The Kennewick courier. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1905-1914, 1908-12-18
HOW TO TRAIN
SKILLED R0ADBU|LDERS
Professor Anderson Tells How High
way Engineers are Taught and
Given Practice

1t is perhaps needless to say that
highway engineering should be
taught as it is practiced, and practic-
ed as it is taught. in other words that
teaching and practice should agree.
Each should strive for the realiza-
tions of the highest ideals in the ac-
complishment of practical results.
The two therefore 60 hand in hand,
one presupposing the other and then
again the other supplementing the
first. For first there must be proper
teaching, proper education, but in
order that the teaching may be
efficient and up to date the teacher
must keep in close and active touch
with actual practice.
Until within the last few years
we, here in America, have enter
tanned the idea that road building
was beneath the dignity Of the train
ed engineer. But slowly it is fore
ed upon us an unwilling people, that
road building is an art, profession
and requires the trained intellect
and broad field of experience of the
highway engineer in order to secure
the best returns for the money in
vested. Our old systems have been
weighed in the great balance OF long
years of actual experience and found
sadly wanting. And while we have
in the last few years begun to look
upon our roads in a new light we
have still much more to do. Our
road improvements have not kept
pace with our progress in other lin
es. Even in this state the majority
of our roads are but little better
than they were twenty years ago.
Can you imagine what this naticn
would be today had we, for example
made no more improvements in our
farming machinery than we have in
our public roads? Practically every
tool or implement used by the farm
er has been increased in efficiency
many hundred fold. 1t is a long,
long step from the sickle to the COM
bined harvester. But no such gen.
eral improvements have taken place
in our roads. The mud trails OF
our fathers are to a large extent the
mud roads of today. And this too
in spite of the fact that the roads
are the farmers chief reliance, in
strumentality or means for tranpor-
tation and intercourse.
And may we inquire for few
moments as to the cause of this de-
ferred and retarded development
1t is due largely, if not entirely to
our hap-hazard methods of manage
ment and our lack of system. But
at length l believe we have learned
the lesson that there must be in
telligent direction before there can
be satisfactory results. Order must
come out of chaos before we can
hope to secure even reasonable re-
turns for the investments we are
annually making.
1t would no doubt be conservative
to say that in the U. S. one half OF
the total expenditure on our public
roads are absolutely lost. This
means that not less than forty mil
lions of dollars in money and labor
are wasted annually ON our public
roads, te say nothing of the greater
loss resulting to the nation in the
shape of a bad road tax or mud
embargo from our lad roads.
thus in most sections the immedi-
ate question is used as much how
To secure funds for building better
roads but how to secure better re-
turns for the funds we are already
expending. But very few states
can as Yet say they are securing full