The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1908-07-15

enhanced in value BY this gene.al
good roads movement in California
that the principal and interest on thu
Obligations incurred is simply re-
carded as a basatello in comparison"
As an illustration of just how the
cost OF building good roads effects
each one Of us individually | will re-
late little talk that had a couple
of weeks ago with an extensive hay
raiser Of the artesian district of the
Mckee. We were talking Of bonding
the county for a million dollars, 70
be used for building good roads. ami
! asked this man what he thought of
the proposition He said: Il would
like hard roads as well as anybody.
and when we have the money to build
them with | am in for them, but
Will never consent to bonding the
county, especially to any such an
enormous extent as million dol
lars. said, why not?" 'Why
good Lord" he said, "see the taxes
we have to pay now? If we started
in at any such ticks as that how
long would it be before the county
and the ranchcrs too would be bust
ed? No, sir; keep out of debt,
say"
"Now,' ! saioi 'look here. How
many tons Of hay do you raise on All
average" He said. about 500
tons What does it cost you to
haul it to North Yakima" Two
dollars per ton" he said. what val
uation do YOU have to pay taxes on?"
Eight thousand dollars" he replied.
"You told me that YOU knew the diff
ference between hauling over good
roads and bad ones. Statistics show
that the difference averages Just
about one-half Now do you not
think that if you had straight ma
cadamized road to the station you
could get your nay delivered there
as easily for one dollar per ton, as
you can now for rwo dollars per
ton?" "Well," he said, Il don't
know. l would not be much sur
prised if could; but that don't
make any difference. | am down on
going head over heels in debt" I
said: THAT is all right enough, but
just let us figure a little and see how
this thing shows UP. You are now
assessed upon a valuation of eight
thousand dollars. Should these roads
be built your valuation would lie
raised, and it is possible and perhaps
probable that it will be increased to
twelve thousand dollars. Should the
county borrow a million dollars ut
five per cent for twenty years and
begin paying in ten years, pay off
the whole amount In ten equal an
nual payments, the entire cost to the
county, principal and interest, would
amount to seventeen hundred and fif-
ty thousand dollars | believe that
the average valuation of the county
for the next twenty years will be more
than fifty million dollars. but to be
sure to be on the safe side we will
estimate that the average valuation
of the county will be thirty-five mil
lion dollars. Now seventeen hundred
and fifty thousand dollars is just five
per cent of thirtS five millions. IF
you divide five per cent into twenty
parts each part vii be one-fourth of
one per cent or two and one-half
mills; which amount would have 70
be assessed against your property
every year for twenty years to pay
your share of the cost of the roads.
Two ana one-half mills upon a valua-
ton of twelve thousand dollars would
make tax of thirty dollars per year
and this repeated twenty times
would make Your share Of the cost
of the roads six hundred dollars. You
say that you could probably save one
uOtldl PEI ION On the cost OF naulln9
your hay. Ii this is 50 you would
save five hundred dollars per year and
in twenty years Your saving would
amount to twenty times five hundred
dollars, or ten thousand dollars, while
the total cost TO you would come to
only six hundred dollars, and as a
result YOU would gain nine thousand
four hundred dollars in the twenty
years through borrowing the money
to build the roads. Now don't it
look as though the business thing
10 do is TO build the roads? And does
it not sound a little whimsical, %
say that it is better to pay these
enormous losses than to get into
debt the amount that is necessary Is
secure these roads,"
My farmer friend was built like
good many other farmers and did not
all NIT that no yrac oil ,,+rann