The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1909-02-04
tinnh Rturr 6lartrr
Issued Every IThursday by
ARTHUR %. MOE, Publisher.
ECONOMY ROAD BUILDING
METHODS,


The lack of interest taken by many
farmers in the question ot road I'm
provement has frequently been COM
mented upon by the press and by pd
yocgtes of good roads, says the GOOD
Roads Magazine.
The people who live on the farms
sIa to Ee benefited most by system
of highways that will afford an opp or
tunity for them to market their pro
duse easily at any time ot the year
hat will permit the children to attend d
sbaool regularly, aud allow the family
the social advantages of the neighbor'
holl. And, yet, it has been found
that when such farmers are not open
ly hostile to road improvement prop
ositions, they are often insenslble to
their Importance to themselves per
sonally.
While such opposition to ones self
interes. is always surprising, it is one
Of the most common traits OF human
character, and instances by the score
oeuld be cited from history to illus
trate how people have had to have
benefiicent legislation thrust upon
thom because they have apparently
preferred no bread at all instead OF
half loaf.
At the present time, in many differ
ent localities and for such variety ui
reasons that they must be oollated
under the general head of undue CON
servatism, there is opposition among
the ruralists to the very measures in
tended for their benefit. In illustra-
tion, a current instance may be cited
1t is proposed to build a cross state
load from Philadelphia TO Pittsburg
In the State of Pennsylvania. East to
west is the "long way" OF the state
and such a road would form, ultimate
ly, the spine for complete trunk
system of highways. All the states
which have progressed far in the con
struction of improved roads have
learned, ut the cost OF considerable
amounts of public money, that roads
that begin nowhere aud end nowhere
are not an economical investment,
and they are iuauguarting, therefore,
systems of connected routes. 1t may
be stated parenthetieally, that to &C.
euro the largest beketlts from their
improved roads, the progressive New
England states now propose a system
connecting their entire inter state
territory. There was vociferous OBJ
lection, however, to the plan proposed
for the state of Pennsylvania at the
rocent meeting OF the State Grange.
Ono speaker declared: "the judioious
aud economical construction and
maintenance of these roads must be
by the local supervisors and they
should have the expending of the
townships share OF the state road ap-
preparation.
FOR great many centuries prior to
the discovery of this hemisphere, the
psople believed that the earth was
fiat, but there are few who hold that
iaea today. Sc, for several genera
tions it has been believed that local
supervisors could build and maintain
highways but that idea has been ex-
ploded by costly experiment, and
progressive communities everywhere
are abandoning 1t in favor OF the
business like system which places the
construction and maintenance OF the
highways under an intelligent and Ie-
sponsible management.
1t would be Impertinent for this
magazine to advocate any particular
scheme Of road improvement for the
state OF Pennsylvania or any other
state, but 1t is within the province Of
every citizen to urge practical busi-
ness eoomnoy In the expenditure OF
public funds, and TO recommend the
centralized organization OF highway
departments and the adoption Of trunk
line systems in place of the inefficient
local supervision and the hap hazard
method of building short stretches OF
road, is to urge merely the applioa'
tion of common sense principles in a
matter involving vast expenditures OF
1nOnau