The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1911-08-19
Good Roads.

Good Roads.
That the question of good roads is
one which affects the man in the
city as well as the man in the
country, is now generally recognized,
says the New Orleans Picayune
Furthermore, it follows as a natural
sequence that the cost of transpor-
tation is borne ultimately by the
consumer.
State Geologist w. O. Hotchkiss,
OF Wisconsin tells how one farmer
OF that state became a believer in
good roads. This man had thou
sand bushels of potatoes in the eel
lar which he was holding for a good
price. An offer of 80 cents came
in March, but, as he expressed it,
the roads were so bad that the only
way he could get to town was by
telephone. OF course, the roads fin
ally dried out, and then he secured
30 cents bushel for his potatoes.
Hence, rightly he assumed that bad
roads had cost him something over
$500, and he likewise figured that
It all the main roads in the country
had been improved, his share would
nave been as much as the loss on
his crop of potatoes. Mr.. Hotchkiss
sums up the situation very concise
ly in this sentence: ssGood roads
benefit US at every turn, and bad
roads are an extravaganza that no
people can afford =
There is a goodly amount of dis
cussion just now in Washington, D.
G. regarding the memorial to be
erected to Abraham Lincoln. Many
dissent from the proposition of a
s2,000,000 arch, and one well known
Washington business man, Thos. P.
Hickman, recently made this state
ment:
This country is destined to be
come q nation Of automobi biiisfs. he
time IS &C onafI1s W hen a coinIns1 nifty
to be prospsrou
in good roads. BY building pike
between Washington and Gettysburg,
thousands of persons would make
use of it every year. Not only
would the automobilists be benefited,
but also the inhabitants of every
county through which the highway
would pass.
From all over the country come
undoubted indications Of a belief
that the federal government should
be involved in the construction and
maintenance of interstate highways,
Congressman Borland, Of Missouri,
very concisely stated the exact sit
uation in these words:
81 insist that if the policy of in
ternal Improvements, which has be-
come a settled policy of the govern
ment, is to continue, then the high
ways of the country shall share in
that system as constituting a vital
part thereof, and as such be en-
titled to a square deal. AS public
highways they constitute a vital
place in transportation, and, belong
ing to the public, they should be
constructed and maintained by the
public
The National Good Roads Board
which is interesting itself in general
highway improvement throughout the
country, is cooperating with all or
ganizations interested in the subject.
President Robert P. Hooper, of the
American Automobile Association,
meets the assertion that the board
is largely composed of automOblllsts,
by this pertinent comment:
ssAs the most insistent users of
the road, it is our duty to aid in
highway improvement to the full
est extent of our ability, and we
look upon the work as a simple
duty which is expected of us. 1t is
plainly apparent that we consider
the motor-driven vehicle as essen
tia1 to the man in the country as
it is to the urban resident: in fact
we look forward to an early period
when every farm will have an auto
mobile just as it must have farm
machinery and other equipment 70
carry on it's work. To journey
quickly from farm to town and nome
is desirable to the man in the cOu1l-
trg. for time is something in winch
he. too. can economic. It certainly
is also essential that the road small
be properly. constructed and ell
cient]y maintained. We ask little
or none of the credit for securing
improved highways, but our thirty:
nine state bodies and 300 clubs ano
thousands Of members do not De
sire To he considered backward IN
meeting the duty which, by com
mon consent, has deyoiVed upoi
them.
a Cold