Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1909-12-17
THE GOOD ROADS PROBLEM.
ICedar Rapids Republican.

Governor Carroll has reopened the
subject of narrower roads in Iowa
These roads for the most part are sixty
six feet wide. Why they were made
so wide can not be accounted for I'M
less it is by the fact that at the time
they were made there was plenty of
land and to spare. But it is different
now. Land in Iowa is now worth 500
an acre on an average and it is still
going up. The extent of the roads in
Iowa is 100000 miles. There are SO0-
600 acres given up to roads. or one acre
in every fifty. Under these circum-
stances 1t is not at all to be wondered
at that talk of narrowing them should
be popular. Roads thirty three feet
wide would serve as well as roads six
ty-six feet wide. That would restore
to cultivation 100000 acres of land, or
s4o,000,0oO worth of lands. The income
of this land at the lowest estimate of
s12 an acre would amount to $4,000, 900
a year, out of which the whole state
government and most Of the county
governments could be amply supported
That we are wasting a lot of money is
very evident.
A few years ago William Larrabee,
jr., introduced such a bill in the Iowa
legislature. He was almost laughed
out Of hearing 1t was said that he was
young and presumptious and all that
But we believed then he was right and
we believe that such legislation is
bound to come in Iowa. The land is
too valuable to be allowed to lie idle
from one year to another.
Thara &c oratbar oo..;anr.4:.-
that is the fact that the roads Of Iowa,
for the larger part, are mere patches
of weeds. The unsightliness of many
agricultural pictures is in the roads
which are topheavy with weeds These
patches of weeds serve to scatter their
nuisance into all the adjoining fields.
The winds pick up the seeds and scat
ter them over the cultivated acres.
The roadways of the state are in short.
breeding grounds for weeds against
which the farmers have to struggle the
year round.
/ Knoxville Journal: Governor Carol
has found an issue which will insure
his reelection If he will make a Wig
orous campaign upon it. In a word it
is good roads" In Importance all
other subjects sink into triviality as
compared with it. Farmers, merchants
professional men. every class is vitality
interested in the subject and all are
studying and thinking about it as never
before. Business in iowa is stagnated
several months each year because of
bad roads. The merchants and farm
ers Of Iowa will lose enough money this
year of our Lord 1909 because of bad
roads to build a thousand miles of
permanent roads. Governor Carroll adj
vocates narrowing the roads of Iowa to
thirty-five feet. The further he gets
into the subject he will find that this
plan is practicable only on the basis of
the con instruction Of permanent roads.
1t should be borne in part by the ad-
jacent land and in part by the county
as whole The increase in value of
such farm lands and the value of the
land returned to cultivation by virtue
of making the roads narrower would
more than cover the necessary assess
ment upon the land to build perman-
ent roads. The county's share of the
cost should be taken care of by long
time bonds so that the cost may be
distributed over generations that will
profit by the improvement as much as
the present.