The Virginia enterprise., 1911-08-04
General Welfare Clause Of Constitu-
ton Gives Congress Power to Build
Roads-Federai Aid Would Give
Mighty impetus to Road Building.
BY HOWARD n. GROSS.

terS. Sometimes the delivery has to
be abandoned for days at a time on
account of road conditions.
Why the roads should be SO bad the
country over, when nearly everybody
wants good roads is a strange
anomaly, and this unfortunate situa-
tion will probably continue until the
people approach the good roads prob
tenn from the right angle.
1t is tremendous undertaking to
gravel and macadamiZe the principal
highways of the country-it means
the building of 100000 or 100000
miles Of roads, and would cost be-
tween billion and a half to two bill
lion dollars, or from SIS to $40 for
every man, woman and child in the
land. This seems like colossal out
lay and it is, but the money could
not all be spent at once. 1t would
take probably twenty years to do it,,
so it would be at the rate of per-
haps one dollar per year per capita.
The department of agriculture esti-
mates that the actual saving to the
people by good roads would be at
lease $3.50 per person per year. II
this estimate is anywhere nearly cor
rect, and IT. probably is approximately
SO, then the saving TO the people alone
by good roads would pay for them in
five years time.
There is no fact better demonstrate
Cd in economics than that the build
ing OF good roads adds to property
values many times the cost and
brings social, educational and eco
nomic benefits that make the building
of roads the best paying investment
that any community or state can
make.
The question is, how ought his mat
ter to be handled? In the writer s
opinion the first duty is to the fed
eral government. 1t is high time for
it to get busy on this problem. The
money Uncle Sam raises is by indi-
rect taxation and this tax the people
scarcely feel and there is very little
complaint about it. 1t hurts us more
to pay one dollar as Il tax through
TO pay five times the amount by indi
rect taxation. Under the general wei
fare clause of the constitution, con
gress has the power to build roads
1t also has specific authority to do sc
for those roads used for rural deliv
cry, and these comprise nearly all
tn" main highways OF the country.
Suppose. then. we estimate an cX
penditure OF ST 800 900 900 to be made
upon highways, jointly by the nation
the state and the township or county
letting the federal government con
rating the money between the states
ON a joint basis of population and
road mileage. This would give state
like Illinois between $26,OO0,0O0 ant
$21 100000 The funds to be pro
vided for from time to time by long
time, low interest bonds. The tan
per capita to carry these bonds at
three per cent. when all are issued
would be about Is cents per year.
three car fares! Then let the state
pay one-third from a general tax levy
or, better still, by a bond issue. ant
one-third paid locally by the township
Ut is common practice for the state tt
contribute to road building under
what is popularity known as the state
aid plan-the townships have beer
doing the little that has been done
and doing it without help for man,
years. The new feature OF the prop
0sition is the federal contribution
for which there is ample authorit.
and for which there is Il preceden
and a paramount need.
Within the last few years there ha:
been a great hue and cry Throughout
the land for waterway improvement
conventions have been held and thu
demand made that the federal gov
ernmcnt contribute $500.00O,O0O tt
that end. at the rate Of 50.000.O00 ;
Year for ten years. The point th'
writer desires to make is that where
it is possible for one ton Of freigh
or produce to be carried 1y water
there would be thousands of ton
moved by wagon over the public high
ways, and that ii the amount o
money demanded for waterway i'm
provemenl We're applied to highways
it would be hundreds of times NOR
beneficial. and the benefits woul'
reach all of the people.
The government is using about 900
200 miles OF public roads for rura
mail delivery and these are pos
roads within the meaning OF the Con
Stitution. Congress has express pow
er to build and maintain post roads
and if it can build and maintain
hem it certainly could help to d
it.
The question may be asked whe1h
CIR a bond issue Of $500. 100000 for ali
in road building would be at ali haz
ardous BY referring to the state
ment of the treasury department. on
will find that the present bond issu
amounts to about $11 per capita, an'
the annual interest charge is 20 cents
The issue of $5O0.000.000 of bond
would carry the bond issue up to ap
proXimately SIG per capita and tn
interest charge to a cents. At tina
rate it would be the smallest bonde'
Indebtedness per capita of any of tn
leading countries of the world. A
against the SIG. Great Britain has ,