The progressive farmer and the cotton plant., 1905-07-11
The Government and People.

was right in the axiom that this is
government of the people, by the peo-
pie, for the people, the day cannot be
distant when we shall see the Ma
ton cooperating with the States IN
the systematic construction OF wagon
roads in every direction, and by such
generous policy aiding in the estab-
lishment of conditions that will re-
dound to the enduring glory OF
American citizenship. If this IS
government of the people, by the
people, for the people, it must be
that we soon shall witness the inau-
guration of that liberal national
policy with respect to road building
which will make one section OF our
country as desirable to live In as any
other section, and all parts of the
country the abiding place of a hap
py, prosperous population. This is
surely what we are coming to II the
possibilities of our great country are
to be substa antially realized. 1t IS a
lamentable fact, but one we have to
admit, that road building in the
United States has been almost crimi-
nally neglected, and that we are far
in the rear of other civilized nations
in this respect All who take the
time for serious thought on the sub
iect will admit that the general i'm
provement of the highways through
out the country would do more to
promote the welfare and happiness
of all the people than any other
work which could be undertaken. 1t
follows, then, that-this being a gov
ernment for as well as of and by the
peOple-the inauguration of policy
of good-rOads construction is a ma
tional obligation that cannot be long
postponed. I'm the course of our
commercial and industrial develop
ment we have reached a point where
the great problem of improving the
common roads must be faced. AS
was stated in the Senate Hearings
on the subject. we can no longer push
it away as a local question, because
the CSC aa1 -peAd Ta4saLle.aA, know
by the experience of seventy-fve
years, is too vast to be solved laedf1--
n. 1t IS nowhere pr; ,r0Ss55sed s55sed that the
government shall alone undertake the
work of building roads. but under
both the Brownlow and Latimer bills.
by wise limitations, it will bear one
half the expense and otherwise CO.
operate with States and counties in
the work And herein is the solution
of the problem--a great national
government of the people leading the
way.
In Europe, especially in the west
ern half, which is covered by a net
work of the finest roads in the world
the maintenance of the roads is a
recognized important function of
government. That is not asked OF
expected here. but unless we greatly
mistake the signs of the times and
the current of popular thought on
the subject, the American neople are
setting themselves toward a national
road policy that will give to them a
fair share in the distribution of that
which primarily belongs to them
The American farmer cares nothing
for the roads that lead to Rome. He
is deeply concerned about the alb
sence of decent roads that lead to
market, to church and to school. He
knows it to be as true now as in
1918, when Henry Clay declared it
in Congress, that the first direct eff
feet of bad roads is on the agricul-
tural community out of whose pock-
cts comes the cost of hauling farm
products to market. When the Ameri-
can farmer Is Stan1iOU all the +iDoo