Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1910-02-05
FIRST, THE EARTH ROAD.

In his paper on "The Earth Road"
before the Good Roads convention In
this city, Prof. Richard r. Lyman Of
the University of Utah. made the
novel assertion that good roads arc "a
source of education, prosperity and
pleasure" But the professor proceeds
at once to prove these points
Good roads. he argues, contribute to
education because good roads will
make 1t easy for boys and girls to get
to the grade schools, and young men
and young women to the high schools
at all seasons of the year. prosperity.
because. farm products can be put on
the market when the price is highest.
and teams can be used proftably at
other work when they cannot bc used
on tho farm: pleasure, because of the
comfort with which, at all times.
those in the country can travel. thus
making 1t possible to have and enjoy
the many social advantages offered
In the club. the church. and the neigh
boris home"
We have only to SEQ the argument
to admit its force and proprIety. AS
Dryden says of truth:
Truth has such face and such
mien.
AS to be loved needs only to be seem"
So we can say of the plea for good
roads, that it Is simply una1swerable."
Prof. Lyman does not believe that
denly bring into existence a fine sys-
tenn of we'll made and well maintained
highways
ut may be we'll" he says. "in the
imagination. to picture hard roads
leading everywhere, but. advocating
their construction at once and work
ing ever so vigorously to this end. will
probobly delay rather than advance
this work. for the reason that the
cost of their maintenance is such that,
IL these roads were already constructed,
1t would be impossible in this state at
present to keep them in good condi-
ton"
This will be a fact that the men
with money and with automobiles Will
have to consider. Just now they are
conducting a vigorous campaign in the
interest OF hard roads-and in so do
Ing, they may defeat their own cause
now as they have done In the past.
when the hard-road enthusiasm be-
gan to tell the farmer how much it
cost him to haul his produce to mar
ket," says Professor Baker, "and how
much he could save by the construc-
ton OF hard roads, he knew instlnc-
lively that the conclusions We're ridic-
ulous, and the continual harping upon
the false statistics and absurd esti-
mates led him to believe that an at
tempt was being made to force hard
roads upon him, whether or no, and
his attitude changed from one of In
difference to one of open hostility to all
road Improvement. Unless a commu-
nifty Is willing and able to maintain
tho earth roads i'll a reasonably good
condition, it Is useless to expect that
1t will be willing or able to support
high class wagon road: and therefore,
the dissemination OF correct informa-
ton concerning the construction and
care OF earth roads is politically, econ
omicaly. and physically the first step
towards a better form of construction"
The good earth road IS smooth, dry
and hard. and we'll protected from wa
ter. Our dry climate favors the pre-
servation OF we'll made and we'll
drained earth roads.
Lot us take the first step and then
undertake the making of hard roads In
the long distances that separate our
towns and cities.