The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-07-26
LETTER CARRIERS
 FOR GOOD ROADS Association Takes Up Move
 ment Very Actively
EXPERTS MAKE SPEECHES
Offer Is Made By Representatives of Government to Send An Expert to DadeviIle to Aid the Farmers In
 Making Good Roads.


 Dadeville. July 25.-(Special 1.-The Talla- poosa Letter Carriers association met here yesterday in the interest of the good roads movement, and at the conclusion of the meeting an association was formed for the purpose of improving the high ways in this county. R. H. Carlisle of Alexander City. president of the Tala- poosa Rural Letter Carriers association, and vice president of the state associa- ton, presided over the meeting
 Through the efforts of the Good Roads association D. H. Winslow, one of the three national supervisors of construc- tion of good roads under the depart ment of agriculture at Washington, D. C., was present and addressed the meeting MT. Winslow stated that the United States was young and consequently had the poorest roads of any nation in the world. Alabama has three counties that take the lead in good improved roads, Pike, Montgomery and Jefferson. The latter county is in thel cad with over 220 miles of macadamized roads and more under construction.
 fallapoosa county needs organization, a developed system and a county engineer to plan road improvement.
 The advantage of contract system is that the roads can be uniformly con- structed under the supervision of an ex- pert employed by the county Then all roads can be graded, hollows filled in, hills leveled and a drainage system in stalled. It Is customary for counties to have the department expert come and su- pervise the work, lecture and give the farmers actual demonstrations in the use of labor saving road tools, also tho care and maintenance of roads, This expert often builds specimen roads in various parts of county in order that the good effects may be seen. MT. Winslow next gave statistics showing that the United States spent s37 per mile on our roads an- nually. With higher values, less roads and greater proportionate population, England spends $860 per mile on roads annually. He also discussed in an in teresting manner the various problems of drainage, grading and choice of road making material.
 Our department at Washington will test all road-making materials free and you have but to send samples of clay, sand, gravel rock or any material, such as oil for dressing roads or wooden blocks for paving and our experts will test 1t free," said the expert. In dis cussing the most practical road for the agricultural counties of Alabama the sand clay road, well drained and highest in the middle was commended, though where gravel or stone could be easily obtained they were superior
 The expert conducted 8 discussion and answered questions asked by those pres ent and declared that it was unusual to find the county officials and taxpayers in so hearty accord.
 State Vice President Carlisle introduced Howard c. Smith, a soil scientist who surveyed Jefferson county last summer and who has recently completed sur vey of Tallapoosa county. In part Sur veyor Smith said. q can cheerfully sub scribe to MT. winslow's good words about Alabama roads for have surveyed over 200 miles of the best macadamized roads in the state in Jefferson county.
 "In my survey here I have noted the progress of the farmers in having so conn plete a rural telephone and delivery sys- tenn and the great interest taken by all in matters of agricultural advancement. and public questions and in this great audience feel there Is not one who does not desire to better thf HOO miles of county roads.
 "I have found your soils fertile and capable of producing the widest range of tpo fr11c fruit pecially peaches. This county is only 100 miles from that great southern steel metropolis Birmingham. There have been mapped several thousand acres of the chiocest fruit lands and trucking soils. There is no reason why this coun- ty should not send thousands of dollars worth of truck and fruit to other mar kets and as soon as smooth roads are built to your railroads the county will be more quickly accessible to the rail- road and a new epoch of industry started. Good roads cause easy travel. moro com n1erce, increased activity, more pleasure in farm life, pleasanter social environ ment, higher plans of rural life and a closer touch between city and farm.
 .From having completed several months' test of your 7So square miles of fertile soil have no hestitation in saying that this county has all the road build ing material within its limits that it needs. There are certain soils that naturally make good roads, road is often merely a strip of soil traversed mankind and according to the nature of the soils will be the character of the roads. You have excellent soils here for road material and all that Is needed is the master touch of labor, capital and skill to make a good county system of roads. There is needed labor-saving machinery, and certain amount of systematic demonstra- tion work of an educational nature before your road problem will De solved. Let off, .-.als visit Lee county with its excellent system, likewise Pike and Montgomery counties and Jefferson, the banner county for macadamized roads in the state, and apply the lessons learned by these coun- ties in the hard school of experience"
 The surveyor next spoke of the prog ress of road work In Georgia and the zeal shown in the cause of good roads by