Los Angeles herald., 1907-01-18

wagon does not readily submit to this
open air embalming. If left where he
fell it is only a few days before he
loudly howls for burial rites. He is
then cast into the ditch and can be used
in the later days of road mending.
1t is written that "the way of the
transgressor is hard" This makes
preaching a mighty hard job in Cali
fornia during an unusual season. The
unusual season" in this state occurs
semi-annually, once in the winter and
once in the summer. A man with ma
chine or wagon standing in four feet of
mud, and no bottom at that, looking for
a good way out and remembering that
'the way of the transgressor is hard.
mourns over his own unlucky rightC-
BUSINESS and resolves that hereafter he
will stick to the macadam. If he per-
sists in that resolution there is little
question but that he will walk on a
pavement of good intentions" here
after, a paving material that has been
used, according to sacred history, for
some 1000 years. The supply is fur
nished fresh from the quarries by each
generation and becomes kiln-dried after
being placed in position. 1t is impervi-
Gus to frost. Its foundation is far, far
below the frost line. And it is imper-
vious to moisture. If a California rain
should fall upon it the steam would
blow the roof off.
Road Making Ancient
Road making is a feature of civiliza-
tion in which the dearest and the wisesr
and the best, the most hustling and
Irustling, progressive enterprising, wide
awake and up-to-date people in the
whole round world, the inhabitants of
Southern California, could learn from
civilizations that existed 1000 years ago.
We could even learn something about
it from the English people, who may be
guilty of transposing their his now and
then, but are never known to bullo
their roads upside down, with the stones
| at the bottom and the muck on top. A
year or two ago l went a-motorins
, through western England with my
family through Surrey, Hantsk, Dor
set, Devon, Somerset Wits, Bristol and
Berks. There is not one mile of city in
Los Angeles equal to any one mile OF
the roads we toured over.
Through cities and towns, picturesque
country villages, over the downs,
through the forests, everywhere the
roads were as near perfection as skill
and patience and continued work could
} make them. Repairs on English roads
are not made just prior to a state or a
city election, as is the custom in
America, but they are repaired every
day. The road members go over them as
regularly and frequently as the track
men walk along our railways, and the
roads are made for people to walk
along, to walk on and to drive over. In
cantrast to the hostility of the citizens
here to the automobile, all the sym
Ipathy of the English road makers is
with the auto wagons. Every group
| that we passed, whether it was two or
half dozen men, shouted cheerfully 10
warn us of possible danger. When we
first heard the repeated cry, "P'lice trap
'arf mile ahead, sir" we said, "Thank
you" with an English accent and at
tributed it to the kindness of the
; laborer.
Traps Imaginary
After a while we learned that the
price of a pint of beer would not be re-
, fused by the kindhearted men who
warned us of police traps that We're
neither set nor baited, and existed only
in the thirst and imagination of the
honest toiler. | have known the re-
pairer of the political roads of the re-
public, repairing with busy muck rake
, and carloads of mushy material for The
fall rains to warn the country of ap-
., preaching destruction with an appeal
= ing account that told of unassuagabc
thirst, unfillable capacity and elegant
lish roads. The harder it rains the
, cleaner the roads. The driVeways cut
down by the cart wheels of the CEN
tuues are walled with high banks
crowned by blossoming hedgeroWs II
, there is anything loVeier than an Eng
, lish country road in June is must be
! heaven,
i An Englishman may go to the ends
/ of the earth for climate, but he never
e leaves England i'm search of landscape
; beauty and highway cleanliness
I There was a time when we had fairly
I good country roads i'm many localities
' but the railways checked the impulse
I toward good rOadmaking. When there
. was nothing but the highways mer
y We're compelled to make them passable
- but when the railways defied mud rair
and storm and tied all the towns to,
gether man abandoned road making
and road mending, The bicycle revived
it little while; then they failed again
The automobile viii compel gooC
roads i'm this country Instead of leg,
islating against the auto, the member
from Alfalfa and Antelope valley, the
member and all his constituents should
bow down and serve them with legis
latyc faVorS. For if a man is only
going to market he win depend on get,
ting there some how and some way
ana some time, a man gong out mere
ly for pleasure is going TO have it Il
it costs his bottom dollar man car
get a drink of spring water for moth
ing, yet ne 'makes Rome howl" If h,
Is asked 10 pay am inhnitesimal tax I,
bring owens river down to Los An
geles. But he win walk a mile anc
pay 25 cents for drink of whisky
Every year we have bad roads. Ever,
year we have watched the waste storm
water running i'm torrents down to tn
sea, and every year since l have live,
in California we have laid our hand
ON our hearts and declared that thi
should never occur again; that befor
next winter we would have great res
erVoirs for the storage of storm water
and we would have roads as hard L
11oko nc nra-aIQptinp prnp1fgps arc 4,