The Olneyville times. (Olneyville [Providence, R.I.]) 1887-1917, 1907-09-27
z Good Roads. y
How to Use Surplus.


III this Government has one hum
dred million or two hundred million
, dollars a year surplus revenue. why
not use that surplus revenue for maxi
ing Improvements? Why not deepen
harbors, improve waterways and build
good roads all over the United States?
The supposition Is that we and our
descendants are going TO occupy this
land permanently; why not then make
II land worth living in?
People are always bowling against
the railroads, but let us see II works
which legitimately belong to the Gov
ernment are as we'll equipped and
maintained as are the enterprises
built and managed by the rapacious
corporations. 1t is admitted by all
parties that public highways are
properly the concern OF the Govern
ment and that they should be estab-
lished, maintained and controlled by
the Government. No wicked corpora
tion is monopolizing or attempting TO
monopolize the public highways of
any State. They are exclusively un-
der the control OF the Government.
What sort Of public highways have
We? Rotten-I say rotten.
The railroads, owned, maintained
and operated by the wicked corpora
tiOns, which have no business TO exist
except to pay tribute to politicians
and be regulated" are the best man.
aged properties, on an average, In the
world. They are in the highest state
OF development. giving the best and
most efficient service for the least
amount of money and employing at
remunerative wages hundreds OF
thousands of men. On the other
hand, the public highways are so bad
that savages might be ashamed TO
own them.
If the United States Government,
then, has the huge surplus" which
Ellis II. Roberts regards as such a
wrong" it would seem a measure
Of prudence to use a portion Of this
surplus, thereby diminishing the
wrong" in building and maintaining
a system Of public highways through
out our national domain which would
make locomotion possible between
our villages and towns with some
degree OF comfort and safety. IL
Congress would pass a general law
providing that the Federal Govern
ment contribute one-half or one-third
of the coN Of building public high
ways In the several States, under
proper restrictions and conditions,
it would operate as great incentive
to each OF the States to raise its
share of funds necessary to build
such highways and would give
marvellous stimulus to the good roads
movement in general. The national
Government could we'll afford to ap-
propriate one hundred million dollars
a year for this purpose, on condition
that the several States would raise
an equal amount or, say, double that
amount.
1t does not follow that all high
ways, or even the major part of them.
should be favored with Government
appropriation. On the contrary,
most of the county and township
highways should be maintained by
local taxation or by local and State
tax combined, but a system of good
State roads and national highways
might appropriately be developed by
the national Government in co-opera-
tion with the State governments.
This would dispose of our huge sur
plus in common sense manner by
adding enormously to the wealth OF
the nation; for each dollar so invest
ed, if honestly expended, may be
relied upon to increase the national
wealth at least three or four fold. 1t
would also keep money in circulation
here at home, give employment to a
vast number of men and assure good
times permanently. - George w.
Crichfield, in the New York Sun.