Troy weekly news. (Troy, Idaho) 1897-1933, 1906-11-02
WHY GOOD ROADSPAY
hAkE LAND VALUABLE AND CREATE
HIGH AVERAGE INTELLIGENCE.
Striking Instances of Importance of
Having Improved Highways Told
by an Arkansas Man-serious Eject
of Bad Road Tax on Farmers.

At the recent convention of the
Arkansas Good Roads association held
at Fort Smith, H. e. Kelley, according
to the Goods Roads Magazine, spoke
on Good Roads-Why They Pay"
saying In part as follows:
"Roads are the foundation of clvili-
zation. They form the means of COM
munication between people, and there
is no better index of the intelligence of
any community than its roads. Good
roads pay. They make high land val
ues, and in time they create high aver
age intelligence in the country through
which they are built. Perhaps no bet
ter example of this can be found than
In New Zealand, where the general
government undertakes the building
and care of all roads-the railroads as
well as the wagon roads. The country
of New Zealand is much like that of
Arkansas, but the government adopted
a development policy which Is very
effective and highly profitable. One Of
the main lines of business conducted
by the government of New Zealand Is
in real estate. 1t acquired by purchase
or condemnation large tracts of land.
The first thing in the way of develop
ment was a highway built through the
property Along this the government
sells out to settlers on long time and
easy payments land in suitable sizes
for farms and homes. The settlers on
this land are first given employment
by working on the roads. After the
roads are in good condition the p0pula-
ton comes quite rapidly, and it is as
tonishing what that government is ac-
complishing in spreading its people out
on the soil There is no congestion of
the population in cities. Each citizen
is encouraged to get home of as many
acres of land as he can take care of
and the result is a population whose
general intelligence and comfort are
greater than l have seen elsewhere.
"That good roads pay is a generally
conceded fact. and it has seemed
strange to me that an argument on this
subject should be needed. A visit to
any of the rural districts of Arkansas
Is convincing proof that an argument
is required, for the good roads are not
there. and ! cannot conceive Of great
er contrast than that which the squalor,
poverty and ignorance displayed in our
rural districts make with the intelli-
gence, cleanliness and comfort one sees
In a New Zealand rural district. l think
this difference is more due to the roads
than to any o.her cause. Whether the
lack o. roads breeds ignorance or
whether the ignorance breeds the bad
roads Is subject ! will not undertake
to discuss At any rate. both exist to
such an extent in our state that our
first patriotic duty is to either dispel
the ignorance In procuring the roads or
procuring the roads TO dispel the ig-
norance.
Il recently purchased a piece of land
near Fort Smith past which ran two
good roads recently built This land
was timbered, but the timber had been
rated an incumbrance on the land. In
fact. it hadn't been profitable to steal
1t and haul it to town. which fact prob
ably accounts for its still being there.
had a lot of this timber cut and put a
rather intelligent person looking for a
disposal of it. Some time later I was
sold at net price. after paying for the
hauling. which would more than pay
for clearing the land. On looking into
this / found that the good roads made
II possible to haul n cord or more at a
load of this wood to market and make