The Green Forest tribune., 1911-09-22
A Circular from
 Hon. r. F. Freeman
To the Democracy Of the Third Con-
 gressionai District.

l term expires, have filled the office eight years. He has drawn over $50,0 in salary, which is as much as has here tofore been paid a Congressman for ten years service. 1 am not lawyer, but a practical business man, and hav- ing spent my boyhood days on farm, I know the needs of our people.
 All the C0ngressmen from Arkansas are lawyers, and, while l have no fight to make on that useful profession, 1 maintain that it would be better for the country if there were more farmers and business men in Congress. What the country needs in public lifeis fewer orators and more workers. The daily expenses of both houses of Congress are over $20, 900 day, and, as the working time is only about four hours long, when one of our Congressmen makes a speech of one hour it costs the taxpayer S5, 900. These speeches are often made for the sole purpose of bolstering Up the members chances for reelection, and gre sent out to the voters as government documents, free of postage, but at the expense of the tax payer, as the railroads charge for hauling them. According to the R. F. D. News" published at Washing ton, D. C., it is estimated that each piece of mail-matter that is sent out under government frank costs , l2 cents. So If cur Congressman makes a speech of enc hour in length and mails a copy to each of the 40, GOO voters in the district, tie cost to the taxpayer of the country is over $7, 200 am opposed to the abuse of the frank ing previlege, and to the waste of valuable time in useless debate.
 The greatest need of our counCry at this time is good roads, and cur Con- gressmen have done nothing to secure them for US, Good roads mean more for our people than any other public work, and add more to the comfort and upbuilding of the country. Govern ment statistics tell us that we have the worst roads of any civilized country on earth, and that 1t costs our farmers l fifteen cents more to haul one ton one mile than it costs in European coun- t1ies. The average haul of ton of farm pradHcts is nine miles, and this difference of fifteen cents a ton mile represents an additional cost of $1 35 for every wagonioad hauled to market. 1 believe the United States government should go into road building by con- tributing it's share toward maintaining the roads Of the eoqptry for rural mail routes: Al sf our great Constitutional authorities agree tHat Congress has the power to give this aid, for it would be no more than return to the practice of our fathers, which resulted in the building of the Old Cumberland Road as long ago as l840.
 Congress has gwen to to the rail- roads over 00,O00,0G0 acres of land and has appropriated for rivers and harbors $592, 600, 900 since 1875, large part of which has been wasted, and has spent oyer s8,00O,Q00 for road building in Porto Rico, Panama, A. aska and the Philippines, but not one cent in the United States except in the National Pa,a',s The cost of a modern battleship is over $4, 000, ,000, which in q few years becomes obsolete, to be sold as funk for few thousand dol lars. Think what S4, 900, 900 would do for road improvements n Arkansas. 1t is estimated that the people qf this state contribute over 0,000,0O0 an nually to the support of the general government, very small portion Of which is spent in this state. l am 8 believer in good roads, and if elected to Congress will work heart and soul for Government aid for our public high ways.
 The Government has spent millions for irragation in the West, and l shall ask for national aid in the develop ment of the water power from our mountain streams for the use of our people, shall try also to bring about closer cooperation between our people and the Department of Agriculture and the Bureau of Mines, that the re- sources of Northwest Arkansas may be more fully developed.
 Uta,-,,oi,,or ap6 alxuouc will bo ka biggest business of this country. The farmers do not get as much as they should for their products. According to government reports, the producer receives only 46c for the farm products for which the consumer pays one dol lar 1 shall work to bring about closer l cooperation in marketing fruit, vege | tables, grain and other farm products, and hope to see the day when the neighborhood market-house, canning factory and cold storage plant will be as important and popular in America life as the country schoolhouse. If the government will aid in giving the far mer the proper share of the fruits of his work, so that he will be able to buy for himself the things which make his farm home the best for his family and himself, then it will be attempting something well worth while. Let us teach cooperative buying in the pur- chase of supplies and cooperative sell ing in marketing the products of the farm.
 ! I have been a lifelong Democrat and