The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1911-11-24

WMlNN use address nearest yOu.,
this set OF questions prepared by Mr..
Palmer wrote letters to him, giving
him their opinions of the graveled
roads All seemed to be in favor OF
the graveled highway.
H. w. Thomson, engineer from
Green county, Iowa, was in Mime
/ apolis recently to advise in the Pub
! licity clubs good roads movement,
and expressed himself as strongly in
favor of graveled roads. In part he
said: Good roads have proven a
boon to farmers of Green county.
Today they are able to communicate
with their neighbOrs, and to haul
grain and produce with ease. We
consider the county a demonstration
of the betterment Of a community
by good roads. We have utilized an
unlimited supply of gravel to pro-
duce this result, at maximum cost
to make good roads at 5000 mile,
and minimum of 5000.
Will Issue Bulletins.
At this meeting in Minneapolis the
good roads committee decided to
! issue bulletins at frequent intervals
to be sent to all club members, show.
/ ing progress of the clubs good roads
work
Mr.. Thomson further stated: Much
money is wasted in dragging roads at
the wrong time. The time to drag a
road is when the soil is saturated,
otherwise the work is but useless
waste of time and labor.
"In Green county, the farmers
along certain highway are re-
spOnsible for two miles each. After
! rain storm each farmer gets out
before the road commissioner arrives,
and drags his two miles of road
surface. Under this system ruts made
when the road top is soft are filled
in, chucks disappear, and when the
sun comes out the road hardens
again and it is none the worse for
! the storm. Every road should be
I crowned. A fiat surface spells trouble.
What Good Roads Mean.
I'VE have found in Green county
that good roads have meant much
to the farmer. Green county is
essentially farming community. No
towns i'm the county are much over
$500 population, but the roads have
proved a boon to the farmers in
reaching these towns and cities with
their products.
1--WE have used gravel in Green
county because there is an unlimited
supply of excellent road building
gravel at hand"
| That the good roads movement is
taking hold in Mankato and vicinity
is shown by the numerous letters
George M. Palmer has received since
, his campaign for this movement.
After his speech at the celebration
at Madison Lake, he has received
/ the best wishes of a number of
citizens at Madison Lake, and in
directly as result of his speech,
! active work along this line is being
considered.
Enjoyed Mr. PaImer's Speech.
| The following letter from one of
the leading merchants Of Madison
Lake was recently received by Mr..
Palmer and reads as follows:
Il enjoyed your speech on good
roads, and | am sure from all
have heard said about it by the
! farmers that it will do a good work
among them, and now | am in favor
of starting the graveling of the road
east of here as soon as they get their
| fall work done, for it will not be
SO hard to get them at it, now that
they are interested. This reminds me
that we should get right after the
sanding of the road east to Faribault,
and to Northtield. | believe this can
be done this winter, as nearly all
the material will be taken from the
sand hills, that can be worked i'll
winter when the farmers have time.
IF you could go with us to the
towns between here and Faribault
and urge the necessity of cOncen-
trated effort at once, to make this a
state road, ] think the towns would
all take hold of it and push it right
along. My idea would be to get the
Mankato club and our own to so
together with several persons that
are Interested, and see the business
men Of these towns"
From PIainview comes the request
that ''the man from Blue Earth
county who spoke on good roads
at the Conservation congress at st.
Paul March, 1910, should go to
Plainview to make a speech. This, of
course, was Mr.. Palmer. The writer
of this misSive is rather amusing in
his request. He had heard about the
good roads speech delivered at the
Conservation congress but did not
know who delivered it, and has been
writing for information so as to find
this person. Blue Earth county lis
becoming well-known for its many
good roads advocaters.
Madison Lake Interested.
j. M. Barclay, of Madison Lake
writes that the Commercial club
has appointed committee, of which
he is chairman, to begin operations
on the continuation of the graveled
road to the county line and to get
it graveled, if possible for a distance
of three miles during the winter.
This committee has been instructed