it might be said, that we are il
a third stage of civilization and devel
opment; day of gasoline and elec
; trical appliances, bicycles and automo
biles that are more rapid in transit anC
more delicate in composition than We
! hieles that were used in former years
therefore, better roads are required il
their use. Great enterprise and ad
vanvement has taken place in all lines
of industry, in this as well as most ev'
cry other civilized country in the world
1t is this new condition of things that
brings us face to face with realiza-
ton, to a certain degree, at least, of
the Importance of making better public
highways. With the steam engine and
other improved machinery that sup
planted the OK team and the fail, came
an improved condition of the common
highway. We have again taken anoth-
er great stride in civilization and devel-
opment by the Inauguration of great
labOr-saving devices, and increased
transportation facilities, and by free
lrural deliveries of mail, so that what
lever happens today will be known
I throughout the world tomorrow.
con account of this increased civili-
zation and development, he who lives
in the rural districts can sit by his fire.
side, surrounded by his family and
loved ones, and enjoy the great pano-
rama of the world, as it is daily pic
tured by the cartoonist and statesman.
"The tax of bad roads will become
constantly harder to bear each year,
on account of the increased improve
ment of the transportation facilities,
both by water and rail, that bring us
into closer competition with cheap lar
Dor and products of other countries that
now have good roads. The Importance
of making better public highways
should appeal to us when we realize
that it now costs as much to transport
our products from our farms to our
shipping points by water and rail as it
does to have them carried from said
points to the markets of the world.
However, the increase in the prices of
hauling actually done is by no means
the only loss resulting by reason of
bad roads. The loss of perishable pro-
ducts from want of access to markets,
the failure to reach markets when
prices are good, and the failure to raise
products that would be marketable if
markets were always accessible add
many millions to the tax of bad roads.
"My study of the highway problem
has led me to believe that our greatest
and immediate needs are money and
system. Without funds we can have
no system, and without system the ex-
penditure of funds for highway i'm.
provement will bring us but little re-
turns, and our success at road build
ing will be measured by the extent of
the application that we shall make of
these two things, namely, money and
system. What good would it do to
place great sum of money into the
hands of a county court and lot of
road supervisors, who take but little or
nc interest in the study of highway i'm
provement. In such an event, a great
deal of it would be foolishly expended,
and but little good would be accom-
plished in the improvement of the high
ways.
cit is education that is need.
ed by our people generally upon
a few general principles that must nee.
essarily govern this highway problem
as 1T now presents itself, and not so
much about the details of the work lust
at this time What we need now more
than anything else is to have a good, |
live, good roads enthusiast, whose bust
ness it shall be to go over our state and
hold meetings and have heart to
heart with the farmers and business
men of our country, and get them to
organize good roads clubs throughout
each county, and get some good roads
literature into their hands, and get
them TO studying the road problem, as
it now presents itself, in the light of |
this new era of civilization and culture
that We now live in. This having been }
done, we will, among other things, have
accomplished the following results:
"lst. A majority of our people win be !
convinced that it requires a good deal
more money to build roads as they |
should be built, than they now think
IL does, and they win find that there
are great many more miles of road |
To be built than they are now aware Of
"sd. That great eOntrarie.y of Opin-
ion as TO how public highways should |
be constructed will be done away with |
and in the place of so much eheap ad |