Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1911-03-29
WHY. NOT ACT NOW

"
WHY. NOT ACT NoW'
Why do not the legislators appeal
10 their own knowledge of the situa-
ton when they come to deal With
the problems Of Iowa?
Mr.. Lingemelter puts 1t in q nut
shell when he says. speaking from
the standpoint Of the farmer;
School privileges In most locatitiss
do not 90 beyond the slohth Grade.
and II the farmer desires 70 further
educate his. children no must either
send them to town or city and trust
chem 70 look after themselves Or II
unwilling to do thie no must either
deny them further education or else
take bis family and mevs to the town
or city.
Social privileges OF any kind are
few for the farmer and his family.
Bad roads, often Indictment weather.
and The distances % be Travelled
makes the gathering Of The psople
In rural districts moro often u hard
ship than 4 pieasurs, consequently
many Of these must be passed by.
The legislator knows that men Of
means and ambition are not going
to stay on the farm in Iowa under
present conditions He Knows that
they are leaving the farm in his
own county and will continue to
leave 1t.
On the other hand, he knows that
in the east, where good roads and
good schools are the rule, that
wealthy men are leaving the city to
live in the country.
He can name the men In every
city In the state that today would
20 out ten or twelve miles to live II
they could have as good as town
Graded school for their children and
IS good as city street to. come to
town over.
4 Neither the roads nor the schools
4 are all experiment. They are moi
in untried thing. They have both
,ome in the eastern states.
With New York and Pennsylvania
:ssuing $50. O0O,O 900 in bonds 4 each
for good roads IS there not some
thing to put she western states OF
4 inquiry? Minnesota is acting. Why
d Indiana and OHIO have both o.
them SC generally adopted the grad
ed central school for the county tina
the little school rouse Of the from
liter is almost unknown. The farmer
u either state has as good school Ia
cilitles within reach Of his farm al
he would get in the county seat. Il
is not an experiment; II 4 a proved
SUCCESS.
And neither good reads nor goot
schools vii, add one dpllar to thu
taxes Of Iowa.
| There Is not member Of the leg
islature but knows that the nearl,
/ 81, 900, 900 Iowa today expends O
roads, would, II properly handled
lgive to the state within a short tim.
as good roads as the paved streets o
the city.
j If anybody should propose to issu,
bonds for 100000 900 in Iowa 70
good roads he would be consddere,
insane. And yet in the next fiv
Years Iowa will expend more thai
$20. 100000 on roads, and the road
Will not be. under present manage
ment, one whit better than they ar
today.
The money Iowa H. Impending o
! roads and schools would make cour
try life the most attractive life 4
this great Mississippi valley II It wa
rightly used. Every member Of th
Legislature, is convinced Of this ii
his own mind. But II all involves
change in the way Of doing thing
and 1t is easier to go along in tn
old rut.
Every member Of the legislatur
is satisfied In his own mind that wit
good schools and good roads the ii
creased value Of land would mnc
more than offset the cost Twenty
five dollars an acre for these i'm
provements would mean $50 an, acr
in selling value. Land that on ma
roads and with the little old schoc
house Of the frontier is worth $40
an acre would be selling for SIS
an acre.
It is waste Of time to quite
along with the halfway measure
that we have been debating fror
year to yeear. They mean nothing.
\. Why not do something as De
Moines did when II changed its gov
ernment-all get together and max
a reform that will be noted the worl
over a real reform that viii make
garden spot Of Iowa, where, instea
OF hunting reasons for leaving tn
country we, shall be hunting tn
money to move into the country.
Iowa is going to be the garde
spot Of the world some day. VIII
not begin now to do the things any
body can see must be done? VIII
not signalize by starting Iowa cour
tryward?-Register and Leader.
HARDY cATALPAs FOR IOWA.
That the hardy catalpa is one 9
the best fence post trees that can b
grown in Iowa. IL the conclusio
reached by the Iowa Experiment Sts
ton. Eighteen year old trees tha
fhave been properly cared for wi