The St. Lucie County tribune. (Fort Pierce, St. Lucie County, Fla.) 1905-1920, 1909-02-12
BONDING
ITO THE FRONT
Y. T. Lame Again Presents His
Denials and Assertions
CONTINUE OLD METHOD
You'd Defeat the Bond Issue and Con.
tinue Paying Special Tax and Thinks
We Would Have Good Roads.
d Sebastian, Fla, Feb. 8, 1909.

Sebastian, Fla, Feb. 8, 1909.
ditor TRIBUNE:
! have written your paper twice ar
hing against bonding st. Lucie county
br $l50,000 to build hard surfaced
Dads under the present bonding law.
In my first article claimed that my
atements were approximately correct.
When | wrote my second article, and
fter reading your editorial comments
nd Mr.. Hardee's criticisms, found no
bason to recede from any statement
my first article. | am now writing
" third article, and, after reading
bur comments on my second article,
i'll claim approximate correctness of
" original statements.
want to refer to the rock road at
tuart which | said cost 81 1000 per mile
hd ! will give figures from authority
hish no one can discredit to prove
lat am correct.
John Sewell says: "More than So, 600
as expended on the road at Stuart. I"
he people of Stuart contributed 81, 200.
low add the interest on $1,000 at
er cent for years $3.50, and you
hve a total of Sill, 700, for three miles
road-Rock laid on sand. Now add
he quarry expenses, which no one
eems to know, and you will find my
900 per mile statement very con-
1rvative estimate.
III said that the cost of roads con-
Eructed in Dade is approximately 49,
20 per mile. Let US take the figures
Id see if / am right or wrong.
THE public buildings and road bonds
|ere voted in 1898 and sold in 1901,
BID Mr.. Sewell says: "Road building
>mmenced all over the county" Note
De money expended on roads by the
bunty in s years. Bonds, 500, 600;
5terest on bond 8 years at per cent,
q, 900; donated by citizens, 2,620;
bnated by Mr.. Flagler, special train
hulng rock for % miles of road free,
3, 400, aggregate. $424, 1926.
Take $50 miles of road constructed
Dade since 1901, which | admit only
pr argument sake, and you have ST.
25, as the average cost per mile for
Do miles of road and the majority of
bis road is rock laid on rock founda-
ion, and from Fort Lauderdale south
be rock lay along the line of road.
lr. Sewell says: From Lauderdale
buth being rocky country we could
ben pit any where we wanted along
be right of way" Use Mr.. Sewells
xact words. If you will add interest !
b $780, 900 for 20 years, which is per-
ectly fair to do, as that interest is
hrt of the cost of road construction
bu will have a result which is very
bar the figure I originally named.
bdeed ! may safely claim that am
light, or as near right as it is possible
5 be for John Sewell says: 'No man
hder the sun knows what the roads
bst." So you see Mr.. Editor, | am
BIT denying "because / am ignorant of
bnditions in Dade county, 49,.
am very frank to say: ! should
ever have referred to operations and
esults in Dade county in this discussion
the advocates of bonding St. .Lucie
|ad not so presistently presented Dade
pnnty as an example for the tax pay
fs Of this county to follow. And am
urprised that advocates of bonding
ave not discovered that Dade has not
|uilt her roads with bond money only
1 very small part. Where Dade ex-
ended one dollar of bond money she
expended more than three dollars
aised by taxes and contributed by
generous public spirited citizens.
But l said Dade county had 80 miles
I made road as a result Of bonding
ohm Sewell estimates bridges and
Machinery purchased and claims 62
niles so will not dispute with you
bout difference of two miles.
/ claimed less than $50 miles of hard
urfaced rock roads constructed in
)ade. III tki AZ
Let US look at that denial. The
ounty commissioners of Dade say they
ave 2O3 miles of public roads.
From Palm Beach to Stuart there is
"a miles to be built-from south of
iiami down through the homestead
ountry there is about 40 miles to be
uilt. Deduct these two gaps from
O3 and you have l26 miles only that is
ocked. And if you take Mr.. Sewell's
tatement that when he went out of office
here was so miles constructed. ]
mink may safely stand by this denial.
The advocates of bonding St. Lucie
ounty say: "This is a business propo-
tion." / agree with them. But,
very good business man notes the
,ethods and results of every success.
III business man in the same line and
rofits by what he learns, and the re-
erse is true: He notes methods which
esult in failure and avoids them.
The logic is this: Dade county bond.
for 800, 900 and raised by tax and
onation 1924, 1926, and secured good
Dads in part. Dade wants to complete
or system, but after experience with